Yasmin Yoga: Urban Goddess Retreat

Les déesses urbaines!

I had the greatest time at our Urban Goddess Retreat last weekend. We (myself and organizing partner Jasmine Goyer) couldn't have asked for better participants or a better location. There was fantastic group chemistry, lots of deep belly laughing, and great conversations. Perhaps I underestimated how amazing a gathering of extraordinary women can be. Our female attendees spanned four decades and came from a variety of professional backgrounds, from contemporary artist to YMCA kids camp coordinator.

The setting was ideal: a beautiful spa in the country, just an hour or so from Montreal, with comfortable rooms, great treatments and delicious food. It was a serious luxury for me to teach in this retreat environment, where no one had to drive or go anywhere else after our meditations and long asana practices. The hospitality and integrity at Spa Eastman was really optimal.

Coupled with our yoga and meditation sessions, Jasmine and I invited Vered Haiun to teach Dancerotek (sensual erotic-clothing-stays-on movement) and Masala Bhangra (Bollywood style dance). Let me tell you that Vered is one of my heroines. A dance instructor for over 20 years, she oozes "VaVaVoom" from every pore of her body. Moving around all sexy-diva-like to super loud music was the FUNNEST!

We also brought in Tracey Mackenzie, the no-nonsense-tell-you-like-it-is feng shui guru, to share some design strategies to help us improve the flow of energy in our home environment. Tracey is also incredible and she inspires me so much. In fact, when I go home on Sunday night after the retreat, I immediately reorganized my living room, threw out an old chair, took the desk I never use out of my bedroom, and scanned the rest of apartment for clutter. (Still a work in progress...)

Anyway, I think the greatest gift I received over the weekend was the freedom to indulge my sensual, feminine, joie-de-vivre side that often gets forgotten when I get stuck playing boss or teacher. I was inspired by the other women on the retreat and I look forward to growing this project. We'd like to offer a monthly Urban Goddess soirée with different speakers and a retreat like this one every season.

Do you have any ideas? I'd love your involvement, even if you live far away and can't physically join us. (We are also envisioning an online community to share tips, videos, projects, discussions, etc.)