Pineapples!

In my family pineapple is not as popular as bananas and papayas. Don’t get me wrong, my family likes pineapple, but it is not eaten as frequently as bananas and papayas are. When I asked my family about pineapples, the consensus seemed to be that pineapples are great assets to the Costa Rican culture, eaten as a raw fruit and in jellies. Every time that I have had pineapple with my family it has been for breakfast, in a jelly, or in a pineapple jelly filled empanada. My family discussed that pineapple is great for breakfast and a snack, but after asking why the fruit might be important to Costa Rica, they didn’t have much to say. They briefly told me about the white pineapple from the past, and they discussed the export of pineapples to Europe and the United States. To me, it seems that my family has a different outlook on pineapples than other Ticans might have. They don’t seem to hold the strong new symbolic value that pineapples might have to other Ticans.

However, after observing pineapples at the Mas por Menos and at venders on the main road in Sabanilla, pineapples are very popular and prevalent. Its fascinating to see more products with pineapple in them here than in the U.S. Its very common to have pineapple juice for a meal or to have pineapple jelly with toast in Costa Rica, but in the States these things are rare. In the U.S. Pineapple is mostly associated with the raw fruit or something to put in a smoothie. In Costa Rica, it seems that the country has found more ways to use pineapple since like most fruits has a very short “shelf life.” With that being said, I have also found it interesting that my family eats pineapples very over ripe. With that increased ripeness, they have so much flavor, but almost too acidic for me. This statement can probably be made in my final blog, but studying foods like pineapples has really shown me just how important they are to Costa Rica. I never realized that pineapples could represent more than just a type of fruit but the type of economy that a country has. This concept is so foreign to me, because this is not necessarily so in the United States. While we have products made in the States, our economy is rapped around many more commodities than Costa Rica deals with. I think I am slowly starting to see just how reliant Costa Rica is on its exports, including its export of pineapples.

Here is a picture of one of the two trucks within two blocks of Mas por Menos that sold all kinds of fruits including pineapples. They all still have the stems on them, but the sellers offer to remove them for you!