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Global Soul Circular - Fall Inspirations 2008
 Greetings Soul Adventurers!
It's hard to believe that summertime in the the Northern hemisphere has come to an end... as I sit amongst the astonishing array of fall-colored leaves in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, I know that snow will soon fall, and I will soon return to summertime in the Southern hemisphere along with a handful of you... cheers to flip-flops, hammocks and yoga on the beach! ...And I send my best regards to my much-loved snowboards and jackets who haven't seen me recently.
The past few months were filled with joy - from volunteering for Ironman Lake Placid and cheering on 2,000+ athletes on for over 17hrs (2.4 mile swim / 112 mile bike / 26.2 mile run,) to traveling with a lovely group of inspiring women in Honduras, to taking off on boat and snorkeling adventures around the turquoise waters off the coast of Miami, to soaking in the California sunshine during the outdoor sessions of Shiva Rea's Yoga Teacher Training and surfing with the dolphins and friends while helping out the Jimmy Miller Foundation... there are even more new adventures to share with you... and I look forward to doing this soon!
Happy travels,
Kate LaCroix
Founder, Global Soul Adventures
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UPCOMING TRIPS
Are you looking for a winter escape to warmer temp's? An exploration along a beach or within a rainforest? An incredible sanctuary to practice yoga in the fresh air? We have many of these trips lined up for you...
Nov 15-25, 2008 - Brazilian Eco-Adventure Exploration - Bahia, Brazil
Hike from one hidden beach cove to another, submerge under waterfalls, and explore the deep canyons of Chapada Diamantinha National Park, as well as the heart of Afro-Brazilian culture in Salvador, Bahia. [***Last week to register for Brazil!!!!!!***]
Jan 15-23, 2009 - Highlights of Honduras - Copan & Roatan Island, Honduras
Practice yoga overlooking the river valley and Mayan Ruins of Copan, get to know the local community of Hacienda San Lucas & Copan through a variety of cultural exchanges, and snorkel, scuba or kayak in the clear Caribbean waters of Roatan Island, after your open-air morning yoga session by the beach.
Jan 24-31, 2009 - Beach & Rainforest Yoga & Eco-Adventure - Montezuma, Costa Rica
Journey with us to one of the few remaining spots along the west coast of Costa Rica that still holds its local charm and community presence. We will practice yoga each morning, before our daily eco-adventure (hiking, snorkelig, surfing, horseback riding, biking...) and cultural exchange, followed by relaxing and rejuvenating sunset yoga and a variety of evening activities.
Feb 21-Mar 8, 2009 - Journey of the Senses - NW of India (including Int'l Yoga Festival 2009)
Spend 2-weeks exploring many highlight places you have heard of in India, along with daily yoga, multiple cultural exchanges, and eco-adventures. The first week will entail a lot of sightseeing, cultural learnings and yoga, whereas the second week will be based up in the foothills of the Himalayas, and choc-full of eco-adventures and outdoor yoga (including Laughter Yoga.) We will spend 2 days at the International Yoga Festival in Rishikesh, practicing with many expert yogis and attending a variety of workshops.
April 2009 - Thailand - Bangkok, Chiang Mai, & Koh Pha Ngan (10-day trip)
If anyone is interested in a journey to Thailand that would include getting to know Bangkok, venturing up into the hills north of Chiang Mai to visit the hill tribes and participate in eco-adventures, as well as learn Thai Cooking and assist the local community in Chiang Mai, with a potential continuation onto the island of Koh Pha Ngan for about 4-days for swimming, snorkeling, and beach lounging, please let us know!!!
(depending on group interest, we will offer a more specific itinerary for your consideration)
June 2009 - Adirondack Eco-Adventure
Keep your eyes open.... we are teaming up with our dear friends at High Peaks Mountain Adventures to create a 5-day Eco-Adventure that will leave you addicted to the Adirondacks! We will camp and or bunk into group lodging and take to the trails, lakes and rock faces around this amazing region. In addition, we will be offering yoga each morning for those who would like to practice with us.
July 2009 - Yoga Retreat - Keene & Lake Placid, NY
Ahhhh... summertime in the Adirondack Mountains... warm temperatures, swimmable lakes and lush trails await us in our rejuvenating time to breathe, let go, and soak in the sunshine. Experience the Olympic region and 6-million acre park that draws millions of visitors a year from around the world... we'll offer you the chance to reside and explore in this area like a local, with the locals.
