Around mid July, Jim and I went our separate ways for one week. As I write this, it seems like it has been a lifetime ago. Jim went to the Sunshine Coast for a wildlife expedition. These expeditions are pretty special events. I'll leave it to Jim to fill you in on those details.
I started off in Vancouver for a little urban action and then went to Salt Spring Island for a fabulous yoga retreat. I really enjoyed Vancouver. It has two things that are really important to me, good food (most Thai restaurants had mango & sticky rice and young coconut) and good yoga. In addition, there is plenty of culture, beaches, boats, sea planes, eccentric shopping, tapas, and friendly people. It's super easy to get around without a car and I felt safe exploring on my own. I even went to a fancy spa to get my hair cut and styled. To my amazement, my hairdresser goes on a silent retreat once a year, has a sister who is a buddhist nun, has cut hair all over the world and is good at it. If you're in need of some pampering, check out Suki's.
After a couple days in Vancouver, I left for Salt Spring Island. Jim had the camera, so the pictures are taken by some of the fine women who participated in the retreat with me.
This is Ganges Harbor. Most of the action in Salt Spring is around this area. I yearned a bit for our old boating life as the Gulf Islands have all the right elements for a spectacular boating adventure, in the summer of course.
The retreat is set up to be a silent retreat for about four days. This includes two kundalini yoga classes a day, three yummy vegetarian meals a day, an island hike, a visit to the Saturday morning market (in silence) and more. The retreat is held at a home on Cusheon Lake. The lake is pretty shallow, which means warm enough to swim.
Carla took this shot of one of the row boats that we took advantage of during our silence.
Carla and I at the market watching a group practice Capoeira. Shshshshsh, but laughing is okay right?!.
Hot tub, lake, repeat... no talking just laughing.
We hiked one afternoon and had a picnic lunch. It was a beautiful hike.
Me and a starfish.
Happy Birthday Carla!
This is our group minus Carla (taking pic) and Constance who had to leave early.
We practiced yoga in this room among other things. Our hostess Nomi let us know that silence was really our option. She managed to treat us like adults in this aspect, but still inspire us to see what happens when we challenged ourselves not to speak. We could write down any questions we might have, should we feel the need.
Rowing around the lake was one of my favorite things to do. There are no motorized vehicles allowed on the lake, accept electric. It is perfect. I really can't say enough good things about my experience. Check out more info at www.paradisefoundyoga.com.
We broke the silence on Monday and shared some of our experiences. Talking seemed overrated, but then I just started blurting things out to Carla and Sharon non-stop on the ferry, more laughing. I was eager to reunite with Jim as we'd only spoke once in a week due to our relative circumstances (my silence/spotty cell reception).
Jim made lots of friends on his trip too, including Amelia and her pet wolf Jordan.
Jim picked me up at the ferry terminal in Tsawassen. Talking still felt weird, so Jim filled me in on his trip. Feeling content about our experiences in BC, there is no doubt we will return.
We left Canada the next morning. We made a stop for repairs and then landed in Anacortes, WA. We did a little site seeing, but really only scratched the surface. Though I love Seattle, neither one of wanted to be in a densely populated area. Anacortes is a sweet town between Seattle and the Canadian boarder. The Gulf Islands are easily accessed from here.
So much to see.
