The town of Nicoya, located in Costa Rica’s northern province of Guanacaste, began one of its first community activities in preparation for the celebration of the Virgin of Guadalupe .

The activity that was celebrated Sunday November 10^th is called the “pica ‘e leña” and translates to wood chopping. The tradition calls for all the men in the community to get up at the crack of dawn and head out to the fields to chop wood.

The wood that is collected is to be used in the preparation of the meal for the entire community during the celebrations of the Virgin of Guadalupe. The religious festivity dates all the way back to the colonial era and takes place in Nicoya on December 11 and 12.

At least 50 men participated in the chopping of the wood that filled up 45 ox-driven carts that carried the wood into town. The community’s women also put in their share of work as they got up at 3am in the morning to prepare breakfast for the workers. 67 year old Maria Obando has been preparing the traditional tortilla used for breakfast for over 50 years. Doña Maria mentioned that it was an arduous task, but that is done with devotion.

As the men paraded into town with their “precious load” of wood, they were received with street performances, music and traditional dances.