Day 1 - San Jose: INBioparque & Cafe Britt

Today was our first full day in San Jose, Costa Rica. We visited two places today including the Britt coffee plantation and the INBioparque. These two businesses both had interesting and unique information to share with our group. We started our early morning at the coffee plantation which ended up being unexpectedly hilarious. Our tour guides were much more like actors and did a fantastic job of sharing information on the plantation while keeping the audience entertained and interested. Costa Rica began the coffee production in 1750 and made it only for the native Ticos and Ticas. They did this because long ago exporting coffee was illegal for Costa Rica. Today Britt exports 50% of their bean production. Britt prides themselves on the fact that they are a 100% organic plantation; they use absolutely no chemicals and therefore create unique ways to protect their crops. One of these ways is the plastic cup fly trap that is supposed to be, but isn't pictured below (the iPad is not supporting the uploading of pictures). It is unbelievable to think that the total growth time is 25 years! This tour also provided helpful tips on how to store and make the best coffee possible that will be very useful when I get back home. The InBioparque is a non profit organization that has been in business for 22 years. It all began with a few scientists that started research on different plant life and species and finally realized they had too much useful data to keep to themselves. The goal of InBioparque is to spread knowledge to the public about the importance of wildlife by showing us things like exotic plants, iguanas, snakes, and spiders. Today was busy and educational first day for the Business in Costa Rica class. Brooke Bowie '12