Join
us for Creative Writing,
Hatha Yoga and meditation
at Villa Boheme, a sweet,
small hotel on the harbor
of Culebra Island. It's
part of Puerto Rico,
so you don't need a
passport, special shots,
or to change money.
Culebra, at only 7 x
3 miles, is the loveliest
of the Spanish Virgin
Islands, renown for
its clear, turquoise
waters and pristine
coral reefs. Kayak on
Tamarindo Bay; swim
from the white sands
of Zoni and Flamenco
beaches; hike to the
forested ridges and
view the tiny islands
in this jeweled archipelago.
The snorkeling is some
of the best in the world.
With
exclusive use of the
entire property, we
will write and practice
yoga every morning,
with most afternoons
free to explore, rest,
swim, bike & kayak.
We will offer writing
most evenings after
dinner.
This is a special retreat
in many ways. We are
returning for a second
year (the first was
so blissful!) to the
beautiful, blue Caribbean
and Patricia's daughter,
Ponteir Sackrey, will
again lead the yoga
sessions. Ponteir is
an Anusara-Inspired
(TM)
yoga teacher, with a
following in Jackson,
Wyoming, where she is
also director of development
and marketing at the
National Museum of Wildlife
Art, and immediate past-president
of the Jackson Hole
Chamber of Commerce.
This retreat is also
special because it will
be small: we can accept
only 12 participants!
So if you want to spend
a week in paradise,
writing, and stretching
into your true self--please
register right away.
If you register early
enough, you can request
and receive a room all
to yourself. And. if
you have been on retreat
with Patricia before,
we will thank you with
our "alum"
discount.
Includes:
8
days, 7 nights, shared
accommodations;
all meals (& they
are wonderful);
two daily writing and
yoga sessions;
all instruction and materials;
workshops on the craft
of writing;
individual manuscript
critiques.
Cost:
$2095 with an alum discount
of $100 for anyone who
has been on a retreat
with Patricia in the past.
We require a $500 non-refundable
deposit to hold space.
Balance due February 25,
2012. We can only accept
12 participants for this
very special, small retreat!
We have some single
rooms which will go, upon
request, to those who
register and pay their
deposits first. However,
in full disclosure, the
double rooms are the largest!
(does not include individual
transportation to and
from Villa Boheme, special
excursions, or gratuities.)
Travel
to Culebra:
Because it's part of Puerto
Rico, you don't need a
passport, special shots,
or to change money. Flights
are reasonably priced
and you can search all
airline prices at www.kayak.com.
You can even set a fare
alert there and take advantage
of a sale if it comes
along. You should fly
into Luis Munoz Marin
(SJU), the main aiport
in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Transportation
& lodging in Puerto
Rico:
You will land in San Juan
at their main airport,
Luis Munoz Marin (SJU).
From there you either
fly to the island via
a small local airline
(fare avail at www.airflamenco.net)
or board your pre-arranged
van to the Fajardo ferry
dock, about 2 hours away
(expect to pay approx
$65 round trip, per person.).
From the dock, there is
a regularly scheduled
ferry service to Culebra
($2.00 adults, each way).
The ferry trip is also
about 2 hours. We will
give you the information
you need to book this
in advance. Once docked
at Culebra, you're just
a few blocks from Villan
Boheme. You can walk or
take a local van to for
about $3.00 each. FYI:
Last year's participants
raved about taking the
local airlines.
Don't worry,
we will all share flight
information and organize
groups to travel together.
Details on all local
transportation options
will follow in the letter
you will receive after
registration.
We recommend arriving
in Puerto Rico no later
than March 24, a day
before the retreat,
and staying in San Juan
overnight if using a
van sesrvice. Those
who arrive on Sunday
should land in San Juan
no later than 10:00
a.m.on the first day
of the retreat.
We suggest that you
plan to stay one or more
extra nights at Villa
Boheme or elsewhere on
Culebra or nearby Vieques
after the retreat. You
may wish to spend your
last night in San Juan
so that you are closer
to the airport for your
departing flight.
If you have to fly out
on Sunday, the day the
retreat ends, we suggest
a departure time after
1 p.m. but later is better,
to give you plenty of
time to get back to the
airport.
Staying
in San Juan:
There is a wonderful historic
section of the city and
www.tripadvisor.com
can help you find a terrfic
place to stay. Their reviews
are often quite helpful.
Our retreats
include people with a
wide range of yoga and
writing experience, from
beginners to professionals.
We are all enriched by
the diversity. While we
will offer a daily schedule
of suggested activities,
writing and yoga sessions
are optional: your time
is your own.
The
yoga is practiced
each morning for 1 1/2
hours, before breakfast,
on the shady harbor deck
at Villa Boheme. Yoga
is offered in a safe,
supportive environment
with a deep respect for
individual strengths as
well as for areas of challenge
or difficulty. Special
sessions for individuals
can be arranged, if needed.
