Today, we sadly had to leave our host families. I feel like our first week went so quickly. After departing from Heredia, we went to a Pineapple Tour (the best in the world). The pineapple tasted so good. After that we went to the La Fortuna waterfall and it was probably the coolest thing I have ever done. We got to swim by the waterfall. Then we checked into our hotel and I was not expecting it to be so nice. My roommate and I get our own cabin like room. Then we went to Baldi Hot Springs and got to ride waterslides and relax in the hot springs.

I think the new generation of Tico farmers is pushing away from farming because of the demand for tourism in Costa Rica. Over the last few years, tourism has increased by 10.4% annually. This new shift is promising for farmers to enter the market. Places like the pineapple farm today want to enter a new sector. They don’t simply want to own a farm but rather have a tour of a farm as well. Tourism is relatively stable and offers predictably for owners. Another reason for the shift to tourism could be that it allows people to meet new people from all over the world. It’s a simple way to learn new cultures and experience life just from your own land. Farming simply just doesn’t offer these key fundamentals anymore as the country, and the world, is constantly changing.

While tourism often times is pretty stable it can also change very rapidly. Like we saw with the Coronavirus pandemic, nobody traveled during those times. This could be devastating for farmers who decide to invest in tourism just for the demand to disappear. This is a risk that farmers would have to take in order to move to tourism instead of farming. Another risk for the country as a whole is the supply of food decreasing. If all farmers in the country abandon their farms and turn to tourism, there will be no food left for the citizens. This could cause high prices for limited supply of food.

I am very excited for the hanging bridges tomorrow and I hope I see some animals!
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