HELLO!
Thank you for the kind response to our first blog. The subsequent positive feedback, opportunity inquiries and connections have all been very much appreciated.
This is a busy time for the Merkaba Community in general, with many themed 'Holiday Retreats' in the pipeline for the summer, comprising week-long cookery, fitness, self-discovery/survival experiences galore.
The brochure is currently being put together and will be with you along with next week's posting.
We also very recently entered the world of Instagram...
Any questions? Get in touch by emailing wearemerkaba@gmail.com
Monday:
New retreaters arrived, including raw chefs/yoga teachers Tracy Sadler and Dionne Reid, plus Health Coach Jo Hodson.
Each of the three is on a mission to bring about a healthier world and have been wonderful energetic insertions into the Merkaba vibration and we all thoroughly recommend you check out their respective online presences (links below).
We'd already enjoyed the presence of yogi-builder Dan's cousin Steve, with partner Louise and baby Teila, who kept everyone chipper and amused all week long...even often out-raving us all!
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| Too cute . . . but enough about Charlotte's Batman pyjamas, look how adorable Teila is! |
As such, the morning yoga ceremony was, ahem, conducted on the 'Bus Deck'. These sessions are abundant with opportunity for self-exploration and on this occasion took place accompanied by the serene sounds of nature flowing with our myriad stretches.
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| The sun rises over the distant mountains at 7am on a Monday morning |
Continuing the good health into the latter part of the working week's opening day, we enjoyed a pre-dinner aerobics session, combining Tai Chi principles with cardio interval training to form a new style of 'ChiStyle' dance workout. This pioneering form of muscle-building rhythm routine looks likely to feature heavily in the burgeoning 'Hot Fit Camps' that are being discussed as additions to the retreat schedule over the summer and into the autumn.
Tuesday:
The hot-hot-hot-hot-heat continued, bringing about an earlier-than-normal start to yoga, after raw food expert Tracy and Kerry - the resident Classical Kitchen Goddess - had gone for a sunrise hike while Jamie could be found halfway up Crystal Mountain, huffing and puffing by way of specialised breathing exercise.
Last week, a visitor remarked during a morning jog: "Was that you outside earlier? I wasn't sure if it was a wild animal or not."
The balmy conditions made way for an afternoon of arts and crafts in the shade, followed by a refreshing dinner.
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| Raw hummus, carrot/coriander/sesame seeds, tomato/garlic/salt/pepper |
In the spirit of introducing metabolism-boosting activities at targeted times of day, we began with a 20-minute door-to-door jog, involving a trot down the mile-long driveway and interval sprints all the way home. This was done early so as to avoid another day of solid heat.
Into the summer, we will be doing regular Pranayama breath work to stay cool.
Here is a nice tutorial, and one that represents the kind of information we love here:
During the heat-coping phase, current resident Jeremy completed some one-on-one breathing workshops with Steve and Louise.
Jez is trained in the art of 'Clarity Breathwork', which is nicely summed up as a 'transformational tool to release limitations'.
These types of sessions are likely to feature in the Discovery Holidays planned for later in the year.
For dinner, Tracy smashed some raw wraps out of the park. As she usually does!
Prior to evening grub, after conditions had become mild, Tommy, Dionne and Jo set off on a fitness stroll.
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| 'I find the bunny ear/lab coat combination removes a large sense of pressure from the workout' - Tommy |
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| This was the view once the TRX straps had been hung from a tree as part of the 'circuit walk' |
Misty morning yoga in one of the domes.
During the afternoon, resident Merkaba Life Coach Jamie enjoyed individual workshops with two of our holiday-retreaters.
Jo Hodson - a Health Coach looking to expand and refine her practice - says: "There is something special about the coaching taking place in this particular environment.
"It allows for the Merkaba philosophy, centered largely around embodying unity consciousness, to permeate the session in a way that might not - for example - be prevalent in a random coffee shop.
"In the open air of the Portuguese mountains, you are already getting to know yourself better, which can then in turn be verbalised during coaching."
Dionne Reid - a raw vegan chef, yoga instructor and massage therapist - also benefitted from the session with Jamie.
She adds: "It gave me great clarity and faith in what I am doing. It was nice to be in a place where complete trust can be facilitated in such a small period of time."
Thursday evening saw the Merkaba gang [of which everybody is a part by the way. The 'We' in 'We Are Merkaba' includes you too] enjoy gracefully descending upon the runway of slumber in the plane of Yin Yoga, lovingly piloted by Dionne, who opened hips and lengthened hamstrings with gentle adjustments and clear, considered instruction.
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| Jamie, left, and Tommy perform some text book basic balancing acrobatics, before Yin night |
This morning's yoga was simultaneously Goddess-themed and multi-gendered.
In acknowledging their feminine side, blokes can become one with the yin-yang balance of masculine and feminine energies of the spirit in a way that increases vitality and energy.
The feminine aspect is one likely to feature in Tracy's vision for the 'Raw Cookery Workshop' weeks.
Trained ballet teacher Tracy has an infectious energy and relaxed instruction style that is adored by all.
After our weekly team gathering (at which the forthcoming specialist retreats were the focus of discussion) the gang began a stroll around the mountains.
We took a similar-but-different route to the standard morning jog, and found much joy in the opportunity to truly savour the views without worrying too much about keeping hold of our breath.
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| (From left) Jamie, Charlotte, Jo and Tracy debate the mystery behind the burnt stump . . . Verdict: Lightning |
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| Dionne, left, and Jo enjoy some 'outside the box' training before a Friday evening dance |
Brochure coming next week, in the meantime email wearemerkaba@gmail.com with any questions, suggestions or feedback.
Click the names to find out more about the work of Raw Food Revolutionary Tracy Sadler, Yin Yoga Instructor Dionne Reid and Health and Wellness Coach Jo Hodson respectively.
