The Road to Tassajara
My friend Rossana and I sign up for 3+ days of
Guest Practice at Tassajara. We set out on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend with Rossana driving.
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| Foggy coast & sand dunes by Monterey |
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| Sunnier ranch lands in Carmel Valley close to Tassajara Rd |
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The pavement ends at Jamesburg, which is mostly a stop for picking up and dropping off visitors not wanting to brave the drive in and feeling rich enough to pay for the Stage.
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| Check in station for the Stage |
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| Full parking lot on Memorial Day |
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| Chair to wait for the stage |
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| Leslie, former Director of Tassajara, with grand daughter |
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| Rossana checks All Wheel Drive info |
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| At first the dirt road seems easy |
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The Road In
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| Soon, we enter Los Padres National Forest |
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| Fire is a danger to this forest |
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| Magnificent oak trees dot the first section of road |
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| Soon the road gets narrow and rocky |
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| Horse trough of old bath tub is almost washed way |
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| Lots of rocks |
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| the long and winding road into Tassajara |
We arrive !
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| A meditator - we must be close |
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| Registration Office |
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After signing in, we find our home for the next few days.
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| Ahh --- There it is - Cabin 10 |
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| ohh - it's nice inside |
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| and the beds are fine |
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Around Tassajara
Wandering around the grounds, it's apparent that Tassajara is indeed a Zen Retreat Center. As part of our Guest Practice program, we get up with the early (and do I mean early) bell for the 5:30am meditation. Fortunately, I tend to be a fairly early riser (but not that early).
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| Metal gong |
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| Stone steps to Zendo |
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| Side entrance to Zendo |
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In fact in some ways, it's like mini trip to Japan.
Then there's the fun things to do..
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| THE BATHS |
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| Ahhh - the hot pool |
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| New Retreat Center |
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... and lots places to hang out.
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| Sunny grassy area in front of Office |
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| seating area in courtyard |
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| teas and coffee are available throughout the day |
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Then there's the FOOD! Since we're doing the Guest Practice, we eat with the students/staff for breakfast/lunch and then with the guests for dinner. The meals for the students/staff are simpler than for the guests, but all the food is a selection of wonderful vegetarian dishes.
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| The main dinning hall for guests |
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| Buddha celebrates good meals to come |
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| Opps - just heard the dinner bell. Time to grab napkins. |
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The garden is another great place to hang out. The quality of the light in the late afternoons brings out all the photographers.
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| person reading in flower garden |
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| Peony ready for picking |
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| Columbines |
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The swimming pool area is another fun area.
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| Entry to pool |
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| toilet & cold shower |
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| Warm pool - at 95 degrees, a little too warm for laps |
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Nature
Tassajara is in the middle of a National Forest, surrounded by wilderness area and a good choice of hiking trails.
Ode to Tassjara Creek
The deep canyon brings out a lovely quality of changing light as the sun moves through the day.
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| Sunlight rims the edges of leaves |
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| light and shadow |
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| dance with each other through the canyon |
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| Half moon over Tassajara |
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Our time in Tassajara is over all too soon.... as we've really enjoyed our Guest Practice. Since the first half of the day is spent with the students/staff and the second part of the day is spent as a guest, we are able to get a good overall view of how Tassajara works.
We're already planning to come back next year and stay longer, maybe for the Work Period in April. The early meditation isn't quite so early and is optional. It'll be a good way to get to know the students and staff even better. |
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