I had forgotten how incredibly relaxing and stress reducing it is. I decided that with everything that is going on in my life between work and personal stress, I needed to get away and regroup. I booked myself a weekend of, "R&R" at Kripalu. They offer a weekend that they call, "Renewal and Retreat". I cannot even express how amazing this facility is.
http://www.kripalu.org/
It is enormous, there were 200 or 300 people there. They offer different levels of Kriplau Yoga classes two times a day. Then they have several workshops you can go to, instructed Meditation, they have amazing food - all you can eat buffet consisting of primarily vegetarian food, all organic and from local farms. Right up my alley! They also have a spa where you can get massages. The spa has a hot tub and a sauna as well. It was incredible.
Not to mention the views are incredible. It is located in Western Massachusetts, in the Berkshires. Their property is hundreds of acres of fields, rolling hills and they have their own private beach on the lake. I can't even imagine how beautiful this place is in the fall. I am going to go back there in late September for sure to take advantage of the foliage.
So, what did I do while I was there? Well, I arrived at 4:30 on Friday and immediately got changed and jumped into a 5:15 yoga class. This was perfect because it immediately set me in the mood of peacefulness. I had just driven through hours of traffic and this was the perfect transition. The aura of this center is amazing. It is extremely tranquil, quiet, calm, low key and the vibe is positive. Everyone there was so nice and very happy. I didn't sense stress, worry or anxiety from anyone. It was so serene.
Something I noticed when I first arrived and while I was there is how when you first roll into the parking lot, there are really fancy cars and some not so nice, beat up cars. When you get inside, everyone is either barefoot, wearing flip flops, but all wearing workout clothes. Everyone there is equal and the vibe is also as such. Have you ever been in certain environments where some people act as though they are better than you? They wear fancy clothes, wear flashy jewelery and you can feel their ego a mile away? I really hate that pompous vibe, especially when they are disrespectful to other people because they feel entitled or something. Well, everyone here was equal. I never noticed or felt the vibe of anyone acting better than anyone. It was perfect, it was as it should be. I love how a place like this brings people together.
After my 90 minute Yoga class on my first night, I had dinner. YUMMY! I love the food there. After dinner I grabbed all my things to go to the spa for a sauna and a hot tub, even further relaxing me which was perfect for bedtime. I met my roommate, Lois, after I got back from the spa. She was very nice and very interesting. She has been to Kripalu 6 times over the last 5 years. She was actually there more for the Tanglewood Music Center this time, which was next door to the Kriplau Yoga Center. The Boston Symphony Orchestra was there with, "special guest appearances" by some of her favorite musical talent. She was a really interesting person. She is Jewish and we talked a lot about religion and spirituality. There is a lot of Hindu tradition incorporated into Yoga which has always peaked my interest to learn more about it and I was asking her about Judaism vs. The Kabbalah and Hinduism. She gave me a lot of insight.
I really wished I had time while I was there to go to Tanglewood, it sounded like quite the experience. I barely had time to walk the land at Kripalu because I was so involved in the programs they offered. The land is very beautiful and has a lot to see. Walking trails, a Labyrinth, a Meditational Garden, the Lake and the Beach, they also offer guided Kayaking and Mountain Biking. I have to go back for all of those reasons.
Saturday morning I got up for the 6:30 am 90 minute Yoga Class. I love doing Yoga that early. It was great. When you started, it was a little dark outside and by the time you were done, it was bright and sunny out. It is also a super relaxing way to start your day. It makes you feel like you started out on the right foot.
I had breakfast after that. The breakfast there is really great because they require it to be a "silent" breakfast. So, there is no talking. I really enjoyed this because it was so quiet. It was a peaceful way to wake up and eat your first meal. Next was a workshop. I took three that day, "The Healing Nature of Alignment" - which was proper posturing for Yoga. I learned a lot in that class. The best thing I learned was how to take the pressure off your wrists when doing the "Downward Dog" pose. Next was, "Living With Balance" and "The Art Of Healing". Both of these classes were instructed by a life coach. She talked a lot about stress, health, (both mental and physical). She talked a lot about how to take control of your life, to do positive things for yourself to make you feel good and be happier in your life. I really enjoyed what I learned.
