Day in the mountains

Today we traveled to the sleepy little village of San Miguel. This is a picture of the valley below the town, which is tucked into the mountains in the SE part of the valley. The village itself is tiny, but has a few small coffee farms which provide the bulk of the employment and income. After touring one of these facilities and peppering the owner with questions, we went into the tiny little town and had lunch at the local school. After lunch we volunteered on some renovation work that they needed done. We dug a new garbage pit and sanded and painted some steel posts that they want to use for a new building that they are preparing to put up. Once all of the work was done, some of the local kids challenged us to a soccer game. I'm happy to report that we made a good accounting for ourselves. In the end we lost 5-4, but I had a goal and a couple of really pretty saves during my turn in the box. It was a big event for the people who rarely see outsiders and by the end of the game, most of the town was out watching and cheering. The kids had a blast and so did we. All in all, it was one of the most rewarding days that I have spent here. Special thanks to Helen Temple for setting it all up.

Coffee Silo

During the harvest season (August to December), the local farmers all bring their harvests to this storage barn where the company that buys their beans comes with a truck every couple of days to pick it up. They sell exclusively to Nestle who guarentees a minimum price and has an active enviromental program to assure sustainability. However, they have no workers' rights provision or organization to assure that the workers are treated fairly and according to Costa Rica law or international standards.

Helping hands

As I mentioned, we helped out around the school after lunch. You have all seen news coverage of mudslides in Latin America that destroy communities and kill rural villagers. Well San Miguel was one of those places. 10 years ago, a mudslide leveled the school. It had to be rebuild from scratch using the materials that were salvaged. As a result, it is a less than impressive place to receive an education. The community is so poor, and the government too, that they receive only $150 US per year for maintenance and scholastic materials! They have to feed lunch to the kids for about $.25 US per student, per day and they have to pay the kitchen staff out of that! It is a testament to human nature that this place didn't grind to a halt years ago.

The kids of San Miguel

If you would like to donate to the school, I will be adding information on how to do it when I get back from Samarra in a few days.

Mas Cafe

Today we traveled to another finca to look at different ways coffee is produced, roasted and marketed. The staff was extremely well versed in their trade and my head is swimming with information. Tomorrow I sit down and start working on my class paper and presentation. I am planning on using rational choice, structural, and game theoretic analyses to determine whether it is possible to devise a system within the free market that will maximize the benefits for producers, buyers (read "Starbucks"), and export firms in order to assuring more equitable distribution of coffee proceeds. I won't bore you with details, but I will likely post the final paper on my political site when I am finished for those of you who actually care.

Today at Doka Estates, in addition to chilling on giant piles of coffee, I got to pick coffee beans and discovered what crummy, thankless and worthless work it is. It took 21 people (my group) 20 minutes of frantic picking to earn $6 US. The average trabador de cafe works 10-12 hour per day to earn $15-20 US. Most of these workers are undocumented Nicaraguans who rely on this tiny income to support large families who fled privation and anarchy in their own country. If this makes you rethink your feelings about Mexican laborers, good.

Volcan Arenal

The last time I was in La Fortuna it rained for three solid days and I never got to see the most active volcano in the Western Hemisphere. This time I got lucky and actually managed to get some shots. The volcano even treated us to a little steam release on the second day.

La Fortuna

A couple of people have complained that it is unfair of me to show pictures of me playing in waterfalls when they are stuck in far less exotic locations. Therefore, I shot this picture before I went and played in the waterfall.

I spent last weekend in La Fortuna doing the waterfall, hot springs, rafting thing. Good times. I will be in the Central Valley until Thursday when I play hookey from school and go to Managua, Nicaragua to hunt and do some business research. I am meeting back up with the UW group on the Pacific coast on Sunday for a week of classes in Playa Samara.

Coffee, coffee, coffee

As you may know, the main reason I am down here is to learn everything there is to know about coffee. To that end, yesterday we have had a lecture from Starbucks guy in Costa Rica and today we traveled to a finca (coffee farm) that produces high end organic, shade grown coffee that they sell exclusively to Starbucks. In the afternoon, we went to the Speciality Coffee Institute and learned how to judge a coffee (think wine tasting) and we learned about the geography of Costa Rican coffees. Tomorrow I am attending a coffee conference at the National University that will focus on the politics and economics of the coffee trade.

No whip, not-fat triple mocha hazelnut latte (on the vine)

You may be wondering when I found the time to visit the Dominican Republic, I'm just as baffled as you.

