the trip and the experience

I recently got home from a life time experience in Nicaragua. I spent a week exploring the coffee culture together with old and new friends from the Nordic countries. The tour was arranged by Nordic Barista Cup and organized by Roberto Bendaña, owner of Café Don Paco. My first thanks goes to him for leading a bunch of pale-skinned Scandinavians around the roads of Nicaragua.

Day 1 and day 2: Arriving and getting adjusted to the time and pace of Nicaragua. (8 sharp Swedish time means 9.30-ich Nicaraguan time). We spent the time getting to know our host and each other while riding on a boat among the islands in Lake Nicaragua and swinging over coffee trees in zip lines. Good fun, but not as dangerous as riding in a grey Toyota van…

Day 3 and onwards: Getting up early, leaving the hotel 8 sharp (…) and start the tour. Our first stop was a dry mill, Beneficio La Pita owned by Café Don Paco. I have not seen many beneficios but I think I can say that this is a paragon for how a mill should be kept. We got a good tour and lots of questions answered. The tour continued to Robertos farm for lunch, coffee picking and tour of the premises. The night that followed was spent on the Lovely farm Santa Maria de Ostuma.

During the Nordic Barista Cup, money was collected and donated to Nicaragua. With the help of this money, two schools in Pueblo Nueva got their first telephone and internet connection. We visited one of the schools and celebrated with a piñata.

After this we drove of again. We visited several co operations, farms and beneficios in the three coffee districts Matagalpa, Jinotega and Nueva Segovia. We cupped coffee, took pictures and savoured in the mass information that was handed to us. We got the chance to give back as well. The Nordic baristas had the opportunity to teach Nicaraguan baristas about their trade and give of their knowledge. The situation was now reversed. The locals literally gloated what we gave. The Nicaraguan Barista Cup runs this coming weekend, I am eager to hear how it went.

There is a coffee revolution (in the good sense of the word) going on in Nicaragua. The understanding about coffee and speciality coffee is growing, much thanks to people like Roberto, and it is growing at all levels. They have an advantage that we do not have; they can take work the coffee from crop to cup.

I think it is fare to say that the trip was about being together, acting together, learning together.