Day 1: Welcome to the Jungle

After spending 3 incredible days in Lima Peru learning all about The Incas and The Limas and the rich history of this amazing country, we arrived at the Tierra Vida in Pucallpa this morning.  The vast contrast of Mira Flores, a very upscale section of the capitol city, to the rain forest is staggering.  Flying over the Andes mountains* and seeing settlements along the way and then over the seemingly endless rainforest I couldn’t help but realize I was entering into a whole new world and lifestyle than I was used to.  Preparation for the journey has been mentally and physically challenging. Over the past six months, I have been eliminating red meat from my diet and not drinking for the past two months for the past 2 weeks.   All dread I have been feeling has been lifted since arriving and a calm has come over me as Mother Ayahuasca prepares me for the medicine. 

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After landing in Pucallpa we were met by our host Jill who immediately recognized us and greeted us with a warm hug.  We all shared very calming energy and immediate cohesion of vibrations between myself, Meagan, Hillary, Clark and Jill*.  On the flight in we all had been scouting out the plane and guessing who might be joining us on our adventure.  Many accurate predictions were made as we all gathered together at the airport and then traveled via motokar** in a convoy style. In Pucallpa because of economic reasons the locals rely on converted motorbikes with pull buggies behind called motokar’s, to get around.  The truly authentic experience of the ride was coupled with the amazing landscape along the way.  Wearing my newly acquired Nazca lines Indiana Jones hat from the Inca market, I myself started to feel like an action hero in a movie.  Over the bumpy road we came passing by small homes, shanties and brothels along the way to our destination where we met up with Jill’s companion Casey.  Casey is the also the doctor for the camp and he was joined by his 3 dogs Cora***, Ladybug and “Not Harry.”

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As we grabbed our bags and walked over the wood bridges* into the jungle it all became very real.  The sounds, the smell and the overwhelming humidity create the scene for our profound week ahead of us.  The retreat of the Tierra Vida is revealed and small huts the size of modest homes are all around the property.  The large one in the middle of the land is the Ceremonial Room** with residences attached for the visitors joining us.  Upstairs there are more rooms for some of the staff and facilitators.  Just across from the main hut is the kitchen*** and in the back corner of the property is our tambo where we will spend the next 6 nights.  Hammocks**** are spread all around the complex to sit in the sun and reflect, as well as small composting outhouses to do your 1’s and 2’s.  Far away from first class accommodations that Meagan and I are used to.  We all unpack for the week and share a group hug with the team, Meagan my girlfriend, her sister Hillary and their best friend Clark.  The energy radiates from us for everyone else to feel. 

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We head in for lunch to make introductions with the rest of the 16 members and 5 staff around the table and we can quickly see that we are all brought together for a reason.  A comradery is building quickly as finally we can discuss our impending excursion with like minds.  Some have already partaken in Ayahuasca and they try to put into words for the rest of us what it is like but, it becomes apparent that we will just have to experience it for ourselves.  Strangely enough there is another group of 4 from Alberta who will be sharing our hut in a joining room.  Their group contains quite a character named Lee whose energy is bright but welcome, as he has nothing but positive intentions.  The others with him are his girlfriend Kristen, her dad Todd and their friend Jen.  Jen is the quietest of the group and based on multiple scars on her arm including one large cross, she maybe here for some serious healing of her own.  There is no judgment however in this place and I look forward to seeing her progress through the week. 

Lee

Kristen

Todd

Jenn

Also at the lunch table were a couple from Toronto both whom are quite conservative themselves and are not saying too much. I don’t know why but I am quite intrigued by the one named Irfan.  I decide to initiate conversation with him and it turns out he is also a hip-hop artist and an instant bond is made between him and I.  His girlfriend’s name is Rifat and she is a dental hygienist.  The rest of the group at the table who I am sure I will get to know all very intimately are Harvey the Texan, Jonnie the Californian, Cody the Army Vet, Matt the Kiwi and an Alaskan couple named Andrea and Brian who have both participated in ceremony at the old Tierra Vida with Jill and Casey.  Most of our group is a little older than us but all are here with the same purpose.   

Irfan

Rifat

Harvey

Jonnie

Cody

Matt

Brian

Andrea

Jill calls us in for an introduction in the ceremonial room where we each introduce ourselves and tell where we are from and what brought us to Peru in search of the healing medicine.  Everyone’s story is unique but it is the staff’s stories that intrigue me the most and makes me desire the medicine now.  Ramses a Puerto Rican working here will be a facilitator during the ceremony.  He shares some of his past experiences and they each sound so overwhelming and even scary at times. Aga the Yoga instructor/massage therapist and Miguel the cook both share as well and talk about not only how profound there experiences were but how they have now devoted there lives to helping others with there realizations and growth, or work as they call it. The four of our group are the last to share out of the new comers.  Meagan is too emotional to get in too deep as to why we are here, but when it comes to me I feel the need to bear my story.  I was brought here mostly for my thirst for knowledge, being raised in a very religious background I have felt forced to live a narrow-minded lifestyle and have a need to expand my mind and receive revelation of purpose and understanding of the universe outside of religious constraints.  I also cannot bare the thought of my love and soul mate having an experience that takes her to a new realm of understanding without me. 

