TierraMitica

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Down the magical Waterfalls!!



Down the waterfall
The second cataract with its natural pool


Yesterday we made a make shift ladder to get down the 7,2 meter (24 foot) middle waterfall so that we can work on building the yoga and meditation platform that will be suspended half way down the waterfall.


The second waterfall has a big, deep (about 8 feet) natural swimming pool held together by huge slabs of slate that have broken off from the cliff to the side of the waterfall.


Bruce standing proudly by the waterfall














Now that the passageway down to the Eye is almost done, we proceed to go down and give access to both waterfalls. The beauty there leaves us speechless....

Monday, May 14, 2012

The vegetable garden

Today was very gorgeous in Tierra Mitica and what a nice way to spend our time there by starting our vegetable garden.

We planted 8 tomatoes all together and we are going to plant hot peppers and sweet peppers tomorrow.


Our very first plant!


Setting up our string trellis

3 tomatoes, 3 stakes

Our new bed of tomatoes!

Our Gate is now complete!!

Our gate finished and ready to open in a welcome from the heart!

The Artists in front of their creation

HoHoHO!!!!
Today Alberto and Benjamin completed our gate with our wavy fence and a concrete gutter to protect the posts. We still have to varnish the new additions tomorrow, but it looks perfect!! 


We are all so happy about the gate since everybody did something for it and it holds great symbolism for all of us

Saturday, May 12, 2012

The door to the Mythic Land
Everybody participates with love- Sara, Daniel and Theo
 A project that we have been working on during all the rainy days that we couldn't get to TierraMitica , and a creation that has made the rain a blessing because it would never had happened if we were not blocked from working in the land is proudly presented : The TierraMitica main gate. 


It is a labor of love, art, craftmanship and intention and every single member of our community has helped. 








Alberto, our amazing craftsman, and Benji, our painter extraordinaire among many other talents have designed and patiently crafted this work of beauty. It holds amazing symbolic value for all of us and there is not a person that has not offered and enjoyed this project. 


Unloading the 200 kg hand made door
Raising the posts- our Iwozima
Finally, the doors to the Mythic land of our dreams is there- and it is open for our souls to enter.
 It took all of us to load the ultra heavy hand made doors on top of the truck and get them there with great care since every bump on the road was threatening our beautiful piece of art.



 The previous day Alberto, Bruce and Browlie had erected the 6 meter door posts and secured them with concrete while Mikis and Fred were lazily assisting by carrying materials. It was a job that required amazing precision so that everything would be absolutely level and aligned to the milimeter and extraordinary acrobatic skills were displayed by Bruce and Alberto.

Not only can Alberto undertake these tasks with assurance and confidence but also patiently and flawlesly carve out a Shipibo design to the bottom of the door, cut out wooden butterflies, dragonflies and snakes, carve leaf veins and superb details.
Theo, Benji, Alberto,Mikis and Sara painting






         Benjamin, who is the master painter and visualizer of the the whole door worked day and night to give life to every single creature on the door, and although we all painted, his was the hand that guided and inspired us all. 


If it looks simple, it is not. Layers and layers creating depth and beauty were patiently added, and exclamation sounds were heard throughout the house every time a new detail came to light.
Precision art by master craftsman Alberto

The photos cannot give justice and the resolution for this news blog is necessarily low for the internet, so you guys cannot even imagine the beauty of this three dimensional sculpture and the awe that rises in one's heart when one stands in front of it.







Benji and Alberto forming the shapes

It took us two whole days to secure and regulate the heavy doors, to adjust it so every design is exactly correct and for the doors to be perfectly aligned, to varnish the door, to put the lock and the bottom latch, to make sure it locks confidently and opens easily, to match the perfection of the gate with a perfect installation.
Wooden creatures preparing to come to life!!




