Eight-Day
Mexico
Yoga & Writing Retreats
March
12-19, 2011
Cost:
$1850 U.S. ($1750 prior to January 12, 2011)
Yelapa, Mexico
Yoga
and writing retreats in Mexico with Charles MacInerney
in the small fishing village of Yelapa, Mexico, 45 minutes
South of Puerto Vallarta by boat.
Charles is trained in the
AWA (Amherst Writers & Artists) method of leading
writing groups and retreats. He has collaborated on
over 40 yoga & writing retreats in Texas, Costa
Rica, Guatemala, Massachusetts and Mexico. Charles is
an expert at combining, body, mind and soul into a truly
unique experience that attracts those who love yoga
and writing from around the world.
Many of the
participants are yoga students with little writing experience,
and others are writers with little yoga experience. Under
the sure hands of Charles the yogis fall in love with
writing, and the writers with yoga.
The setting is lush, jungle at your fingertips,
wild turkeys and parrots in the trees. Writing circles
are held in the gardens of Los Naranjos, surrounded
by giant boulders, citrus trees, flowers and tropical
plants, all nestled into a valley and flanked by mountains.
During ample free time, students are encouraged to explore.
Waterfalls, beach, snorkeling, native art and restaurants
are within reach from the retreat center by foot or
burro (the primary means of transport in Yelapa). And
most important, three wonderful meals a day arrive from
the skilled hands of April Jones without decision or
effort on participants' part.
Wake to the sound of a sea of roosters.
Hear proprietor Jarrett's flute in the dusk, discover
yoga in the soft air, the surprises your writing has
for you, and new friends eager to hear.
Testmonials
“After
just 2 years of doing this, I find it to be the most
valuable, therapeutic, and hilariously funny thing I
do all year. The combination of Jarrett's beautiful
setting, the magnificent people who participate, and
of course the warmth and genius you and Charles provide-make
for an unparalleled experience. The way you make it
such a safe and nurturing environment we can't help
but let ourselves be broken open to the richness of
all there is to experience within ourselves and each
other.” Jane Bowling, Louisville, KY (Mexico,
2003)
”Being in a jungle on a river near
the ocean with gorgeous crazy birds singing in every
tree was a rich setting for the gentle deep work of
yoga and writing. I was able to go to places inside
of me that aren't normally accessible.” Gayle
Miller, Austin, TX (Mexico, 2002)
“It was a magical time away and
it has also spurred me back into a regular writing practice
at home… When I got home lots of people asked
how my trip was, and the response that always came to
me was that I was lucky to spend the week in a beautiful
place, but luckier still because it was a week spent
with extraordinary people. Your leadership skills are
a great example/role model for me.” Bridget Boland,
Chicago, IL (Mexico, 2003)
“Yelapa
is a magical place... and the people they draw to their
retreats are full of a beautiful energy and spirit.
A truly wonderful experience.” Arianna Romairone,
New York, NY (Mexico, 2004)
“Yelapa, the writing, the yoga,
Los Naranjos together brought us closer to our own hearts
than works, even brilliant ones, can tell. I love this
retreat, the moments of fear, of sadness, of exquisite
magic-all.” Peggy Gillespie, Belchertown, MA (Mexico,
2004)
“... a combination of magic and
the most super experience of groundedness. I have never
had a more loving, generous experience with a group.
Thank you from the essence of my heart.” Caryn
Markson, Northampton, MA (Mexico, 2004)
“... It is a magical experience
that has to be lived to be fully understood.”
Lydia Nettler Khan, Northampton, MA (Mexico 2004)
About
Los Naranjos and Yelapa...
Charles feels a strong
connection to this village and the entire valley, and
returns twice each year to lead retreats here. The entire
valley is cut off by mountains from civilization and
lives quite peacefully without phones, or roads. Transportation
is by foot, or by donkey - there are no motorcycles
or cars in Yelapa. In fact, electricity only arrived
in Yelapa in 2001, and parts are still without electricity.
A
participant from the February 2000 retreat noted, while
relaxing at one of the local restaurants and watering
holes, that the most common conversation among Americans
who were staying in Yelapa, was the topic of what day
of the week it was. It is this simpler way of life that
has drawn Charles to return again and again to Yelapa.
