dESPERTANDO A LA memoria DE LOS abUELOS
ECUADOR RETREAT
April 28 - May 6 / 2025
YOU ARE INVITED TO A PILGRIMAGE IN THE HEART OF THE AMERICAS, IN THE SACRED LANDS OF THE SAN PEDRO CACTUS:
VILCABAMBA
An invitation to c0 create an offering of beauty on a transformative journey to my beloved Ecuador. This is a full immersion experience of reconnection with the wise and loving ancestors in the middle of the world.
Discover or renew your connection with your own ancestral guides and elders and work in partnership with them for personal and family intergenerational healing.
Throughout our journey, we will delve deep into the heart of Ecuador's rich cultural tapestry, ancient wisdom, earth medicines, and breathtaking natural landscapes.
Our approach to ceremony in retreats works in ways that are psychologically grounded, ritually safe, and culturally inclusive with a blend of rejuvenation, self-discovery and Indigenous ritualistic practices of remembrance and reconnection.
THE PLAN
Starting in Quito with its rich cultural legacy, ornate facades, and dazzling gilt altars. Quito’s Historical Center, the largest and best preserved in Latin America was built over the ruins of the Inca’s northern imperial seat. A fabulous example of colonial architecture and art blended with indigenous styles. Quito, founded in 1534 became the first city in the world to be declared by UNESCO in 1978 a World Cultural Heritage site.
We meet at noon on April 28th at Quito International Airport to take a short 50 minute plane ride (domestic flight included in the cost of the retreat) to the city of Loja. Then after a picturesque 90 minute car ride, (with a stop to bathe at a waterfall for a blessing and prayer of safe arrival and auspicious beginnings) we will arrive to the millenary valley of Vilcabamba to begin our journey.
Set in a quiet village, this journey unfolds at a family owned farmhouse, surrounded by breathtaking mountains, rivers, and waterfalls, providing an idyllic backdrop for personal growth and healing.
CASA HACIENDA LA SOFIA
In the heart of the charming Quinara valley, in the Yangana parish, southeast of Loja, lies Casa Hacienda LA SOFIA, a serene retreat 15 minutes drive from the main town of Vilcabamba, one hour and thirty minutes from the airport. This valley, with its benign climate, crystal clear rivers, and extensive sugar cane fields, is a true natural paradise.
The estate spans 13 hectares, mostly covered with sugar cane fields that supply the "molienda," an artisanal factory where the sweet nectar of the cane is turned into panela. Upon entering the property, one is greeted by the charming main house, surrounded by fruit trees, flowering gardens, and ornamental trees.
Next to the kitchen, there is a vibrant garden called chakra in local tongue, where medicinal plants, aromatic herbs, spices, and vegetables grow. This green corner is bordered by a small forest of native trees such as Cedar, Mango, Willows, Laurels, providing a sanctuary for local wildlife. Here our diligent bees and hens also reside, offering golden honey and fresh eggs every morning.
The gardens, a tapestry of colours and aromas, extend in front and to the sides of the house. Here, you will find a refreshing salt water pool, rest areas for meditation and reading, a spa with a steam room and massage room, and the meditation hall. Downstairs, a small ceramics workshop invites you to explore creativity in a peaceful environment.
Along the path, fruit trees like oranges, limes, grapefruits, lemons, coffee, bananas, plantains, achira, and yucca.
These products, essential in traditional Southamerican cuisine, complement our agricultural offerings and will delight our senses.
The path to the river, shaded by a canopy of trees, reveals the cane fields and fruit trees that mix with pastures for the cows. A small protective forest, the guest house, and a warehouse mark the way to the Piscobamba River, whose clear waters invite contemplation. A few kilometres downstream, this river becomes the majestic Catamayo River, a vital life source that flows into neighbouring Peru.
Before reaching the river, there is a maloca and a space for ceremonies and temazcal, surrounded by cacti, pencos, and fig trees, offering a sacred place for introspection and healing. The estate boasts abundant water, a privileged location, easy access, and the security of a protected environment.
Geographical Data:
• Latitude: 4° 21' 53" South
• Longitude: 79° 14' 4'' West
• Altitude: 1,600 meters above sea level
• Climate: dry subtropical
Adela - La Caracola - Tzentsak - Victor - Gabriel - CLICK ON IMAGE TO LEARN MORE
THE SAN PEDRO CACTUS
Known also as Wachuma or Aguacolla
Huachuma is a sacred plant medicine also known by names such as San Pedro or Awakolla. It comes from the Echinopsis Pachanoi cactus, native to the Andes mountains of Vilcabamba. Our main medicine on this retreat.
It is a fast-growing and ancient cactus with huge white flowers that bloom at night and are pollinated by bats. From above, the cactus ribs look like a star, that’s why we call it ‘La Medicina de las Estrellas’.
It is believed to be perhaps one of the most consistently used plant medicines throughout history. Archeological evidence suggests that even as long ago as 1300 B.C., Andean cultures were working with the cactus for its transcendent spiritual and physical healing powers.
It is said people consumed San Pedro to walk for days in the Andes, often without other food or water sources, as San Pedro’s interconnectedness to nature helps improve stamina and attention. Evidence shows ancient civilizations used San Pedro in various ways, such as for healing, divination, ceremonies, and long pilgrimages. Most of the time, people find it easier to walk unaided than with other plant medicines such as Ayahuasca.
