Banana Fo Fana

So my experiences with bananas and companies is limited at this point, I will focus on what has been presented to me since entering Costa Rica. The types of bananas are all around me, all the time. For breakfast, lunch and dinner, I have fried plantains and cut bananas which are delicious. It seems that to have a banana tree at a business is a sign of status for a company, or at least adds to the esthetic value outside.
As for the industry, used as a food, it is very good and tastes the same as it does in the states, if not better. The difference that I can only find is the quality of the peel. In the US, stores only seems to stock yellow/green peels with no bruises, but here the peel is a darker yellow with a very ripe brown coming out. I’m not sure what attribute this to (either more pesticides or hybrid plants?) All I can say though is that it is still a cheap and delicious plant which can be eaten any time.
Other products which I have run into have been dried plantains at roadside stops, which I have yet to venture to taste. But again this just drives home the idea that this is just a cheap sweet treat which is sold here. A better update should come after a visit to the banana plantations.

And on Your Left...

Being in Costa Rica now for two weeks, it has become apparent that the focus of all tourism in this country is eco tourism. This type of tourism is meant to take a person to exotic, ecologically diverse and beautiful landscapes to imprint the idea that our environment is very fragile. This should leave the idea that we must make changes to save the environment. The problem I have with this type of travel is that it generally hurts the environment or changes it.
What I mean by this is that, through our travels, we have been to private forests on nationally protected ones, which great lengths have been taken to ensure the stability of the environment, but human interference is still evident. In the cloud forest, which was visited by our class this past weekend, we first traveled through a private forest which zip lines have been set up all over the forest to provide a type of canopy tour to show the awesomeness of the rain forest. Though this is one of the best experiences that I have ever had, many paths and lines had to be erected to make travel through the jungle much easier for the customers. Also when the opportunity arose for some of my classmates, they would often reach out and grab leaves of trees for some odd reason. Though these all seem minor, with no effect, it all adds up to problems which could damage a fragile environment.
The national forest we visited was much safer environmentally, we were not allowed to use flash photography or take stuff from the forest, but it was apparent that damage still occurred. To tour the forest, paths were built, trees cut and streams diverted through pipes. This all impacts the overall quality of a forest, because it allows for human interference to come into an environment which has to have interferences on the wildlife and plant systems. It could also be seen that there were instances of litter being left in the forest and on the borders of it, which pose their own risk.
Outside these instances, when we visited Manuel Antonio, humans going to view wildlife have pushed our civilization to the edge of the animals, which ours will undoubtedly win. The dangers there were shown in the road, which numerous carcasses of animals were there (one which appeared to be of a monkey). Our modes of transportation are no match for frail animals. Again there is the issue of pollution, which trash was all over the beach and side of the road.
I believe that eco tourism holds an important aspect in educating the public about our ecosystems, but we must set barriers for ourselves to ensure that we don’t destroy or hurt what we came to see. I admit that my observations, the easiest solution would be to eliminate our exposure and protect completely the environment. An easier solution would be to find less invasive ways of seeing the plants and animals. Again a problem arises about cost, which I recognize Costa Rica is not a rich country and to attract many people here aids a lot of aspects of the society (small business, hotels, and travel companies) but they also must proactive in protecting as much as they show.
Ultimately the solution to the problems lies in those visiting, trying to find the least invasive ways in seeing the ecology. We must not litter and be mindful of the species that are in the areas that are visited. Also make sure that money that is spent goes to the locals and to the sustainability of the environment that is focus of the trip. I try to ensure that at least I don’t leave an impact on places I visit, following the idea of the Boy Scouts, leaving things better then when you arrived.

Coffea Arabica

Following the required post for coffee, last week the second coffee plantation we visited was Café Britt. This was a large scale corperation who actually does not grow the majority of their own coffee but buys it from smaller growers in specific regions, all over Costa Rica. This differs from the other plantation that we visited because of its sheer size and the fact that it does not grow the majority of its own coffee.

