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Zion Shooting Star growing out of the canyon walls By Sonja Bjelland

Swaths of the Utah desert have split, moved and shaken into a range of colors and geologic wonders.

Fortunately, many of these places are now preserved as national parks.

Last weekend I had the chance to venture to Zion National Park and see some of this for myself – flowers growing out of rock formations, climbing red peaks. I was camping with friends which made it all the more fun to have great people to share it with.

Unfortunately, the only drop-in yoga classes are offered at the Springdale Community Center. The town is right at the edge of the park and its resorts and amenities make Zion much easier to visit than a more remote location such as Death Valley. It also means there’s a coffee shop right outside the campground and things like WiFi can be easier to come by than showers.

Zion National Park By Sonja Bjelland

Of course you don’t need a class to rock your yoga on the rocks. But there are a few yogis offering hiking and yoga retreats in Zion this year.

Adventures on the Go will hold a yoga and hiking trip through Zion and Bryce Canyons in “Mother Nature’s Yoga Studio” this Memorial Day weekend. It’s sold out for now but if you’re interested plan your 2013 vacation for it the trip titled Where Nature Nurtures. The team of adventure guide husband and lawyer, yogi wife also holds yoga retreats in California.

A pair of yoga instructors from Alpine, Utah’s, Lifted Life Yoga Center will hold their second annual retreat in Zion this Sept. 20-23. Accompanied by a nutritionist, the hiking and yoga retreat will include gluten-free, organic meals.

North Carolina studio Yoga Blyss will be in Zion National Park for a yoga retreat the following weekend. From Sept. 27 to Oct 1 yogis will explore the canyons and hanging gardens that make Zion a favorite among many visitors.

Salutation Nation at Chicago's Oak Street Beach By Sonja Bjelland

It’s that time of year again to start hunting down some outdoor yoga.

Or maybe even suggesting to your favorite teacher or studio that they put together some al fresco sessions.

With the warmer than typical temps this spring, several teachers have already put their outdoor classes in motion. Many more will be advertised after Memorial Day.

This doesn’t have to be a hike deep into the woods prior to a yoga class, though it could be. Outdoor yoga classes from Chicago to Los Angeles meet at parks or on the beach.

A studio in Pittsburg recently restarted its outdoor class in Mt. Washington’s Grandview Park overlooking downtown. An article in the Pittsburg Post-Gazette listed seven nature-loving yoga classes in that area alone.

It’s really a more yogic form of yoga. Studios can be so controlled – the temperature, the sound. But outside you have to take it all in. It’s all part of your space in that moment so accept it and move on. It’s OK if a bug crawls on your mat. Just be prepared for mosquitos and other nefarious critters and allergies.

It reminds me of a type of meditation that starts with having you hear all the traffic, birds and other sounds in your environment. Then you accept them and set them aside. You can’t block all that out of your mind. Your mind is there to pay attention and create thoughts. With meditation you’re just trying to get it to focus a little differently for a short time.

That’s why it’s helpful for yoga teachers to change up their lessons a little when they take it outside. Remember that the sky is above and not the ceiling when you’re giving instructions.

Yoga Journal has a helpful article on just this point for yoga teachers. It recommends mixing your poses and breath work with what’s around you. It can be difficult for new teachers to improvise that way but this is a good way to learn. Breathe with ocean waves, take a tree pose among some trees, feel grounded in mountain pose atop a mountain.

Sonja Bjelland sporting a tree pose among palms Photo by Dug Begley

As a student and a teacher, accept that your practice will be different. Even on a mat, the ground isn’t level so you might not have the balance you normally do. You might not be used to the temperature or breeze, another thing to knock you off balance.

Look at your local newspaper, magazine and websites for updates and always ask at your studio. After a summer of this, it’ll be hard to head indoors when temps revert.

Outdoor yoga tips

• Check if you’ll need sunscreen, bug spray or allergy medications.
• Take a towel in case it’s hot.
• Water, lots of it.
• It might feel weird to wear sunglasses while doing yoga, but sun salutations facing the glowing ball can be a tough without them.
• Take a larger towel or maybe two yoga mats if you don’t want yours to get dirty. Sand can be a mess with a mat so it might be best to put a blanket or towel down first.

A Sivananda yoga students sits by the nearby lake. By Sonja Bjelland

I keep seeing different publications listing their “Top 10 yoga retreats.”

