Interested in deep diving into the Plant-Based Culinary Arts as you explore a life of yoga, self-study and transformation in the Costa Rican jungle?
Passionate about living in union with nature and nourishing your relationship with reality, all the while making (and eating) Gourmet Vegan Gluten-free Buttermilk Biscuits?
Willing to ride the waves of curiosity and higher consciousness with a community that comes together over nutritious food to refine the yogi mindset whilst sharpening your sautee skills?
Welcome to our kitchen vinyasa! Join us in exploring the Art of Vegan & Vegetarian Gourmet Cuisine, Yoga, Meditation, Community & Communion with Nature
The Gaia Gourmet Experience is an opportunity to become fully immersed in the magical realm of kitchen vinyasa. This adventure in living yoga offers space from the distractions of modern life. Our kitchen is a sacred place to infuse the muscles of your body and mind with focus and awareness as you learn the Gaia Gourmet method of cooking.
We take the kitchen seriously, as yogis do their sadhana. Our collective focus is directed toward the present moment of co-creation and self-discovery. No previous experience cooking is necessary (although welcome), only the desire to learn and the openness to develop in the field of healthy gastronomy.
Our founder, Chef Naga, is a practicing yogi and has empowered the Gaia Gourmet Kitchen as a living, fire breathing jungle gym. Our method provides the structure and technique that makes it possible for anybody to dive in and produce high quality gourmet vegetarian meals for groups of up to 24 people. Our 3-week menu is designed around our critically acclaimed Gaia Gourmet Cuisine Cookbook. Our cuisine is designed to optimize healthy digestion, to refine one’s awareness of the different subtleties that are achievable in flavor and texture, and to soothe the bodies, minds and hearts of all who come to sit at our tables.
You’ll participate in all ways. This kitchen has a need for a person who enjoys math, one who keeps our gluten-free guests in mind, and one who genuinely gets lost in the sauce! That being said, our goal is not to keep mathematicians by the whiteboard, nor to only call in the artists when dessert is delicate and needs a closer look. There are opportunities for everyone to step up and be educated by what arises in each unique scenario, the kitchen is a metaphor for life. Whether it is your individual fínese in the way you place a plate in front of a YTT student, or the way you position your body between our prep ladies as you reach for the scale, it is all in honor of the practice and a way of seeing with a mindful perspective.
Our kula is a growing community of curious, dedicated, open-minded students of life who enjoy being of service, going deep, and are on the path of personal evolution. Participation requires a willingness to develop as a part of a team who can harness the waves of FORMING, STORMING, NORMING and PERFORMING as a collective. There is space for everyone in this jungle. It takes people to change the air and it takes courage to breathe the ideas of what is possible into existence. We are in support of a natural, harmonious, and expansive way of life.
A well rounded flow of nourishment is what we strive for and what we offer. Just as it takes two to hold 5 kilos of zucchini noodles, it takes your participation and willingness to dance with what is before you. Along your journey, it could be that you practice looking a little more closely, chewing a little more slowly, enjoying silence, rising early with the sun, joining asana classes, meditating with the howler monkeys, or drawing different shapes and coloring outside of the lines. Your residency at The Sanctuary is a chance to cultivate your presence, in and out of the kitchen.
Being here, you get to taste it all! Enhance your life’s palate and taste the moment when you almost forgot the truffle oil but caught it on the next exhale. Taste the result of one pointed focus with your body, thought, and intention, which over time becomes the extended experience of what full presence tastes like. You will get to make it happen alongside others for many mouths, many bodies, for those who have decided to prioritize self-care as our guests on a jungle retreat or yoga teacher training immersion. That is what our yoga in the kitchen is about. This is the art of cooking…creating alchemy with what you are given. It is a chance to create and eat more art!
With Mother Nature as a primary teacher, there is much to witness, release and learn throughout this empowering experience. There may be an unveiling of inner development, course correction of your life goals, and perhaps a deeper understanding of your purpose as a part of the whole.
Focus is love.
Let’s focus!
THERE WILL BE OPPORTUNITY TO:
Join in on the daily Asana / Lectures on Yoga / Meditations
Reconnect with Nature
Hike up to our Sky Deck and witness the Sunrise / Stars
Refresh at one of the many walking distance Waterfalls
Hold Space for and with other Students / Teachers
Explore The Magical Orchard of Earth’s Peace and Space to Reflect
Learn How to be on a team of Karmic Yogis who make Delicious Food!
