2. Rainforest Yoga Retreat

The short flight from San Jose to Quepos saw us at our hotel "Karahe" http://www.karahe.com/ where we spent one night before the rest of the yoga group arrived.  The next day (now 6th Jan) we were picked up by the rest of the yoga retreat group on their way through to our stunning accommodation for the week at Punto de Vista.  http://www.puntodevistacr.com/.

The group consisted of 5 men (yes real men do yoga!) and 8 women including the yoga instructor Raven who was as awesome as my friend had described her. All except myself were from the Denver area and knew Raven previously.  Being the token Aussie it was a bit daunting but the group were great and made me feel really welcome.  Yoga is a new thing for me, as I only started in November (thanks Bob!) but I was hooked from the time I started.  Just as I was when I went sailing for the first time (thanks Karen!).  This retreat was an opportunity for me to explore yoga further and gain a greater understanding of what yoga is really all about.  It can be so much more than just doing classes...if you let it.

On the first day we each set an intention for the week. Then over the next 5 days we did a variety of yoga classes together.  These included yoga anatomy, inversions (yes upside down stuff which is really good for you) and partner yoga which was an interesting exercise in trust and surrender.  We also had time in the program to go to the beach, eat good food, drink good wine and had a couple of extras thrown in.  Spa treatments for everyone...a facial for me, a massage for my friend.  This is where we met Michelle and Lorraine.  You'll hear more about Lorraine in my personal training post...:)!  There was also a trip to Manuel Antonio National Park and a mangrove kayak, about which Ill do a separate post.  But the most exciting thing was the exposure to yoga.  By the end of the week I was even more hooked and already thinking about how to immerse myself even more in the practice. Thanks for your guidance Raven.



The yogis

 

The yoginis







 







BTW I can count, two people, one female and one male are missing from these photos...thats a whole other story but some things that happen in Costa Rica have to stay in Costa Rica...:)!  I dont have any photos of us actually doing yoga but we did....really..:)!

If anyone reading this has access to the photos that were taken please let me know.