The writing
is done in structured
groups for about 3 hours
each morning, with additional
sessions one afternoon
and several evenings.
You will have opportunity
to write in an encouraging,
confidential and inspiring
setting, in response to
exercises we suggest.
You will be invited to
share what you have just
written, and to respond
to the writing of others
with what is fresh, what
you like, what you remember.
Patricia will meet with
individual writers to
discuss their manuscripts
or issues relating to
their writing life and
offer workshops on the
craft of writing.
While
Patricia and Ponteir will
always be where the schedule
calls them, for you
all activities are
optional, and the entire
week should be considered
free time. Pick and choose
from organized activities
to make your own schedule.
Take as much time each
day as you'd like to set
off on your own or with
others. Villa Boheme is
sunny, sleepy and relaxing,
so you can climb into
a hammock on the patio
and enjoy the view of
Ensenada Bay. Participants
can also take a swim,
or rent a kayak for a
paddle in the ocean. The
snorkeling and scuba diving
around Culebra are outstanding.
Rent a bike or a golf
cart and explore the island
and its many beaches or
walk to town to enjoy
the local shops and restaurants.
The
retreat is designed
and facilitated by Patricia
Lee Lewis and Ponteir
Sackrey.
Combining
Yoga & Writing
The practice of yoga,
the joining of body
and mind, can open pathways
into the feelings, memories,
stories and images embedded
in the tissues. Writing
workshops during the
retreat are 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 a sense
of the sacred. No
writing or yoga experience
is required - only a sense
of adventure.
Beginning
and experienced writers
will find a supportive,
encouraging context in
which to write from their
deepest selves. We will
write in response to exercises
offered by Patricia Lee
Lewis, MFA. In a small
group, writers will be
invited to read their
work aloud, and the group
will offer simple affirmations
of what is done well and
what stays in the memory.
ABOUT
Culebra
Culebra is
known as "Isla
Chiquita" (small
island) and "Ultima
Virgen" (last virgin).
Culebra was founded
on October 27, 1880
by Cayetano Escudero.
The first inhabitants
of Culebra were the
Tainos, a peaceful indigenous
tribe that resided throughout
the Caribbean. Legend
has it that pirates
also used Culebra as
a hideout. The colonization
of Culebra started in
1880. Spain conceded
the island, along with
Puerto Rico to the U.S.
at the end of the Spanish-American
war in 1898.
Located
27 km (17 miles) east
of Puerto Rico and 19
km (12 miles) west ofSaint
Thomas, its dimensions
are about 11 km (7 miles)
long and 5 km (3.5 miles)
wide. Its total area
including surrounding
Cays is 7,000 acres.
The capital is Dewey,
where Villa Boheme is
located. Dewey contains
most of the archipelago's
2000 inhabitants. Culebra's
per capita income is
$8,900 per year.
Coral reefs around
the island are considered
some of the most spectacular
of the entire Caribbean
region. Beaches at Zona
and Playa Flamenco are
called 'diamond dust'
beaches for the spectacular
white sands. The leatherback
turtles climb onto Playa
Brava to lay their eggs
in season.
On February 27, 1909,
a bird refuge was established
on the island, making
it one of the oldest
refuges in the U.S.
system. Since then much
of the island and the
surrounding 23 islets
including Culebrita
are protected by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service as a nature
preserve, making the
islands one of only
two nesting sites for
giant sea turtles in
the U.S. The Culebra
National Wildlife Refuge,
600 ha, protects large
colonies of sea birds
(with approx. 85 species),
particularly terns,
red-billed tropic birds
and boobies, and nesting
sea turtles. The refuge
is accessible by ferry
or by plane from San
Juan. The Mount Resaca
Refuge insures the preservation
of one of the few remaining
large blocks of dry
sub-tropical forest
on Culebra.You can visit
the surrounding cays
by chatting up the local
fishermen or by arranging
dives through local
operators.
Villa
Boheme - walking
distance from the town
of Dewey and fronting
the water, our retreat
site is situated perfectly
for both convenience
and privacy. The large,
private veranda overlooks
a scenic harbor where
you can enjoy a refreshing
breeze while relaxing
in a hammock and idly
watching the busy coming
and going of small boats.
Accommodations:
Each bedroom
is carefully appointed
and fully equipped with
air conditioning and
an en suite bathroom/shower.
Some single
rooms are available
on a first to register,
first to receive, basis.
Double rooms
are large, have kitchenettes
and balconies.
Villa Boheme's spacious
veranda offers a beautiful
view of the still unspoiled
Ensenada Honda bay.
