C's Birthday in Antigua

Add caption

Happy Birthday!!!

This weekend we celebrated C's birthday and since he was turning the big 3-0 we took every opportunity to have a memorable time.  Friday we went zip-lining at the Finca Filedelphia, a large coffee plantation just a few miles from Antigua.

getting hooked up

It was a really exhilarating experience and the guides were all well-trained.  We got taken up to the top of the hill in a jeep, bouncing over unpaved roads through rows of coffee bushes.  The estate is over 500 acres and since this is picking season, there were many workers out gathering the ripe berries.  Finca Filedelphia roasts some of its own coffee and also supplies beans to large corporations like Starbucks.

Before we left Washington, an employee at our local S’bucks told us about all the charitable work that the company does in Guatemala and Central America.  However, I have heard rumors that the Seattle coffee giant is less than fair in their “fair trade” dealings and does a lot of under-the-table work to drive prices down before signing agreements.

yours truly in action

The zip-lining course consisted of nine lines that got progressively longer and faster.  We began in the forest and eventually ended with a spectacular flight over the canyon – nearly 500 feet in the air – with a spectacular view of the Agua volcano. It was an incredible rush, I highly recommend it!

C next to one of Antigua's colorful buildings

We also took advantage of Antigua’s great array of bars and restaurants and tried out Japanese (authentically run AND they served sake), Middle Eastern (who knew you could combine vodka and chocolate in a hookah?) and crepes (heaven).

us at Finca de los Nietos

On Sunday, we went and visited another coffee plantation located in a village about five miles outside of Antigua. We’d stumbled across a flyer in one of Antigua’s cafes and decided to take a tuk-tuk out to investigate.

C and I had wanted to take a coffee tour at Finca Filedelphia, but instantly recoiled at the sheer number of people…large groups of tourists are bussed in from Antigua as part of package itineraries and the whole thing looked like a bit of a circus.

one of the peaceful garden paths at Finca los Nietos

At Fince de los Nietos it was just us and it only cost 50 Quetzales per person for a very thorough and informative tour. The plantation is only one acre and owned by a very nice family from Maine. They have a lovely garden with all sorts of flowers trees. The coffee variety is 100% organic Arabica, which apparently thrives at higher altitudes.

Lily

C inspecting the dried coffee

The owner’s daughter, Grace, took us around and explained the coffee making process from start to finish, how the beans are picked and put through a machine to be de-pulped. Next, they are dried on the roof for several days before being fed into another contraption that removes the husk from around the bean. 

Finally, the coffee is roasted.

the roaster

Since the farm doesn’t use any unnatural chemicals, they also have an interesting tactic for dealing with pests. They use a system of compost (made from fermented coffee berries) to nurture worms that produce a special “juice” loaded with enzymes. They use this substance to spray the coffee plants; effectively protecting them from harmful insects.

As added icing on the cake, C also got to experience his first chicken bus ride on the way back into town. It was actually very clean and luckily not too crowded.  In Guatemala, the brightly painted buses (often equipped with special disco lights and thumping soundtracks) are given feminine names like “Lilian” or “Norma”.  We recovered with a michelada, my new favorite beverage in the world.  It consists of beer, Worcestershire, vegetable juice, salsa, pepper, and lime. Sort of like a Latin American “Bloody Mary”.

the birthday boy with his beverage

The website for Finca los Nietos is: http://www.fincalosnietos.com/