Girl Going Global

Twenty-something taking on the world!

Costa Rica 

The Chocolate Tour

Ashley McGuire

Nooo! It’s our last day in Costa Rica. At least I get to spend it getting fat, because today, we are going on a chocolate tour!

We started out by walking through the plantation where they grow the plants. Like most plants, they start out green and continue to ripen. The plants produce between 20-50 beans. 400 of these beans are needed to make one pound of chocolate. Hope you enjoy your chocolate!

Cocoa plants

After a little walking, we stopped at the box where they dry out the beans. Each person got to try some dried out beans. These things were so bitter! Is it just me, or would you expect to taste chocolate coming from a cocoa plant?

The next stop was a wooden pavilion where the “true” chocolate was made. They started the process by using the ripest of beans. The first stage of the chocolate-making process; grounding the beans into little particles using a giant stick. I guess this is how the chocolate-makers stay fit. The particles are small enough when the shells can be distinguished from the bean.

The sifting process takes a WHILE. Every single shell must come out or the chocolate will be as bitter as the beans. This was very tedious work. I was determined that I was not going to be responsible for the “chocolate gone wrong” situation.

Next, the chocolate was rolled until it became a liquid-type substance.

This is Ivan. He is from our tour group. Everyone, say hi to Ivan. He’s cute isn’t he?  hehe

We went through a line and everyone got some chocolate. Along with your basic spoon full of chocolate, you got to choose what you put on it; marshmallows, m&ms, etc. Ivan and I decided to make it a contest to see who could eat the most spoon fulls. Of course, he beat me.

To pass the rest of the day, we just walked the town. On the way to the hotel, me and my clumsy self fell whilst trying to grab a pear off of a tree. It had been raining and I didn’t see the moss on the road. Well, the moss was slippery and down I went. I still have the scar on my knee. We arrived at the hotel and the next morning, we said Pura Vida (a popular saying in Costa Rica meaning pure living) to Costa Rica. And remember life isn’t just a box of chocolates!