Time for dancing! I was unsure about performing since its been a while with me being in school and off the dance floor for a while, but I decided just to wing it. And I'm glad I did cause I really had fun and I really wanted to perform in the bra I had made. It was also my first time performing since I got my tattoo which didn't occur to me until I saw this picture: I really need to get that thing colored in, lol. It will be less of an 'ummm, what is it?' type of tat when I do. (pssst! Its a mermaid btw, and her boyfriend is on my back where you can't see ;) ) Also, if you notice the curtains blowing the wind kicked up during my performance, which was totally cool and spooky! Thanks to the wind gods for pumping up my performance ;)

I have missed performing. I think if I get more performing out of my system I won't be so resistant to teaching. I keep thinking once I start teaching that I'll have no time for personal exploration of my own style, so I'd like to have that more firmly in my mind before that. Though I'm realizing more and more that I don't really have a trademarked style, I do what I like, which is a little bit of everything.

BTW, the string behind me is attatched to a pinata, which was merrily bashed by a birthday girl and when the candy and confetti came out the Hafla (arabic for 'party') really got going. We had confetti fights, we danced free style, and just basically had fun. This was our last night so we really hooped it up.

Here you can see the confetti all over the floor like sand, lol. We were doing a circle dance and it was my good luck that someone across from me took a picture. I'm the only one with a bare midriff, which is kind of wierd in a room full of belly dancers now that I'm looking at it, ha! I had changed out of my bra and belt because I didn't want them to get sweaty, costume bras are a pain to clean. To the right of me is Valentina from Italy and to the left of me is Rachel Brice.

Here's myself pictured with Yumi from Japan. She was such a sweet heart, and I love the faces she made! She didn't speak much English, but we still seemed to manage and it was fun bridging the communication gap. She performed a traditional Japanese dance that was beautiful and delicate. You can see we both have confetti in our hair, woo wee!

And finally heres Rachel and I, somewhat shakey picture since it was a self done variety (Rachel did the shooting ;) Rachel is such an amazing teacher, I try to catch her at least once a year because she just has this thing about her that is so rejuevenating. Her assistant Manca from Slovenia was doing a documentary about her and she had me say some things about Rachel for it. Basically when you go to Rachels workshops you leave not only wanting to be a better dancer but also a better person. I used to always think that the reason I liked her so much is because she has a heavy background in yoga that flavors her dance and I'd say the same about my style, but now I just think she has a pure spirit thats contagious and an inner light that you don't find too often.

So thats the trip in a nutshell. Lots of zen time, but also some nature time and some party-hardy time. It was an amazing experience and I would so love to do it again next year. I had thought that this would be a one time thing for me, but now I'm not sure. When I first heard about this retreat I thought "Oh I have to do that one day...' and figured I'd do it once and be set. It is an annual thing, so I certainly could do it again next year.

I realize I am so fortunate to have been able to go once, much less considering it again. I am so happy that I got to have this experience and I will cherish all of my memories of it. I would love to do it again, but I have other things I want to try out as well. I owe my kids a trip next year and we're thinking of going to Washington D.C. While I crave adventures on my own I also love to pursue them with my kids. Helping my kids to see the world is a big priority to me and I know its something I can do right by them. You learn things while traveling that you'll never learn in a classroom.

Namaste.

Costa Rican serenity

Part of the retreat consisted of yoga and the other of dance. The resort we stayed at was primarily a retreat and spa having nightly yoga classes included in the cost and a variety of spa treatments available. This was like heaven for me, being a newly licensed massage therapist about to finish my yoga teacher training. Being here showed me how in harmony my vices are and helped to shape the image of what it is I want to do with the rest of my life. At the end of the retreat we were asked what we would take with us, and for me it was the whole feeling and idea of the retreat. It will be my carrot on the stick as I continue on with my school and journey down the road of being self employed. Heres a candid shot of me, I was pulling my socks off but it almost looks 'pose-ish'. This is at the watsu tub, I found it to be a nice place to practice.
Watsu is a massage form that takes place in a heated pool. The therapist doesn't massage in the traditional 'kneading' way, but guides the client thru a series of flowing movements. Supposed to be very relaxing and emotionally healing. I didn't try it myself, but everyone who did just raved about it so it is something I'd like to try in the future.
Now what I *did* try was a spa pedicure. I have never treated myself to a pedicure but I love having my feet babied so I put this on my list prior to going on the trip. Next time I'll know to bring more money for more therapies ;) But hey, check out my lovely tootsies!:

Toes are very happy with warm little stones between them :) I *love* the color I got, which you can't see too well, but its actually a mix of two colors. A dark almost black purple with an irradescent fuschia on top, made them a royal sparklie purple.

