Tuscany 2019
Ignite Your Spark Tuscany Retreat was a deeply transformative week filled with cultural awakenings, life-bonding moments and grounding Yoga practices.
Our home for the week was a site steeped in history! Ebbio is a restored thirteenth century farm that draws in the peace of the Tuscan atmosphere and creates a tranquil space to connect with nature & each other. Located at the top of and winding dirt road, the views through the wooden paned windows in the house exposed breathtakingly gorgeous sights of rolling green hills below, and even a castle in the distance! With the rooms uniquely scattered around a cozy communal area, the sound of laughter that echoed through the home was our soundtrack for the week.
Much of our time at the farmhouse was spent outdoors, often at the large wooden table under the shade of pergolas where we ate farm-to-table meals prepared by “Mama” and the rest of the Ebbio family. From the beginning, we were welcomed by the family and staff with a sense of genuine hospitality and eagerness to connect with our group. We felt truly immersed into the Italian lifestyle and excited to learn more about their culture.
Twice-daily Yoga was the centering force that brought us together in the historically rich practice space located in the heart of the Farmhouse. We rolled out our mats on the rustic wooden floors to connect breath with movement in flow, sweat out our Jet Lag, play with arm balances and inversions, create mindfulness with guided meditations and nourish our bodies with restorative postures under the rounded white stucco ceiling that surrounded us. We had the pleasure of hearing the beautiful story of the 800 year old space first-hand from Sibilla, one of the owners of Ebbio. We all felt a strong sense of gratitude for the opportunity to simply stand barefoot in that sacred room. Sibilla then joined us in celebration with a full-on 90’s hiphop dance party to break in the space as our own! Fresh seeds of friendship and lifelong bonds had been planted, and it was the most amazing sight to see a group of strangers grow into a family in just one short week together.
When we weren’t basking in the soulful vibes of our retreat center, we were out and about exploring all the beauty that Tuscany had to offer! Due to the amount of adventure we experienced, our group theme quickly revolved around the idea of “stepping out of our comfort zones”. This is where the real, ground-breaking transformation came in to play! We swam in the Mediterranean sea, explored every corner of a medieval castle and even soaked in natural turquoise thermal baths. We wandered for hours in awe of the picturesque city of Siena, where you could literally feel the buzz of history running through every cell in your body. The day-long guided bicycle tour through Chianti was definitely one of the more courageous endeavors we embarked on! We rode through stunning Italian villages, stopped at a gorgeous hilltop winery and felt the liberating feeling of wind blowing through our hair (at a fairly rapid speed, I might add) while cruising back home just in time for sunset. Oh, and we ate a lot of pasta… I mean, a LOT of pasta!
Each experience was unique, and some of the best memories were made in the simplistic moments sitting around a table together sipping wine and playing cards in the comfort of our “home”. When it was time to leave, we all spoke of feeling “different”; like something shifted within us and we felt more connected, worthy, capable and alive than ever. The Ignite Your Spark Tuscany Yoga Retreat breathed life into the divine Spark within each of us!
“Live begins at the end of your comfort zone.”