I had lunch and also took a guided / instructional Meditation class. I have always wanted to learn the proper way to meditate and how to shut your brain off - as far as getting all the thoughts / noise in my head to stop while I meditate. This instructor was great. She put me in a state of meditation so perfectly and it felt so calm. It was nice to not have thoughts racing around in my head for a bit. What was also really great about this class is that the instructor reminded me soooo much of my grandmother. Her voice, her face, her mannerisms, her words, her laughter, everything was just like my grandmother. She has passed away, but it was really neat to close my eyes and hear her voice and feel like my grandmother was talking to me. I really miss her.
After all of that was time for the 2 hour, 4:15 Yoga class. This also ended with 30 minutes of meditation. By the time I had taken 3 yoga classes, 2 meditation classes, I was feeling more relaxed than I ever had in my life. I needed this!! After Yoga, I showered up, ate a yummy dinner and went to the concert that they had on site.
This concert was so awesome. The band is called, HuDost. They are a mixture of World Music with a lot of drumming and Middle Eastern style music. They even had a belly dancer. She was really talented! She used finger cymbals and everything, it was really impressive. At one point she danced around with a tray on her head that was loaded with lit candles. I really enjoyed that concert.
I went to bed after the concert, but not before I had a long chat with my roommate about Tanglewood and religion.
Sunday was another 6:30 am 90 minute Yoga class. I ate a silent breakfast, went to another workshop, "Untangle Your Stress". Then I took a Thai Chi class which I have always wanted to do because I am curious about it, but I have to say, that is one thing that isn't that exciting to me. It is relaxing, but I could live life without Thai Chi and be okay with it. ;-)
After Thai Chi, I went to this thing called Yoga Dance. Holy crap!! This was by far the most amazing experience for the whole weekend. When I first got there, I was thinking to myself, "humm...I don't know if this is for me". It was a huge room of people (at least 40) in no particular order, gathered around the dance teacher. She was playing some really good drumming world music. She was instructing us to do all these crazy moves and dance around the room. The minute I let go of my inhibitions, I was amazed at how fun and how good it felt. She had us running around doing all of these wild moves that felt very tribal to me, but it shook out every ounce of stress, anger, sadness and anxiety I had in my body. She had us chanting and making noises while we danced. It was the most freeing experience I have ever had. I want to go back to Kripalu just to take that class. It was incredible.
After Yoga Dance, I ate lunch then I had a 2:00 massage. After my massage, I walked the property because I had a little time before my 4:15 - 2 hour Yoga class. I really wanted to check out the property and I hadn't had any time until now. It is really beautiful.
I went back for the Yoga class, had 30 minutes of Meditation, ate dinner, showered up and was ready to head home. Sunday flew by. I really didn't want to leave. I was so calm and relaxed at Kripalu. Literally as I was walking down the hill to my car to drive home, I felt this sadness come over me. I was not ready to leave. I really think that what was happening was that I was so at peace and relaxed by being away from it all, that getting into my car after not even looking at it for two days; being in such a tranquil place was symbolic of having to go back to reality and the stresses that live there. It wasn't a good feeling at all.
I can see why people keep going back there. At dinner, I met a man who has been there 32 time in 10 years!! I am definitely going back this fall! It is an awesome place to go to if you need to get away and release all of the stress in your life. I also feel that this is a place I would like to take my Friend Suzette, I think she would really love it. While I was there, I actually saw a posting for a Yoga Retreat to India in February. I normally go to BC for my annual CAT vacation then. I wasn't going to go this year because it is super expensive and they keep raising the price every year. I have been 5 times, so I thought I would do something else. I was thinking about going to an island with some friends this year, but I talked with Suzette about this trip to India because she is taking 3 months off from late November to February to travel and she was going to head to India at some point anyway. I think she and I are going to do this together instead. I have always wanted to go to India! I will keep you posted to that adventure.
While I was doing this post, I was looking around on the Internet for pictures of yoga classes and people doing yoga poses because I didn't take a camera to class. While I was looking around, I came across this picture.....
This is an actual picture of a Kriplau Yoga Center Yoga class. This is an extreme example because this is not a good representation of the classes that I took. There were other programs and workshops going on while I was there in the larger rooms. This appears to be of a Yoga workshop in the "Temple" where the concert was held. My classes were at the most, 20 people at a time taking Yoga. I just thought I should show you how many people go to this place. It was swarmed with people.
I am now getting ready for a weekend in Vermont with some of my friends from Sunday River. We are going camping. I just found out there are going to be 15 to 20 of us!! There are 4 sites reserved with 2 tents allowed on each. It is mostly couples going but some of them have kids. It is going to be a blast! I can't wait - not to mention the forecast is calling for sun, sun and more sun! :-)
Until next time.........
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