Today I’m excited; I begin a 7-day journey to explore my home for the next week, tiny and richly diverse Costa Rica.  After two days of negotiation and discussion in San Jose with many friends, old and new, I’m excited to be joining the Rainforest Alliance on a familiarization journey with six other tour operators. As I await our chariot – a Toyota minibus called a Coaster, provided by a local tour company, I’m struck by the magnificent view in front of the Best Western Hotel Irazu – lumbering green mountains watching over the busy morning traffic, something I don’t see in the sunshine state!

The purpose of our exploration is meeting with hotels and tour operators that are participating in CST, a Costa Rican program operated through the tourism board by which properties and operators are ranked for their sustainable practices. The rankings include elements within four criteria, which include physical biological, tourist infrastructure, external client/tourist, and socio economic impact. This holistic approach ensures that the hotels are not only utilizing environmentally sound practices, but also providing opportunity for community development, utilizing local goods and services, informing & educating visitors, providing excellent services, all at a reasonable price that promotes use. All the hotels named in this blog are participating in the CST program. The Rainforest Alliance verification program supports the CST program by analyzing practices at hotels and provides technical assistance for improvements, a nice compliment. This is one of many programs geared at sustainability employed by the Rainforest Alliance around the world.

I’m in the good company of like-minded folk from around the globe, Ralphael from Germany, Elizabeth from UK, Mark from Canada, Jose and Ruth from Spain, and Michael from New York.  Also with us are three reps from Rainforest Alliance, Federico, Nella, and Katell, all Ticos – slang for Costa Ricans, the friendliest people in the entire world!  Along with our driver Max and our guide Otto, we set off on our adventure to explore this tiny, yet immensely rich country’s natural and cultural resources and to learn more from those committed to conserving its riches.  Otto’s rich baritone tells us in English and then in Spanish about Costa Rica, standard stuff, a country with no Army, a population of 4.5 million, the richness of the flora and fauna, an extremely high literacy rate, and all the wonderful things that have started my love affair with Costa Rica since my first visit 17 years ago.

[caption id="attachment_536" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Andrea Holbrook-Wagman, CEO Holbrook Travel & Federico Solano, Rainforest Alliance"][/caption]

We begin with a visit to Doka Estate Coffee, a plantation in the beautiful town of Alajuela just outside San Jose. Doka Estate is CST certified with four leaves and is also a Rainforest Alliance certified farm. The plantation is welcoming with its rolling hills of coffee, beautiful flowers and typical Costa Rican style buildings with Spanish tiled roofs. We meet Alejandria who will explain the process from bean to a hot steaming cup, but not before having a cup of the delicious coffee.

Energized we begin our walk through the estate, first to a small nursery where the seeds are planted. By law, Costa Rica only cultivates the Arabica beans, the finest; this ensures that though this small country cannot compete on quantity, it can be well known for quality. The seeds sprout in approximately 10 days, however the plant will not produce the coffee beans until they are 4-5 years old and even then it takes almost 8 months for the green beans to ripen to a rosy-red color. After that, the beans are picked by mostly Nicaraguan migrant workers.

The estate we visited is Rainforest Alliance Certified and therefore the workers receive private housing and their children are educated in the local school, part of the social element of the certification process which also includes economic and conservation criteria best practices. The wage is $2 US per basket; each basket is approximately 25lbs; hard work. A fast picker can pick over 20 baskets a day, hard to imagine!

Next the beans are put into a wet mill where the highest quality sink to the bottom, while the unripe and poor quality float, this is called washing.

The fruit is then sent through a special machine, also powered by water, to remove the skin. It is then fermented for approximately thirty hours to remove the remaining pulp. The beans are then washed to remove all pulp and are next dried. Drying, the oldest method is used here, entails spreading the beans on a large concrete surface to dry in the sun. Beans are turned over every 45 minutes; this process goes on for up to 4 weeks. After they are dry the beans are bagged and left to rest for approximately 3 months, like wine they need time to fully develop their flavor.

Finally, the beans are put in a machine to remove the remainder of the husk, now thin and papery and go through final machine to separate the beans into regular and peaberry types.

Peaberry are rounder and sweeter and therefore more expensive. Beans are then sold to international markets; the top two are the U.S. and Japan. Costa Ricans use the lower quality beans in their domestic market. The companies that buy the beans, as it is better to sell freshly roasted coffee, do the roasting. For espresso, this means a roasting time of 20 minutes, for medium roasts its 17, and 15 for French roast. These three types are combined equally for the breakfast blend.