In the industry we call this a roundup, it’s what readers seem to like best. So today I’m rounding up the roundups in a collective of the top five lists. A few of these have overlap of the most popular places, but each has it’s own flair. One gives more luxurious places. One highlights a little more adventure with the yoga. It all depends on who their audience is.

Combined this gives a pretty good look at the world’s top yoga destinations, from the U.S. to India. The finds here vary in price point and type of yoga but if you’re making a bucket list of yoga retreats, this is a good starting place. I’ve been to a few of these places and would love to go to many more.

If you’ve been to some of them be sure to let me know if you thought it belonged on the list. And let me know what’s missing. What yoga retreat did you love?

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  View near The Yoga Barn in Ubud, Bali By Sonja Bjelland

  Gayot annually updates its list of “Top 10 Yoga Retreats Worldwide,” that includes Alicante in Spain and Big Sky Yoga Retreats in Montana.

• Coastal Living rounded up its “23 Best Coastal Yoga Retreats.” This includes anything near water from Mexico to Martha’s Vineyard and the Turks and Caicos to Vietnam.
• The UK’s Guardian newspaper has a more adventurous list that couches it’s title as “10 of the World’s Best Yoga Retreats 2012.” Their list includes several places I’ve been including Bali’s Yoga Barn and the Sivananda Ashram in Kerala, India. This reflects the more outgoing British traveler and the list is totally different than the first two.
• Well+Good NYC’s “9 Best Yoga Vacations” has some listings that are similar to the rest but they managed to come up with a few more original offerings. One of my favorites is the yoga, Tango and wine trip to Argentina.
• Departures magazine’s “Top Yoga Retreats” list ranges from the romanticized and secluded in Bangalore to Western and easier access at the Wanderlust Festival. Though it might be possible to buy a plane ticket to India for the price of lodging and an all-access pass to one of the Wanderlust Festivals.

Monks resting outside of Angkor Watt, Cambodia By Sonja Bjelland

Hobby vacations have taken off with yoga being no exception.

But some yogi vacationers want less focus on poses and more on philosophy.

I was reminded of this last night while listening to Tibetan Buddhist Monk Khen Rinpoche Lobzang Tsetan address a crowd at the U.S. Air Force Academy.

No, it’s not everyday a monk speaks at a U.S. military installation. But his calm presence reminded me of the monks I saw daily during my travels in Asia. His lessons on different types of gratitude allowed me to recall chats with monks and various religious leaders during the same trip.

“You are to give an open heart without expectation,” he told the group.

I have always found asking questions to be the best way to find out something and I feel the same when learning about the world’s religions. Some places make this easier than others so if you’re looking for clarification or insight during a vacation or for your complete trip here’s my recommendations.

For serious study of Buddhist thinking try a vipassana retreat. Typically 10-days long, participants stay in silence at a monastery. The point is to internally confront whatever your mind brings up.

My friend and occasional poster, Laura Hitchman, wrote about one she attended in Thailand.

“Throughout the day we would all file silently into the meditation hall, where we’d sit cross-legged on our allocated cushions and receive instruction from a recording,” she writes. “Despite feeling like a mixture of school assembly, sitting exams and some sort of authoritarian regime, this was strangely enjoyable. The mornings and evenings especially so because they’d dim the lights and we’d all wear pyjamas and shawls, and everything was quiet except for the sounds of the rainforest outside.”

Musical service known as aarti in Rishikesh, India By Sonja Bjelland

And this isn’t something you need to go to Nepal or Thailand to experience. They have them at Buddhist centers across the U.S. with several annually in Colorado and Illinois.

For something lighter, stop in at the Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center in Bloomington, Ind. Visitors can meander through the 108 acres of wooded trails and take guided or self-guided walks through the grounds to see two traditional Tibetan stupas, central to Buddhist practice. Or if you happen to be in Chiang Mai, Thailand, the main temple has a “chat with a monk” session most evenings.

To dig a little deeper into Hinduism, staying at an ashram puts the resources in front of you. As a visitor in a town such as Rishikesh, India, you can stop by the ashrams that do nightly services and hear the spiritual leader chat about life’s questions.

Where I stayed in Rishikesh, Parmarth Niketan, we could listen to the guru and his American colleague explain Eastern philosophies. Those who wanted more in-depth study had a chance to research at the onsite library.

