Morning: The Cacao Farm

We will begin by walking through the cacao farm and learn directly from the people who know this land intimately.

You will see how cacao grows in its natural environment, how the trees are cared for, how the pods develop, and how the health of the soil shapes everything that comes after.

This is not simply a farm tour. It is the first step in understanding cacao as part of a living ecosystem. By the end of the morning, the cacao in your cup will already feel different.

Afternoon: Ancient Permaculture

In the afternoon, Héctor will guide us through one of the most powerful workshops we have ever offered. At first, it may sound like a workshop about agriculture, soil, sustainability, how to live in greater harmony with the earth. And it is all of those things. But it is also much more. This workshop is really about how human beings are meant to live, how we relate to the land and to one another. It is about how to create systems that nourish rather than exhaust. To stop living as though we are separate from the earth and begin to remember that we are part of it.

Héctor has a way of taking what appears to be a conversation about agriculture and turning it into a reflection on life itself. People often leave this workshop with tears in their eyes.

morning: ancient food & Oral Tradition

Women and grandmothers will prepare a traditional Maya meal for us, and while we cook and eat together they will share cacao wisdom and Maya wisdom.

This is where the experience becomes personal. We will sit together, share food, listen, ask questions, and learn through conversation. This is oral tradition in its most natural form. You will hear directly from the women who make the cacao, to understand their lives, their work, their families, and what this tradition means to them.

afternoon: Production From Bean to Cup

We will visit Elsa and the women of the community and learn the traditional production process from beginning to end. This will not be a demonstration you watch from a distance, you will participate.

Together, we will:

• Roast the cacao over a wood fire
• Peel the beans by hand
• Grind the cacao using a traditional stone grinder
• Learn how texture, heat, timing, and experience shape the final cacao
• Follow the process all the way into the cup

There is something deeply humbling about realizing how much labor, patience, and knowledge lives inside a single block of cacao. By the time you drink what you have helped make, it will no longer feel like a product.

Morning: Space to Rest or Visit Semuc Champey

After two full and deeply immersive days, the morning will be intentionally left open. This is important. We want everyone to have time to rest and prepare for the closing ceremony.

But we also know that traveling all the way to Lanquín and not having the chance to visit Semuc Champey would feel like a missed opportunity. So those who wish to do so will have the morning available to visit its sacred turquoise pools. Whether you choose to visit Semuc Champey or simply use the morning to rest, this time is yours.

Afternoon: Maya Fire Ceremony in the Cacao Farm

We will return to the cacao farm and gather with spiritual leaders for a Maya Fire Ceremony. This will be the closing heart of the experience.

Surrounded by the land where cacao grows, we will come together in ceremony to give thanks, honor what has been shared, and close the journey with intention.

The fire will be guided by Maya spiritual leaders who carry these traditions in their daily lives.

After three days of learning, working with cacao, the ceremony brings everything together. And when you return home, you will carry far more than knowledge.

Fire ceremonies are the most ancient and sacred practices of the Maya, and you will be able to connect with it in the heart of the Q'eqchi' land guided by its wise leaders.