Where to? Next stop Viçosa (MG, Brazil)

From new cultural experience to new activities, last weeks were really moving. And now the end is approaching I feel more aware of the close bounds with certain people around me. For now lets not think about the coming goodbyes, because those don't need to be the last ones. Life is full of opportunities, for example driving with a motorcycle over your beloved coffee. 😇 At the coffee farm I needed to work hard, but I didn't mind. It was the first time (like many things here in Brazil) that I drove a motorcycle and that on coffee beans. No worries, it was save, I couldn't fall with a 3-wheeled motorcycle... Owh, you are worried about the coffee beans where I drove over, not about me... Well again, no worries. These coffee beans aren't used for consuming as a beverage but as seeds for new coffee plants. But... most of the coffee farms that produce coffee beans for beverage and use drying terraces use this motorcycle technique to dry and mix there beans. During last ...

As I promised before, I would tell you about the production of coffee. Now I will tell you. Please note that most pictures are from an internet source,  and only are used as a visual support. So pour some coffee, then we can start talking about how your hot cup of coffee was created. Ready! The Creation of your Lovely Cup  Coffee Producing the coffee bean Ripe coffee cherries Green coffee cherries not yet ready to harvest. The beans aren't fully developed yet. In order to get a coffee bean in the first place, you need to plant the coffee plants. There are special coffee farms who produce coffee seeds (unprocessed coffee "beans"). The beans used to make coffee are actually coffee seeds. The farm I went to was one of those coffee seed producing farms. Seedlings are nursed in large shaded beds and will be watered frequently and protected form bright sunlight till the are strong enough to plant. Planting happens mostly during the w...

All this time I have such a surreal feeling. Me 24 weeks living in an abroad country and saying goodbye to people for half a year. This week lots of last goodbyes for the next six months.  Well I have good news, this weeks lots of things have happend. I have received my project description! I will do a research to the use off a biomass driven mechanical drying technique for drying fresh harvested coffee beans. Normally, the beans are sun dried and sometimes mechanically. There are some problems with a biomass driven drying technique. My job is to try solving these problems and/or suggest solutions.  Besides that there is a possibility I will help with a project which focusses on the reuse of process water which is used on the coffee plantations. Some more good news? YES! I have a place to stay in  Viçosa, a really good place! It is right in front of the UFV campus, an apartment on the fifth floor. The apartment is shared with two other students. I...

In the third year of my study of environmental science it is required to do an internship within Holland and abroad. This blog will tell you my adventures and experiences of my internship abroad. I have never been traveld outside the European Union, for my internship abroad I go to the Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV) wich is in Brazil. Viçosa, MG is according to Brazilian standards a small town counting approximately 75.000 inhabitants (wikipedia). This internship (or exchange-program as some would call it) was offered me by a lecturer of my school (HAS Hogeschool). First I had my doubts, but as I gathered more information I became more convinced. Still it is a big step for me, I have never lived on my own, it is a new culture with a different language. Before I can start my internship, there had to be done a lot of paperwork. So now some more practical information for those who will follow me in my footsteps. First you need a letter of the UFV, in orde...