Por Fin... La Piña!!!! :) :) :)

            I was ecstatic when I realized that we got to write an entire blog on pineapples… after all, they’re my favorite! My Tica mom always makes fun of me for how I rave about them, so these questions came as no shock to she and Tamara. They said that pineapple is eaten either for breakfast or dessert. It’s most often eaten in slices, raw or uncooked. Though, Tamara said sometimes her mom makes a jam with it for coffee time, to eat on bread. It’s also used in various juices at my house, though usually mixed with other things because it’s naturally so sweet and such a strong flavor. Pineapple is found in a lot of pastries, jams, and drinks. They were sort of confused when I asked what different types of pineapple have been grown and/or sold in Costa Rica. They said the white pineapple is not common here and the “normal” kind is all they know. I’m always interested to know what sort of diversity used to exist in the past when it comes to food commodities. Although I don’t think that the pineapple is likely to have changed too much… right? Or maybe it has, but not recently because it’s such a staple and pictures, advertisements and historical descriptions seem to refer to the same pineapple with the golden interior and intimidating beautiful exterior.

            My family didn’t have too much to say about the significance of pineapple. They only realize that it’s an export that is grown in Costa Rica and exported to consumer countries. This means, like the banana and coffee, wealth for Costa Rica. It was interesting that coffee was so revolutionary and highly regarded and is so culturally significant in many aspects to this day. Even the banana seemed to have more significance to my Tica mom when we were discussing it. It’s interesting that the pineapple is not such a sense of pride, more just an acknowledgement and something that has meaning, without the words expressing it. It seems that it is more of an internal value than an external value (at least while talking to my Tico family). In our readings, the pineapple is regarded as a classy, hospitable, expensive, and highly valued fruit for all it encounters. It’s even given royal connotations, that’s crazy for a fruit. This symbolism that we learned about in our reading did not seem to carry over in the perception of the pineapple for my Tico family. They said the symbol was that it is a fruit that is exported to other countries, nothing social or really significantly affecting their daily lives.

            In the US it is a rare treat to eat fresh pineapple. When we eat fresh food in our house, it’s not usually fruits. It’s usually locally grown produce from our local farmer’s market in St. Mary’s County. So, this means that fruits in general are not as much of a priority in my house as vegetables. I can only think of having canned or plastically pre-stored pineapple in mixed fruits for school lunches. Occasionally at summer social gatherings for swim team or a picnic, we might have fresh pineapple, but it’s always been rare for my family. Not that my Tico family eats it daily, it’s still a treat, but we definitely have fresh fruit more readily available.

            I do love pineapples though and wish I could eat them all the time! Even if there is a limit to how much acidity one’s mouth can handle… It’s worth it! :)

There's Pineapple in this commonly consumed Mixed Fruit Juice!! :) YUM! 

This is a local market with fresh fruit... aka LOTS of PINEAPPLE!!!! :) YAY!

And here's a semi-typical breakfast! :) Which, as you should take note, has  a fruit plate... FILLED with DELICIOUS pineapple! :) Successful morning! :)