YOUR TIME AT THE SANCTUARY WILL BE:
Rolling admissions. We ask for a minimum of a three-month commitment with the option to stay for longer.
35-40 hours over 6-days participating hands on the kitchen and front of house.
A chance to follow a structure of detailed recipes and systems in a professionally organized working kitchen environment.
An immediate plunge into Gaia Gourmet as you will start cooking upon arrival!
A buffet of vibes that include learning to identify different flavor combinations to achieve depth and nuances of dimensions, all under the guidance of a seasoned team leader.
You will NOT be cooking/participating on all meal shifts but rather alternating on the schedule between cooking / learning in the kitchen and serving the guests to fulfill the energy exchange. You will have 1 free day per week where you can do as you please within nature or visiting our neighboring local beach communities.
YOU WILL RECEIVE:
Accommodations in one of our Tropical Modern Zen Jungle Lofts with 2 other FEMALE residents.
ं Only accepting FEMALE students based on the housing situation ं
Wi-Fi
Three Daily Gaia Gourmet Vegan / Vegetarian / Gluten Free Meals (2 meals when there are no retreats happening)
Organic shade grown, Costa Rican Coffee, Teas, Fruits
Super-filtered spring water for drinking and bathing
Bi-Weekly Laundry + Weekly Linen Service
Organic Biodegradable Toiletries
The Sanctuary at Two Rivers is a 40-acre private jungle property exclusively for yoga retreats, yoga teacher training courses, and health and wellness gatherings. The Sanctuary, located on Costa Rica’s magical Nicoya Peninsula, is one of only a few retreat centers in the world specifically designed by veteran yogis. The first-class center was intentionally built as a place to commune with nature, practice yoga, contemplate, meditate, detox, and find balance through health and wellness retreats, vacations, and trainings.
The Sanctuary at Two Rivers is a 100% off-the-grid, solar-powered facility featuring luxurious, modern accommodations in a breathtaking natural environment. Add to that an extensive spa menu and Gaia Gourmet’s organic vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free cuisine, and you have the ideal location for an eco-chic yoga retreat.
Hours / Week *
No more than 40 hours over 6 days per week participating hands-on in the kitchen and front of house providing nourishment (3 meals each day) for yoga retreat and yoga teacher training guests as well as our jungle kula. Duties include preparing line-ups, cooking by following the scripted Gaia Gourmet recipes to prepare meals, table setting, serving, eating, clearing tables, problem solving, cleaning up and being a part of the support team for a busy yoga retreat center off the grid in the jungle.
This is an energy exchange without financial compensation. You may receive tips from guests which could range from $10-$100 per week but this is neither consistent nor guaranteed. In exchange for the time you spend in the kitchen you will receive three incredible high quality meals each day (2 full meals and a simple dinner if you want one when there are no retreats happening), unlimited coffee and tea, fruits to snack on, and super filtered pranified spring water to drink and shower in. You will live in a jungle loft with two housemates. The Sanctuary will provide laundry service twice per week, linen change (sheets and towels) once per week, organic biodegradable toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, soap & toothpaste) and Wi-Fi. All of this has a wholesale value of $1100 per week.
For stays longer than 90 days you will need to cross the border and exit Costa Rica. There is a local service that provides a group shuttle to the Nicaraguan border for this purpose (we call it a visa run). You make it there and back again in one day!
You will have access to the private eco-retreat propropery, The Sanctuary at Two Rivers, which includes jungle trails, enchanted rivers and healing waterfalls, sky lab (a yoga platform overlooking the pacific ocean with epic sunrise views and wildlife observation), swimming pool and sun deck. You will also have the option to attend morning asana classes during Lakshmi Rising yoga teacher trainings with the opportunity to participate in any of the yoga training content that your schedule allows. Over three – six months (depending upon the season), this will give you the chance to receive a 200 hour YTT certificate from Lakshmi Rising if you complete all of the coursework ($3900 value).
You will be deeply nourished. Nutrition is more than just feeding the physical body. Our incredible setting and cuisine will nurture every aspect of your being—supporting, balancing, and cleansing your body, mind, and spirit along your yogic journey. Our healthy, organic menu is inspired by the world’s greatest cuisines and artistically crafted to please all the senses. Gaia Gourmet meals are designed around the seasons, using Ayurvedic principles and incorporating the best and freshest local ingredients, herbs, and spices. We procure and serve organic produce from local family farms. Our meals are well-balanced and prepared with love. This positive energy is infused into the food, aiding the digestive process.