When we visited, the tour that was given was of an organic field or section, which is the ideal item now on the market. What is meant to be organic, is the lack of pesticides used in the growing. The coffee is allowed to grow into its natural ripening stages and is picked then dried like standard coffee. Like it was mentioned in the Devils Blend post, this type of growing is very expensive and generally cannot be the primary product for a company smaller than a corperation (caffee britts focal is still chemically grown coffee, but they have the resources to support this growing)

The tour itself felt more along the lines of a Disney tour of the Small World ride. Our guides would often make jokes and elementary run downs of the process for which coffee is made, showing that at the end product, that only 20% of the origional fruit remains (the whole time dressing in costumes of certain countries). It was noticable that a prime differnce in the production of each plantations coffee, Britt would often dry thier coffee in machines to save time and money, while Del Cafe Tal primarily used drying tables which used the power of the sun to do the work. More than often, I felt that the primary goal of our tourguides was to draw attention to them and provide vague facts which would deter questions about their big business practices.
Overall the tour was intrigueing because it did take us around the headquarters of the company. It is very clean and the tour entertaining if you have children along or happen to be on certain types of drugs (which I dont condone). It does provide some interesting information and a glimps into an industrialized approach to packaging coffee for shipment around the world. Some of the basic coffee smelling practices are shown to enhance a coffee tasting experience (you need suck a sip of fresh coffee in in quickly with a lot of air) and thankfully they ended the tour with a stop at a gift shop which could be mistaken for a high end gift shop in San Jose (included are many trinkets and shirts not conducive coffee drinking, though I dont drink coffee so Im not sure).

Fahrenheit 151

Im sorry I have been gone for so long, but things have been crazy down here. In the last few days I have been all over Costa Rica. Here is a list of the things I did:

• Visited Arenal Volcan

o This is the view from outside our room (you could see the glow at night)

• Rode Horses

What more could you ask for: horses, jungle, fast riding and a chafed butt.

• Sat in hot springs, from varying temperatures all the way up to 151 degrees (I went all the way under, have you ever felt you skin cooking? bc I have). Surpising fact, safety features which are seen in the US, not an issue on water slides in Costa Rica like getting airborn for like ten feet.


• Went and swam in a waterfall

Two hundred feet of strait rocks and water and mucho frio agua

• Went to Hydro Electric Plant

Bad idea letting me touch the equipment (we lost power for two hours)

• Went on a boat ride

Amazing, the hills and time off were fun, though this time they did not let me touch stuff...

• Went to the cloud forest and walked in the rain forest (they are called that for a reason) *Editors note: it rains all the time in the rain forest
Cloud Forest for a reason

• Watched birds, or the lack there of


• Visited Manuel Antonio to see monkeys in the trees and gators in the waterSweet place
I hate the gators and anything SEC related

• Surfed in the Pacific: Sorry no pics because I dont have a waterproof camera, but it was sweet
  
• Saw some crazy things from my class mates: Bob did it


• Had the worst 5 hour bus ride of my life: no pics because I want to forget it and punch our travel agent in the face
  

This is just a condensed list of what happened up until yesterday. I am feeling a little under the weather so Ill let the pictures do the talking. Peace for now homies. Quote of the day: Get in the Fucking Van!

Song of the Day: Time is on my Side by the Rolling Stones

On Your Right

Today’s lesson is about eco tourism, which has been around since the late 80’s. Defined, it is when a person or group goes to visit an area which has diversity of plants and ecology. This can be very broad, which people can go to study a particular plant or ecosystem as a whole. Included in the definition on Wikipedia, it is said that this type of tourism is meant to enhance ones understanding of the plants systems while becoming a better member in it. I don’t particularly believe this to be completely true because also listed are several drawbacks to this type of tourism.

Essentially the criteria of ecotourism are these:
· conservation of biological diversity and cultural diversity through ecosystem protection
· promotion of sustainable use of biodiversity
· share of socio-economic benefits with local communities through informed consent and participation
· increase in environmental and cultural knowledge,
· affordability and reduced waste
· minimization of its own environmental impact

Some of the negatives are that many companies that provided this type of tourism, practice irresponsible techniques which ultimately hurt the environment. Also it is concluded on many ecotourism websites, that this boom in this type of tourism, has caused unforeseen consequences in its degradation of my ecosystems and wildlife. Another factor is that, while one of the tenets is to help the local population, many ecotourism trips are put on by outside companies, who generally profit while the locals are left out. There are many other problems, but with more attention, these can be avoided and eliminated for the future, so that the true idea of ecotourism will finally come true.