Here we will enjoy,
all to ourselves, 200
feet of boardwalk and
waterfront hammocks.The
patio area includes
a fully equiped community
kitchen and two full
bathrooms for convenient
beach clean up.
Meals:
We will have our meals
catered especially for
us by the neighboring
restaurant, Dinghy Dock.
We
will enjoy traditional
food of Puerto Rico, with
plentiful vegetarian options
on their upstairs deck,
overlooking the harbor.
ABOUT
THE
STAFF
Patricia
Lee Lewis lives
and works at Patchwork
Farm Retreat in western
Massachusetts. She shares
the world with trees and
stones, chickadees, writers
and bears, and has led
weekend writing retreats
and weekly workshops in
her mountain cottage at
Patchwork Farm, throughout
the United States, and
yoga and writing retreats
at sacred sites around
the world - Guatemala,
Mexico, Scotland, Ireland,
Wales, Spain, Puerto Rico,
and Costa Rica.
Patricia
holds an MFA degree
in Creative Writing
from Vermont College
of Fine Arts, and
completed her undergraduate
degree at Smith
College, Phi Beta
Kappa, in 1970.
She is a member
of the Texas Writers
League, Straw Dog
Writers Guild, the
Berkshire Writers
Room, the American
Poetry Society,
and is an affiliate
of Amherst Writers
& Artists. A
grant in 2011, from
the Massachusetts
Arts Council, enabled
her to help establish
a writing program
at her local library.
Trained to
teach English to
speakers of other
languages (TESOL),
Patricia and friends
volunteer in the
Maya village of
Santa Cruz la Laguna
on Lake Atitlan,
Guatemala, where
Patricia also leads
retreats at Villa
Sumaya Retreat Center.
Her
poetry, fiction
and feature articles
have appeared in
a variety of journals
& anthologies,
The Los Angeles
Times, Hampshire
Life, and The Boston
Sunday Globe. Her
poems have most
recently appeared
in The Berkshire
Review, Upstreet,
Sanctuary: Magazine
of the Massachusetts
Audubon Society,
and Crossing
Paths: An Anthology
of Poems by Women,
Mad River Press.
Her work has been
featured in the
Berkshire Review, which
nominated her poem,
"Two Hundred
Wings" for
a Pushcart Prize."
She was supported
by a grant from
the Massachusetts
Cultural Council
to perform her work
as a benefit for
the Miniature Theatre
of Chester. Her
book of poems, A
Kind of Yellow,
won Writer's Digest's
International competition
for self-published
books of poetry
andis
available at the
Patchwork
Press Shop.High Lonesome,
her latest collection
of poems, was published
in 2011 by Hedgerow
Books of Levellers
Press and is available
from their Store.
Patricia has spent much
of her life as an advocate:
for women, for civil rights,
for peace, for a healthy
environment, for small
farms and rural communities,
for the arts. Born and
raised in Austin, Texas,
she moved north years
ago with her children.
She is a business owner
and trail walker, and
has been director of several
organizations, including
women's centers, community
economic development corporations,
district congressional
offices, and served as
an elected county commissioner
for four years. In 1985,
when she joined Pat Schneider's
Amherst Writers &
Artists writing workshop,
she finally found the
courage to write for others
to read.
Patricia
is responsible for the
writing program at all
retreats and serves as
retreat coordinator.
Ponteir
Sackrey is
an Anusara-Inspired
(TM)
yoga teacher, with a
following in Jackson,
Wyoming. Being rather
“sturdy”
physically, she approaches
her practice with humility,
humor, and joy. Ponteir
uses her good humor
and down-to-earth approach
to ensure that yoga
is accessible to all.
Ponteir was first introduced
to hatha yoga in her
early 20’s through
her affiliation with
the Nityananda Institute
in Cambridge, Massachusetts,
an organization dedicated
to the study of Kashmir
Shaivism. She considers
that affiliation a great
gift, one which set
her on a path of curious
discovery and inner
reflection. In 2000
she was introduced to
Anusara yoga, another
fortuitous moment, and
earned her Inspired
certification in 2010.
Founded by John Friend
in 1997, Anusara yoga
is a school of hatha
yoga, which unifies
a life-affirming Shiva-Shakti
Tantric philosophy of
intrinsic goodness with
Universal Principles
of Alignment. It offers
an uplifting philosophy,
epitomized by a "celebration
of the heart" that
looks for the good in
all people and all things.
Students of all levels
of ability and yoga
experience are honored
for their unique differences,
limitations, and talents.
Ponteir is married
and has two school-age
daughters. She has an
MBA from Simmons College
and is the Barnes Family
Director of Development
and Marketing at the
National Museum of Wildlife
Art, in Jackson Hole,
Wyoming and serves on
the prestigious Jackson
Hole Travel and Tourism
Board.
.jpg)
