Brazil – Joyfulness and tradition join hands at Carnival street parties in two cities in the Brazilian Northeast: Maragogipe and Olinda The masks and costumes used in the 19th century highlight the Carnival celebrations in Maragogipe a city in the state of Bahia in the Recôncavo Baiano region The celebration’s origin comes from the entrudo a practice of celebrating during Carnival that was introduced to Brazil by the Portuguese and reached the height of its popularity in the 19th century former Maragogipe Tourism Secretary Pedro Archanjo said eggs and talc on people dancing in the streets “Brazil was still a slave state and black people faced significant discrimination It would be considered an outrage if a black person took part in the festivities and threw something on a white person,” Archanjo “The solution that allowed black people to take part in the party was to hide their identities behind a mask and a costume.” as partygoers wear masks as they dance to the sounds of street orchestras that play old Carnival marches as many residents keep their identities a secret behind costumes “Not even my daughter will know who I am – it wouldn’t be any fun otherwise,” said receptionist Viviane Queiroz Oliveira “The fun is to play with everyone without ever being recognized.” Located about 130 kilometers from Salvador The Carnival celebrations attract 10,000 revelers daily “Carnival in Maragogipe doesn’t have any exclusive areas It’s very spontaneous and popular,” Archanjo said the city’s Carnival celebration officially was recognized by the Artistic and Cultural Heritage Institute of Bahia (IPAC) and is listed as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Bahia The preservation of this tradition is part of the city’s history enabling it to become an important port for the flow of goods in colonial Brazil the city lost its prominence as a major port and remained somewhat isolated for nearly 100 years,” Archanjo said the Olinda Carnival’s celebrations are much larger than those in Maragogipe The Pernambuco city is home to 377,779 residents and attracts about two million revelers daily The city’s Carnival celebrations were first held more than a century ago and include parades of associations and street orchestras playing frevo and maracatu music The highlight is the party for the Meeting of the Giant Puppets which has occurred on the Tuesday of Carnival every year since 1987 The 4.5-meter tall puppets are inspired by current and historical figures “We prefer not to call them puppets – we call them Calungas which is the name given to a mystical figure of Candomblé,” said Luiz Adolpho Alves da Silva president of the Homem da Meia-Noite association Homem da Meia-Noite draws 500,000 people into the streets beginning at midnight on the Saturday of Carnival The Homem da Meia-Noite’s “Calunga” also takes part in the Meeting of the Giant Puppets “The structure of the puppet’s head is still original which is 4.5 meters tall and weighs 49 kilograms the city’s Carnival celebrations will be held in honor of Bajado he portrayed characters from the daily life of the city Some of the associations will adhere to the theme “The Olinda Carnival is a spontaneous celebration freely carried out by the people themselves,” said Olinda’s secretary of heritage and culture One example of this spontaneity emerged 67 years ago with the traditional association Pitombeira dos Quatro Cantos “Some boys were hanging out in the garden of their house they broke off some branches of a pitombeira tree [a fruit-bearing tree common to the Brazilian Northeast] and went out banging the branches together in the streets” “That’s how things are here: the people create their own groups and take to the streets You don’t need to buy a ticket or anything This spontaneity helps preserve the tradition of our Carnival.” La Prensa San Diego strives to provide compelling and impactful local national and international content to inform and empower the Latino community; from breaking news to politics from arts and entertainment to sports and everything in between MONMOUTH — A graduate of Galesburg High School and Monmouth College in 1995 is making news as a coffee entrepreneur Brian Franklin is the founding owner and roastmaster at the innovative DoubleShot Coffee Co. in Tulsa one of the largest coffee-producing countries in the world a professional coffee taster whose father was the largest coffee producer in the country "My exuberance for coffee production and experimentation led the three of us to perform some trials on a special variety of coffee at El Boton called Maragogipe," said Franklin "One of the trials turned out to be a really amazing coffee we planned to export it to the United States." Best coffee in Galesburg?: Here is the Best of the Best local coffee shop in Knox County That type of coffee had never been exported from Colombia The Federacion