Heres just a random shot while we were getting ready for yoga. I loved this hall, it felt so open and airy, and the floor was very nice. I always notice the black pants on the gal at the left in this shot, the resort had a nice gift shop with some awesome yoga clothes and those pants came from there. I was good and stuck to my budget, but a pair I tried on I loved so much that I emailed when I returned and I'm going to have them shipped to me. My legs really liked them ;) They're longer, and purple with a lighter purple dragon on them. Can't wait to get them, its like prolonging the experience by getting them now instead of onsite :) I think its a sign that they were ment to be mine since they were still there after I left. They were waiting for me.

Heres some more lovelyness of the resort. To the left is the hot tub where I spent every single evening. I think soaking in the waters there helped me from getting sore after doing hours of yoga and dance every day. I thought for sure I would feel like I had my ass kicked every day as I've never done a workshop thats lasted this long, but I really didn't. Either she was gentle on us, or I was in shape from my yoga teacher training. I think its a little of both. But the hot tub was my sanctuary, it also had an awesome view of San Jose twinkling at night.

Is this not the coolest yoga hall you've ever seen? I called this the 'green house', because of all the plants. The 'walls' were a wire cage lined with mesh to keep the creatures out and it had a roof to protect the gorgeous floor during rain. Way. Cool. It was like doing yoga in the jungle but with just enough modern amenities to keep you comfortable. Nadia was my favorite teacher here, she had a lovely 'yoga-voice'. I told her I would have to adopt a spanish accent for my class because her voice was just so lulling. She also did this thing that I liked where she sprayed a lightly scented mist over us in savasana. Not enough to get you all wet, just a light spray that was quite refreshing. Apparently it was an ayurvedic mix called 'energy balance'.

I must say I love experiencing yoga in other cultures, its quite fascinating! And it was also educational to see how a non-american 'spa' approached body work. I would love to go back again next year and have more of the treatments, but its either Costa Rica 'part Deux' or Thailand to learn Thai-yoga massage. I would love to do Costa Rica again, but my sensible side (which doesn't come out often) is leaning towards having a 'different' stamp on my passport. And I could write the Thai trip off on my taxes since its to learn a massage modality rather than experience one. It depends on if I can catch Rachel somewhere else. If so, then it won't sting as much to not go again as she was the main motivator for my going on this trip.

So, that brings us to the dance portion of the trip. Stay tuned for the next update of the bellydancing sort ;)

Costa Rica cont.

So I left off with the touchie touchie bird. God he was cute! We then moved on into a butterfly room which was way cool. A particular butterfly featured was a gorgeous blue variety native to Costa Rica. They were quite friendly as you can see:

Now wait, didn't I say it was a blue butterfly? This is the cool part about these guys, they have this neutral (but still very pretty pattern) color on the outside of their wings, but on the inside its a lovely jewel blue. So when they're flying around its harder for predators to get a bead on them because all they see are flashes of color. This guy was too shy to open his wings for me ;) So I shot a picture of one of his buddies who had no problem showing off his blue.

Lovely little fellow isn't he? Imagine a room full of hundreds of these guys flapping away. Makes you giggle like a little girl, and yes I was one of those wierd people that would 'baby talk' to the butterflies to get them to land on me, hehe. Butterflies have feelings too you know ;)

Which brings me to this cute guy. For some reason I was more taken with this green butterfly than any of the others. I know, its green. No pop or pizzazz amongst the foliage like his wings 'aren't ripe yet'. But I loved them, and I'm not even a huge green person. And doesn't he look just lovely on this yellow flower? Too cute. Also cute, this little shit was a smart ass as well. As I'm cooing at him to be a good little butterfly and hold still so I can get his picture, his next move after I got this shot was to flit off the flower and come land on my thumb. That was attatched to the hand holding the camera. And the other hand still had the blue butterfly on it, so there I was with a butterfly in each hand and unable to get a picture of either. Oh how I wish one of my travel mates was nearby and could have got a shot of that, I'm sure the look on my face was something along the lines of, 'Well....shit!'

And heres my favorite waterfall shot, I know, you can't see the waterfall all that well but tough! Cause lookie! I caught a rainbow! Now it gets to live forever in my computer ;)

This plant is awesome!! Costa Rica just has the coolest plants, bromeliads mostly, but also orchids. This? I don't know what this is. But if you look, the yellow parts are actually *furry*, too cool!! And I loved that it looks like a bunch of flamingoes stacked on top of each other.

