Back in a Flash!

 

I hope spring is treating everyone well. I just got back from a 3-day roadtrip to Montreal with some friends. It was fabulous!

I’m headed out again to host my Yoga Getaway in St. Lucia.  Charles Polanco-Ali and I have put together a fabulous Yoga themed vacation on this beautiful Caribbean island, and we’re so excited to share time and Yoga with our participants.

To my wonderful NYC crew, I’ll be resuming my regular teaching schedule on Saturday, May 25.

Stay tuned after I get back, as I have some fresh new Yoga workshop ideas in the hopper, plus Yoga and cooking videos that are being worked on right now, PLUS a recipe or two.

Have a fabulous rest of your weekend everyone!

Shanti, shanti, shanti!

 

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Fall Harvest Yoga Retreat Discounts, Oct. 12-14 in Upstate New York

I love hosting Yoga retreats. Seeing my students finding bliss in their Yoga, relaxing, having insights, making  new friends, plus enjoying beautifully prepared food, a roomy vacay house, and outdoorsy stuff…well, it’s  just awesome.

This year, my annual Upstate New York Fall Harvest Yoga4Soul Retreat is October 12-14 (Friday evening through early Sunday afternoon).
Here’s a snap from my last retreat, in Vermont in May.

We had such a blast at the last retreat. This time my Fall Harvest Retreat is in Upstate New York.

Next up? Our beloved Yoga home away-from-home in Upstate New York. Specifically the Grail house, in lovely Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York, about 90 easy  minutes from NYC. So close, but yet, a world away from the city bustle. Perfect.

The Grail House in Upstate NY, home of my annual Fall Harvest Yoga4Soul Retreat.

I got back recently from Colorado, and I can tell the difference that taking some time out for self-care and reflection has made in my own life. Maybe this is why I so enjoy creating these retreat experiences for others…because I know how powerful and important taking time out and taking care of ourselves is.

Maybe this is why many retreaters who go away with me once return again and again. Because, they, too, know the power of these getaways and immediately see the benefits in their own lives.

Fresh seasonal food will star in the retreat menu.

Besides Yoga, we have a trip to an apple orchard and a winery on tap. Plus lots of great food prepared by Chef Dave, who is new to “cheffing” my retreats, but has been studying Yoga with me for years. Did I mention he has culinary training and an amazing Yoga practice? Niiiiceeee.

Maybe we’ll get our asana on outdoors. (Weather permitting, of course!)

Early bird rates are available for the retreat for a few more days. We’re talking rates starting at $300 for the entire weekend, which includes all classes, all meals, and outings. This is a ridiculously affordable rate, so bring some friends, your love, or some fam!

Newer to Yoga? No problem, I’ve had absolute beginners at retreats numerous times, and, if needed, I’ll lead special Yoga sessions for those who are newer.

Click here for more details on retreat rates and house pics.

Click here for a sample itinerary (from a past retreat)

FAQ page is here.

Ready to book? Use this link and scroll down for the PayPal button.

If you have any questions, please drop me an email. Shanti, shanti, shanti, and I hope to see you Upstate.

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Heaven on Earth, Yoga Getaway Plans Progress

What's your idea of heaven on earth?

Hey Guys!

I’m busy planning my next Yoga getaway.  

Yes, I’m thrilled to be hosting another retreat.

Just this week, I met with Chef Maria, also a student of mine, to sketch out the menus. Maria has helped me in the past with the catering aspect of the Yoga retreats, and now she’s doing so in a more official capacity. I’m super psyched to have her onboard! This way I know the food prep is in excellent hands, and I can focus even more energy on teaching my awesome students.

Trust me, the menus we are planning are our very best yet. We have our basic outline, and of course will allow for what is freshest/in season/looks good in our final shopping trip before the getaway.

So where are we going? To Upstate New York. In early summer.  To spend some precious, rejuvenating time here:

Partial view of our retreat house in Upstate NY. I say "our" like we own the place. Ha! For the weekend, we rent it. One of my dreams is to someday own a retreat center of my own, perhaps some place out West.

One of the students who came to the Fall Harvest retreat I did back in early November of 2010, said that she now thinks of this spot Upstate as a “happy place,” that she returns to from time to time in her mind’s eye when day-to-day life gets to be a bit much. What’s you’re happy place?

I definitely think beautiful mountains and woods, lots of nature, flowers, and green, is happy for me. Plus beautiful rocks and clean, pure, moving water. I love beaches, too.  So Colorado but with a temperate beach in my backyard. Ha! Obviously I don’t think of such environs as my day-to-day environment. For me, they’re getaways. (For now; let’s never say never; spending more time in the mountains and on the beach is very possible).

So when I ran across this passage in a book just today, it struck me that this sounded like my Day to Day Heaven on Earth. Check it out:

Situated on the unpaved banks of the Seine in the Parisian suburb of Neuilly, La Roseraie, home to les Madrus, was names for its lush, rose-filled gardens. The property also contained a handsome grape arbor where lunch was served on sunny days. A henhouse was headquarters for two roosters named Ali and Baba, a harem’s worth of chickens,  few golden pheasants, and a score of huge Toulouse geese. In addition to this menagerie were a tame gazelle, a goat, a few angora rabbits, and an alley cat that wandered in one day and became part of the family. The villa’s interior contained thousands of books, handsome Arabian carpets, and practical American style furniture.

—From Wild At Heart, Natalie Clifford Barney’s Journey From Victorian America to the Literary Salons of Paris, by Suzanne Rodriguez. p. 147

Sounds awesome, doesn’t it? Well, maybe the birds aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but I think it sounds like fun. Especially the tame gazelle. How cute! I want one! The rose gardens and orchards sound beautiful, especially if someone else is tending them. Ha!

For me, a happy place has plenty of comfy nooks where I can sit and read a book, nap, or lounge and gaze out to a pretty, green, quiet space. This nook at the retreat house fits the bill perfectly. .

So tell me, what’s your happy place?  It doesn’t even have to be real.

Feel free to get creative. I think visualization and letting our imaginations run free is an important part of life. It opens us up to creativity and new possibilities, so that we don’t get too closed into the “same old same old.” AKA a RUT! Hey, I’m all about routine to large degree, but shaking things up can be good, too!

A quick food note before I roll: I’ll be posting a really juicy, delicious Persian chicken kebab recipe soon (as soon as I photograph it). My dining table is always a happy place when that kebab recipe is on the menu. Talk to you all soon.

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