We finish our exploration of the coffee process with a greater appreciation of the time and effort it takes to produce a quality product.  We visit the souvenir shop where bags go for just $7, what a steal! We have a tasty buffet lunch on site and then explore the estates butterfly garden. After some pictures of blue morphos and many others, we continue our journey to the pacific coast. Our next destination: ManuelAntonio National Park.

As we near the coast we are treated to views of trees filled with fat, purple and green mangos ripening in the tropical sun. We make a stop at a small independently owned fruit stand to have a taste. We are not disappointed, they taste as good as they look and are immense in size. As we continue our journey we come to the famous Tarcoles River where American crocodiles lounge in the murky waters below.

It is a typical tourist stop. We walk along the bridge as cars and trucks zip by, and look down into the water to capture a few shots of these amazing prehistoric creatures. Our journey continues and we watch the countryside change, we leave the dry forest behind and begin to see much taller trees with branches laden with epiphytes, which are air plants that thrive in the rainforest. We are entering the pacific rainforest. This area is a transitional zone meaning two forest ecosystems overlap. In this case we have dry forest and rainforest atop one another creating an area of immense biodiversity – double! This is a rarity in the world and is very special.

[caption id="attachment_540" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="American Crocodiles"][/caption]

We wind through the mountains and are struck by our first stunning view of the Pacific Ocean below with its light turquoise waves pounding a pale sand shore strewn with dark rocks. Otto spots Scarlet macaws frolicking in trees set along high cliffs above the sea. We stop to watch their antics and are struck by the beauty of these large, crimson, yellow and blue parrots.  There are at least 10 of them; some are greedily devouring the fruit from the trees while others dangle upside down playing with one another.  We listen to their loud squawks as they communicate and go about their daily lives. What a beautiful experience. I’ve been to this area before and have always seen these beautiful birds, which are plentiful in this area of Costa Rica.

[caption id="attachment_541" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Scarlet Macaws"][/caption]

We wind through the mountains and are struck by our first stunning view of the Pacific Ocean below with its light turquoise waves pounding a pale sand shore strewn with dark rocks. Otto spots Scarlet macaws frolicking in trees set along high cliffs above the sea. We stop to watch their antics and are struck by the beauty of these large, crimson, yellow and blue parrots.  There are at least 10 of them; some are greedily devouring the fruit from the trees while others dangle upside down playing with one another.  We listen to their loud squawks as they communicate and go about their daily lives. What a beautiful experience. I’ve been to this area before and have always seen these beautiful birds, which are plentiful in this area of Costa Rica.

We continue to our destination, Manuel Antonio, and drive as far as one can travel before literally reaching a dead end at the park entrance. We are treated to a delicious dinner at Hotel Playa Espadilla, which protects its own private reserve that is adjacent to the park. They have 4 leaves from the CST and are excited to show us around and tell us all about the best practices they are using.  My choice, fish or “pescado” smothered in shrimp sauce, is excellent as is the service. The hotel’s commitment to sustainable tourism is a joy to see and I’m struck by the commitment of not only the owner, but the staff as well, to sustainable practices.

We continue to our hotel, perched high above the sea, the Hotel Parador. The CST rates this property with 5 leaves and 5 stars by others; it’s the highest ranking.  As we check in, the lobby area impresses me; it is built in the style of the Paradors in Spain and is magnificent. We are warmly welcomed and make our way to our Ocean View Suites located quite a walk from reception – this place is big!

As someone blessed with the opportunity to travel as part of my job, I’m often in the position of not knowing what to expect from my room. Unlike many travelers who carefully plan their stay, hopefully utilizing a trusted resource like our team here at Holbrook Travel, my room is often a surprise. The room at Hotel Parador is a pleasant surprise indeed. The tastefully decorated room is expansive; its king-size bed wrapped in soft cotton sheets beckons me. The plasma TV set above the wet bar is a nice touch as is the balcony with a corner Jacuzzi tub! This is a luxury I can’t wait to experience. But tonight I’m too tired and make my way to the comfort of the bed as I ponder what the view will look like in the morning when the sun is up, I'm sure I will not be disappointed!! Pura vida!

[caption id="attachment_542" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Hotel Parador, Ocean Suite"][/caption]