It is a shame to tell that I had not joined any yoga retreat since I started doing yoga 3 years ago. I had been thinking to join once, but I always felt reluctant to use my annual leave to do yoga overseas. What for? I would rather spend my leave and money for vacations.
One day I saw a notice about Mindfulness Yoga Retreat at Bali with our instructor Shradda. It was one of the most affordable yoga retreats offered by RealYoga. An early bird sign up costed $1150 for 5 days excluding flight. I was interested but I doubted as I had to save my annual leave for my coming long trip in silk road in October.
Shradda convinced me and I finally made up my mind to join the retreat.
Below are a few significant benefits that I feel a yoga retreat can bring.
1. When you’re on retreat each day has an element of purpose. You’re concentrating on your practice, and relaxing or taking advantage of optional activities in between.
2. Taking a vacation full of positive energy! On retreat, you’ll surround yourself with positive thoughts and feelings. No need to worry about any vacation stress, just embrace the positives vibes coming your way.
3. Deepen practice on retreat and aim to reach the next level.
4. The food you eat on retreat is chosen with care for your health and wellbeing. Going on retreat is an opportunity to eat well without having to worry about it yourself, and it’s a wellness habit you can take home with you.
5. Yoga retreats attract like-minded people, and a benefit of attending a retreat is being able to make new connections and friendships with people who will add positivity to your life.
6. Practise Mindfulness
Day 1:
I flew from Singapore to Denpasar via AirAsia and my flight was the latest among all other members. Hence I arranged own shuttle service to the accommodation at Mandala Village. Mandala Village is located at the heart of Balangan highest hill in a quiet village, overlooking the beautiful southern peninsula of Bali, or “Bukit”. Upon arrival, we were all offered welcome drink and snack at their gastro-fusion restaurant, Saffron.
Everything on their menu is prepared from scratch using only the freshest ingredients, organic and local whenever possible. They work in partnership with local farmers and support the agricultural communities of the island. They bake their own breads, roll homemade pasta and cure cheeses in-house.
Next, I was checked into my villa at the top most of the hill. The hard work of climbing steps and slopes paid of the moment I saw the interior of the room and the outside view from the villa. The room had astonishing views of tropical gardens, mountains, local villages and, a stunning Indian ocean. The interior design was created for warm and luxury comfort. The swing in garden with stunning view dropped me into happy childhood.
After a short rest, we gathered at Padma studio for evening meditation and yoga. As it was our first day and we had new members, Shradda shared a few mindfulness practices that we had to follow. For eg: never step on others' mat, place the shoes nicely, no phone is allowed in class and etc.
Day 2:
Morning yoga started from 7.30 - 9.30am. We did some stretches followed by sun salutation。 Sun Salutation is a series of 12 postures performed in a single, graceful flow. Each movement is coordinated with the breath. Inhale as you extend or stretch, and exhale as you fold or contract. The Sun Salutation builds strength and increases flexibility. It warms the body and cultivates inner fire. A single round consists of two complete sequences: one for the right side of the body and the other for the left. We completed 25 rounds of sun salutation.
With our tired and sweaty body, we headed for breakfast. Everyone was telling how proud they felt being able to survive the 25-round sun salutation, especially those new members. My first day breakfast was granola with coconut yogurt. It is a mixture of fruits, granola, in smoothie and yogurt. I couldnt really taste the yogurt though. The western-style breakfast was pretty good and refreshing. However I wished to have more as I usually take heavy breakfast, especially after exercise.
We quickly took shower and prepared for the afternoon mindfulness workshop. We were explained the characteristics of mindful behaviors and eating. It was interesting to learn that eating can be mindful as well.
The food we eat not only nourishes the Body but also affects our ‘Mind‘ and ‘Emotions‘. With consistent and dedicated attention to diet, it is possible to balance not only Physical Health but also our Emotional Health. We were explained about Sattvic, Rajasic, Tamasic Food in Ayurveda and how it affects our mind, body and soul.
1. Sattvic Food
Qualities of Sattvic Food:
Sattvic food is always fresh, natural (very less or no further processing on food), freshly cooked and lightly seasoned. It is a wholesome meal which consists of nourishing carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, etc. in it.
2. Rajasic Food
Qualities Of Rajasic Food:
Rajasic foods are very hot (spicy), bitter, dry or salty.
3. Tamasic Food
Qualities Of Tamasic Food:
Tamasic foods are over-processed, no longer fresh, and difficult to digest. Foods that are prepared unconsciously or with the distracted mind are Tamasic in nature. Also, if the person preparing the food is angry or in a negative mood while cooking it, then that food is also considered as a Tamasic food.
