Getting in touch with my inner yogi

This picture, taken from nearby my first yoga retreat shows the grass being greener on one side. The question is, which side did I end up on after 4 days and 3 nights of communal living, epic yoga sessions, Indian religion, yoga theory and meditation?  If you know me, you believe I found enlightenment. Let's just say, I'm well on the way, with lots of great insights from these days up in the mountains of Transylvania with no connection to the outside world. Just me, nature and similar minded people, focusing on making ourselves better. 

My traveling partner, Cristina, had been to this yoga retreat a year ago and wanted to go again. It had been in the back of my mind that I needed to get more into yoga and try out a retreat sometime, so this was a no brainer, I was going. The retreat was located up in the mountains above a small village, with no actual address, rather being the building behind the cemetery, behind the church. A very local, amazing experience with yoga practices twice a day, yoga theory daily, chanting and meditation mixed in with two vegetarian meals. Everyone chipped in what money they could and we cooked, cleaned, ate and slept as a community. From the start, people were at ease and made for a fully welcoming experience. 

While I had done yoga before, I had never done ashtanga yoga. This is a whole new level, taking the sequences and making it not only a spiritual exercise but a full workout as well. Surrounded by 16-20 others upstairs, the sweat poured out and the muscles burned as we went through familiar moves and moves that didn't seem possible. Some of the craziest twists I've done as well as my first head stands and full back bends. We were blessed with two amazing teachers who gave us confidence and strength. After just a few days, my firm was better, my body stronger and my mind clearer. On my last practice, I felt the best, re-energized and at peace after. Can't beat that. 

Here's a couple more photos of the area. No yoga photos, as why would you have a camera around when you're there to ground yourself and focus on improving  the body and mind?  But yeah, look up ashtanga yoga for some fun postures and twists. Full workout baby!

Modern day blacksmithing

Saw some blacksmiths at work outside a church here in Sibiu. Felt like I was back in a different era. Apart from creating rose shaped candle holders.  That probably wasn't as important when you didn't have clean drinking water and the plague was all around you.

Sibiu

The houses of Sibiu have eyes. Seriously. They watch you walk around this pleasant medieval town, filled with cobble stone streets and fantastic architecture. When you look up, there they are, often in random numbers, just watching. And I'd bet you could see the smiles in their eyes if you looked hard enough.

Romanian wedding fun

First celebratory shot at 11am. Reception starting at 4pm. Fourth course at 12am. Dancing. Eating. Dancing. Eating. On repeat for hours til breakfast time. This is a Romanian wedding. A full day of celebrations, laughter, good times with no set time limit. Just keep it going. And then sleep and do it again for day two. 

Quite the grand day for me. Attending a Romanian wedding is an event that brings in lots of people with music, food, dancing and drink from the morning until the morning. This was a traditional wedding up in the mountains, in a small village. I was lucky to be there, way up a dirt road, in the village of the grandparents, far removed from the city and modern fare. Most of the locals were in traditional clothing, drinking homemade cheeses, meats and drinks. A festive time was had before the ceremony even began. Over an hour of dancing took place outside in the sunshine beside the house and barn, with 3 locals working the musical instruments. Awesome, authentic music and gets your feet a'moving!

The main thing people remember from the church service was that it was extremely hot inside and the priest spoke very fast Romanian. Lots of talking and ceremony and blessing of rings and also crowns. Nothing like getting a gold crown on your head like at Burger King. And then taking 3 bites of a biscuit soaked in wine, and then 3 sips of wine. Tradition!  For the bride and groom. And the godparents (friends of similar age). But not the other wedding party members who had sweated through everything with them. After around an hour of standing, we were set to exit and cheer on the newly wed couple and dance a bit with kids throwing candy around. 

The village wedding was a more intimate gathering from the reception to come ahead. Being Cristina's date got me there for a truly amazing experience. We had spent the night before near the grandparents house in a pension and loved the peace and quiet up there. Finding rides with a couple from Miami we made it down to the reception venue, a place we would spend 12+ hours at over the next two evenings. The feasting commenced with a platter containing every Romanian food out there. Packed with meats, veg and cheese it got the body energized for the dancing to come. 

The hora, the traditional Romanian dance, is amazing. Circling up, everyone holds hand, you move in a circle, working those feet and not having to worry about stepping on each others toes. A great communal dance with fast beats and perfect for all ages. It's also a dance that never ends. It's gets faster and faster and the band will tease you with a finish and then just keep on going til everyone is about to drop. The relief when it is over is apparent, and yet they'll often just start a new one. Let it roll!

Numerous courses of food and alcohol come your way throughout the evening. It's a nonstop run of energy pumping in to the body to get you dancing. Or taking a break outside away from the loud band. It turned into too much polka and energy at a high decibel level for a lot of us. Couldn't really talk, which I learned is that Romanians have really loud music during wedding eating time. Just shut up and eat. No small talk. I still tried though...

The band finished by 1am and then Michael started up a dj set that went until around 6 from what I heard. We made it til 2am. A solid run on a great day. The younger generations were still there with the older generations having left around 1am, getting some sleep for the next day. And the party doesn't stop!

