Ever since Ronald Esquivel designed Camino del Artista – the labyrinth at my home, Casa Uno – I have wanted to visit La Senda, the largest labyrinth in the world, which Esquivel collaborated in creating. It is located outside of Tamarindo, about 4 hours from my home. I also knew that someday I would get there. I did, on my birthday this January. Pam Wax, a friend and poet who leads workshops and writes about labyrinths, also wanted to visit, so the trip was planned when she was here.
First challenge was how to get from Atenas to La Senda without renting a car. It’s fun how things fall into place. Several months ago, former Avodah dancer Kerri Anne Grace visited and shared how she had found an easy way to travel around Costa Rica by using Interbus (https://www.interbusonline.com). While they don’t list Atenas as one of their routes, I learned from Kerri that you can call and make a reservation and request both a pickup and drop off at a gas station outside of town. We took a 20-minute taxi ride from home to the gas station, and the bus was right on time to pick us up. About halfway into the trip our small bus of about 18 people stopped at a large roadside area that had a restaurant, gift store, bathrooms and a large parking lot where other vans were parked. We all got off and had a relaxing time enjoying some refreshments while our driver moved any checked luggage to the next van that would take us to our destination. The wait for the next van can be as short as 10 minutes or as long as an hour depending on traffic and vans’ arrivals. I was impressed with the organization of the system and the comfort of the waiting area. It was fun to talk to some of the other passengers and to discover this was a very safe and economical way to travel around Costa Rica. I thought to myself… yes, I would use this again.
Once in Tamarindo we were met by a driver from La Senda and made the half-hour drive to the beautiful 74-acre property located in a tropical dry forest. We were met by one of the owners, Ann Vervoort. Although I had not met Ann in person we had been on several Zoom and WhatsApp groups related to labyrinths in Costa Rica so it felt like I was meeting a good friend. She drove us to our glamping unit which was almost a half mile away. Pam and I each had our own separate unit.
La Senda’s website (https://lasendacostarica.com/en/) describes the glamping units:
These units that we call Leaves of Hojas in Spanish are architectural pearls, 4 meters (13’) high and 10 meters (33’) long. They each have a private, partly open-air bathroom and a terrace with view of the forest. All Leaves are equipped with movable fans. We did not opt for AC so prana can flow freely. Staying at our Leaves opens the opportunity to connect fully with Nature.
Shortly after I got settled, I heard rustling outside of the front door, and sure enough there were several monkeys playing in the trees. I sat on the steps of my unit watching and photographing them.
As it was cooler and the air more refreshing, I decided I wanted to walk to the labyrinth and begin to experience it. The glamping units have a lovely path through the forest to the labyrinth. It is a back way to enter, not the usual day-visitors’ entrance. As I walked I felt like I was going to a special sacred site.
I easily found the sign to enter the labyrinth. I immediately felt its largeness and how the path is defined by diverse cacti of different sizes.
A description on the website states:
the position of the entrance in the North, and the exit in the South, the fact that all turns had to take place in the central part of the labyrinth, there had to be 14 layers (two times seven = two complete musical scales), and it had to be built out of cactus to attract Prana (Life Force), according to the knowledge from local indigenous tribes.
As the biggest in the world, the labyrinth measures above 2.5 acres (over 1 hectare) and the path is almost 2 miles (3km) long. It took 6 years to develop and now is fully planted with over 5.000 cactus. All sentient beings, like humans, animals, and plants in La Senda constantly live under the upbeat influence of this big pulsing heart of energy.
I walked slowly and sometimes stopped to make sure I had made the correct turn. The sun was beginning to set and the colors were intense and beautiful, particularly looking toward what I learned was Tiger Mountain.
After a while I was beginning to feel tired and realized I was also near the first of the two centers. It was a big circular opening with cut down tree logs to sit on.
I sat down. Within a few minutes I both felt and saw clear waves of energy coming from the sides of my legs. The palms of my hands felt intensely warm. I stayed very still and quietly heard a voice inside me say, “Be.” I knew I didn’t need to do anything. Just sit there. I sat for a while until the sun was set and it was getting dark. I put on the phone’s flashlight and made my way out of the labyrinth and back to the path that led me to my glamping unit. Since La Senda only serves breakfast and twice-a-week Farm-to-Table dinners, I had brought food for dinner as this was not a Farm-to-Table evening. I didn’t have much appetite, and I was too tired to do anything other than “be.” I did not write, read or sketch as I had planned. Even today, over 6 weeks later, I still am processing the experience.
The next morning after breakfast I had a chance to talk with Ann and learned that there are two opposite charged centers found in the middle of the labyrinth. One is feminine and the other masculine. The labyrinth was designed with these two spots as centers. Where I was sitting was the feminine center.
Sergio Salas, an expert in energy work, discovered these energy points on the property. Sergio collaborated with Ronald Esquivel and together they designed the unique layout based on sacred geometry and the energy setting.
My second day at La Senda, I decided to walk the perimeter of the labyrinth instead of following its path and completing the full distance of visiting each of the two centers and exiting. I photographed as I walked, taking in its diverse cacti and acknowledging how large and unique it is. I climbed the stairs of a pavilion and took some pictures but was not able to get the full labyrinth in a single camera shot.
My body felt an internal energy surge different than I had ever experienced. I felt mindful to be quiet and still. I didn’t feel unsafe or unhealthy, just a clear message to “be.”
I am now home and walking my home labyrinth that I had a part in designing with Ronald Esquivel. Since visiting La Senda I may be finding a different, quieter purpose emerging for this chapter in my life. It is to “be” here as a keeper of this home I call Casa Uno and to share it.
Thank you, JoAnne, for sharing your journey through our labyrinth. It is truly profound to witness, time and again, how each visitor receives the message they need in that moment. A labyrinth is a deeply powerful presence.
Thank you Ann!!
Wow! You inspire me with your determination to see and experience all around you. You open yourself to the world so well.
Thank you Lynette. Appreciate your feedback!
Beautiful! I want to go there sometime!
Yes.. very much worth a visit!
What a beautiful experience and thank you for sharing. I have a small spiral labyrinth in my back yard. Its placement on our property “felt right”. I walk it every morning 3x in and 3x out. My cat Sia (Bri Bri for “magic stone”) always joins me in the spiral.
Thanks Jan for sharing.
Labyrinths are special. Oscar, my miniature poodle often joins me. He likes to walk on the bricks!
A beautiful, moving piece. Thank you, JoAnne, as always!
Thanks Susan!