Ancestral Cacao

OVERVIEW

Tour an organic cacao plantation and discover how the raw seeds are processed to make chocolate much like the Maya once did. They drank chocolate for ceremonial and medicinal purposes as far back as 500 BC. The Maya also used cacao as currency and added chocolate to many of their traditional dishes. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in the 16th century, they altered the Mayan recipe by adding sugar and milk to the cacao concoction. The resulting taste was closer to today’s chocolate. As you browse the plantation, you will observe how the organic cacao seeds are picked, dried, roasted and ground. The steps are fascinating and you may sample the cacao during various stages of production. You will then join a chocolate bar workshop, during which you will make your own version of chocolate. One taste, and you may understand why chocolate was once reserved for royalty.

HIGHLIGHTS
• Delve into the world of chocolate at a plantation that grows cacao, the main ingredient.
• Hear how the Mayas depicted cacao in their hieroglyphics and used the seeds as money.

HELPFUL HINTS
• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.