It has been a beautiful 6 weeks to say the very least. It has brought lots of exciting progress with designs for the project as well as some wonderful times with friends and family. I also spent the last couple of weeks completing an intensive 200 hour yoga teacher training course at a retreat centre near the Cliffs of Moher, Ireland.
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| Conor and Ariane do Portugal! |
After wrapping up my contract at Boston Children’s and spending some quality time with family and friends in Boston, it was time to head back to Portugal.
My mom came along with me back to Portugal this time around. She adjusted wonderfully to the rustic lifestyle, and fell in love with both the property and the area quickly. She enjoyed helping maintain the little food garden we have and helping around the property. Hanging out in the hammocks and canoeing were a couple favorite activities too. It was really great having her, and I’m hoping she’ll be back sooner than later!
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| My mom and I canoeing along the Mondego River |
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| My mom hanging in the new hammocks on the property |
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| Beautiful stop off on the way to Torre |
A few days later our friends/business buddies Conor and Ariane arrived from New York, with Ariane’s mom too. The 6 of us had a great time doing river activities — kayaking, swimming, sunbathing. We did some touristy things as well like taking a drive up to to Torre — the highest peak of the Serra da Estrela.
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| Kayak break for a picnic |
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| River Beach stop off along the Mondego |
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| All excited for kayak trip |
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| Laughs at the top of Torre |
It was great to have Conor and Ariane to further brainstorm ideas for the designs all together on the property. The 4 of us met with our architect to review the drawings he’s done so far based on the designs Rory has done. In the next couple of months the drawings will be finished and submitted for planning permission. Stay tuned!!
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| One of many design drafts |
The last couple of weeks, I’ve spent at the Cliffs of Moher Retreat in the west coast of Ireland. Trina and Matthew — Rory’s sister and nephew — drove me down to Clare and we had a great night in Lahinch and day around The Burren before they dropped me off to the Retreat Centre.
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| Trina and Matthew somewhere in the Beautiful Burren |
Talk about a gorgeous setting to learn how to teach yoga with Yogacara Global. I had 2 incredible teachers and 11 fellow yogi students — all of whom I learned so much from. I couldn’t imagine a better group to learn with from 6am to 9pm for 16 days. The glass paned front wall of the yoga studio overlooked green fields of cows and the ocean in the distance. We also took some class time to the Cliffs and the beach nearby. We did about countless hours of yoga and meditation between class times and I enjoyed every moment of it.
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| The studio for Yoga Teacher Training |
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| Cliffs of Moher |
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| Action shot |
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| Classroom on the Cliffs |
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| Atlantic House Bindhi Selfie post Graduation |
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| View on the strolls to the beach |
While I was away, Hank has grown quite a bit again. But it’s clear he has no clue how big he is because he still lets the 2 little ones boss him around all day long.
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| H cubed |
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| Hank and Harvey |
We have another guest — Rory’s nephew Dylan — now for the next week or so who we’re really happy to have.
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| Dylan and Hank getting to know each other |
Stay tuned for more updates on fun times and progress in Portugal over the next couple of weeks.
