I started the morning with a yoga session overlooking the beautiful nature in Monteverde. Today, we got to go to a school and paint a mural with the kids. This was my favorite part of the trip so far because all of the kids were so excited, and it was so fun to hang out with them. We first painted a long wall blue and then added the alphabet and numbers 1-10 along the whole thing. We added handprints, butterflies, hearts, flowers, and other small drawings. I met a little girl named Neythe, and she was the sweetest. During our break, I played Simón Dice, and Palmas, a new game I had not played before. It is a combination of a ring around the Rosie and a tag. As we added hand prints on the wall, I thought of the little kids putting their hand prints on my white shirt. The final product turned out super cool. I enjoyed talking with the kids and learning fun facts about them. This was a fantastic experience; by the end, I was sad to leave. All of the students made our bookmarks, and Neythe gave me hers. This made me so happy.
After finishing our service project and lunch, we visited Life Monteverde. Café Monteverde is 40 acres of land along with five farms. We learned how they have made themselves stand out from other coffee farms and how they operate. At Life Monteverde, they work with Nicaraguans and are working with the same families each year. They organize volunteer groups to help clean the street, fix road damage, etc. A partnership was made between Life Montverde and the other farms in Monteverde to have the same prices for their tours. This led to the creation of the Monteverde community fund, where each visitor would donate $1, which is used for emergencies. They grow plants other than coffee, such as potatoes, sugar cane, and many others. Not all crops grow in the same season, making it easier to keep growing their various plants. To stand out, they work on creating their fertilizers. They aim to be certified as an organic coffee farm. The fertilizer is constantly changing. The final product is almost like a kombucha for the coffee.
Café Monteverde has fourteen varieties of arabica coffee to give more diversity and play with the different flavors. They have three different types of coffee: honey, fully washed, and natural. We had a tasting of five different coffees, and we had to guess which of the three types and the roast. Fully washed coffee is their best seller. Natural and honey are more expensive. I wouldn’t say I liked the coffee because I wouldn’t say I like coffee in general. These flavors were very bitter for my taste. Although I only took tiny sips, I was one of the three who got the correct coffee types and roast levels.
A typical Tico farmer is very focused on their crops. They have to be very adaptable because the weather is changing, and they have to be prepared if something were to go wrong on the farm. As I explained, the coffee pickers get paid by the basket for the other coffee plantations. However, they get paid by the hour when there are fewer cherries to pick. These farmers must deal with challenges, such as possible crop diseases, competition from other farms, and insufficient rain. The community affects Tico farmers because they always try to collaborate and formulate new ideas. For example, 100 farmers come to Life Monteverde each year to learn how to make their fertilizer. The community also comes into play during harsh times such as COVID-19, during which the Monteverde community fund was utilized. They were part of a community matter because of instances like this one. The pandemic was when communities needed to stick together to get through it. When you are part of a community, you have people that will aid you in times of need.
If I were the child of a Tico farmer, I would want to be a biologist when I grow up. This way, I can help formulate new ideas on how to improve the farm using natural resources. I would want to be on the side of the farm that is always trying to improve and become more efficient rather than someone who just works on the farm.