Ramses

Aga

Miguel

Hillary and Clark then share there stories and then it comes to Casey and Jill.  Casey and his overwhelming calming energy take over the room.  Speaking in almost a whisper it feels as if the medicine has fuzed not only with his soul but body as well.  He tells us about a couple of remedies that he is open to share with us while we are in camp.  The first is MMS, a compound designed to balance your PH levels and cures everything from malaria to urinary tract infections as well as countless others.  Second is bloodroot, which can be used to remove moles and skin tags. 

Casey

Jill then shares her story about how the medicine called to her and as early as her second ceremony it was revealed to her to open up a center to help others.  She then gives a run down of the week after her story.  We will be doing ceremony on the 2^nd, 4^th and 5^th day of the week, there will also be yoga, textile purchasing, plant walks, a trip to the village of the shamans and lots more.  She then opens up the floor for questions.  I take the time to ask some questions about the ceremony and how it will feel and who will be taking care of us.  I also had a question as to how I am going to be able to get up and move around or go to the bathroom if I am having intense visions or not even present in my body.  They assure me that they will be supervising us and if we ever need anything we can knock on the floor and they will come to us.  It will be pitch black but they are trained to see in the dark and have flashlights if needed.  Jill then discusses that there are other ways to purge the medicine not just through vomiting.  You can purge by laughing, crying, yelling, sweating, and shaking, it doesn’t always have to be pushed out of the body.  However the drink is a purgative and vomiting and clearing toxins out of the body often bring on more intense visions.  After hearing all of this it makes me feel much more calm about the process and all feelings of dread melt away. 

After the meeting I go find a hammock outside and lie down and start to imagine the experience.  I only have the words of others in my head but I begin to think about my purpose and why I am here at the Tierra Vida.  Meagan gets up and starts talking to Irfan, I see them smoking a mopacco, a ceremonial tobacco that they allow us to smoke when we want while we are here.  As I have not smoked anything in a week I decide to go join them.  It is too difficult to inhale in the lungs as it is very harsh but the action of smoking makes me feel good.  Irfan begins talking to me and he shares that he was raised Muslim and my story about being raised religiously is very similar to his situation as well.  I already feel a strong bond developing between the two of us.  He discusses his path and the things that brought him here including many authors and speakers I am very excited to check out such as Terrence McKenna, Graham Hancock and David Icke.  All of them combine the teaching of Ayahuasca, energy and consciousness similarly to Eckhart Tolle, an author I already have connected to and love.  David Icke also talks about how to use these powers to combat the influence of the illuminati and the free masons.

Mid afternoon there is a Yin Yoga class and as I want to experience everything I decide to participate.  It is low impact ground yoga, which I have not done before.  It is very painful as I struggle to get on my sit bones and have bad knees and feet.  Because I am unable to commit to each posture I choose to focus more on living in the moment and enjoying the smells, sounds and feelings I am having.  As we finish there is a peace that comes over me and a weight is lifted. Dinner can’t come any sooner as my stomach is growling and although I am craving something heavy and meaty I am relieved to be having a very healthy diet throughout the week.  Tonight we are having plantain burgers and a house salad.

After dinner around 6pm the jungle is completely dark already seemingly in the blink of an eye.  We head back to our tambo and to our great surprise I see a giant cockroach in the hallway.  I lose my breath and a cold sweat comes over me.  When we walk in our room however the nightmare gets much worse.  Over a dozen of them are spread all over the room, on the walls, in our beds and clothes.  Meagan freaks out and immediately regrets her decision for coming and begins packing her bag to make sure that none are in her clothes.  We pull all of the beds to the center of the room and remove the sheets to make sure none have climbed inside.  One by one they meet the bottom of my shoe.  In the corner by my bed there is an enormous Wolf Spider the size of my face.  I know I have to kill it quickly otherwise Meagan will see it and have another panic attack.   I smash it with my shoe and then immediately take it outside before anyone notices.  We put everything back in place and fasten the netting over our beds and then remove all food from the hut.  Learning the lesson the hard way about keeping everything away and sealed for the duration of our stay. 

The hardest thing to deal with is not the bugs inside and out, but the sound of my love crying in fear and wondering how she is going to make through the night.  It is even harder because I am just as scared but I have to keep it together and be strong for her.  Grabbing her close under the sheet and let her know that we are all scared and what she is feeling is normal but I will be 10x stronger for her during the week and will protect her through the night.  The sleep is rough but as dawn comes we are all met with relief as the creepy crawlers are out of the cabin back in the hiding places.  A new day has arrived and this being our first day of ceremony.  At last!!