📝 Blog Post #1: Bienvenidos a Ritmo del Río
It all begins with an idea.
January 5, 2025
Hidden in the lush hills of San Rafael, Antioquia, Ritmo del Río is a living and constantly evolving dream — set on a 15-hectare (about 37-acre) jungle reserve with over a kilometer of the pristine Río Macanal running through our property. Here, surrounded by waterfalls, birds, and fruit trees, we’ve created a space where organic farming, nature conservation, language learning, and music all flow together in harmony.
In 2013, we purchased what was once an abandoned cattle farm — left untouched for seven years — from a San Rafael native living in Medellín. Since then, we’ve planted over 4,000 trees, including hundreds of fruit trees, transforming this land into a vibrant ecosystem and a place for deep reconnection.
Our organic farm now produces an abundance of tropical fruits — papayas, pineapples, citrus, mangostines, guavas, bananas, and more — alongside vegetables and herbs like lettuce, yuca, tomatoes, carrots, kale, basil, flor de jamaica, and onions. We raise chickens and fish, and we’ve recently started cultivating oyster mushrooms. Everything we grow goes directly into the meals we serve to guests, students, and staff at our farm-to-table restaurant.
The vision began with Jesse Clark, a linguistics student from California who first arrived in Colombia at 20 years old. Drawn to the language, culture, and natural beauty of this land, Jesse moved to San Rafael in 2013 and began Ritmo del Río with the idea of creating a nature reserve, organic farm, music venue and language school.
Years later, a shared love of language with Carlos Nieto, a Colombian linguist and now co-director, led to the founding of the Spanish School at Ritmo del Río — a place where language immersion happens not just in classrooms, but in rivers, gardens, and in the local community.
Today, Ritmo del Río is a thriving project with:
13 full-time workers running the hotel, farm, and restaurant
4 Spanish full professors and 5 more professors in training
Yoga and salsa instructors
Local and international musicians
A growing number of part-time collaborators
One of our central goals is to create sustainable, dignified work opportunities in rural Colombia — jobs with fair pay and benefits that allow people to stay rooted in their communities.
Whether you’re coming to learn Spanish, explore the jungle, relax by the river, or share in music and culture — bienvenid@s al Ritmo del Río. Here, we learn, grow, and flow together.
📝 Blog Post #2: Meet the Ritmo del Río Team
It all begins with an idea.
January 12, 2025
Behind the fruit trees, Spanish lessons, and music nights at Ritmo del Río, there’s a dedicated and diverse team of people working hard to make it all possible. Let us introduce you to just a few of the amazing souls who give this place its rhythm.
🎓 Carlos Nieto – Director
Carlos is a Colombian from Bucaramanga who finished his schooling in Bogotá. He’s lived, worked and studied languages in Australia and France, and he now lives in San Rafael with his two children. After living abroad for years, Carlos moved back to the countryside of Colombia to start a new life with his family. Carlos has been in San Rafael for 9 years and co-founded our Spanish school. As the director of the Ritmo del Río Spanish School, he brings a unique mix of language expertise, vision, and warmth to the project.
🌱 Jesse Clark – Founder
Originally from California, Jesse studied linguistics at UC Berkeley. He first came to Colombia at age 20 and never looked back. After founding Ritmo del Río in 2013, Jesse has combined his passion for languages, ecology, and community-building into this constantly-evolving project.
🗣️ Mattias Wagner – Language Teacher
Mattias is a German linguist who speaks German, English, Spanish, and Swahili. He has lived in Colombia for nearly 20 years and has a wealth of experience teaching Spanish to students from all over the world.
📚 Andrea – Language Teacher
Andrea is a Spanish and English teacher from Bogotá. She recently moved to San Rafael and is now a beloved teacher at Ritmo del Río and an English teacher for local students in the area.
🌍 Melina – Language Teacher
Melina teaches both French and Spanish, and is also the founder of an alternative school for children in a rural area near Ritmo del Río. She splits her time between teaching at our school and running her own nonprofit educational project for local kids.
🎸 Gokula – Musician & Conversation Leader
Gokula is a local musician and one of our Spanish teachers in training. He brings music and joy to the project and often helps lead conversation classes and activities at the school. He also teaches guitar and singing if you’d like you study music while at Ritmo Del Río’s Spanish School!
🧘♀️ Sara – Yoga Teacher & Language Helper
Sara is from Medellín and teaches yoga at Ritmo del Río. She’s also involved in language exchanges and conversation classes, bringing calm energy and connection to the group. Sara also runs an organic essential oils business in the neighborhood el Arenal, about 15 minutes away from Ritmo Del Río.
✍️ Camila – Reception & School Organizer
Camila is an Argentine journalist turned hotel admin, who now lives in Colombia. She works at the hotel reception and helps coordinate the Spanish school, volunteer program, and language workshops here at Ritmo del Río.
💃 Johana – Salsa Instructor
Johana is from Colombia and leads our Salsa classes, language exchanges, and conversation workshops. Her energy is infectious and her classes are always a highlight of the week.
Together, we’re are the Ritmo del Río Spanish team — a community working toward a shared vision: learning, connection, and sustainability through education and cultural exchange.
📝 Blog Post #3: How We Teach Spanish at Ritmo del Río
It all begins with an idea.
January 15, 2025
At Ritmo del Río, Spanish isn’t just something you study — it’s something you live.
Our classes take place in the heart of nature, surrounded by jungle, rivers, and the rhythms of daily life in rural Colombia. Whether you’re learning grammar in an open-air classroom or practicing conversation by the river, you’ll be fully immersed in the language and culture.
We offer two types of classes:
1. Grammar Classes
These are more structured, taught one-on-one in personalized sessions. Our teachers are trained in linguistics and language pedagogy. We’re happy to break down grammar rules and answer your questions — but always with your personal goals in mind. We tailor each class to your level and interests.
2. Conversation Classes
This is where the magic happens. Our conversation classes take place:
Walking through the nature reserve
Sitting by the Río Macanal
Visiting the garden or local town
Sharing coffee, music, or local foods
In these classes, you’ll practice real-life Spanish, learn local expressions, and build your fluency through natural interaction. And yes — we’ll correct your mistakes, but always with patience and encouragement.
At Ritmo del Río, we believe the best way to learn is by doing, moving, and connecting. Whether you’re a complete beginner or brushing up your skills, our teachers are here to guide you on a journey of language, culture, and personal growth.
Blog Post Title Four
It all begins with an idea.
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.
Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.