Nacional de Cafeteros (FNC) a federal organization in Colombia that regulates coffee exports "I contacted the director of coffee quality at the FNC and convinced him to let us carry on with the export as planned," said Franklin "The El Boton Natural soon became the first of its kind in the U.S I am roasting the 12th iteration of El Boton Natural which produces unusually large coffee beans We now call it 'Maduro,' and it is better than ever." The same could be said for Franklin's business, which was featured recently in Daily Coffee News "I'm excited about sourcing new coffees and re-engineering all of the tools we use every day to make coffee." The article paid special attention to DoubleShot's new site It was constructed from the timbers of an Amish barn built in 1850 in Berne and also has generations-old brick enclosing the onsite roastery that was sourced from a shuttered Muskogee Coca-Cola bottling plant Its upstairs loft flooring is made from wood originally used in oil field plank roads Best places for a bite to eat?: These are the highest-rated restaurants in Galesburg, according to Yelp reviews Operating his business in Tulsa and being involved in his site's construction both tie into his first year after graduating from Galesburg High School which was spent studying architecture at Oklahoma State University "But I found that I missed football and I wanted to be at a smaller school where I could have more of a chance to interact with my professors and feel like I was getting the education I was paying for," said Franklin who then transferred to Monmouth to work on his college degree and to play football His point when giving his advice to seniors is that he didn't learn any specifics about coffee roasting in college nor negotiating with Colombian officials or selecting appropriate 170-year-old building materials "I'm not sure anyone really knows how to do anything when they graduate from college," he said "So I knew I had to start teaching myself everything I needed or wanted to know I started reading and doing things I'd never done and now I have a diverse set of skills including podcasting Coffee and a carwash?: Soon, you can get both at the same stop at 2 Galesburg locations a two-time All-Midwest Conference selection for the Scots I took classes that required a diverse range of skills," he said I've come to know and appreciate one of the preeminent potters in the United States who is an artist in residence at the University of Oklahoma and he makes cups especially for DoubleShot." and he uses those skills to read financial statements and make spreadsheets so that he can make wise fiscal decisions for his business His psychology classes opened the door to better understand how to manage staff and how psychology plays into salesmanship Franklin didn't realize he did not want to have a career in accounting until after he graduated from Monmouth and went to an interview at Arthur Andersen in Chicago "I could tell I was out of my element and that I wanted to work in a field that is more active and creative," he said "So my first business was in personal training." Being a personal trainer required a certain level of fitness from Franklin "I was getting up early every day for the job and coffee became a part of my daily ritual," he said "I started learning more and more about it and how to make it better." Then Franklin saw an ad for a home coffee roaster and tracked one down buying it along with several coffees from around the world and a book on how to roast coffee "Roasting that first batch and drinking it and I realized I'd never had coffee that wasn't stale before," he said "And that's when I had an epiphany about coffee It wasn't until a few years later when I lost my grandpa and a friend in a short time frame that I made the leap and decided to make coffee my career I still roast all the coffee for DoubleShot and freshness is one of the core tenets for how we serve coffee." More: Stir Coffee Company aims to give Knoxville community 'a place of their own' Franklin enjoys taking what he's learned from his coffee-related travels and roasting and brewing experiences and "becoming a resource to help people enjoy better coffee at home "I want them to have memorable coffee experiences and impress their friends and family with their exquisite taste," he said Information about purchasing coffee and merchandise from Franklin's company is available at doubleshotcoffee.com If people aren’t talking about its outstanding flavour and cup attributes they’re talking about its distinctive size But what’s the real story behind this hybrid We spoke to Federico Bolanos, the Director of Coffee at Café Tuxpal and Viva Espresso with the Pacas family in El Salvador, to learn more about this varietal and cup. Coach of 2011 WBC Champion Alejandro Mendez and of 7 Salvadoran barista champions between 2008 and 2014 The