Today, we drove to Monteverde! We had a couple hours on the bus to relax and observe different parts of Costa Rica, and we saw a lot of cool scenery. One recurring theme that stood out was the influence of farming. Throughout the trip, we saw multiple farms and fields of animals, including cows and goats. This was particularly evident in El Jardin, an area with a butterfly garden, natural garden, and a collection of Texas longhorns, horses, goats, peacocks, and turkeys. In addition to raising animals, a lot of the land we passed was used for agriculture. Some of the most common plants we saw included mangos and cashews, as well as living fences (fences grown out of bushes and trees). The abundance of plants, fruits, and flowers created a very colorful impression of Costa Rica as a whole. This vibrance of color was also shown in many of the houses and buildings, as they were often painted bright colors to contrast with the green surroundings.

After five days of our trip, my perception of Costa Rica has changed from my first impression. In our pre-departure meetings, we learned about the importance of agriculture and tourism in Costa Rica’s economy. However, I only recently realized how interconnected the two industries are. Our coffee tours have shown that the coffee and chocolate grown in Costa Rica tend to have a target audience of tourists, as shown by their availability in hotels and airports. In addition, tours of coffee plantations and mills increase the novelty of products and become tourist attractions. Costa Rican agriculture attracts tourists and Costa Rican tourism funds agriculture, establishing a self-perpetuating cycle of advaning both agriculture and tourism. I am also more aware of the value of sustainability in Costa Rican agriculture; as explained in the tours, much of the waste from coffee production (old trees, bean skins, parchment, etc.) is reused as fuel or recycled into other products.

My perception of Costa Rica’s biodiversity has also changed. In the pre-departure meetings, we looked at many of the plants grown in Costa Rica. Among others, we found examples of mangos, orchids, bananas, coffee, and cacao. However, I only realized upon arrival that the biodiversity extends far beyond flora. On our trip, we have already seen clay-colored thrushes, parakeets, lizards, toads, howler monkeys, peacocks, goats, cows, sheep, and coatis (as shown in the image to the right). This biodiversity is highly valued and is protected by the tourism industry. At Café Britt, we learned that revenue from many of the sold coffee blends goes towards wildlife charities and animal protection. In today’s lecture about Quaker history in Costa Rica, we learned that the discovery of frog breeds in Monteverde directly led to the natural habitat’s protection and conservation.

This protection and conservation of the Monteverde cloud forest aided its transformation into the tourist attraction it is today. Furthermore, the work of the researchers and biologists with the Monteverde frogs encouraged the growth and success of preexisting industries in the mountains. One of these industries was in cheese. Although Costa Rican farmers had access to milk and could make cheese, there was a lack of supply of fine, aged cheeses. As a result, Quaker communities in the 1950s studied cheesemaking and established a growing cheese industry in Costa Rica. Similarly, the large presence of Quaker farmers in Monteverde and in the Central Valley furthered Costa Rican industries with crops and animals like goats.