The Finca Visit
Trip Start
May 26, 2008
1
6
23
Trip End
Sep 27, 2008
Quetzaltenango, Guatemala
Monday, June 16, 2008
Sunday began at 5:45 am, the school were taking us to visit a traditional Guatemalan Finca (Sustainable farming community.) One of the reasons that CBA is such a welcoming language school is that on this trip, we were accompanied by many of our teachers and for virtually all of us, it was our first trip to a finca, giving an air of excitement to the chat on the bus. After at least two and half hours on the bus, we reached our destination. On arrival we set out on a hike around the Finca community. After 20 minutes, our hike brought us to a river, and the bridge was nowhere to be seen. Our guide, a healthy looking man of indiscriminate age (35-70) whipped off his shoes and without a moments thought waded into the river. Evidently we were expected to follow, and so we did. Rob´s `photos do the scene more justice than my words..........(to be added)
With our feet partial dry and our shoes and socks back on, the tour continued. Our guide told us that he works everyday from 4am to harvest rubber from the same 500 trees, he demonstrated to us the process that he tirelessly repeats day in day out throughout the madrugada (early morning hours.) The process is simple and he made it look deceptively easy, as we discovered when Johanna attempted to replicate our guide´s simple movements. A small groove is made in the tree trunk, to span half the trunk circumference, and from the wound a white sap appears virtually instantaneously. The incision is made in such a way to allow the liquid to flow under gravity´s influence to a sensibly positioned cup. Harvested in this way, one rubber tree once it reaches 8 yrs of age is able to provide many years of rubber harvest and heal naturally over time the wounds caused during collection. The natural bounty harvested in one day, by one man, from 500 trees provides enough rubber for one car tyre. As recompense for a days work, our guide receives 30 quetzals (2 quid) and the owners of the finca receive a profit on the relatively stable rubber market. However our guide informs us that a question hangs over the future of the rubber plantation at this finca because many of the trees have a fungal infection and the owners are considering other uses for the land.
Our tour continued with another river crossing to an avocado tree. One of our spanish tutors Neri intent on harvesting the avocados, slipped his shoes off, wrapped his feet around the tree and began to climb. His movements were effortless and monkey like, he disappeared into the higher branches of the tree. In the high branches he moved differently, employing slow pronounced movements to stretch a limb along a branch and test the strength before following smoothly with all other limbs. It was vaguely reminiscent of golom in the excessively long trilogy of films about small people with hairy feet who live on a crazy golf course.
From the avocado trees we walked up hill, we did not cover a great distance, but I found myself glistening with perspiration and longing for a rest. The climate at the finca is incredibly humid and something of shock to my system acclimatized to the chill of Xela. Five minutes later, we were allowed to stop and we were treated to an immensely fresh pineapple grown just outside the house of our guide. It was the finest pineapple I have ever eaten and tested all the sweeter given the kindness of our guide in sharing his garden produce.
