These are some of the activities and hot spots 18 "ambassadors" from Costa Rica hit during their two weeks in the United States. They are members of Friendship Force International, a group that arranges exchanges and home stays between families in 56 countries and 41 states. It’s like finally getting to be the foreign exchange student you wanted to be in high school, but as an adult.

By the time the farewell dinner was held in the dining hall at Hedding Campground in Epping on July 13, the group of mostly retired teachers and nurses from Turrialba, Costa Rica, a small town southeast of the capital city of San Jose, had been touring the Seacoast for a week, following a weeklong stint in Hartford, Conn. Those participating stayed in the homes of families in the Seacoast Club of Friendship Force, experiencing what it’s like to live like a New Englander.

Ellen Simmonds of Rye is president of the Seacoast Club and has been a host and an ambassador (traveler) in the group, which has been in the area for 17 years.

"Seeing how other people live means seeing what they want us to see," says Simmonds. "These people are not tourists, they want to go to yard sales and see our basements because they don’t have basements. They want to spend their time with their feet under the table of a typical American family. They want to eat lobster."

Bob and Dorie Sterndale of Madbury hosted Victor and Ana Ma Vega. Victor Ma Vega, a retired elementary school principal has an electronic pocket translator, but most of the Costa Ricans don’t speak English, and only a few of the Seacoast host families get by with only a few phrases of Spanish.

"We get by with hand gestures and a dictionary," says Dorie Sternberg. "And there’s a lot of laughing."

Communication is a key goal of the group, but it can be problematic. Simmonds recalls a trip to Russia. "Every morning I was told I was going on an execution. I finally told my host that it’s actually called an "excursion." We had a good laugh at that one."

Founded by former President Jimmy Carter and Wayne Smith 27 years ago, the organization’s mission is "to create an environment in which personal friendships are established across barriers that separate people."

Communication is one of those barriers. Another is the visitor’s perception of the host country. Before coming to America, Ma Vega had preconceptions about the United States.

"Life is very different here than what I thought. The people are nicer than I thought and there is more peace than I expected."

He uses his electronic translator to find the words to say, "My wife has been brainwashed by too much shopping."

Wife Ana shows off her fancy manicure and says that she’s bought a lot of clothes and shoes and wants to find some Estee Lauder perfume.

Expectations of the hosts can differ as well. Chris Deutsch of Dover was host to Noemy Coto, another retired teacher.

"I like having people of other nationalities in my home," she says. "But sometimes you think they’re going to think like you do but they don’t always. Noemy told me right from the start that she didn’t want to learn English. She had no interest. And when we had a Russian exchange they were mostly businessmen who seemed to be looking for goods to bring back to their country."

The group also exchanges inter-continentally. "Since 9/11 people don’t want to travel internationally as much," says Simmonds. "We had a group from Florida here a few exchanges ago and we were surprised (although we shouldn’t have been) to find that they were all senior citizens. We had all these activities planned that they obviously couldn’t do. Every group has its surprises."

Simmonds says that a very popular destination request from foreign clubs is to go to Des Moines, Iowa. The perception of what goes on in middle America as how we all live is pervasive in other countries.

"That’s the whole idea. You’re in real America, not some tourist version of it, and the people in the clubs are looking for that. But the clubs can be very different in their approach to hosting. We’re a pretty quiet club here. When I’ve been in other countries like Brazil the hosting club had us out until 2 a.m. partying. Some of the activities and entertainment is very impressive. I think that the group from Costa Rica might find us a bit tame after the time they had in Hartford from what I’ve heard."

The entertainment at the farewell dinner is presented by a group called UNH Marine Docents, which performs sea chanties. The performers offer old standards like "What shall I do with a drunken sailor" and club translator Jack Clinton tries to explain some of the phrases like "blow the man down."

It's hard to tell what the visitors think about the songs, but they begin to sway and try to sing along.

The Seacoast club has an upcoming trip to Heredia in Costa Rica in February of 2005 and ambassadors from Berlin will be coming to our area in fall 2005. Because the group is international a member of any local club can tag along with another club for an exchange. If you speak the language of the traveling club any exchange is possible, including one in October from New York to St. Petersburg, Russia where ambassadors will visit and bring donations to an orphanage while staying in a local Russian home.

Ambassadors usually travel in groups of about 20 and pay for the cost of airfare and incidentals, but not for the stay in the home of the host.

"Some club members never travel, they just host. Or you can just sponsor a dinner or activity as a member and never travel or host." says Simmonds. "There are even "Trips to Nowhere." These are all about faces, not places. A few weeks before you leave you’re told where you’re going. It doesn’t matter where you go, it only matters how you interacted with them and their customs and traditions." says Simmonds.

As the hosts and ambassadors clapped to the Sea Chanties, the friends from Costa Rica waved colored cloths in the air. They were going back home in two days after one more night activity where they would bring music of their country and dance, showing the Seacoasters their own version of celebration and farewell.