As for information about me, there is nothing new to report because last night I did not go out because I was packing for the weekend. This should be a great and exhausting trip, allowing the class to get out of San Jose to experience the true beauty of Costa Rica. Ill have updates and pictures on Monday when I return from all of the activities that are planned and provide some type of schedule for the trip to the Pacific on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. Peace for now homies!

Today’s Song: Paper Planes by M.I.A

Caffine High

Today we went to Café Brit, which is a large coffee corporation. The general feeling of the place was that of Disney World´s Small World ride. Everything was scripted for the crowd’s enjoyment, while general knowledge about the business was avoided unless asked. I have to say it was funny how blunt the presenters are on cultural stereotypes, which you can see in these pictures.

Tomorrow will be my last post till Monday because we are heading to Monte Verde to visit hot springs, horseback riding, hiking to waterfalls, volcano walks, canopy tours (zip lining), and evening and morning jungle walks. It should be pretty sweet. As for now I am going to attempt to run in the pouring rain to rehab my ailing knee and catch up on some sleep.
Information on Café Brit will become available next week (pertinent business info on the coffee industry, not its show that was given today). Also I will hopefully give information on the trip to some world renowned surfing that will be occurring on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. Buenos Noches.

Song of the afternoon: Disney´s Small World mixed with Big Business Assembly Line music

Banana Peel

Today’s lesson is on the banana. The banana is not native to Costa Rica and was introduced into Costa Rica and Latin America through the Spanish and their inhabiting the land. Today, the banana industry is the predominant agricultural trade industry. Focused in the Caribbean low lands, it was predominantly owned and operated by United Fruit, which gave Costa Rica the name of a Banana Republic. Today, United Fruit is gone, but the banana industry is strong and is one of the largest in the world.
As for the business aspect of bananas, according to the United Nations, Costa Rica is the seventh largest producer of bananas, producing 2.2 metric tons (2005 statics). Unfortunately, the net gain for bananas is very low, causing growers to produce as much as they can. This has led to local growers being forced to only grow for personal use and local markets, while large corporations such as Dole and Chiquita selling on the global market.
The actual banana tree has an average life of 25 years and takes lots of nutrients from the surrounding ground. Generally the cultivated plant has been modified to only grow the fruit without seeds (originally, it contained large seeds in the fruit) so they must be transported and produced by cutting parts of the root off. Fortunately, it is not very labor intensive to grow at first.
Now that the lesson is over look here:
Not much to say yet, we are going to a large coffee plantation today called Café Brit to study the corporations approach to growing. Last night we hit up Pascidito again and as usually, it was sweet. I am starting reel from the midnight sleeps and 6am wake ups, so I might take it easy tonight, though I would like to teach the group how to play ultimate frisbee. Look for an update later today on the happenings and a sweet lesson on tourism in this country. No cool quote either.
Song of the day: Café Del Mar by Paul Oakenfold

Devil's Blend

Today we went on a visit of a local coffee plantation called Del Cafe Tal, owned and operated by Daisy Rodriguez.  This coffee plantation, with seven year round employees and 70 seasonal, is the number one coffee in taste from Costa Rica and number 2 in Latin America.  The tour went through the vast area of growing which this quality coffee is produced.  Started ten years ago, it has gone through changes, starting with the growth and success, then to the attempts at organic growing.  This change brought problems though because of the small production and corruption which is associated with organic growers.  It can be commonly found that natural growers will often cheat or not be completely in line with a true "organic" grower.  

Though this was short lived, the move back to normal grower has proved successful because a month ago, this plantation was awarded the best tasting coffee in Costa Rica.  Its products are sold in Japan, Europe and the United States.  Costa Rica is not a primary market due to the high price demanded which normal citizens are unwilling to pay.  

The general information provided about the coffee during the tour is:

• The harvest season is December, which 70 harvesters (from Nicaragua) are brought in to complete
• The average lifespan of a coffee plant is about 5 years, where it takes three years to mature and grow the coffee fruit.
• It takes two to three months for the coffee to go from the plant to be drinkable.
• The prime time to pick the coffee bean is when the skin is a dark red, or the taste will be bitter.