The lunch was satisfying, healthy and filling. There were soup, salad, and a big mediterranean plate with a generous portion of hummus. All tempting foods come under the category of Rajasic food.
In the evening, we had few hours free time and hence some of us decided to do swimming and photo shooting. After that, we headed to Pantai Melasti for sunset yoga and nidra.
Yoga by the beach: it sounds idyllic, right? Doing yoga at beach was actually more relaxed. Communing with nature can have extremely positive effects on the nervous system. This coupled with the relaxing sounds of the ocean, the lull of the ocean breeze and the wind on face. Doing yoga at beach also deepened the practice as we needed to find ways and focus more to balance on sand. When we did yoga in a setting that we are not used to, we learned things about our practice that we never noticed before. When we got out from our comfort zone, we remained in a pose without losing our focus to bugs, birds and any other disturbances that we encountered.
Doing yoga nidra at beach was a total new experience and I actually like it very much. There was nothing better than listening to the ocean waves as we went into deep relaxation.
I choose salmon pasta for my dinner. I thought of having meat finally, but it turned out to be a healthy meal again. But that was alright, we were supposed to eat mindfully during the retreat. Have I told you I am actually a health conscious person? :)
The day ended with a warm kirtan session. I was nervous and at the same time excited to play ukulele during the session. I was quite surprised that I was be able to find all chords in all the songs we sang. I think kirtan songs are meant to be simple and repetitive. The chords are pretty straightforward.
Yoga is not just exercise to enhance one's physical beauty and stamina, with an occasional short meditation thrown in for its calming effects. That is only a small part of the picture. The practice of kirtan is sweeping the world as modern musicians are flavoring traditional melodies and adding western instruments to the mix. Through chanting, we tapped into the frequencies of compassion and let the enchanting melodies carry us away to states of bliss and harmony
Day 3:
Today's morning yoga started at 6.30am. The air quality was so different with just one hour earlier. I chose to have omelette and bread for breakfast. The home made bread was so good. I heard they were gluten free.
We set off to Tanah Lot. After entrance, we walked down a busy street lined with restaurants and souvenir vendors, towards the ocean. Propped proudly amidst the crashing waves was a remarkable rock formation, home to the famous pilgrimage temple, Pura Tanah Lot (meaning “Land in the Sea”). It is believed to date back to the 16th century. The temple forms an integral part of Balinese mythology and is one of the seven sea temples around the Balinese coast. Each of the sea temples was established within a direct line of sight of the next to form a chain along the south-western seaboard. During high tide the rock formation is completely surrounded by water, hence it was not possible to cross to the temple. I had no idea why other temples onshore were closed, making our trip to Tanah Lot a regret.
We gathered at 4pm to head to next temple for sunset. Unfortunately we were told we would not be able to reach in time due to traffic condition. Hence, we went back to resort.
For dinner, we had salad, green curry and taco. As I am not a fan of green curry, I had a big bowl of salad and Jas Lin kindly offered me her taco. After dinner, we had kirtan again. This time I played better.
Day 4:
After morning yoga and breakfast, we quickly showered and got ready to set off to Ubud. Ubud is located more than 2 hours driving journey from our resort.
Also due to heavy traffic, we took about 3 hours to reach Ubud yogists street, in a van without cool aircon. Our first stop was to have nutritious lunch at Clear Cafe. Surrounded by waterfalls into a stream, plants and colourful flowers this was an experience in atmosphere as well as delicious food and drinks. This place was pretty crowded with tourists, mostly caucasians.
After lunch, we were given about 2 hours to walk around. I even did a half an hour back massage and it just costed less than S$10. I also bought a balinese style handbag for myself, perfect for beach wear. It was already closed to 8.30 when we reached resort. We waited another one hour for our dinner. The main course lobster and salmon ravioli was amazing. The skin was smooth and soft.
Also due to heavy traffic, we took about 3 hours to reach Ubud yogists street, in a van without cool aircon. Our first stop was to have nutritious lunch at Clear Cafe. Surrounded by waterfalls into a stream, plants and colourful flowers this was an experience in atmosphere as well as delicious food and drinks. This place was pretty crowded with tourists, mostly caucasians.
After lunch, we were given about 2 hours to walk around. I even did a half an hour back massage and it just costed less than S$10. I also bought a balinese style handbag for myself, perfect for beach wear. It was already closed to 8.30 when we reached resort. We waited another one hour for our dinner. The main course lobster and salmon ravioli was amazing. The skin was smooth and soft.
Day 4:
Even though it was our last day, we kept our yogis spirit and did our last round of morning yoga and kirtan. We made recording of our singing. We enjoyed the kirtan so much that we even brought our instruments to cafe so we could sing while having breakfast. I am not exaggerating, the chanting kept playing in my head throughout my flight.
