We went to a local "soda", a restaurant for local people with a little bit of everything on their menu. They have traditional Costa Rican food, but they are also known for their pizza and huge hamburgers. We all decided to take a little break from Costa Rican cuisine. We had pizza, burgers and milkshakes! And they were goooood!
Afterwards we stopped at a local supermarket to get some snacks to have for the rest of the trip. We showed the students our favorite Costa Rican cookies "chicky" and the famous "yipi" bars. I may be bringing some home for Caden and Clara to try. ;)
Then we were off to "La vida campesina" to learn about a family organic farm. There, they have many different crops yuca (a root vegetable), guanabana, corriander, ginger, mint, green beans, cacao, sugar cane and many others (120 different crops!). They showed us the crops and we learned what they are good for- some for eating, some for medicinal purposes and many have a lot of health benefits! I saw the plant that produces orange seeds that color the rice in arroz con pollo. When I was a college student in Costa Rica my tica mom taught me how to make arroz con pollo with an orange paste to color the rice. That paste is made with the seeds of the plant I saw today.
The students had never seen "yuca" trees before. They are a small trees with little skinny trunks. We learned that they must grow for 9 months and then they can be pulled out of the ground. The farmer showed us how. He chopped the tree down with one stroke of his machete. Then he let Ryan (who we all agreed was the strongest) pull the stump and out came some thick roots. That is the what is eaten. It is a vegetable that tastes similar to a potato and can be prepared many ways- fried, diced and in a nice mixture with other vegetables, etc. We have eaten it many times while being here. So, it was interesting to see the tree and how it's harvested. Then the farmer showed us how to plant new yuca trees. He cut the thin trunk of the tree into about 6 inch pieces, dug a shallow hole and had the students place one length horizontally in the hole and cover it with loose dirt.
Then he showed up how they use sugarcane. We took a long piece of sugar cane and sent it through an machine to squeeze out the juice. One student had to turn a handle one way while another turned a handle on the other side the opposite way. The sugarcane was fed through the machine while they turned and another student pulled the cane out as was fed through. Meanwhile, the squeezing caused the sugary juice inside to come out a spout and into a pitcher. We fed it through the machine three times to get a full pitcher of sugar juice. Then, they put the juice in glasses for us to try. We tried a few traditional toasts. One goes like this "Para arriba, para abajo, para el centro, para adentro". That means "Up (and you put your cup up), Down (and you put your cup down), in the middle (and you put your cup in the middle of the circle of people), inside (and you drink it). It sounds better in Spanish, though, because it rhymes. :)
After touring the farm, it was time to go the the thermal hot springs. These are natural hot springs heated by volcano Arenal. The water is filled with many minerals and nutrients that are good for your skin and body. It is a very relaxing atmosphere. There are several different pools of different temperatures. One pool has an man made waterfall that's very pretty. After soaking for 20 minutes, it is recommended that you go to the cold pool so you don't get overheated. We followed that recommendation. The hot springs were one of the things I was really looking forward to. I remember from the trip two years ago how soft it made my skin and I could definitely tell a difference between the skin I submerged and the skin on my shoulders that I didn't. So, this time I wanted to fully submerse myself for maximum benefit.
When we got back to the hotel some of the students went to the pool to swim. They also found the mud to give yourself a mudbath! They covered themselves with mud and came to supper with super soft skin!! I've decided to give it a try after I'm done writing this blog!
We finished off our day with a wonderful supper at the hotel restaurant. The students are getting along great and enjoying each other. They have great attitudes and are up for anything! Can't get over these great students and world travelers!
Tomorrow we check out first thing in the morning and make a six hour trip to Manuel Antonio on the Pacific Coast. It will be a long day of traveling with a few stops to take in some views and do a little shopping. Can't wait! ¡Hasta mañana!
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