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VINYASA YOGA + BIG MIND MEDITATION INTENSIVE with Teacher + Author Rolf Gates June 27th-July 4th, 2009-Pura Vida, Costa Rica
{Location} There are plenty of tranquil spots on
the seven acre property with hammocks,
benches and grassy areas for meditation,
reading or just hanging out. You may
also wish to view this stunning oasis
and learn more at www.puravidaspa.com Read Pura Vida Wellness
Resort and Spa Media Reviews While we do not endorse any particular search engine, many students have cited good airfares by going through expedia.com, orbitz.com and now, Kayak.com—which compares the majority of the airlines and prices. Check in time is 3pm, but you are welcome to arrive earlier and spend time on the beautiful grounds We suggest you choose your flight to arrive in San Jose between 12:00 to 4:00pm, so you can arrive at Pura Vida in time to relax and settle in before dinner and the evening session. (Of course, some itineraries may bring you in later in the evening which will also be accommodated).
{Pura
Vida Wellness Resort and Spa Media
Reviews}
New York Times
…..Pura Vida Spa is on 12 acres of mountaintop, surrounded by coffee plantations. It overlooks Costa Rica's central valley, which is dominated by the sprawling capital, San Jose. As we tumbled out of Emilio's car, I noticed that the grounds appeared spacious and well manicured. …. We had come for a few days, but I learned that most guests spent a week at Pura Vida, arriving and departing on Saturday. The vast majority were Americans, who flew directly from home to attend a particular retreat, led by their local yoga instructor or a nationally recognized teacher. Each retreat set its own schedule, some having as many as five yoga sessions a day. We would participate in Pura Vida's house brand of yoga, under the title "Mind/Body/Spirit Adventure," which offered morning and afternoon classes on a drop-in basis. .I perused the week's schedule, posted in the dining area. (The information, like virtually all communication at the resort, was in English.) In addition to yoga classes, Pura Vida offered nightly activities for all guests, as well as occasional daytime excursions to local attractions. I felt as if I had hopped aboard a New Age cruise ship. Pura Vida's guest lodgings ring the
southern end of the property. On the
east end is the most expensive option:
the Japanese Pagoda, which has a king-size
bed, a living room and its own Jacuzzi.
When pressed to name names, however,
Forrest picks Pura Vida and Samasati
in Costa Rica, where she has twice led
private tours and hopes to return in
the very near future. 'At Pura Vida,
it's all about the great staff-including
a chef who's willing to cater to people's
allergies and needs, which for me is
important,' she says. The staff leads
guests out on adventures in the jungle,
making sure no damage is done by, say,
someone drowning, breaking a leg, or
falling out of a tree. Indeed, swinging
through the trees is always a big hit
with her students outside class. 'You
climb up to a tree platform where they
hook you up in complex harnesses with
big clips. Then you travel along a network
of cables to the next platform. It's
incredible under the tree canopy-that
is, unless you're afraid of heights."
I had been to yoga retreats before that were more of the northern California let's-sit-in-a-circle-and-sing-Kumbaya sort, which drove me to sleep. When choosing this retreat I was looking for pretty much the opposite. In Costa Rica Pura Vida means 'Pure
Life.' It makes sense that a country
with no army, with 25% of its land protected
and with some of the most beautiful black-and-white
sand beaches in the world would have
such a chipper national salutation. When
you land in this Central American oasis
for a weeklong yoga retreat, 5200 feet
up in the mountains of the Alajuela region
(at a resort called, of course, Pura
Vida), the good life starts to sink in."
"Located in Alajuela, Costa Rica, near the capital city of San Jose, Pura Vida Spa & Retreat Center is a mecca for the spiritually minded. With a focus on yoga, meditation, movement, and conscious living, the spa attracts those looking for a more fulfilling and enriching experience. A highlight of the spa is its open-air
garden yoga hall. Built and designed
by the staff at Pura Vida in 1986, the
project took approximately six months
to complete. While it may have been the
first of the four yoga halls to be built,
it's also the most impressive with stunning
views of the spa's private 12-acre estate
and the surrounding Central Valley." |
Pura
Vida, meaning ¨pure life¨,
is located on a private mountaintop
estate in Costa Rica's Alajuela province
surrounded by coffee plantations and
lush foliage. The whole estate commands
fantastic views of Irazú, Barva,
and Poás volcanoes and of the
central valley with the capital, San
José.
When
booking flights to Costa Rica, you
will want to come to Juan Santamaría
International Airport in San Jose (Airport
Code: SJO). Airlines with regularly
scheduled flights into this airport
are American, Continental, Delta, Taca,
Copa, MartinAir, and Iberia. 
Our
program will end before the check out
time (Noon) on Saturday, July 4th.
We will have a morning practice on that
day which is optional based on the different
travel schedules of our group. Please
plan to attend all other program sessions
in full throughout the week.
Spa
Finder Readers' Choice Award!: Votes
were cast for over 500 different spas
and Pura Vida Costa Rica was the winner
of favorite spa in Central America.