My Eternal Summer Place - The Benefits of a Retreat

Galanias Hotel

I came back from our latest retreat about six weeks ago and, would you believe it ... I am still feeling the good effects that came from it. Often, when we return from a holiday, all we need is two days to feel as stressed and tired as we did before.

Well, not after this. And, in theory, I was not even on holiday: I was working(ish)!

True, I kept sending family and friends big grinning selfies that showed the heavenly beaches I was enjoying, reading “Working hard” with a laughing emoji. And, yes, I was there with some of the best people on Earth: a cohort of wonderful yoginis (and, this time, a yogi too) who could not have been kinder to each other and to me.

It was so wonderful to witness their sense of humour and willingness to have fun wherever they went, whatever they did. Their capacity for appreciation and their sense of adventure. Their curiosity and respect for the practices we were exploring but also for local customs, food, history. Every meal was a golden opportunity for me to learn more about these fascinating people, and to learn more from them.

It was humbling for me to watch how they took care of one another (including people who they had never met before) and even of me.

And then there was the place. This was our third retreat at the gorgeous Galanias Hotel in Bari Sardo, Sardinia, but the first time we went in September/October.

I must confess that, despite being born and having grown up in Sardinia until the age of 22, I never thought this season would be so enjoyable, probably because at that point I would have been back in school or college, the sea a distant memory to cherish until the following summer. I had been a little tired and cold before our departure, and almost felt hesitant about going. However, the moment I arrived and saw, again, the beautiful terracotta terraces, the palm trees, the sea shimmering just beyond the hotel restaurant, the lizards, the shala ... I knew I was in for a treat. Do you ever go somewhere stunning, but even though you are surrounded by beauty, you do not really seem to feel it? Unfortunately, this has happened to me a few times. But not during the September/October 2025 retreat. Straight away, the marvels surrounding me squeezed my heart hard. The slanting end-of-September light that coloured the grainy sand a deep yellow, the whispering waves playing with my ankles one moment and twirling me around the next, the tower that had been waiting for me, the bright blue sky... I could feel it all, and it was all so intensely magical. All the worries I had been experiencing stopped and evaporated – a really rare occurrence for me – and my mind was just filled with fun things. Every time a worry popped up, or a thought about the future threatened to distract me and make me feel miserable, I focused my eyes on the wonderful sights in front of me, and I said, “Thank you. Thank you for this moment. Even if I only had this one moment, I would be one of the luckiest people on Earth.”

This would happen a lot during our dawn swims, when the sky blushed red, pink and orange; seagulls took flight around the tower; cormorants fished in the cobalt-coloured seawater and our laughter sounded along the deserted beach...

Torre di Bari´ Beach

And so I learnt that, if you refuse to follow your worries and anxious thoughts, what happens is... absolutely NOTHING! You are just fine. These thoughts are not there to help you. They are your (very human) way to sabotage yourself, masked as self-protection. And if you let them go, again and again, you can only gain, never lose. Now, how about that?

When I saw I had been assigned the same bedroom as in June, I nearly cried with happiness. Practically an apartment, with a mezzanine you can reach through a winding stair, a huge and comfy double bed, plus a single bed for my friend and photographer Rita who always comes to visit towards the end of our stay, and a sparkling-clean bathroom. I must admit that, every time I went up those stairs in between a class and a swim, in between a wonderful dinner and a Yoga Nidra session, I danced like no one was looking!

And yes, of course the “high” cannot last when you go back to your daily life, to winter, to grocery shopping and house cleaning ... but other things can. The discovery that it is safe for you to appreciate things in the moment and be grateful, without going straight into worry mode. The knowledge of your being okay just as you are. The sensation of strength and aliveness in your body. The love towards and from a bunch of special people. The increased energy and resilience that come from having taken care of yourself. All these things, and more, stay - the benefits of a retreat seem endless.

I am thinking of my eternal summer place today, and I am in awe of how fortunate I am.

The tower waiting for me