For
College of Science Field Trip
(2009-2010)
Hazel Grace M. Bellen
BS Biology 1-1
I arrived at PLM before 5:30 am. I’m ready for a fun-filled and exciting day. This is not my first field trip, but this is my first in PLM and the first with my new classmates. We left the school at exactly 6:30 am because there is a problem with the number of seats but it was settled when they’ve found out that there were still vacant seats in another bus.
I have been to Laguna many times. I have already visited Coca-cola Plantation in the past. I just can’t remember when. The first thing we did was to know the history of Coca-cola. The product was born in Atlanta Georgia on May 8, 1886. Dr. Jacob Pemberton, a local pharmacist, produced the syrup for Coca-Cola, and carried a jug of the new product down the street to Jacobs' Pharmacy, where it was sampled, pronounced "excellent" and placed on sale for five cents a glass as a soda fountain drink. Carbonated water was teamed with the new syrup to produce a drink that was at once "Delicious and Refreshing," a theme that continues to echo today wherever Coca-Cola is enjoyed. They also showed us the plantation where they are making their products. After that, they gave us a free bottle of “Sakto” which didn’t taste good because of the possible rust on the crown. I suggest that they must give us straw next time.
The next venue is the IRRI or International Rice Research Institute which was established in 1960. It is one of the largest agricultural research institutes in Asia. Supported by donor and partners, they are known as the Green Revolution in Asia. Almost half of the world’s population relies on rice but nowadays the production is not that sustain the need of people. Their number one goal is to eradicate extreme poverty by helping farmers around the globe. They continue to research for new rice varieties which are pest-resistant and can resist extreme weather conditions by using biotechnology.