An example of a Retreat Program:
The Program begins on a Friday evening at 7pm. Participants gather at house to meet Carlos and listen to a brief explanation of traditional healing techniques, the culture of plant spirit medicine, and the life of Don Juan. At 8pm, a video is shown, allowing participants to see the preparation of ayahuasca in the jungle as well as footage of a healing ceremony at Juan's camp. After the video, specific instructions will be given by Carlos as to the correct diet and discipline needed for the optimum outcome. At 9:30, the meeting will adjourn, with Carlos taking an additional 30 minutes to address any questions or concerns. Any person taking medication may be advised to discontinue its use for one week and attend one of the later ceremonies instead.

Saturday, participants will meet again at 3pm for a lesson in Peruvian cooking. Carlos will give a class on the proper preparation of food during the diet, which will be important for the following day. Partipants will watch Carlos prepare dinner for the group, which they will then eat dinner at around 4pm. Participants will recieve literature pertaining to the ceremony and the diet afterwards. After dinner, participants will have the opportunity to watch a second video, describing Juan's life as a curandero and his relationship to the spirits of the plants. At around 7pm, participants will go home to get ready, or stay and relax and talk with the others. At 8pm, Carlos will begin preparing the space where the ceremony will be held. At 8:30pm, participants will return and enter the ceremony room. By 9pm, everyone should be settled in their seats and calm. Juan will then enter and continue the preparation of the space, with the help of you and Carlos. At 9:30, Juan will give a short lecture on his life, the history of plant medicine, and what is about to happen in the ceremony.
At 10pm, participants will be served a small glass of ayahuasca poured by Juan. Everyone will drink, including Juan, who will say some final words about vomiting and going to the bathroom in the dark. By 11pm, the lights will be turned off and participants will sit in total darkness and silence. Juan will begin the ceremony when the time is right, usually about twenty minutes after the lights have been turned off. The ceremony will take place and each person will recieve individual attention from Juan, as well as additional attention from Carlos if necessary. Once everyone has been healed and the effects of the ayahuasca have subsided, the lights will be turned back on. It will most likely be around 3am. There will be a quiet discussion about people's experiences and questions will be asked for one hour. Then, Juan and Carlos will leave and participants will either go to their homes or sleep there.

Participants will gather again for lunch at noon on Sunday. After they eat, they will watch a third video. This video will explain the role of the icaros they heard in the ceremony and explain further the process of healing in the ancient ways of the Amazon Rainforest. At 4pm, participants will meet with Carlos and Juan again to take pictures and to ask further questions. A photo album will be passed around, showing a retreat in the forest, as well as a book containing the testamonies of people who have attended ceremonies. Participants will be asked to write down their experiences in the book as well. Juan will give a small talk on living correctly and the importance of the diet. At 5:30pm, dinner will be served. After everyone has finished eating, a CD of Juan's icaros will be played as people relax. At 8pm, Carlos will give a final talk, thanking everyone for attending and will give them the opportunity to purchase DVDs, CDs, and photographs. Juan and Carlos will then say goodbye to the program participants as they all leave for their homes with a small pepper to eat with salt the following morning to break the diet. The first session will then be over.

This same program will then be repeated, starting at 7pm the next day, Monday. Another ceremony will be held on Tuesday night and participants will leave Wednesday evening at around 8pm. They'll take Thursday to rest and then do it all again that weekend. The last session will be a little different, however. It will be smaller and available to a more select group. This ceremony will be recorded by Carlos and will be given to you on CD at the end of their stay. The final group will have breakfast with Juan on Thursday to finish their retreat. For organizing the retreat program, you will also recieve an Ayahuayra t-shirt, the program DVD, and promotional material.