Saturday retreat

The day started at 6am with an hour long meditation which was beautifully lead. The sun rose during the sit which was lovely.

At 7am we were invited to take part in a morning swim in the river but before hand prepare our bodies by warming up in front of the fire. This involved various breathing techniques or pranayama, in Ayurveda and also some exercises. Oiling of the body before plunging into the river. When I came a couple of months ago I took part but only briefly went into the water as it was so cold but this time I went with the intention that I would swim across to the other side and today I managed to do it. It was beautiful. Yes it was cold but somehow once you are in and swimming you forget about it. It was a lovely experience.

Swimming was followed by an hour of yoga which helped warm us up before a beautiful breakfast.

Mid morning we walked to two beautiful oak trees to do a group meditation and the sun came out for us too.

The afternoon passed with a beautiful lunch, more yoga, dinner and a lovely gathering around the fire with music and singing and dancing and finished with jumping over the fire and walking on the hot embers. It is quite surprising how invigorating such a practice is!!

An absolutely amazing day x