Islands off the coast of Thailand By Sonja Bjelland

One year after returning from my yoga travels through Asia, the journey continues.

Some people describe such trips as watershed, life changing, pick your overused descriptor.

It was, but not in an obvious way.

Writing this has been a reminder of how much I did take away from my travels, and why I think it’s important to dive in and refill your cup.

The intense travel days gave me a confidence that has been dripping out since my return – along with a sense of hope. The open hearted-ness I achieved after months of yoga and having people help me when it may not have been culturally appropriate has also dwindled.

These are the benefits of travel that are hard to maintain no matter how I try with my current efforts. My yoga and meditation routine fluctuates and my daily habits have waned.

My life stateside has returned to a focus on paying the bills and figuring out what’s next. Today, I substitute taught high school band, choir and in-school suspension. One year ago, I was celebrating my return to the U.S. with friends in Southern California. My Asia travel wear wasn’t quite the going style and the ginormous Whole Foods freaked me out after months in local markets.

Griffith Park Observatory, Los Angeles, Calif. By Sonja Bjelland

I’m happy I did it and given the opportunity I would love to travel for months again. This isn’t a youthful transgression I’ll get over. I love learning about different cultures and seeing new places.

At some points, it feels those months were lost in time. As if they didn’t happen because life back home went on.

Pillowcases from India, dresses from Bali and jewelry from everywhere remind me that it was real. And I know my thought processes have changed. I judge less, worry less and am more likely to acknowledge what is my perception versus reality.

By judging less, I don’t spend as much time thinking about what other people think of me or what I think about other people. The personal views, habits, etc., of others also spend much less time under my skin.

So much of what we spend our time and worries on doesn’t matter and that doesn’t leave a lot of time for the things we really do need to ponder. Now, I’m better at evaluating what actually means something to me and what doesn’t. And most things don’t, which is good because I have enough serious issues to occupy my mind.

Not worrying as much also frees up my time. I used to stress for hours before a trip. Now, I’m still able to pack a bag in minutes. I don’t worry about having a definitive plan and can let my daily life flow. Smartphones have helped with that. Plans come together much more quickly as I can look up a location and text a dinner spot to someone. Months catching trains and buses in foreign lands helped me know I can figure it out and that things manage to fall into place if I just let them. I just need to keep reminding myself that what happens on the daily level, expands to longer lengths of time.

Pool at the BaliSpirit Festival grounds By Sonja Bjelland

The BaliSprit Festival ended Sunday marking its 5^thanniversary.

With that and the EvolveFest Music and Yoga Festival in New Jersey starting around the same time, the idea of such events has blossomed across the world.

This year, local festivals are springing up all over the U.S. for those who what to avoid the crowds and price of the mega Wanderlust Festival. Some of these local festivals are still expensive, asking for $125 a day. But many are significantly cheaper, as low as $30 for the weekend. And don’t assume your area isn’t having a yoga festival. Iowa, Texas, you name it, there’s likely a yoga festival within a day’s drive for a weekend road trip.

The Joshua Tree Retreat Center is hosting several such festivals including the upcoming Sat Nam Kundalini Yoga and Music Festival. An East Coast version of the festival special for those who focus on Kundalini yoga will be this September in Wayneboro, Pa.

Also in California this month, the Tadasana Festival will gather yogis on the Santa Monica for beach for three days of yoga and music over the Earth Day weekend. The location and timing is granting the festival some big name, celebrity yogis from Baron Baptiste to Elena Brower. Of course, it’s also not particularly cheaper either but if you’re a local, it at least means spending hours on the freeway instead of at the airport.

Joshua Tree at sunset By Sonja Bjelland

A little more of a yoga-for-the-people style, Song of the Morning Retreat Center in Michigan is holding it’s second annual festival. This and some other local festivals have a bent toward including families and having a variety of activities from music and meditation to yoga and philosophy. Advanced tickets for the whole weekend are $30. Nope, I’m not missing a zero.

And similarly reasonable, the Rasa-Lila Fest held its Tampa Bay version last weekend and has another one coming up in Orlando in October. Adult entry is $45 in advance. This takes a similar tone as the Michigan festival, but adds in a rock climbing wall and paddle boarding as yoga-centric opportunities to try.

The Austin Yoga Expo is bringing a mix of the two extremes with reasonable prices and a long list of classes. Sessions range from yoga for relationships to yoga for creativity and hot vinyasa flow for it’s May weekend of yoga fun.

