2019-05-01_Yoga_Journal

(Ann) #1
YOGAJOURNAL.COM 63

TOP: MAURO GRIGOLLO/STOCKSY; BOTTOM: MENTAL ART + DESIGN/STOCKSY



  1. CUBA
    Cuba’s dynamism reminds us that yoga is really about community.
    Eduardo de Jesus Pimentel Vázquez—the godfather of Cuban yoga—
    has trained more than 12,000 yoga practitioners through the Cuban
    Yoga Association, which he founded in 1990. His humble Havana
    studio Vidya offers a glimpse of the city’s tight-knit yoga scene. For
    the past three years, instructor April Puciata has hosted culturally
    immersive retreats at the beachside center Mhai Yoga. Eduardo guest-
    teaches up to five classes during the week, and Puciata arranges visits
    with local artists and entrepreneurs, plus side trips to the town of
    Trinidad. (For more on responsible travel in Cuba, see page 77.)

  2. JUNGLE BAY RESORT &
    SPA, DOMINICA
    Since opening their rainforest retreat center
    in 2005, yoga teacher Glenda Raphael and
    her husband, Sam, have been pioneers of
    sustainable tourism, stocking up on goods
    from island farmers, local fishermen, and
    artisans. Yoga teacher Chrissy Carter has
    held nine retreats here. Don’t miss Victoria
    Falls, Champagne Beach, and the Boiling
    Lake, the name given to one of the world’s
    few lakes that actually boils, says Carter.
    The resort, along with many others
    throughout the island, suffered damages
    after last year’s hurricane, making now
    a better time than ever to support the local
    Dominican economy.


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CARIBBEAN



  1. NOSARA, COSTA RICA
    Universally considered a yoga mecca,
    Nosara is home to 32 retreats with serious
    yoga cred. Both Don Stapleton, longtime
    director of Kripalu (see page 56), and Stephan
    Rechtschaffen, cofounder of the Omega
    Institute (page 58), set up yoga and wellness
    retreat centers here in the 1990s. More than
    6,000 people visit Stapleton’s Nosara Yoga
    Institute (now Kindness Yoga) annually,
    known for its mile-long meditation trail
    and intensive teacher trainings (more
    than 3,500 graduates over 21 years). At
    Rechtschaffen’s Blue Spirit, five studios host
    learning vacations with the Omega Institute
    that include workshops on unlocking your
    purpose and Rechtschaffer-led lectures on
    finding the path to longevity. Located in
    a blue zone (where a large percentage of the
    population lives longer than average), the
    vivacity of Nosara is intimately intertwined
    with its people and practices.


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