As for general information about my happenings:  last night we went out to Sultans bar which was pretty good.  The beer cost about 50 cents for any bottled Costa Rican beer (hazardous but sweet).  It was a dangerous idea to get a hooka, which was very smooth (for my third time doing it).  We continue to have trouble with the cabies trying to rip us off for being stupid Americans, but we work it out.  Tomorrow we are visiting Caffee grit, a large coffee company.  So peace for now homies.  The quote of the day is from our tour guide "Costa Ricans are lazy, waiting for the last moment to get things done".  That is for my mom who says I'm the only one who does that.

Song of the day:  Jump On It by Sir Mix a Lot

Muchas Cervesas

Yesterday, we visited a Costa Rican lobbying group whos purpose is to promote investment into Costa Rica. It was interesting and informative about thier approach in selling the country to attract investment which hopefully will aid the nation as a whole. There appeared to be some problems that our presenter danced around, but overall she managed to provide a good picture which investment would be favorable in this country.

In other news, the citizens of this country take a lot of pride in Costa Rica, from the fact that there is no standing army to thier beer (imperial), which is good. Last night, the group went to a bar called Pescieto which was very small but awesome. The bartenders were friendly and were allowing those who were willing to try the local tequilla (not bad but not good), but dont try the Nicaragian beer because you will be mocked for trying something made outside the coutnry. An interesting drink in a can is called Bamboo, which is pre-packaged rum and coke which is decent, other than the fact that it tastes like diet coke.

Earlier in the day, we were able to change some of our money into collones, which now I feel as if I'm raking in millions because the exchange rate was 512 collones to the dollar (though prices are not as low as I thought they would be, leaving the feeling it cost the same here as in the U.S.) As for the picture that is posted, this is what the population looks like, colorful and 2d, amazing. Actually you see a lot of colors everywhere and the people are very social, willing to help or at least say hi when passing (for those who are slow, the people are not cartoons, though it would be interesting).

Class starts for realzy today, so it is going to be interesting about the amount of work and learning that will occur since we arent sure how things will be approached (I am confident though with both Glenn and Saul taking a strong passion in this trip). A good quote from the day at the bar: "Can I pay you with this real money (American dollars)?" Oh cultural acceptance is sweet. Later for now

Todays Song: Say by John Mayer (because I cant think of anything cool and I am learning that I need to do this for some people)

Culture Shock

So, now that I have been in Costa Rica for a day and have been able to acclimate myself to the surroundings and host family, I am able to give an update.  The country is beautiful with awesome people who are willing to help with anything you need.  One thing that is surprising is that my family does not speak english while my housemate and I do not speak spanish, so it is a learning experience for both.  We explored the city of San Jose which seems to be like any other American city with both the positives and negatives (local culture is cool while there is trash and the trouble with crime).  One thing that is interesting is the way the police force works, where the force is everywhere, but it appears to only be used as a warning, not to actually enforce.  Also the national pride is everywhere, citizens are happy about our being here but like to point out that Costa Rica is a beacon of peace and progression (I guess that nationalism can be seen predominantly in any country). 

Today we are going to the mall to gather our collones, which is the local currency (500 collones to one dollar) and to see some local wares.  Honestly my expectations where to see a third world country, but so far it is nothing out of the ordinary.  The food is excellent and the local beer tasting like miller light.  The activities are going to  become more extreme and amazing so the updates should be better.  A parting quote of the day is from yesterday: Dude I dont want to carry my knife, if I get picked pocketed they will take my knife and stab me with it, how lame would that be. 

Peace gangstars (no cool spanish exit yet)

Todays Song- Work is Never Over by Daft punk

*some symbols and spelling might be off because the spell check and keyboard are spanish so it is difficult to know where stuff is.

Gametime?!

I leave tomorrow and it will be sweet and long (my goal is to teach myself to read and prove to all my classmates that I did graduate from Miami). I have to say this is going to be sweet (it's better because I have my books too!)

Obligation?

I feel kinda obliged to write in this updating whats going down:

• the whole thing is now paid for and expected to be in Costa Rica by May 17.
• I expect Ill be spending all of the little amount of money I have
• Rain, rain, rain and more rain is expected so I am stocking up on rain clothes and light shirts

Thats all I can think of right now, I'm sure I wont check this again until we are in Costa Rica and are expected to update it regularly then

A parting note, a new question I have is what does a fish think in its supposed short memory span?