Sunday, May 26

After finally getting to sleep in, we spent the morning with our host families, helping them out with chores and cooking breakfast. We made plantains, drank coconut juice, milked cows, and helped build fences.

We were picked up at noon by the bus in anticipation of lunch and a chocolate tour. After a cake and song for Melina's birthday, we headed over to the much-hyped chocolate tour where we were greeted by our tour guide and chocolate expert, Rodolfo.

We headed into the jungle to learn about the cacao tree. We ate dried cacao beans, chewed the flesh around the seeds, and Isha cracked open a cacao fruit. Trying chocolate at every stage of the chocolate-making process, Joaquin biked in place to grind the beans into pieces of cacao with pieces of the shells, Jordana helped separate the shells by blowing them away, and Jily, Ava, and Arianne helped grind the cacao bean further into a powder with sugar. After trying some delicious hot chocolate and mixing it with variations of pepper, vanilla, salt, nutmeg, milk, and sugar, we headed to the store to buy some authentic Costa Rican chocolate for friends and family and took some pictures.

We are excited to end the night with a pizza party for Melina's birthday at the homestay of Kayan and Joaquin's. We are also eager to receive our assignments for the first day of work at the various community projects we have visited the first week. However, right now, we are focused on getting home, eating pizza, and celebrating Melina's birthday!


Until tomorrow,

Arianne and Joaquin








Trying the fruit of the cacao seeds HERE.

Joaquin grinding the toasted cacao beans HERE.

Singing Happy Birthday to Melina HERE

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