Sailboats anchored off Thailand's islands By Sonja Bjelland

I can only imagine rocking a boat pose aboard a Clipper ship or catamaran with the sea salt sticking to my sunscreen, but for many yogis this is a reality.

Around the world, yogis are gaining permission to come aboard and taking their yoga out to sea.

To me that’s a little bit of heaven. I love all the fun I’m having in Colorado, but I miss blue water. During a recent cleaning binge I realized my sailing gloves still hold a perfume of sunscreen, salt, fish and algae. The scent made me smile.

And I’m not alone in thinking this is a great idea. From Australia and Turkey to Baja and Connecticut, yoga teachers are floating with the flow.

Lamps at the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey By Sonja Bjelland

I’m not saying tree pose gets any easier when you’re bobbing up and down, but sivansana is a pretty good name for a boat. Now, I just have to find a way to make this trip possible. I’ve listed below a smattering of what I’ve found but there are tons of options available. If you have a particular country or island in mind just search for yoga and sailing options and you may well find your next vacation.

• Sailing-Charters.org offers multiple sailing and yoga retreats through the Greek Islands. It’s limited space on the catamaran with six cabins but each day includes sailing for a few hours and yoga classes.
• Herizen Sailing for Women has a whole list of upcoming sailing and yoga retreats – British Columbia, Belize, the British Virgin Islands. Right now they’re in Thailand for a sail training, yoga and self-awareness adventure. I’m not sure jealous quite captures it.
• Seaflower Yoga holds classes on her boat in Connecticut if you want to get a taste of yoga on the water but aren’t sure about a longer trip. If you’re ready for several days at sea, she also offers Caribbean sailing and yoga retreats.
• YogaCruise.net has yachts sailing the Turkish Mediterranean with an iternary that includes twice-daily yoga classes and tea time – a must in Turkey. Sailing down the coast was one of the things I didn’t accomplish during my time in Turkey and this would be a great way to do it. I should admit Turkey may well be my favorite country to visit. It has a lot of competition, but I loved Turkey.
• The ships of Star Clippers hold yoga classes on their teak decks during cruises to Greece and Turkey. Sailing along in the Aegean Sea, yogis have the chance to practice with celebrity teacher Christel Vollmer.

In bloom, Weldon Springs State Park By Sonja Bjelland

Happy Spring!

Have you celebrated with sun salutations yet?

I haven’t. I’m going to have to wait until closer to sunset before I can block out that kind of time today. But all over the northern hemisphere yogis are welcoming the seasonal shift with that routine of lunges, pushups and shining our hearts up to the sky.

But spring is also a time of reawakening and cleaning out. So what do you want to leave behind with winter?

These points throughout the year are a good time to plan for a yoga retreat. Events such as equinoxes and eclipses mark moments when the world is speaking to us. Telling us to move on, or see the world anew.

Many yoga retreat centers and studios make that easier for us by scheduling ways to honor these days. Time can pass quickly without any notice. These events that celebrate the passage of time and the accompanying traditions help us to recognize this moment. That keeps us in the present and gives us time to escape the constant thinking about the future or the past that keeps our mind spinning in savasana.

So do something to note today. Be it 108 sun salutations or a glass of wine outside in the sun. Honor that we as a world are entering another season, just not the same one. And that means you can too.

Many yoga places aren’t holding their events until this weekend so see what’s available in your area. Here are a couple fun ones I tracked down:

• The Spring Equinox Naam Yoga Celebration in New York City will be Saturday: “This Spring Equinox is a uniquely special time, a time of great wonder, a time to leave behind all that that has been, and let the past be the past and work with the healing energy of Sun to embrace the future for all that it is and all that it can be.”
• Grand Folks Yoga will get North Dakotans to take on 108 sun salutations for their equinox event on Saturday as well.
• Yoga Nexus will hold a Spring Equinox Five Elements Meditation in the Botanical Garden portion of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. What a beautiful way to welcome spring.

Stand up and rock a warrior pose when you need to By Susan Gill

During a visit to REI last weekend I noticed a rack of men’s yoga wear.

For awhile, I’ve had a note about some yoga retreats for men but that moment in REI got me thinking that there might be more out there these days.

And there are.

