Feb 1st I left for Thailand to attend a spiritual women’s empowerment retreat. I had no expectations + truly wanted to experience whatever I was meant to. I’ve been struggling with connecting with “Sara”. My “Bish” persona had completely taken over + I’d been wholly focused on my work for the past few years.
This retreat allowed me the safe space to explore so many things I’ve been curious about + wanted to incorporate into my life – yoga, breath work, meditation, journaling + so much more! I had some familiarity with these things but got to really dive deep into myself with these practices. It took a lot of processing after I got home to have some of the realizations I’d been looking for, but they happened! I feel more connected to my feminine energy + I’m continuing to connect with myself.
Long Flight Time = Unhappy Sara
One thing I didn’t enjoy was the actual flight time to get there! If you’ve ever traveled anywhere in India or Asia, you know what I mean. It was really difficult on my body to be flying for a total 22-24 hours over the course of a couple of days.
This was my first international trip, ever! I had no idea what I was getting into. If I decide to travel this far again (I probably will) I will definitely take a different route!
Thailand, I made it!
The people in Thailand are incredibly nice. The tropical lifestyle was really beautiful to witness + live for a week. Our resort was beautiful + wonderful + so accommodating. They cooked meals for us within our dietary restrictions full of nutrition! It was really amazing to be able to have so many varieties of fruit + veggies at our meals! Walking on the street, or at the beach you can buy fresh fruit from carts. We enjoyed sooo many coconuts! Have you ever had coconut water straight from the coconut? It’s glorious.
The Big Buddha + Temples
We had a few “touristy” things we got to do, including bathing elephants! The Big Buddha was probably my most favorite. I had a really cool experience being able to be blessed by a monk there – I still have the bracelet! The carving of the statue of the Big Buddha is really intricate. I wish I would have been able to climb all those stairs to top to see the whole thing up close. But, what I was able to witness was breathtaking. I spent a lot of time there, watching the carved stone sparkle in the sun.
After the Big Buddha we went to see the temples. They had incredible architecture + I marveled at the intricacy. The area we went to had a lot of temples all in one space, there must have been at least 10, maybe more. Even though it was 95 degrees, I wore pants! In order to visit these sacred spaces, your knees + shoulders have to be covered + upon entering you have to remove your shoes.
The Elephant Sanctuary
I had a once in a lifetime experience – I bathed elephants in mud, washed them off + swam in their pond with them, then scrubbed them in clean water showers. We learned so much from this ethical elephant sanctuary about how they take care of them. They even showed us the process of making paper from elephant poop! Yup! It’s not as gross as you’d think. Elephants eat fibrous fruits + veggies, so they poop out paper pulp essentially. It just needs to be washed first. HA!
Thailand Magic + Transformation
As soon as I started to acclimate to this new lifestyle, it was almost time to go home. If I could do this again, I would choose to stay longer. That’s the only change I would make – actually, I’d check a bag haha so I could have more room for souvenirs!
The humidity was horrid + at the same time so amazing! Laying on the ground during yoga, sweaty + oily from bug spray, I’ve never before felt so dirty + yet so happy. This was seriously an experience I never would have expected + I know that my growth from this adventure has only begun. I look forward to seeing who I am next February + what else that version of me has learned from this trip.
