Guatemala for Fun and ? a March 2011 Travelogue
About the title …I lied. It was not that fun, and definitely not for profit. We were in GuatemalaGuatemalan coffee is considered a top quality coffee producer in Central America. Due to our proximity to Guatemala, some of the nicest coffees from this origin come to... ...more as the NY coffee market hit a 34 year high (profit for the exporters and market speculators, very hard on the coffee buyers!) as well as an odd climate with elections coming up soon. Lider, just plain odd. Add to this the problems in the north with narco traffic and gangs, and traveling without local guidance in a rental car, and in hindsight the trip seems a tad unwise. 3 people were shot dead at a restaurant near Huehue at noon the day before we arrived. Another coffee buyer was held up at gunpoint. It’s the wild wild west here. Still, there are a lot of hard-working coffee producers tied to their land and their crop, which is worth more this year than for many previous. That is creating more instability though. With the high coffee cherryOriginally coffee literature referred to the fruit of the tree as a "berry" but in time it became a cherry. It is of course neither. Nor is the... ...more prices, trees are being picked at night time by theives, coffee stolen from patios and warehouses. And all the candidates promise Order and Security. I would find it hard not to be cynical if I heard that rhetoric and then faced such instability from day-to-day. Then again, it’s hard to be an out-of-towner and really know the situation. I hope next year, things are better in rural Guatemala. In contrast to Huehue, Antigua was the same as ever, a beautiful bubble-world amidst the chaos of the rest of the countryside March 2011 -Tom
Thumbs Up! Guatemala – Who’s the leader? Lider is the leader, or course. It’s crazy pre-election time in Guate. At least they can claim better than a 2 party system. I suppose. This is a Lider-themed travelogue… 
Arabigo heirloom coffee – But not in Antigua. Just very, very very old. Typica is often called Arabigo when it isSan Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. . Finca San Antonio El Naranjo 
Bourbon Clumpyness – Bourbon tends to have green tips (new leaves) and have distinct clumps of coffee cherry. Kinda like Robusta. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. . Finca San Antonio El Naranjo 
Coffee pulp, ready to be composted – Very rich organic material for the farm. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. . Finca San Antonio El Naranjo 
Classic Typica bronze tips – Ojas bronzeados, narrow, 60 year old Arabigo/Typica. If a plant is newer they will call it Typica, if it is ancestral, they call it Arabigo (meaning Arabica). San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. . Finca San Antonio El Naranjo 
Nothing can capture the height of these trees – Most of the Arabigo here was cut at some point, but they also had primary trunks of 25 to 30 feet tall. It’s not great plant management, but it is amazingly beautiful. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. . Finca San Antonio El Naranjo 
Favorite rose at the farm – Just a damn fine flower picture from Finca San Antonio 
Arabigo – My favorite picture of this old type of coffee. This tree is about 60 years old. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. . 
Finca San Antonio El Naranjo – There’s a reason it’s called this; the farm is interplanted with many orange trees (naranjo) as well as other fruit trees. It’s a treasure of a farm, from an old era of subsistence farming and interplanting. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. . Finca San Antonio El Naranjo 
Tectontic shift… – … Or just a place where a hefty friend made a great impact. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. 
The Cafetelero Ricardo Solano – Ricardo Solano is the owner of this old farm, Finca San Antonio El Naranjo outside the town of San Martin 
Bourbon clumps at San Martin Jilotepeque – The classic form, with distinct nodes for fruit bearing along the branch. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. 
Bourbon, bending under the weight of a heavy crop – Loaded Bourbon culitvar coffee trees. It was a good harvest in many parts of Guate this year. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. 
San Martin Bourbon farm of Jose Garcia – Another farm and member of ACAFESAM group that we are buying from, Jose Garcia. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. 
Tuk-Tuc – Passing through San Martin Jilotepeque town, a nice paining of the vespa taxi, called tuk tuks in many places but with a little different spelling here. 
Axels as curb protectors, San Martin – First stop upon arrival is to new farms in San Martin area. In the town, you see transmissions and truck axels re-purposed as curb protectors. San Martin Jilotepeque, Guatemala. 
Chimaltenango copycats -axel embeds – A few miles up the road, the same technique is used in the town of Chimeltenango. 
Sorting coffee after picking… – This is where quality comes from – having each picker sort their coffee at the end of the day, before submitting it! Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Welcome walkway at La Carmona – Back to Antigua …An archway of old Bourbon and Caturra coffee trees greets you …Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Separating green from red at Carmona – When cleaning, the trees are pretty much strip-picked, separating the green as you go, then sorting it out again at the end of the day. Here a canasta (basket) of underripes and partial ripes (camagua). Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Final pickings, Sorted. – When you do the last pass on a part of the farm, you clean off the trees of all cherry, here are ripe cherry plus some on the over-ripe, dry side. Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Puppy love – How could anyone NOT take a picture of this guy? A coffee pickers dog at Carmona Estate 
Sorting coffee after picking – A social time to sit and talk, weigh in coffee, and get paid. Most pickers in Antigua come for the harvest from Quiche area. Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Pipo, the Boxer – This is the character … he did not even lift his head so much as move from his spot on the graden path. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Maria Zelaya’s cows – When you ask the owner, Maria Zelaya, about her dairy cows she becomes very animated. Each is milked by hand, each has its own feeding/milking spot with a name placard above. And they are named for her friends, her siblings and grandchildren! Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Pipo the “don’t bug me” dog – In about an hour spent in Maria’s garden, Pipo did not move. I wasn’t going to try. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Orchids: Orquídeas – Small, delicate orchids at Carmona Garden. Antigua Guatemala 
Tea roses – Small delicate roses in the Carmona garden. Antigua Guatemala 
Nasturtium – Spicy! But they do not eat nasturtium here. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Classic rose hedge bushes – These are an old style of rambling rose. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Old 5 petal roses – Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Massive 80 year old bamboos – Even the rhizome base of this was around 8 feet tall, the bamboo itself about 50 feet. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Fritz in the garden – He is not as old as he looks, and moves at the pace of a tortoise. But a very friendly guy. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Veranda of Vines – Maria uses vines and old wood to build archways and verandas in her garden. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Local orchids – Local orchids collected in the moutains. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
The Bank – The window where you used to get paid at the farm. Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Carmona Crest – At the entrance to the main house, the tiled crest. Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Epiphyllum – I believe this is a type of Epiphyllum Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Totem – This large jaguar/god head was found decades ago when they excavated to build the main hosue at Carmona. It’s about 2 feet across. Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Small Faces – Found on the Carmona Estate in Antigua Guatemala 
Frownie – Small totemic item found on the farm. From Olmec classic or post classic period. Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Iris? Orchid? – It looks like an orchid, but it looks like an Iris. What is it? Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Maria’s Garden at Carmona – A rustic and beautiful garden is found at the home, with divserse heirloom flowers, and many collected from the mountain areas surrounding the farm. Antigua Guatemala 
Ornamental succulent – Tell me what it is please , because I would love to know. Carmona garden, Antigua Guatemala 
Tablon El Intelligente, Carmona – Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Tablon El Intelligente, Carmona – Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala 
Anthracnose fungus, advanced stage – Anthracnose is a larger problem in Guatemala that Roya (Rust fungus). Carmona Estate and Pulcal Beneficio, Antigua Guatemala