Over the years, he has made many friends among the artists,
musicians, writers, healers and assorted characters
who call Yelapa their home.
When the retreat center
that Charles used on his first two retreats in Yelapa
closed unexpectedly, it was these friends who live in
Yelapa that stepped up on very short notice to help
create a space to host the February 2000 Yoga &
Writing Retreat. Thus was born Los Naranjos, a private
home with beautiful gardens that was converted into
one of the most beautiful retreat centers in the world.
The owner, Jarrett Lewis,
had long dreamed of opening their home and grounds to
small groups in order to share what everyone in Yelapa
considers to be the most beautiful gardens in the entire
valley. Right: Los Naranjos Retreat Center.
Charles's need for a sacred space
to host his retreats served as a catalyst. With the
help of a vast array of friends and half the village,
April, Sam & Jarrett oversaw the creation of Los
Naranjos Retreat Center, in less than three months!
In fact, the retreat center was only finished 15 minutes
before our first group arrived for the February 2000
retreat.
WHY MIND/BODY WRITING?
Stories are waiting in our bodies to be told in our
own voices. Memories are stored not only in our brains
but, perhaps even more powerfully, they are hidden
in our muscles, our glands, our guts, our breath.
They are wrapped in feelings. The practice of yoga,
the joining of body and mind, can open pathways into
the feelings, memories, stories and images embedded
in the tissues.
This workshop is designed
to help you shift your awareness and write from those
deeper levels of consciousness. Through Hatha Yoga
we will get in touch with our kinesthetic sense of
self. We will use special meditation techniques to
slow the mind and create and sustain a sense of the
sacred throughout the retreat. A variety of special
exercises utilizing tactile, visual, auditory, kinesthetic
and olfactory "prompts" will help us reach
deeply held images, and we will learn how to use Mind
Mapping & Clustering techniques to generate, associate
and manipulate ideas and information in new ways.
Charles attracts an interesting
mix of students. There are usually a few students with
experience in both writing and yoga, and a few with
no experience in either.
All levels of students
are welcome, and all are made to feel comfortable in
both the writing and the yoga. Although most participants
choose to participate in all of the various activities
and exercises, students are encouraged to consider the
entire retreat as free time.
It is common to find a
student napping in a hammock, or hanging out at the
beach while others are participating in a workshop or
class.
Charles is a master at
creating safe environments from which even the most
tentative students find the courage to write from the
heart and share their unique voice with the group.
Charles is usually assisted
by at least one other yoga teacher with whom he works
closely to ensure that new students get a solid introduction
to the basics, and learn how to adapt each exercise
to meet their needs and abilities, while more advanced
students are challenged and encouraged to take their
practice to a new level.
We hope you will be able
to join us for Eight days and Seven nights of Creative
Writing, Hatha Yoga, Meditation, Visualization, vegetarian
cooking, and the renewing pleasures of Yelapa's clear
blue waters and lush, bird-filled mountains.
“After
just 2 years of doing this, I find it to be the most
valuable, therapeutic, and hilariously funny thing I
do all year. The combination of Jarrett's beautiful
setting, the magnificent people who participate, and
of course the warmth and genius you and Charles provide-make
for an unparalleled experience. The way you make it
such a safe and nurturing environment we can't help
but let ourselves be broken open to the richness of
all there is to experience within ourselves and each
other.” Jane Bowling, Louisville, KY (Mexico,
2003)
“Yelapa
is a magical place... and the people they draw to their
retreats are full of a beautiful energy and spirit.
A truly wonderful experience.” Arianna Romairone,
New York, NY (Mexico, 2004)
A
participant from the February 2000 retreat noted, while
relaxing at one of the local restaurants and watering
holes, that the most common conversation among Americans
who were staying in Yelapa, was the topic of what day
of the week it was. It is this simpler way of life that
has drawn Charles to return again and again to Yelapa.
Over the years, he has made many friends among the artists,
musicians, writers, healers and assorted characters
who call Yelapa their home. 