The Moon, the Sun, the feminine, the masculine, the flight, the joy, the magic garden, the dream..
 The gate is full of symbolism: 








The left side is feminine and the right masculine, the left holds the moon and the stars and the right the sun. The Condor, Otorongo Jaguar, Serpent and Hummingbird archetypes are there, a golden eagle feather is flying in the wind and the Blue Morpho butterflies that TierraMitica is full of fly happily around a garden that is open and transparent to the garden behind. 




The garden behind the garden
The intricate Shipibo design at the bottom represents visions of the grandmother and many other subtler symbolisms are all over the place but the most important symbolism is evident throughout: Beauty is inherent in every detail of our Mother Earth, beauty is inherent in every one of our souls. We are truly happy, fully united in our intention and, at last fully aligned with Tierra Mitica.


The Doors are now open!!!


Benjamin's art gives life
Work and fun


Life

A window to paradise
Alberto offering life and limb for TierraMitica

need any words?

Saturday, May 5, 2012

We meet the sloth!! very very slowly!

What a great Smile :)


After an amazing day of seeing TierraMitica, on our drive back we spotted a sloth next to the road! This fantastic animal was so great to see. We all got out, and watched him until he had just about climbed out of a mountain of mud and sand (and for a sloth on the ground, that takes a harmoniously long time time!).






The sloth has an amazing shape to its body, this is how begins to climb, and return to its home in the jungle canopies.






The sloth moves with a motion that is very interesting to watch. How he stretched out his very long arms, and slowly but very nimbly climbed his way into the trees was a fun experience to watch. It is so nice to watch somebody absolutely not in a hurry!!




Some interesting things about sloths:


"the outer hairs grow in a direction opposite from that of other mammals. In most mammals hairs grow toward the extremities, but because sloths spend so much time with their legs above their bodies, their hairs grow away from the extremities in order to provide protection from the elements while the sloth hangs upside down."
"They have about a quarter as much muscle tissue as other animals of similar weight"


"Their specialised hands and feet have long, curved claws to allow them to hang upside-down from branches without effort. While they sometimes sit on top of branches, they usually eat, sleep, and even give birth hanging from limbs. They sometimes remain hanging from branches after death."source: wikipedia




Animals and birds in TierraMitica are starting to trust us more and more and to visit us to say hi!!! We are so honored!





Exploring TierraMitica Part 2: Road to the first and second field

Walking up the mountain road
(Bruce, Benjamin and Daniel)
From the waterfall, our journey continued towards the Great Tree, and to discover some of the innumerable treasures of TierraMitica. The Great Tree (it doesn't have a name yet) is overlooking TierraMitica right at the top of the mountain and is so much bigger than anything else in the whole mountain range that it can be clearly seen from 39 kms away in Tarapoto; He is our grandfather energy, our guardian and our proud stance- we need to feel its energy up close!
(Read the first part of our exploration here). We returned to the road, and began to climb the mountain's slope again.

Entering the jungle again






After a time we entered the jungle and took the path to the first field (or flat area).







The view from the first field
This field is amazing, a clearing on top of a hill overlooking the ancient and majestic Andes.

This could be a site for a meditation and yoga platform, a secluded space for those doing a private dieta or even the Ayahuasca ceremonies (Click here to read about Ayahuasca and The mythic voyage)




Canopies of trees over the path
After this we walked through these amazing canopies of trees hanging over the path.
This was on the smooth old, unused road once more.
















The view from the second field is just as beautiful as the first. Even more can be seen as it is from a higher view point. We are looking for the best locations for the Mythic Voyage "boat" village, for Bungalows and homes, for Yoga and meditation and everything else that will appear and unite itself with our ever evolving vision for TierraMitica. Keep looking- more news to come!!







Exploring TierraMitica

The beginning of our exploration (Daniel, Benjamin)
Yesterday we all returned to TierraMitica after some time of being at La Casa in Tarapoto (see the Lots of Water story).
We were all happy to be back in the land, and we will be going more and more now, until we move into to Okopua (see Okopua story).


On this amazing day, bathed in sunlight we explored TierraMitica!




