Costa Rica IMMERSION Through the Lens

PHOTOGRAPHER FRIENDS

As a part of an ongoing effort to highlight our growing IMMERSION program, we decided to enlist the help of talented photographers—Dirk Dallas and Tim Landis—to share an inside look at our Costa Rica IMMERSION program.

The goal of the 1-week trip was to provide a wider network of people with an inside look at the IMMERSION program as well as the experience of the 3-month team embedded in the southeast region of Talamanca, Costa Rica.This area of Costa Rica is home to the indigenous Bribri and Cabecar people. Due to ancient beliefs and customs handed down through generations, the people of this region have maintained a respectful relationship with their natural environment, making it the least-developed region of Costa Rica. In the most remote regions of this territory, villages are not accessible by roads, and that’s where we traveled.

There is no easy way to get to the village of Coroma, Talamanca. It’s a 5-hour van ride from the capitol to the southeast region of the country, where we then hopped in a banana boat canoe for a 45-minute ride upriver. From there, the trek into the jungle began. The long journey into the community allowed the guys to learn about EM’s ongoing work in Talamanca as well as how Immersion teams work in and alongside our partner communities in Costa Rica, living with host families, building real relationships, and serving the community in practical ways.

POSTS FROM THE FIELD

“We had the honor of visiting Anselmo & Basila who were hosting an IMMERSION team in their home for 3 months. They showed us around their home and farm where they cultivate plantains, sugar cane, chocolate & coffee beans. After the tour they graciously invited us into their home & we got to watch Basila (homeowner) make us some fresh coffee. I’m not much of a coffee drinker, except for fluffy coffee drinks :) but I can honestly say it was amazing! #costaricaimmersion”
- Dirk, on Instagram

“‘You will always be welcome here,’ says it all about Anselmo and his commitment to cultivate and love the BriBri community and to partner with the #CostaRicaImmersion teams!”
- Tim, on Instagram

IMMERSE

These communities are resilient, full of hope, and—as Immersion teams have found—full of life. Tim and Dirk were able to beautifully capture the essence of the BriBri culture and spirit, and the lifestyle of the Immersion team living with them, all in a few mobile photos. Here are a few more of our favorites from the trip:

Dirk Dallas is a photographer and professor of digital media. Dirk has over 219,000 followers on Instagram and is represented by Tinker Street. His work has been featured on CNN.com, USAToday.com, Mashable and The Huffington Post.

Tim Landis is a photographer with over 600,000 followers on Instagram. Tim is a top influencer in the mobile community represented by Tinker Street. His work has been featured on The Huffington Post, Digital Photography Review and by Samsung USA.

APPLY NOW to join an upcoming Costa Rica IMMERSION team!

You must have a group size of at least 6 members to join this trip. Please view the Small Team trips or call our Servicing Department for more options at 888-475-6414.

View Small Team Trips

For most trips, you must have a group size of at least 6 members. Please view the Small Teams tab on each Community page or call our Servicing Department for more options at 888-475-6414.