Nicaragua | Gran Pacifica Vida del Mar

Some of you know that I recently returned  from 5 weeks in Nicaragua. The majority of my time there was spent taking part in the Moksha/Modo Yoga Teacher Training program. I am now proud to say that I am a certified yoga instructor. Yay! This was an incredible adventure. Not really one I can totally put into words. It was loads of fun but also hard work, physically, mentally, and emotionally. I feel so lucky to have been able to go through this experience with so many beautiful souls. I have made some amazing friends and learned so much about myself and others.

The schedule was pretty jam packed. We had to be on our mats for morning meditation by 6:30, followed by a yoga practice, and were pretty well entertained until after dinner around 7 or 8 each night. We had 3 days off where some of us ventured out on excursions. After the training, a small group of us stayed for an extra few days and went to San Juan del Sur, a surf town a few hours away.

The training was held at Gran Pacifica Vida del Mar on the West coast of Nicaragua. It is a truly beautiful setting. I’ve never seen so many sunrises in my life and the stars were incredible. Sometimes after our evening practice I would walk out of the palapa (the hut we did yoga in) and just lay on my back and watch the stars. A big thank you to all of the staff at Gran Pacifica for making our stay so comfortable.

Here is our wonderful palapa.

Our first day off we went to Granada. One of the things I love about Nicaragua is that there seems to be volcanos everywhere you look. We took little boats around the islets of Granada in Lake Nicaragua. One of the islands had very cheeky monkeys on it. Thanks to Jeremy, a fellow yogi & photographer, for taking these of me.Our next day trip we went to a wildlife preserve and a pineapple farm. This is a hummingbird nest we found in the forest.In the distance you can see the Masaya Volcano. We went there the following week. A baby cat and a baby pineapple. Both cute, one more cuddly. Learning about pineapple farming.I’m not really sure what is going on here. I think Robi might be chasing this turkey with a pineapple. Either way, this cracks me up.Sunrise yoga photo fun.Melissa & Mitch, a lovely couple who worked at the resort, put on a fire dancing show for us one evening. I spied on this guy one morning working on a fish. It seemed like dunking the fish in the water improved the experience. Mitch rocking the waves out front at Gran Pacifica. On our last excursion we went to the Masaya Volcano. This active volcano used to accept human sacrifices to keep calm. Perhaps still does…After carefully counting our group members, we went over to Laguna de Apoyo, a lake formed in the crater of a volcano and spent the afternoon splashing about. And then there was the yoga. So much yoga. It was not all sunsets and swimming. We were on our mats between 2.5 and 3.5 hours a day, every day. Before this training I didn’t even think that was possible. We did yoga in a hut, yoga in a tent and yoga on the lawn. We took classes from senior instructors and from each other. It was bloody hard work but I love it. Thanks to my yoga family for making this so much fun. Kirtan led by Jess. I’m a terrible singer and often a little shy to sing around others. This was a pretty unreal experience. When we weren’t practicing yoga, we were learning about it.  Anatomy, history, philosophy, and teaching methodology to name a few. Here is our graduation group photo!
Christine and her baby Noah, the youngest yogi to have ever completed the teacher training.After we hugged and kissed everyone goodbye, a group of us set down the coast to San Juan del Sur for a few days of not doing yoga. Love these guys! Yes mom & dad, I did ride in the back of a pick-up truck, twice. Our final sunset on the beach in San Juan del Sur. Such a magical place. 

This has been an experience I will never forget. Thank you to all my new friends for sharing your love and encouragement. I can’t wait to take everyone’s class one day. I love you all. xoxo