We went to a different coffee farm high in the mountains today. The views were amazing.
My fieldwork assignment was a little different from yesterday's task. Instead of measuring coffee plants and counting beans Annie and I were assigned to "clippings". Basically we clipped samples of leaves and stems from certain coffee plants and measured their length and mass. The purpose of this is to determine how much the plant is growing.
We saw some really cool bugs including this funky caterpillar. There are many insects everywhere here so its a good thing I am not squeamish about them.
After we finished with clippings I switched and worked with Miss O'B on the coffee plant counting like yesterday. As you can tell from our outfits it is messy work because the ground is very wet and slippery so we wear these rubber gaiters and get very dirty.
After the morning of fieldwork we went back to the lab for lunch and to do data entry. Lunchtime was so much fun because we were eating with all of the Costa Rican Earthwatch employees (Nati, Rigo, Lucia and Felicia) and they were very excited to talk to us and hear about our lives and also to share their stories. I feel so lucky to be here and learn about this wonderful place and the people who live here. And the food was delicious -- homemade arroz con pollo and pico de gallo!
After we returned home to our cabins we finished up the afternoon with a walk to our town center (Santa Maria de Dota) where we found el correo (post office) so I could mail some postcards and la tienda frutas (fruit store) so we could buy manzanas (apples). I think I could learn Spanish if I stayed here for awhile, but it is slow going for me! Beunos noches!
this day sounded like you all were getting into the overall flow and local scene...nice meals too
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