Unlike Ayahuasca, which works through the feminine, earth-based energy, Huachuma speaks through the masculine energy of the heavens. After an initial period of feeling drowsy or lethargic, the cactus tea often transports seekers beyond the body and into connection to the greater cosmos with an experience of clearing the senses. This opening serves as a starting point to meet the Divine. Clarity arises around what healing is needed, and resting in a state of universal oneness, everything feels possible, supported, accessible.
And in a modern society where connection to the beyond, to the ancestral and the sacred so quickly and easily gets drowned out by noise and distraction, a Huachuma ceremony can offer a life-changing reminder that we are all whole.
Already. Right now. Fully resourced.
San Pedro is known for its healing and psychoactive effects, On a physical level, he is pure heart medicine. His vibration matches the heart exactly, in that a deep experience with him creates an intense sensation of pulsing; a continuous expansion/contraction feeling that mirrors the heart’s function.
He’s a blood tonic, and heart strengthener, and he’s also amazing at highlighting any physical aliments we might dismiss as small and insignificant, but that have the propensity to become bigger deals down the road. Like most psychotropic medicines, he amplifies both body sensations and emotions.
Huachuma is a teacher of what we are hiding on the physical.
Grandpa o el abuelo is aptly named; he gives us the permission a sacred grandparent does to be in our innocence and joy. He strips away attachments and stories the ego tells us about appearances, limitations on behaviors, and what an adult really looks like, and helps us tap back in to the incredible healing power of innocence and unbridled happiness.
On this retreat Adela, Caracola and Victor will co facilitate two San Pedro ceremonies, one in walk form to a waterfall and a night time journey around the fire.
This retreat INCLUDES:
7 Nights of shared accommodations at Finca La Sofia with comfortable bedding and linens and complementary laundry service.
Roundtrip domestic flight form Quito to Vilcabamba and back.
Private airport transfers for our group, snacks and water provided.
English, French and Spanish speaking experienced facilitators, local ritualists, shamans and medicine men and women as our team of supporters and healers.
Yoga practice throughout the retreat designed to integrate breath-work and movement as another form of medicine to support your early morning hours.
Delicious local meals and dieta for ceremony days
pottery workshop.
Temazcal (Sweat-Lodge) ceremony.
CACAO CEREMONY.
2 San Pedro Medicine Ceremonies.
Waterfall bathing and blessing.
Integration and sharing circles.
Personal call with adela before arrival in preparation to dive into ancestral lineage healing.
A morning of leisure in Vilcabamba town.
DOES NOT INCLUDE:
AIRFARE TO QUITO, ECUADOR (ONCE YOU KNOW YOU ARE COMING, MAKE SURE YOU BOOK YOUR TICKET, EXPECT TO SPEND FROM $550 TO $990 ON A ROUND TRIP AIRFARE FROM THE US.
GRATUITIES AND TIPS are not included.
WHO IS THIS RETREAT FOR?
This retreat is lovingly designed for those who:
Feel Called to Ancestral Healing
Seek to reconnect with their lineage and honor their ancestors, their gifts and blessings.
Wish to release inherited patterns, traumas, or karmic imprints.
Yearn for Deep Connection to Nature
Long to harmonize with the earth and water elements for grounding, renewal, and clarity of purpose.
Desire to cultivate reciprocity with our Pachamama through rituals and practices.
Are Ready to Heal Their Inner Child
Seek to nurture and embrace their inner child with love, play, art, song, community and compassion.
Want to uncover and release wounds from early life experiences in a safe and sacred ritual space.
Desire Somatic Healing
Are exploring the connection between body, mind, and spirit.
Wish to release trauma stored in the body through movement, breathwork, and somatic therapies.
Feel Drawn to Plant Medicine in its original lands and ways and without the trappings of the plant medicine tourism and EXPLOITATIVE, EXTRACTIVES, neocolonizer pseudo spirituality gimmicks.
Are open to working with plant allies as guides for spiritual growth and healing with courage and humility.
Are committed to approaching these medicines with reverence, intention, and respect for the traditions they come from and vow to uphold indigenous voices and rights.
Are Seeking a Sacred Community
Wish to share their healing journey with others in a nurturing, supportive environment.
Value collective growth, shared rituals, and the power of community connection.
Are Ready to Dive Deep into Transformation taking the responsability of your own healing in your hands
Are prepared to step into vulnerability and courageously explore inner landscapes.
Feel a readiness to let go of what no longer serves and embrace a path of wholeness
This retreat is a sacred invitation for seekers, healers, and those committed to the profound work of transformation and self agency, guided by ancestral wisdom, nature's elements, and the medicine of love and compassion.
READY TO JOIN?
This price is set to support proper reciprocity.
We respect that this gathering is taking place in Ecuador and we aim to gather in ways that are culturally humble, honoring of the land, the water, and its people.
The event leader and all supporters are native Spanish speakers but all speak English as well. We want to honor their hard work and deep wisdom as they steward the medicines of Ecuador by donating 10% of all profits from this retreat to the tending of their communities.
A number of spaces are available at further reduced pricing. These spaces are especially for working class people and for others who experience some form of systemic oppression and marginalization in ways that also impact financial means. Please don’t hesitate to ask us if you need a reduction to join; accessibility is a core value of our organization.
CAN’T WAIT TO SHARE THE MAGIC OF MY COUNTRY WITH YOU!