Slowly men are creating their own yoga space as more studios offer men’s only classes and more teachers create men’s only yoga retreats.

These days it may be women who are most associated with yoga but traditionally it was dominated by men. Men passed down the great yogic wisdom and it’s men in photos of yoga gurus. In India, it is still very much a man’s world. I was happy the two teachers I had at Parmarth Niketan were women. The other 8 weeks I was in India I mostly had male teachers.

Now you’ve got Broga, a style designed for the modern man and Jonathan Bowra creating what he’s deemed the men’s yoga tribe.

Yoga retreats for men will take place this year in the U.S., Australia, Cambodia and Costa Rica. But not all are the same. Some specialize in retreats for gay men who do nude yoga while others focus in different directions. Granted, I can’t really partake in any of these so if you have any tips or info feel free to pass it along to me.

• Will Duprey forged new paths with his yoga retreats and again this year will meet up with fellow male yogis in New Mexico for a few days of downward dogs, hiking to 9,000 feet and drinking beer. “The real goal is to have some time to reignite the masculine energy and power that, though not glorified, is ever steady and alive,” the information states.
• Through Australia’s Yoga Institute,  men will discuss bringing yoga philosophy into daily life and studying the yogic greats. Pretty typical yoga retreat syllabus but from a man’s perspective and among the company of men. All at a forest retreat outside of Sidney.
• Broga is organizing a retreat in Costa Rica that starts a month from tomorrow. In addition to the daily yoga classes, attendees can take jungle hikes or surfing lessons and one note I haven’t seen on other retreat pages, world-class fishing.
• Also in Costa Rica but happening this fall, the man behind the popular New York studio Hot Nude Yoga will introduce fans to his new home and retreat in the jungle with a 30-day teacher training. But before that, he’ll be leading a retreat in Cambodia.
• Later this fall, several male teachers are joining together for yoga retreat in Hawaii. Mornings will be spent on yoga and the afternoons are open for snorkeling and hiking.
• Bryan Harrelson will also lead naked yoga retreats in Costa Rica and Hawaii this year. The ashtanga primary starts off the mornings and he fills afternoons with poses to work on a particular body part as well as meditation and restorative yoga.

Ton Sai Bay Koh Phi Phi Thailand By Sonja Bjelland

There’s some good, but not great news out recently for the yoga retreat and travel industry.

The American Express Spending and Saving Tracker Survey taken in January showed about 37 percent of consumers planned to spend more or the same as last year on yoga retreats, fitness cruises and other fitness vacations. The same report stated that 6 percent are planning a spa vacation and 17 percent are up for an outdoor adventure trip.

The CNN article I found on the survey goes on to give a few yoga retreat and wellness vacation spots from Massachusetts to Mexico. But here at BlissPassport it’s monthly roundup time. OK it’s a little late.

The UK’s Daily Mail had a feature on a yoga course in Morocco in the bucolic Berber country. Morocco is still on my list of must-see countries and I’m loving all the yoga places I’ve heard about there. It just makes a comfortable break in a sightseeing trip.

“As we return from the morning’s yoga, the farm’s brunch is laid out like a buffet for the Buddha,” the writer detailed.” ”Carafes of beetroot, apple and ginger juice sit beside thick, nut-studded Bircher muesli, newly-leavened bread and homegrown

Some of Bali's most famous surfing in Ulu Watu By Sonja Bjelland

fig jams rub shoulders with coriander couscous and fava dips, earthenware bowls of giant roasted vegetables and softly cooked lentils find space next to bulging wheat berries drizzled with homemade Argan oil. We look on in stunned, appreciative silence,” the article stated.

I’d also note that the teacher they had at the time had students hold poses for 12 minutes at a time and told students to “acknowledge the pain but don’t attach yourself to it.” A stretch can feel intense yes, but you should never feel pain in a yoga class. This is a perfect example of why it’s important to find out what type of teacher will be leading the yoga retreat.

Then a lucky writer got to go to Surf Haven Bali, at their treat. Yes, I’m a little jealous. I loved Bali and could really use a few days when my biggest decisions are where to sit on the beach or what juice combo I should order.

“Sitting on yoga mats on the lawn in the fading evening sun, we set our intentions for the week, Bali-style. Deeply spiritual, the Balinese are famed for their fresh flower offerings, which they place at the family shrine up to five times a day,” the author describes. Sure sounds like Bali to me.