By Amy Lam and Claire Haussmann
Today our first full day of adventures at the Mesoamerican Permaculture Institute (IMAP) commenced! Breakfast at 7:30 a.m. was a delicious combination of scrambled eggs, pancakes with honey, refried beans with blue corn tortillas, and papaya.
After breakfast, BTS Guatemala Coordinator, Javier gave a talk on the calendar system used by the Kaqchikel Mayan culture. It involves a 9 month cycle (260 days) including 18 rounds of 20 days, each represented by a different Nahual or energy with a unique animal and spiritual meaning. Today is Kame, represented by an owl, for honouring dead family and friends and for acknowledging things we need to let go.
Next up we headed off for a morning of trekking through the forest. We piled into the back of our pickup and set off, rumbling down a gravel road between two endless fields of an avocado plantation (and managing to grab a few!). Soon we were picking up speed and careening down the road as the view of San Lucas unfolded before us.
After a fifteen-ish minute drive we clambered off the truck at the entrance of the forest. Our guide, Christián, led us off at a brisk pace up a steep, leaf-scattered slope. Our first stop along the path was next to a coffee plantation, where we had the chance to tear open a few fruits and taste the pulpy beans inside. Moving on he explained the ecological importance of traditional plantations that dominated the lower hillside, consisting of beans, squash and corn growing together and providing each other with unique ecological benefits. Then we moved up into the forest. The air was noticeably cooler and the trees overhead provided luxurious shade for a moment of meditative breathing.
Walking through the forest, Christián showed us a dead tree that is still giving life to the forest below through the nutrients and habitat it provides. We walked to several different viewpoints, each with a new breathtaking view of the city, lake, and surrounding volcanoes. Wooden platforms at each spot provided unmatched photo ops. Snack time was a special treat: banana bread, oranges, and some purple pulpy fruit with no English name.
Next up was the edible forest! Christián led us through a lush taste-testing landscape of cardamom pods, sweet cucumbers (sort of like Asian pears but softer and definitely more cucumber-y), and something resembling a bitter tomato. Christián explained that during the wet season, which should arrive around April, there is a far greater variety of foods available, including macadamias, peaches, passionfruit… each supporting the other plants and fostering a blooming biodiversity.
At about 1pm, we piled back on the truck and headed back to IMAP. For lunch we had meat patties with herbs and veggies, mixed green salad with a sweet dressing, watermelon juice, and tortillas and rice with veggies. ¡También delicioso!
Next up was a spectacular culinary workshop led by Andrés. He showed us a bowl of cacao seeds roasting on a mini stove, releasing a smell of strong cocoa with a smoky scent. First up he demonstrated popping amaranth, a traditional grain. The next task was preparing cocoa and making chocolate which got everybody excited. We tasted and shelled the beans and ground it with a hand crank into rich dark paste. We grated a block of 100% raw cane sugar and caramelized it on the stove, which we then used to make bars with the amaranth. Then we took some of the cocoa paste and mixed it with either the shaved sugar cane, some chili, or both, wrapped it in corn skins and had them all refrigerated.
Then we split into more groups to prepare dinner, making pizza, salad, and tamales! The salad contained veggies and pineapple slices. Tamales were made from the same base as the corn tortillas, but included chipilín which is full of iron.
At roughly 5pm we checked out a bird sanctuary and some of us went swimming in nearby Lake Atitlán. Then we returned, trying to warm up before eating dinner. Afterwards we ate the now solidified chocolate and journaled, ready to rest after a long, food-filled day.
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