Full Moon Yoga

If you love yoga, you would love yoga practice on a tropical island. You may be in a class where warm, soft breezes caress your skin while you relax deeply into your pose, or where the lapping waves on the shore play a musical rhythm to accompany your movement. A class that begins at the end of the day may end at dusk with a silent shavasana that lasts as long as you need to fully experience it.

The last time I visited the island, I knew my company was closing and I was going to lose my job, so I expected that it may well be my last time to enjoy my favorite vacation paradise. During that trip, I saw a post on facebook about a full moon yoga party that had just happened the past weekend. It was at a place that’s called an “earthship” which is a self-sustaining structure made out of recycled materials, and the pictures were amazing. Even though I missed the full moon event, I enlisted the help of my friend Margaret to set out to find it, but we ventured though rugged roads through a cactus forest until we gave up. We never found it, but I’ve always wanted to see it.

Now two years later, I’ve come to live here, and a yoga session at the earthship was high on my list. Last weekend, Yogarriba offered a full moon yoga session at the earthship. They were even serving prosecco and chocolate after class, so I was excited to go to this event. We met at a church so we could get a ride from someone who knew the way and had a vehicle that could make it up the rut-filled rocky road. It was much farther into the hills than I thought, no wonder we weren’t able to find it. We made a turn up a long hill and on one side of the road, you could see down the valley. Ahead of us was the earthship, a round structure with a roof top with pillars enclosing the magical space. 

The surroundings were decorated with lanterns in the trees and uplit cactus in the landscape.

  

We met downstairs in the tasting room, a cozy place with a bar and tables and a glass water decanter with fresh lemongrass from the greenhouse giving the it a refreshing flavor.

After everyone arrived, we headed up the stairs for the yoga class. 

At the top we had a breathtaking view of the sunset and the twinkling homes in the valley. The evening light illuminated the bottles that were embedded in the walls.

The yoga session was wonderful, in the peace of the hills and the warm breezes passing through the group. We were arranged in a circle, and we outstretched our arms to support each other in several balance postures. It was surprising how supported I felt and even though I wobbled in my tree pose, the support that extended through the entire group didn’t falter and nobody fell out of the pose. I had never experienced that before.

After a while, Lolymar asked us to turn and face the full moon now rising in the clouds above the horizon. We sat in silence for a long time.

After a while, we continued class, then rested in Savasana. I felt Lolymar caress my shoulders and glide her hands up my neck with rose oil that smelled heavenly. I enjoy a silent Savasana, with only the sounds of the natural environment to bend my thoughts passing through my mind like clouds. Understanding that we need to spend enough time resting in the last pose to have the maximum benefit, she waited until we were quietly getting up on our own before concluding the class.  

After class, many of us were trying to capture the moment taking pictures, but in a few moments, prosecco was being served in the tasting room offered with sweet oranges and handmade chocolates. It couldn’t have been a more beautiful night.

To learn more about Yogarriba, visit the website: http://www.yogarriba.com/ 

If you're planning a visit to Bonaire and you're interested in learning more about the yoga experiences available on this island, leave a comment below and I'll be happy to suggest something that fits your schedule.