I often tell my students to write using a lot of imagery; I remind them to tap into all five senses. Today visits to a coffee plantation and the village of Xico tapped into all of my senses.
What did I notice?
El Cafe-tal Coffee Plantation - There is a part of me that wants to run away and beg my new friends at this coffee plantation to give me a job. Everything about El Cafe-tal feels warm and welcoming. We walked into the rushing smell of coffee beans and soon found a small, warm cup in our own hands. No sugar required for this coffee. We sat on potato-style filled sacks among the coffee plants and learned about the process of turning the little red beans from the plants into coffee. Our guides explained how the plantation prides itself on quality over quantity, focusing on environmentally friendly growing practices and quality of plants as we walked through each stage of the process. We chewed on some freshly roasted coffee beans and lingered with our second cup of coffee, noticing the sweet and rich flavors. We were then led to a small studio between the green plants and coffee roasters. There, one of our guides, Fernando, sat down to a grand piano to play some Chopin, Debussy, and some of his own compositions for us. I left with a lot of coffee and a feeling of contentment about being at a place where the people were so genuine and kind.
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| It was also discovered that Christina W. and I both shop at REI, we have been wearing the same skirt, and we have the same bag. |
Xico, celebrating festivities of the local patron, Saint Maria Magdalena - Our evening took us to Xico where our bus could barely fit under the decorations that ran from building to building across the streets. The community is in the midst of a ten day celebration of the Saint Maria Magdalena. Each night neighborhoods from within the community come together to celebrate with incense, a procession, and fireworks. We walked under the brightly colored streamers up a hill to a large church with the same bright colors. Outside of the church, a band began to play. Young boys with cowbells tied around their wastes began to dance. Soon, different groups of young men were hoisting floats into the air. Each float contained the town symbol of the bull, fireworks attached to it, and various decorations. One young man would wear the large box on his shoulders and spin in a circle while his friends would gather around cheering. The doors of the church opened and a new group of people joined the crowd. Candle and incense holders walked out of the church first, followed by a group of young girls carrying the Saint on a mini-float, followed by a mariachi band. The bull floats let out a shout and made their way into the streets while still spinning. The rest of the processional and all of the crowd melted into the celebration. We joined the processional through the streets. We walked past food vendors and more musicians. The music of trumpets, violins, and guitars mixed in with cowbells jingling and shouts from people. The incense floated just above the group filling the air with a fog. As we made our way down the streets, people stood on patios and stuck their heads out of their windows. We swayed with the group until it made its way into another church to rest the saint until tomorrow night.