New Blog

Monica took so many beautiful nature shots while she was here that I have decided to create a separate blog to display some of her best. It's called Monica's Flora and Fauna of Costa Rica. You can access it by clicking on the link or I will be adding it to the links section if I haven't already. It may take me a few days to get all the pics up so be patient.

Bye Mon!

Well Monica headed home this morning.

I'm sure you all join me in wishing her a safe and pleasant trip. It was so much fun to be able to share this beautiful country with my best friend and I am always happy to play travel guide if anyone else would like to pop down. I know Monica will be talking about her experience for a long time to come.

Teaching the monkeys to swing

This is actually a photo from last year's world finals in Holland, Monica is sending me the shots from Atlantis in a couple days and I will update it then.

Of course, Monica wouldn't be Monica if she missed the opportunity to perform so on her last night we all went to Atlantis where she was doing a guest set for the Ticos. The crowd was, as always, blown away and the club comped all of our drinks and covers. Two club owners have offered to fly her down to train all of their dancers and she is even thinking about opening her second Koi Fitness location here.

How cute are we?

Never trust a man wearing heals

So I had planned on burying this story deep in the darkest corner of my mind never to be considered, contemplated or, God forbid, discussed again. However, Jose and Monica have managed to convince me that it would be therapeutic for me to put it out there so that everyone can have a good laugh over it. So let the healing begin...

On Friday night, after an evening of dancing, smoozing and drinking, Jose ask Diego to take him home because he needed some sleep. Monica, Diego and I were still in the mood to party so we dropped Jose off at the house with the intention of hitting another club before calling it a night. As we were driving through central Heredia, a thought occurred to me. Monica and I had both mentioned how funny it would be to get a picture with one of the tranny hookers that frequent that part of town. It took Diego (who should have known better) only a minute to find two of them hanging out at an intersection. Monica and I jumped out of the car and I ask one of them if we could have a photo and she...he...it readily agreed. Unfortunately for me, as the picture (above) was being taken, the second tranny (back and to the right) managed to pick my wallet. I will pause while you catch your breath..............................................................o.k. Ready? They quickly disappeared into a taxi and by the time I realized that my wallet was gone, so were they. I called Jose and we went to the police station, showed the picture, canceled my credit card, and filled out a report. I have never heard another word about it and given the lack of credible investigative police work here, I probably never will. The good news is that I only had $28 in my wallet and they didn't access my account. So Rachel (Thank you baby, you hung the stars and moon) wired me some money and, in the end, the only real damage done was to my ego. I hope this torrid tale gives you all a little smile as you go about your day and I hope you remember this lesson so none of you will ever get pick-pocketed by a tran.....who am I kidding, only Monica and I could have put ourselves in such a ridiculous situation. So I guess a good laugh is the best I can hope for.

DJ's eye view

On Friday night we went to Vertigo, the most exclusive club in Costa Rica, where our friend, D.J. Vega, was performing. While he was on stage, he snapped a couple of shots of the insanity for us. Thanks Vega!

It just wouldn't be a trip to Esterillios without a visit to the Mermaid

Root Rock

Weekend on the Pacific

Hey Everybody! Sorry its been a bit longer then planned since I posted an update, but I have been having internet connnection issues since I got here. Monica and I just returned from a weekend in Jaco, Esterillos Oeste, Quepos, and Manuel Antonio. We got to see lots of wildlife and do a bunch of swimming and hiking. I discovered Monica's talent for wildlife photography and will be adding some of her best shots in the next couple of days.

so far...SO MUCH FUN!

Well Monica and I have been in town for three days and we have been having an absolutely amazing time. We have gone to the clubs every night and with her celebrity status, my family connections, and our other friend, Vega (the top DJ in C.R.), we have been treated to VIP rooms, free drinks and opportunities to meet some of the richest and most influencial people in the country (or at least their kids). We are going to a private party with the C.R. jet set crowd where Vega is performing on Friday and on Saturday, my buddy Diego has invited us to his family's house near Jaco where we plan on spending a few days surfing, tanning and hiking in Manuel Antonio. Keep checking back for more.

In typical fashion, Monica has already found celebrities to hang out with.

I'm Back!

Well, it took an extra 4 hours in Dallas, but I made it and I am happy to report that Monica did too. We will be traveling for the next couple of weeks and then I start school and she heads home. Keep checking back for updates.