Pacas family have a long history with coffee They have been producing coffee since the 19th century  The first Pacas family member to begin planting coffee was Jose Rosa Pacas He began the family coffee legacy when purchasing land in the Apaneca Lamatepec mountain range in El Salvador and planted Bourbon coffee trees the 5th Pacas generation is running operations and helping grow the business The Pacas family have a fully integrated coffee business from seed to cup (coffee farms The coffees they produce are some of El Salvador’s finest and are exported to quality-driven roasters around the world The Pacas varietal was discovered by Fernando Alberto Pacas Figueroa in El Salvador in 1956 when he noticed a totally different plant thriving in his coffee plantation The Pacamara coffee varietal is a creation of the Salvadoran Institute for Coffee Research (ISIC) back in 1958 which resulted from the crossing of Pacas and the Maragogipe varietals The Pacas is a natural mutation of the Bourbon varietal as determined by research conducted by scientists of the University of Florida and develop a compact foliage which help it endure tough climate conditions like tough winds  It is a real trooper… it is highly resistant to diseases The Maragogipe is a mutation of the Typica varietal The Maragogipe trees grow very tall in size and they produce some of the largest coffee seeds This varietal does not produce high yields but the cup quality is remarkable The idea behind the creation of the Pacamara hybrid was to get the best of the two varietals  It was named PACAMARA in reference to the first four letters of each parent varietal It took approximately 30 years of careful scientific research to create the Pacamara varietal  It was released to coffee producers in the late 1980’s Pacamaras usually have complex and intense aromas; medium to dense bodies with creamy textures; and elegant acidity with flavors that swing from sweet notes of chocolate and butterscotch to fruitier undertones that remind me of citrics The Pacamara is a medium-sized tree with thick foliage  The cherries it produces are long and have a small protuberance Pacamara is a highly celebrated varietal around the world due to its decisively distinctive cup characteristics which are uncommon and sometimes unexpectedly captivating  It’s definitely a coffee you shouldn’t miss out on Director of Coffee and coach of the 2013 and 2014 World Barista Championship finalist William Hernandez Want to receive the latest coffee news and educational resources The story of Hala Tree Coffee started with a vacation to Hawaiʻi Island Jean and Danielle Orlowski jumped on a plane to the Big Island for a weeklong—and much-needed—vacation who worked for a futures and option broker for about 20 years on Wall Street The couple immediately fell in love with the island—and with Kona coffee They decided to ditch their hectic lives—Danielle was an interior designer—and buy a old 6-acre coffee farm in Captain Cook The property had been neglected for years and only about 2 acres of land had coffee trees this little coffee farm didn’t have much going for it,” Jean writes on his website The Orlowskis named their farm Hala Tree Coffee after the hala an indigenous plant to Hawaiʻi that grows on the farm It took about about three years for the Orlowskis to get the USDA organic certification the couple wrote to me: “Being certified organic can definitely be challenging time-consuming and comes with unique challenges,” including controlling weeds and invasive species The couple then purchased another 20 acres to increase production and planted coffee trees from seeds They built a large processing plant and experimented with new and different coffee processing methods the farm is one of the few that uses all three methods used to process coffee: washed there are about two dozen certified organic coffee farms in Hawaiʻi but Hala Tree—which has won multiple awards and considered among the Top 10 best coffees in the state—is easily one of the largest Across its 40 acres grows mostly Typica and Heritage Kona coffee trees The couple recently planted Maragogype (aka Elephant Beans) a rare varietal of coffee first discovered in Brazil in 1870 that produces extremely large beans (Pacamara have large beans like the Maragogipe but produces a deeper “We only plant best cupping coffees,” they wrote A post shared by Hala Tree Kona Coffee (@halatreecoffee) The spread of COVID-19 this year has had an impact on the farm It still runs farm tours but by appointment only and in small groups only “We lost about 80% of our income,” the couple wrote A post shared by Hala Tree Kona Coffee (@halatreecoffee) Hala Tree ships its coffees and elixirs—great for cocktails and topping ice cream and cinnamon rolls—anywhere in the world 82-5966 Māmalahoa Highway, Captain Cook, Hawaiʻi Island, (808) 238-5005, halatreecoffee.com