A smooth, wide road




Benjamin (see story about Benjamin's arrival), Ferdinand, my self and Bruce (see storyabout our first ever employee, smiling Bruce here) were fortunate to go on this trip.


We walked from El Hogar (The main temple, the name means Home) that is across the river from Okopua, towards the Great Tree. Ferd was our photographer and did an awesome work (see gallery for all the pictures here).


Bruce showed us a wide road that is smooth and very easy to walk. It has not been used for some time, though is a very clear path. This is amazing news- we had heard there was an old road there, but never imagined it to be in such a good condition. It opens new possibilities of quick and easy access for supplies and construction materials to the farthest and most inaccessible parts of the Mythic Land.


Going to a new waterfall (Daniel, Benjamin)
We then turned onto another path leading to a waterfall that Bruce told us about.





Sitting on top of the waterfall (Benjamin)








                                             This 4m waterfall is very beautiful; the rocks at the top, the plants and the flow of the water all come together to make an exquisite jungle oasis.


Anyone who comes to TierraMitica will be able to visit this amazing place, and feel the tranquil energy. We plan to make a cleansing temple to the waters and take our flower baths and purifying ceremonies there, using the magical scenery as our temple. More news of this exploration that has brought even more wonder into our hearts to follow...



Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Excursion to Ayashikayu falls

Ahuashikayu waterfall- what a sight!
Sequestered from TierraMitica by the torrential rains that should have stopped some time ago, we take the opportunity for some interesting excursions in this amazingly beautiful region of high cloud jungle.





A paradise of thunderous sounds,
jungle smells and powerful beauty
One of them was to the Ahuashiyaku waterfall for a swim; Tucked away in the densely vegetated hills above the city, the Ahuashiyacu Waterfall is Tarapoto’s most famous attraction. The towering waterfall plunges through the jungle into a chilly pool, accessible via a picturesque walkway that winds its way from the nearby road. 




Benjamin and Mikis swimming at the pool while the waterfall sprays them with wet wind



The legend has it that a local leader, not wanting others to enjoy his daughter's beauty, had a witchdoctor change her into a tranquil stream. However, the witchdoctor, not wanting to deprive others of the beauty of the maiden, changed her into the Ahuashiyacu falls. 

Water, Water and more water...



The construction of TierraMitica is encountering weather phenomena that apparently occur only every 25-30 years. 




The unnatural extension of the rain period has saturated the earth to the point that it cannot absorb any more rain, causing flooding of many villages, destruction of roads and buildings and has seriously delayed our construction. 




All rural roads have problems and are at times impassable and access to TierraMitica is right now very difficult, but also the main, new and well made asphalt road has been hit with whole mountains sliding on it, making everybody wait for hours for the road to be cleared, with few cars passing once every hour while the tractors rest for a few minutes. 


Our morale high after an offroad adventure against the mud carrying materials up to TierraMitica, we wait patiently for the road to open, Shrek proudly bearing his muddy battle scars.

Sara is with us!!!

Sara Manita has come to add her love to TierraMitica as a volunteer, another flower to join the appearance of the first flowers to come out of our Casa garden. She cooks for us, she sings to us, she paints Suns and Moons on our gate and she makes us happier, stronger and more balanced with the addition of her feminine energy to Theo's

Our Altar at la Casa

We all felt that it was time to offer our hearts, capabilities and intention to TierraMitica in the powerful symbolic way of the altar. In a beautiful ceremony one evening we opened up the altar for TierraMitica and expressed the art of our souls. The altar includes Curly, the recovered stalactite sculpture from the prehistoric cave behind our waterfall (see story at Recovering Curly, TierraMitica's man from the past...) and the finished model of El Hogar that Alberto has made (see story at Alberto sculpts our vision) with its twelve sided glass pyramid on top to allow starlight into the main ceremony hall.



Our altar unites us in unfathomable ways and will keep shifting in tune with our souls as we  keep shifting in tune with our altar...magical things await us.