Netherlands

After a short visit in Brussels, it was on to the Netherlands. Easy train travel with wifi and an upper deck seat of the countryside. This really is the best way to travel around. It's a flat, green country with not as many windmills as you would think. Rather than sticking to the big city tour and Amsterdam, I went to visit friends down in Arnhem. Gotta get that wholesome, fun local experience without the crazy touristy bit. Nice to soak up good times with great friends. 

I'd met Carina and Domingo a few years ago in Bosnia and then a few months later they joined our apple tasting mission in Kyrgyzstan. Similar minded, world travelers make for the best friends. Which means that within minutes of arriving, it was straight to swallowing a herring. Feeling Dutch, we biked back to their house for relaxing around the pond in hammocks. The good life and a welcome change from walking around cities. 

Having a spot to chill at with good company and strong coffee was awesome. Just a laid vibe which is great to mix in with all the travel and sightseeing. Gotta rejuvenate and get ready for the next adventures. The second night we went to 

Nijmegen, the so called summer capital of Holland. Beaches set up on both sides of the river and a huge weeklong festival were on the menu for the day. Loads of different food vendors from around the world and numerous music stages to rock out to. Every sort of music was in action, with some of the oldest buildings in Holland surrounding the stages. Super cool to have a drink outside 500 year old cafe or to walk between ancient city walls with hundreds of people, smiling, laughing and speaking that lovely Dutch language. I learned a few new words and felt like I was clearing my throat way too often. Fun times!

Brussels street art and chasing Tintin

Brussels, the home of Hergè, the author of Tintin, feels like a comic book in that the buildings are too perfectly created and there is amazing comic art all over the city. Not the Marvel kind, the European kind full of stories, history and an adventurous life in a real life setting. I grew up reading Tintin and Asterix and walking around was amazing. I picked up a Tintin map and explored the streets visiting places that were in the books, places that inspired locations and galleries and museums dedicated to these magical books. Such a good experience and my friend had her original childhood books in French for me to read through. Man, such a good time here in a short stay in Brussels.

Paris, sweet Paris

I've been to Paris before a few times and have explored the streets and museums before. Yet, on this trip, I was blown away by the city and had a blast. Exceeding all expectations and full of crazy good times biking around the city, it's easy to see why this city ranks so high for people. Staying in an Airbnb worked out to be the best way to feel like a local and get out of the somewhat touristy center. By the bike rental system, Velib, everywhere is accessible and the price saves your wallet. Seriously for less than $2 you can travel anywhere in Paris, have stations to drop off your bike and to pick up new ones when you want. Great deal and the city is built for it. Bikes are a part of life and it's pretty darn safe, apart from no helmets out there. 

Right nearby the Airbnb was the Lachaise cemetery, a highlight for my visit due to the scale and grandness of it. There are huge tombs, great sculptures, people all all nationalities and a feel of a peaceful park set in the middle of the city. And then there are the famous graves from Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Edith Pilaf, Camille Pissarro and more. It's a who's who of the artistic community and it is an amazing place to visit, walk and relax.  

There are so many top sights in Paris that keep your jaw dropping each day. From the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame to Montmartre, this city has it all. And then there are the bakeries and sidewalk cafes, which rank among the best in the world. Those croissants and pan au chocolat melt in your mouth and are a good price here. Fuel that fire!

My friends made sure we ate and drank well together, opting for places serving organic and biodynamic food and wine. Literally new flavors that twist the tongue and tickle the taste buds. Just epic!  From a sugary cream sauce made with hay, to buckwheat ice cream, the city continues to push food to the next level. People are focused on where their food comes from and how it tastes, with several meals being a learning experience on food for me. The perfect way to eat in Paris!

After exploring and eating all day, I got to see a bit of the Paris nightlife, with clubs and bars along the Seine. Busy, full of people and playing House music, these maintain an image of a city that never sleeps. 

I'll leave you with some music. Nothing finer than drinking wine and learning of classic music from France. We spent a night going through a friends record collection, playing some of the best music out on vinyl. I'm hooked. Look up Serge Gainsbourg and just soak up the vibes. Can't top that. Listening to his track "Elisa" right now. Just loving it. 

English travels

Staying in a small English town just north of Liverpool with good friends Stu and Amy was perfect. Kinda nice to see the smaller town life and not feel like a tourist looking for the sights in the big cities. There's an awesome park just down the road where we spent a bunch of time relaxing and actually soaking up some sun. On day two we went to Seaport, a classic English town on the ocean. Super fun to walk around on a Sunday, with the town full of life, exploring the beach walk, the amusement park and a small lake full of boaters. Super chill day!

The next stop going south was London. It's one of the best cities out there and is necessary for most travel connections into and out of the country. We stayed with Cristina's brother in an area I couldn't pronounce. That's the beauty of the British empire, that half of what they say is cute, a quarter is normal English and the last quarter I either can't say or I can't understand. Literally they pronounce names of towns far differently from how they are written. Makes for a fun challenge. 

We played a bit of the tourist game and also explored the Hackney area, known for having hipster vibes in a rougher area, resisting gentrification and yet still having a fun edge. Great vibes there and some cool stores. Strong coffee fueled the walking and the rain made us dance into cafes and shops more often than normal. Street murals were all over and hidden breweries under the train tracks aroused the thirst. 

It was just a quick visit in London before taking the Chunnel to Paris. Felt more like an airport with the long lines, security and madness to get to the train. And of course you don't see any fish in the English Channel. So I was a bit bummed. Nice countryside and all, but no water features.