August 2009 - Yoga Retreat with Eco-Adventure Opportunities - Ubud & surfing spot (TBD), Bali
Spend 8-days being surrounded by the ritual of daily offerings placed throughout the streets of Ubud, exploring the rice fields and volcanoes, and surfing the waves off-shore... enjoying delightful yoga practices each day, along with local cultural experiences and the chance to simply relax and soak in the beauty of Balinese life... possibly with a nice massage or two, or three...
September 2009 - Yoga Retreat (...Bali trip extension for interested yogis) - Australia
Within days after our Bali adventure comes to an end, we are planning to offer a long weekend retreat in Australia for anyone who may want to extend their trip and head "down under." We hope that many of our local friends in Australia will join us for this special retreat - please let us know if you have an interest (everyone is welcome,) as we are currently gathering an idea of the group size.
For the detailed itinerary of the trips above, please visit our website link: Our Soul Adventures
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YOGA INSTRUCTORS leading our upcoming journeys...
Honduras (Jan. 15-23, 2009) - Leah Glatz of Copan, Honduras
Leah lives amongst the powerful energy of the Copan River Valley and has undertaken a personal quest to seek out the yoga depicted in the Mayan Ruins. With her studies from Kripalu, her holistic business Seed of Light, including her hot stone massage therapy practices, and her unique work with local shaman, Aum Rak, to create "Maya Fusion", she is ready to lead our group into the flow of this exceptional Central American sanctuary.
Leah is originally from Canada, and now lives in Copan.
Costa Rica (Jan. 24-31, 2009) - Leanne Halle of Dallas, TX, USA
With Leanne's extensive background of studies with a number of well-renowned yogis, more than 6 years of teaching experience, operating her own business (True Yoga Inc.,) as well as leading many programs for Exhale Dallas and other studios in Texas, she holds a deep passion for expanding her personal knowledge and practice within yoga, as well as sharing these learnings from her heart. She is looking forward to this opportunity to create an exceptional experience for our group, as we start off the 3rd week of our new year in Montezuma with a special intention.
India (Feb. 21-Mar. 8, 2009) - Local Yoga Instructors & Experiences
Have you ever wanted to experience what yoga is like in India? to practice with a sage? to attend an international yoga festival... in the heart of Rishikesh? to practice laughter yoga in the Himalayas? to visit the Dalai Lama's monastery?.... this journey will be a great exploration of yoga, in many forms.
Bali (Aug. 22-30, 2009) & Australia (Sep. 2009) - Jo Tastula of Los Angeles, CA, USA
Jo has a uniquely integrative style of blending Vinyasa Flow yoga with a variety of sequences to lead you into a subtly intensive journey that leaves you shining. With her personal embodiment of Dharma Yoga, more than 10 years of teaching experience, between Sydney, Australia and Exhale's Center for Sacred Movement in Los Angeles, and multiple world travel experiences, she has a natural talent to deeply connect our group to an unforgettable experience in Bali.
Jo is originally from Australia, and now lives in Los Angeles, CA.
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IN THE FLOW
I recently spent 10 days completing the first part of my 200-hr Yoga Teacher Training intensive with my dear friend and teacher, Shiva Rea, in Los Angeles. During our time together (all 80+ of us, including the team of magnificent teaching assistants,) we began our "river" journey together... diving into the flow of living yoga... with open arms we began to embrace the great attributes of creativity and consciousness we develop within our life practice, and then pass along through our own teachings. We collectively became this giant ball of energy that became rather inseparable as the days went by. We continued our journey after the last day of our training to the Global Mala Event at LMU... cheering along as one with our theme song from the training together - "Power to the People"... to being in the flow of life... of YOUR life... whether it be 108 sun salutations, the next great wave while surfing, the next mountain peak you sit upon, or the next act of giving you perform... when you're in your FLOW, amazing things happen... and when you are in the flow of traveling with a yoga retreat, it tends to have a similar effect... elevating the group synergy and experience to a completely sensational and memorable level for everyone.
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WHY? ...Why do we gravitate to the things we do? It is often the most common question... WHY? Why rock climbers scale hundreds of feet up rock walls without a harness and rope? Why surfers would want to be towed out to waves that would crush any average person? Why snowboarders and skiers launch into crazy aerial stunts that could land them upside down? What inspires someone to travel solo into places people would fear entering with a group? Why people wrap themselves into all sorts of configurations to practice Yoga?
