Costa Rica Parte Tres: Villa Vanilla and Manuel Antonio Park

We spent New Year’s Eve on a tour of a spice plantation called Ville Vanilla. This was absolutely one of the coolest things I have done in a while. For the tour, our guide explained the growing and processing methods as well as provided us a tour of the actual plantation. They grow vanilla, Ceylon cinnamon, allspice, peppercorns, chile peppers, and chocolate. It is all done organically. I am going to do my best to share some of the interesting highlights from my memory, but there may be a few inaccuracies as I am just pulling this out of my head.

Tables for drying spices and vanilla

Peppercorns and Allspice

Vanilla Beans

Bags of Drying Vanilla Beans

Vanilla is fascinating and you have a greater appreciation for it and the expense of vanilla beans and true vanilla extract once you understand the labor involved. Vanilla comes from the vanilla orchid.

The flowers have to be hand pollinated, and there is only about a one day window. Oh, and it needs to happen before 10 am because that is the preferred time window of the plant. They have to check the plants almost daily for new blossoms. After pollination, the bean will grow. It takes about 9 to 10 months to grow and then mature. After that, they go through an elaborate drying process that takes another 4 to 5 months. I also learned that vanilla beans can last for up to 40 years if stored properly.

Unripened Vanilla Beans

On the plantation, they grow a number of ornamental plants, including many blooming ones. They intentionally do this to attract all the bugs that would otherwise attack the plants they are actually cultivating. They are also trying to create a rainforest environment with the plants.

One of the many beautiful plants

And another!

They make their own compost from their goats' and cows' poop, and trimmings from all their plants.

I also learned a lot about cinnamon. What we think is cinnamon is actually a plant called Cassia that is sometimes known as Chinese or Vietnamese Cinnamon. It actually has a compound called coumarin in it that causes blood thinning, and some scientific studies suggest it is not so good for us and our liver, especially on a regular basis. However, actual cinnamon has multiple health benefits that have been indicated through studies. This link has some great information. It is essentially the bark off of a tree. After the tree is about 3 – 5 years old, it is cut down. They cut it into pieces, and do an initial peeling of the bark, then let it cure and do a second peeling of the bark. That second peeling is the cinnamon.

Peeled cinnamon trees

Cinnamon trees being peeled

Peppercorns are another one that I learned some cool stuff about.

They produce both white and black peppercorns, which are the same plant. The difference is that they harvest the black peppercorns at a younger age and un-ripened, so they are still green. For white peppercorns, they are allowed to fully ripen on the tree until red.

They are then harvested, placed in a mesh bag and put in their pond where the bacteria eats the skin off over about seven days. Obviously, this is why they are more expensive as the growing and production process is much longer and requires more steps.

Chocolate is another product of the plantation. We got to sample a cacao bean in its raw stage. It is basically a pod surrounded by this milky white flesh that is sweet and tangy at the same time, but tastes nothing like chocolate. To produce the chocolate, you have to let the seeds dry out, then they crush them with the equivalent of a huge mortar and pestle, just like the ancient Mayans use to do. This creates the cocoa nibs. These are then ground down into cocoa.

Cocoa!

Itty bitty cocoa - it always looks the same, just keeps getting bigger

At the end of the tour, they brought us to this cute little building that was basically an outside porch with a gorgeous view of the mountains.

Me and R

There, they shared a series of sweets with us that showcased their yummy spices. We started with an iced cinnamon tea that was light, refreshing, and zingy. We then had an amazing vanilla bean cheesecake topped with mango. Unfortunately, the local pastry chef who makes it will not share her recipe. Sad!

We then had homemade cinnamon ice cream on a chocolate cookie with a touch of cayenne.

Next was a choice of hot chocolates: Either a vanilla hot chocolate or Mexican hot chocolate (with a touch of cayenne). I went for the vanilla. With the hot chocolate, we got a cocoa nib cookie – their version of a chocolate chip cookie.

We ended with a visit to their spice shop. It was a great experience, and I would recommend it to anyone who is this area.

After that we headed to Manuel Antonio for lunch and to check out the park and the beach.

One of my first observations was that this area was more touristy and developed than many of other beaches I have visited in Costa Rica. We tend to end up in more out of the way locations or areas that cater more to the ticos (locals). This suits me just fine. There was a little too much English being spoke around me at lunch! I did have a lovely piece of fresh tuna on the sandwich I ordered, so I guess I can’t complain too much.

Manuel Antonio National Park is one of the most well known parks in the area. We didn't go fully through the park. We walked to one particular beach and sat down for a while to relax and enjoy the water.

I saw multiple hermit crabs just running around on the beach. They are so funny. When they realize you are right there, they just drop and hide in their shell. After a few minutes they poke their little antennas out, and if you want to mess with them, you let them know you are still there, and they freak out and hide again!

There was also lots of capuchin monkeys (white faced monkey from Breakout), and they were some of the most bold I have ever seen. They are definitely used to the humans! Several were on the ground less than two feet from me. If you see them, hold onto your stuff. They are known for being little thieves, in particular, they like hats, bags, and cameras. Yes, I am serious.