Week 1: Rice, Beans, and Pineapple

I don't even know where to start for this blog, but I'll try with another story setting similar to my last blog...

I’m writing this at 2:30pm, on Thursday June 19th, while on a bus headed back to EARTH University after a gira (field trip) with the post-cosecha (post-harvest) class. I also would like to mention Dancing Queen by ABBA is playing in Spanish, because you all definitely needed to know that. Anyways, we headed out on the bus at 7:00am this morning and after a bit over 2 hours on the road we arrived at Visa, a pineapple and yuca processing plant. During our visit we got tours of both plants and got a look into how the pineapple arrives, was washed, sorted, trimmed, and eventually packed into boxes. One of the most interesting things was to see all the different brand boxes and the different size requirements of the pineapple packed into each box. After the main pineapple plant tour we went down the road to their secondary pineapple plant where they also processed yuca, and after a quick break for lunch, we got a tour of that area as well. The yuca assembly line was not actively running while we were there but they turned it on while explaining the steps to us. This area was way quieter than the main plant so I was actually able to hear the explanations. For the yuca they washed then and had an over that dries off the yuca to expand its shelf life. They are then all dipped in a paraffin wax that both protects it, increases shelf life, and makes them look slightly better to consumers. Overall this little trip was nice to get off campus and learn a bit about Costa Rica, though I was sad I didn't make any friends that day.

That’s just one of the many things I’ve done this first week in Costa Rica. Although I’ve had a decent amount of down time, I’ve definitely stepped out of my comfort zone and participated in some campus activities. My internship started off strong... if a tad but overwhelming. My first night, dinner was good and later some students gave me a little tour of the main areas on campus. Then Saturday, less that 12 hours after arriving to EARTH, I jumped right into life here and got up with my roommate at 5:30am to get ready and have breakfast before work experience at 6:30. Needless to say, I was so ready for bed Saturday night and spent Sunday exploring a bit and resting.

Setting spore traps at the coffee plantation.

Flying a drone! We were applying a fungicide on a plantain area.

A bit more about Experiencia de Trabajo…

Experiencia de trabajo, or work experience, is something that happens here at the U on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 6:30am-11:00am, for most students that is, the one exception being third year students who spend almost all of their Wednesday at Experiencia but don’t have it on Saturdays. During this time fourth year students lead younger students at the farms and areas around EARTH, there is everything from topography, drones, forestry, to aquaponics, and much more.

My first experiencia on Saturday I went with a group to the coffee plantation where we set up spore traps that will be used to monitor disease levels in different areas and during different periods of the year. This will help them asses health risks and know when to apply fungicides to be the most efficient and proactive. At these specific traps they change them every 15 days and they were a pretty simple set up with spinning motors, binder clips, and microscope slides with a thin layer of vaseline, which the spores stick to.

My second experiencia, on Wednesday, I went with my roommates friend, Naomi, to the educational farm and met with Miguel and Dorin, the fourth year leads at this area. The two of them were so helpful and gave me a full tour of the area while also helping me brainstorm project ideas. During this time I was crafting a more solid idea for my research that would be doable while also giving me good, useable results (hopefully). For the following 7 weeks I will use the experiencia time to take data measurements and check on plants, before joining the group and helping with any projects in the area.

Aquaponic system

One of the hydroponic systems used

Food:

Overall the food has been ok, lots of rice and beans though. I am also only eating the vegetarian options at the cafeteria so that limits a couple of options. The options at the cafeteria consist of a couple drink options, a salad of leafy greens and a piece of tomato, a plate with one piece of fruit, rice, some form of beans, bread, and a couple hot options. For being a pretty small campus it impresses me the options they serve. It is also cool when they incorporate other cultures into the food, one that I've tried being ugali, a dough like flour dish, that originates from central African countries. My favorite lunch so far though has been fried rice with veggies and tofu strips, which mirrors my comfort food at home. Lastly, my roommate has gotten me some treats and I so appreciate how sweet she is. One that she got me on Thursday is brigadeiros, a traditional Brazilian dessert that consists of sweetened condensed milk, butter, and whatever topping and flavors you choose.

Brigadeiros

Dinner

Weather:

The weather here is as you'd expect for the middle of the rainforest close to the equator, very warm and very very humid. I pretty much always feel sticky and sweaty, even right after showering. On top of that it rains and storms pretty much every day, Thursday night there was an intense storm around 1:00am that woke up both me and my roommate Daniela. Though it is definitely warm and I miss air conditioning, I enjoy this weather more than brutal cold.

Campus/EARTH:

The campus here at the university is pretty impressive, with many dorm buildings, a nice cafeteria, ample sport and workout areas, and even a pool. And all of that isn't including the 3,376 hectares of educational farms, plantations, rainforests within the campus. In addition to the impressive flora here, there is also an abundance of animals that I have never seen. My goal is to see a sloth up close (I saw ones back in a tree) before I leave. The people at EARTH have been pretty helpful and friendly, especially my roommate, though I do miss all my friends and family back at home. It's been a bit difficult adjusting here and making friends when it is the middle of the school year and all the groups are already formed. I will say it has been super cool to meet people from so many different countries and I hope to meet more and grow closer with people.

Thats all for this week... see you next week!