Sacred Spaces:
Retreat in Southern Italy
with Lizzie Lasater
14-21 September 2024
What are sacred spaces?
Sacred spaces exist all around us. But in the hectic rhythms of our over-full days we ignore their power. Or don’t remember to treat them as sacred.
Sacred spaces open us to a shift in consciousness, another dimension of experience.
This week we explore these sacred spaces together:
The farm
The body
The yoga mat
The church
The cemetery
The ocean
The mind
and silence
For example, the retreat center in Salento is also a working organic farm. We’ll connect with this sacred space via walking slowly in the olive groves, inhaling the intoxicating scent of the sage and mint bushes, and picking plump tomatoes from the vine.
We’ll explore the space of the body through movement and breath, challenging ourselves and then returning to rest.
The yoga mat is your island for practice. It is a rectangle of retreat amidst the other demands of your daily life. It’s a space to play and re-connect with a state of flow.
One afternoon, we’ll visit a local church dating back to the 11th century and marvel at the exquisite mosaics. We’ll then step into the remarkable reliquary, inhabiting the sacred space of the cemetery.
Excursions to the beach offer a chance to swim in the warm cobalt blue waters of the Adriatic or Mediterranean seas.
In the afternoon classes we’ll enter into the sacred space of the mind via pranayama, Restorative practice, and meditation.
Ultimately, our goal is to find silence. We’ll support each other to decrease our digital stimulation. This gives us more opportunities to recognize the open, expansive, silent space behind thought.
Do you need a retreat?
A retreat is a special form of vacation.
A retreat is a time to slow down, and tend to your inner landscape. It’s the rare chance to turn off your consumption and production engines - so that you can engage with what’s underneath. It’s letting yourself feel held - so that you can finally take off your armor.
A retreat is taking time to turn off the mantra in your head that says: you haven’t done enough. So that you can feel, like really know deep down, that you are enough.
What will we do all day?
You’ll spend your days in community moving between yoga class, nourishing plant-rich meals, and unstructured down time to walk, swim, read, journal, daydream and nap.
Days look like this:
8-9 am Light breakfast, coffee and tea
9-11am Slooow Flow and Somatic Strength (active practice)
11:30am Brunch
4:30-6pm Deep Restorative
7pm Dinner
2 afternoons are completely open (no yoga class) to explore the many beautiful beaches around the retreat center.
The schedule includes lots of spacious open time for lazing by the pool, getting a massage, or exploring. Perhaps you want to swim at the local beach? Or, eat a gelato in town? (Both require a short taxi ride, or a rental car, which the center can organize on a daily basis.)
Mid-week we’ll have two entirely un-structured afternoons (no yoga class) so you can luxuriate in savoring idleness, leisure, and relaxation, finding pleasure in simply being without the need for productivity or busyness.
Sounds fun, right?
What’s the active yoga like?
In the mornings, we’ll practice Slooow Flow: Lizzie’s well-aligned breath-based unhurried style of vinyasa yoga.
We’ll also include some simple Somatic Strength training to find, and feed, the frame of your body.
What is Restorative yoga?
In the afternoons we’ll practice Restorative yoga.
Restorative yoga is the use of props to support the body in positions of comfort and ease to facilitate relaxation and health.
In this way, we use the in-born systems of the body to activate the parasympathetic nervous system.
This system is responsible for digestion, elimination, fertility, immunity, hormone regulation, and so much more. In our fast-paced smart phone-addled lives, we have forgotten how to honor the body’s natural rhythms and requirements for rest.
Restorative yoga reduces hyperactivity in the frontal cortex and helps us to regulate interoceptive awareness.
When we practice, our brain waves change: shifting from Beta (active state) through Alpha (meditate state) into the deeper Theta (dream state) and Delta (sleep state) waves.
More than just rest, Restorative practices promote physical, emotional, and psychological healing.
Who is Lizzie Lasater?
As a working mom of four-year-old twin boys, Lizzie very much understands the importance of sustainable self-care.
Lizzie grew up in California, where she began teaching vinyasa yoga in 2004. She then studied design at Columbia University in New York City where she met her Austrian Architect husband.
She now lives in Salzburg, where she produces and hosts Zoom yoga courses with her Mama, co-founder of Yoga Journal Magazine, Judith Hanson Lasater.
Lizzie also writes a free weekly newsletter, Rest with Lizzie Lasater.
What’s the retreat center like?
Yoga in Selento is a charming retreat center located in the southern Italian region of Apulia, taditionally a point of fusion among ancient Mediterranean civilizations.
Amenities include an organic garden, swimming pool, Wi-fi, shaded parking, bike rental, and a boutique for homemade farm products.
The center is surrounded by nature. But it’s just a 10 minute drive from the town of Lecce, and a 20 minutes drive from the beaches and coves on the coast.
What’s the food like?
Delicious. Italians know food.
The meals are organic, vegetarian, plant-rich, with abundant gluten-free options. The center grows their own vegetables which the staff prepares with love.
How does arrival and departure work?
You’re welcome to arrive at the retreat center from 14:00 on Saturday, September 14th. Our first event is dinner that evening at 20:00.
The closest airport is Brindisi (BDS), 50 km from Yoga in Salento, Zollino.
Second best option is is Bari (BRI) airport, 150 km from YIS, a drive just under two hours.
Both airports are connected to local trains and buses.
You can book a transfer by car from either Brindisi or Bari airports by emailing info@yogainsalento.com with your arrival details. If there is another guest with a similar arrival schedule, they can coordinate a shared transfer. They will let you know the cost of your transfer, then you'll pay directly to the driver, cash is strongly preferred.
How much does it cost?
The price for the retreat program is €400. Or, €360 if you enroll by January 31st, 2024.
The price for accommodation ranges from about € 600 to €1,050 for the week, depending on what level of room you choose. Please contact them directly to book your accommodation.
You pay your own travel to and from the center.
What’s included?
Morning and afternoon yoga classes
Last night live music and dance party
7 nights stay with daily room cleaning
7 vegetarian organic dinners
6 vegetarian organic brunches
1 vegetarian organic breakfast on departure day
1 beach towel for the week
Yoga mats and props
Swimming pool
1 evening sauna (optional)