This is the lazy ocelot. I think if I was a cat in the jungle that would be my favorite position too.

Oh, bigger kitty. They called this a panther, cougar, mountain lion, puma, and a jaguar. I wasn't going to correct the guy. Cougar, mountain lion, and puma are interchangeable, but not jaguar or panther. Long list of names and penetrating gaze aside, check out her muscles!! The massage therapist in me is way impressed and I would love to get my hands on her with out being puma-slapped. After swimming with the dolphins in Florida where I ended up palpating it and trying to assess its musculature (fascinating!), I've accepted the fact that I have a muscle fetish. Ahem.

These flowers smelled like honey suckles back home. They look kind of like them too, but ours are less 'tropically'.Another cool plant! This is like the upside down less fuzzy version of the flamigo stack plant from earlier.

So that was our out day. I'm saving all the yoga, bellydance, and 'spa-ish' stuff for my final post as its more reflective. Be back soon.

Costa Rica

I always seem to take pictures out the plane windows when beginning a journey out of the U.S., either out of boredom or to be able to say "Hey look, heres Mexico!' when I return.

I actually don't know if this is Mexico or not, but I know its somewhere in Central America. I love those flights where they have a map on screen so you know where your flying over, but this flight was not one of them. I thought the colors of the delta meeting the ocean were beautiful, the rusty browns and greens fading to sands and blues.

I arrived in San Jose and was transported to my resort, Pura Vida, which is also a catch phrase in Costa Rica meaning 'Pure Life', so it was easy to find a magnet with my 'hotels name' on it. I always buy a magnet where ever I go, so every time I get into the fridge I can remember my travels.

This is a shot of my resort grounds that I think gives a good feel for the layout and design. I actually took this on the last day during some rare sunshine. I'm standing on the terrace where we ate our meals, the palms you see surround the hot tub where I spent every night after dancing and yoga all day. The building to the right of them is where we practiced the majority of our dance and yoga. Its a beautiful building with windows on all walls save for one which is mirrored, so it gives the feeling of being completely open and the balconies overlook San Jose.

On the left is peering thru the dance/yoga hall, and on the right is the view from the balcony when you walk through. San Jose at night is beautiful with twinkling lights, and the always cloud capped hills provide a different type of scenery every day. The cloud cover in Costa Rica is amazing. The weather there changes at the drop of a hat (rather like Ohio ;) One morning it was bright and sunny then as we practiced our dance the fog rolled in, at first so thick that we could no longer see San Jose, then it actually started drifting into the room with us. It was pretty surreal.

So heres my 'Livin ma vida yoga' shot ;) This is pre pedicure btw, my toes looked much nicer after Marcella got finished with them. It was very nice to do some free style flow yoga on this balcony on our off times.

One day was a free day for excursions to explore Costa Rica. I had thought I would want to do the zip line as I had always thought it would be cool to go thru the jungle on one. But after they explained the excursions to us it sounded like the zip line was more of a 'Weee---look at me!!' type thing and I wanted to see pretty plants and animals. So I opted to tour the Waterfall Gardens. I'm glad I did because this is where I got my favorite shot of the trip:

I loved these toucans, it was so funny watching them hop about. They gave us fruit to feed them and they'd tilt their heads this way and that before deciding to eat it. This guy here had finished his fruit and was trying to eat my braid, lol. They had us take off our earrings for that reason it seems.

I'm going to stop here for now and will continue on with more pictures on the next post. I'm still trying to work out whats easiest when it comes to blogging, adding pictures as I go, first, or last. I think I'll try adding pictures first next time, that way I can just type around them ;) Till next time!

Catching up!

I don't think I have any readers as of yet, but even though I thought I'd just post a 'be back in a bit' post.

I got back from Costa Rica (amazing!) last Monday and by Tuesday was back at it in school working on my Bacholeors finally. Yay, big girl school!

My chemistry class wasn't as bad as I had fretted about. It seems most of the people in my class have had no chemistry and I had thought since I needed permission to sign up that it was a slightly more difficult class. I guess the permission was dependent on you major or something. I have my first lab in about a half an hour and hope I'm not as much of a Beavis as I was in my last chemistry labs.

Anyways, won't bore my absent readers with the school stuff, but when I have the time maybe later tonight I'll post about Costa Rica. It was a very inspiring week!