Limbering up for a whole new life... in the ‘Om Dome’
It is just before 8am on a Monday, and I am strolling to a yoga session. I am hoping this retreat will give me a fresh perspective on life after leaving my job.
Inside the ‘Om Dome’, perched like a vast golf ball in the hills of Andalucia, southern Spain, the sun is already streaming through the windows.
Lidiya, our teacher and guide for the week, eases us in gently, encouraging us to relax as we lie draped over bolsters. We are not lying around for long though, as we are led through a series of increasingly challenging moves and postures, leaving us struggling and sweating. We are a mixed bunch: a tattooed budding yoga instructor from Dublin, two mums and daughters, a lithe Swiss couple, and a Canadian doctor and teacher.
After almost two hours in the dome, breakfast is a priority. The vegan amaranth porridge may not be everyone’s first choice, so there are fresh eggs, bread, fruit, home-made marmalade and delicious olive oil from the estate too.
I’m staying at Suryalila Retreat Centre, an hour’s drive from Seville. It’s a working olive farm with courtyards filled with lemon and orange trees.
The centre not only hosts yoga retreats but its ‘permaculture’ course attracts people from all over the world to learn how to farm organically. A team of cooks provides an array of vegetarian dishes.
You could spend the time between yoga classes by the saltwater pool, but we hiked through the hills and plunged into the river to cool off. I went horse-riding and joined a trip to historic Ronda, with the chance to climb its perilous gorge.
On the last evening, we tried acro-yoga, a combination of acrobatics and yoga. We wobbled and collapsed, but there was a great sense of achieve-
ment when someone did balance for a few seconds.
My week of yoga, hikes, vegetarian food and sunshine was as relaxing as I’d hoped. A clearer mind is definitely what I need as I plan a future without the morning rush to work.