I attended a special benefit showing of multiple rock climbing documentaries that comprise Reel Rock Tour 2008 (www.reelrocktour.com) at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts last night. They interviewed the climbers in one of the films and asked them why they choose to free solo climb the routes they do, when they know one mistake could lead them to their last breath. The interesting common thread with the answer to this simple question was... "I don't know." They didn't have a specific answer. They aren't necessarily out doing this to prove anything externally... they are following a deep intrinsic desire to take on these challenges, because of what they achieve mentally and what they feel all throughout their being - especially when successfully climbing a route that has never been done before in the same manner. With surfing, there is something in the rush of the wave that is reflected in the faces of the surfers as they paddle back out or rinse off their board. With aerial snow jumps there is something in the 'flight' while airborne... and as Tanner Hall told me at a gathering a few years back... "I'm not scared. It's just fun."...after he launched into all sorts of twists and flips over a set of moguls below. The same with many people interviewed during the past 6 years of filming for Arthur Klein's documentary "Y Yoga" (www.yyogamovie.com)... which was Arthur's personal quest to find out why people do yoga. The most common answer stated by teachers and students he interviewed was "because it feels good." From my personal journey with my entire yoga practice, as well as the more advanced asanas (postures) I attempt on the physical limb, it is something that can really only be felt and understood within my body and personal mental journey in that moment. I, too, have taken to rock climbing, surfing, and snowboarding (at a more amateur level) journeys that have left me with a good taste of the feeling and a clear understanding of what drives people into the more challenging and 'dangerous' levels of their particular action. With world travel, when you explore a place that is less known and begin to learn a foreign language and get to know the local community in a more personal way, it takes you to a whole new dimension of that experience that can't be explained... and most often leaves you longing for more. From my personal desire to take on many of these adventure sports and solo travel around the world... I have the same initial answer as to why I do them... "I don't know, because it feels good. Because it's fun." My ventures also inspire me with a deeper level of inspiration and creativity with everything in my life... my ideas start to flow, I feel more interconnected with the specific community (of the activity or region) and my health, energy and happiness seem to be affected in a very positive manner, especially when I accomplish something that I didn't believe I could.
Of course these answers can run far deeper and more specific from one individual to another. The key thing that is apparent is that the answer LIES WITHIN US, as a FEELING... and within each of us resides different desires
and connections with any type of adventure. The answer is actually not so much spoken, but rather translated into the world once we come off the wall, wave, mountain, trip, or yoga mat... inspiring ourselves and others through our action and presence. What is it that you like to do.... and WHY?
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ADVENTURE TRAVEL & TRAVEL WRITING WORKSHOP
Have you ever wanted to learn how to plan your own adventure trip? Gain greater insight on how to undertake an around-the-world journey? Are you already traveling and have an interest in learning more about travel writing? How you can go about getting your articles published? Global Soul Adventure's founder, Kate LaCroix, and professional freelance travel writer, Alison Stein Wellner, are considering hosting this workshop the end of July 2009 in Lake Placid, NY, and would love to know if you and your friends may have an interest in attending a special session like this.
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WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
As the days, hours and minutes pass by, we all have certain things we want to enjoy, yet restrain ourselves from doing so. It could be a bubble bath, a phone call to a dear friend, a very nice bottle of wine for the "perfect moment", or that one place you've always wanted to travel. The list goes on.... and while we wait for the 'right time' we watch our precious seconds pass us by. We all have reasons and excuses... many of them. I encourage you to seek out whatever it is you want to do... NOW... and ENJOY it! ...And for those of you with a travel wish, I'll be more than happy to work with you to make that come true. Nearly 12 years ago I created an e-mail address "travelwithmetoday"... hmmm, I think it may have been my personal, unconscious procrastination from what I wanted to be doing all along... and why it is time to go travel (more) -- hopefully with YOU!
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Wishing you and your yoga mat big dreams and distant travels!
Sincerely,
Kate LaCroix
Global Soul Adventures |
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Save
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By registering for our trips early, we reward you with a discount off of the total trip cost.
Take a peek at our itineraries on GlobalSoulAdventures.com, "Our Soul Adventures" link, to see current offers. Early registration for our January and February 2009 trips is now available.
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