Tag: oscars place

Going Back To Cali!

by anyhusmoen
1719439200

  days

  hours  minutes  seconds

until

Karma Retreat 2.0

Hello Yogis!  I am happy to announce that we are going back to California for Karma Retreat 2.0 June 26st-30th, 2024.

Last year’s retreat was a wonderful experience and we all loved the northern California sun, practicing yoga al fresco, touring the neighboring vineyards and of course doting over the sweet residents at Oscar’s Place.

This year’s retreat will be very similar in format but will have a few tweaks.  First of all, we will be staying in Hopland (Mendocino County) which is just shy of two hours from San Francisco; last year we were in Cloverdale (Sonoma County).  I chose Hopland as our home base because it is so much closer to all of the key venues which means less drive time.  Furthermore, I found an amazing home away from home that I believe we will all enjoy.    

This gorgeous home has a solar heated infinity pool, four separate casitas with a king bed and bathroom with shower. The master bedroom in the main house also has a king and private en suite bath. All of the dinners will once again be catered by Epicurean Escape and I am already excited to have Matt’s famous chocolate chip cookies!

One extra special addition I have for this year is a sound bath on our final evening. Audrya Chancellor of Mendocino Sound Healing will join our restorative practice and use her beautiful instruments to nourish our mind, body and souls.

I am extremely excited for this and cannot think of a better way to conclude our time together.

RETREAT COST

The price is $2695 per person (not per room) and includes the following:

  • Accommodations in Hopland, CA
  • 3 – 60 min Morning Yoga Vinyasa (Thurs – Sat)
  • 3 – 60 min Evening Yoga Sessions; a blend of vinyasa and restorative yoga. (Thurs – Sat)
    • Sound Bath Saturday Evening
  • Daily Breakfast
    • Saturday we will have breakfast/brunch at the Golden Pig in Hopland (3 min drive).
  • Daily Lunch
    • Thursday will be a box lunch by Epicurean Escape.
    • Friday we will have a Picnic Lunch at Saracina Vineyard; wine tasting included
  • Catered dinners by Epicurian Escape.
  • Wine tasting in the garden at Campovida.
  • Yoga Blanket (yours to keep)
  • Beverages Included are coffee, tea, still and sparkling water and limited wine.
  • Snacks
  • Airport transfers to and from SFO
    • This only applies if you transfer with the group.
    • Individual transfers are not included.

Retreat Price Does Not Include:

  • Airfare to CA
  • Alcohol outside of tastings.
  • Travel Insurance
    • I highly recommend getting travel insurance just in case life gets in the way as refunds are only available up to May 1st. Below are a few recommendations for you to consider. I also recommend purchasing your insurance within 14 days of making your deposit.

What will we do during the retreat? I’m glad you asked because I have it all planned out! Below is an outline to give you an idea of how we will spend our days and schedule is subject to change.

WEDNESDAY JUNE 26TH

  • Check into house in Hopland. Check-in time is 4:00pm.
  • Dinner
  • Discussion Circle–Spend some time getting to know one another, talk about the days ahead and set an intention.

THURSDAY JUNE 27TH

  • Morning vinyasa
  • Breakfast
  • Leave for Oscar’s Place (approx 5-10 min drive from the house)
    • Spend time with the donkeys
    • Have our lunch at Oscar’s Place. We will also be treating the Oscar’s place team with a box lunch as well.
  • Free Time back at the house
  • Dinner
  • Evening Yoga

FRIDAY JUNE 28TH

  • Morning vinyasa
  • Breakfast
  • Leave for Saracina Vineyards (approx 10 min drive from the house)
  • Head back to the house for free time
  • Dinner
  • Evening Yoga

SATURDAY JUNE 29TH

  • Morning vinyasa
  • Breakfast/Brunch at Golden Pig
  • Wine Tasting at Campovida
  • Head back to house for free time
  • Sound Bath by Mendocino Sound Healing and Restorative Yoga
  • Dinner

SUNDAY JUNE 30TH

  • Breakfast
  • Check out and head home

I hope you can join me as I truly believe that it will be a special experience that you will carry home with you. If you would like to register, please submit the form below. To secure your spot, I’ll need a $300 deposit. The balance is due by May 1st. There is no refund for cancellations after May 1st which is why I highly encourage travel insurance.

Once I receive the competed form below, I will reach out to you regarding payment details or to address any questions you may have.

Go back

Your message has been sent

If you would like to stay in the loop regarding the retreat and other events that I host, please consider subscribing to this blog!

More About Oscar’s Place

Featured by anyhusmoen

What can I say about this amazing place, the focus of our Karma Project. I first learned about Oscar’s Place from an interview I saw on CBS This Morning. David Begnaud was interviewing Ron King, the founder of Oscar’s Place and by the end I knew this had to be the focus of my retreat.

I have learned a lot about the abuse donkeys endure since watching that interview. Because many societies regard donkeys as a low- status animals, they suffer a lot of abuse. Donkeys are typically inexpensive and hold little value and therefore are used as working animals who receive very little care from their owners. Additionally, China has a strong interest in donkey hides to manufacture traditional Chinese medicines. The gelatin in their hides supposedly has medicinal properties to nourish the blood and strengthen the immune system.

Oscar’s Place has made it their mission to not only resuce as many of these gentle creatures as they can, but also to educate us about the torture they endure. They now have 118 donkeys (as of Jan 31, 2023) and volunteers are needed to spend time with them and help them to trust humans again. Once the donkeys are ready both physically and emotionally, Oscar’s Place help them to find their forever home.

Oscar’s Place has two key requirements regarding adoption. First and foremost, you must ensure that the donkeys will not be used for giving rides, breeding, any type of work, or be used at a petting zoo. Finally, you can only adopt donkeys in pairs; donkeys form very strong bonds with one another and it is devestating for them to be separated.

So, as Oscar’s Place volunteers, we will spend several hours scratching their ears, kissing their noses, giving them hugs, rubbing their bellies and giving their bums a good scratch; they really love that!! The requirements for this tasks are simple; a love of animals and a loving heart.

If this sounds appealing to you, please join us June 21-25 in Sonoma Valley at the Karma Yoga Retreat! I can tell you from experience, these donkeys will catpure your heart; my mom even fell in love with them!

If you want to subscribe to this blog, please click the button below!

Karma Retreat–Sonoma Valley June 2023

by anyhusmoen
1687381200

  days

  hours  minutes  seconds

until

Karma Retreat

I am thrilled to announce the details of my karma yoga retreat this June! I am beyond excited for this retreat as I believe that it includes all of the necessary elements to make it fun, meaningful, and memorable. We will all gather in the heart of Sonoma Valley, stay in a charming B&B, practice daily yoga, eat amazing food, sample a wide variety of Sonoma wines, and last but not least, offer our time, love and compassion at a special rescue for mistreated donkeys called Oscar’s Place. Oscar’s Place will be our karma service project and we will spend two days there offering them our love, scratching their ears, rubbing their faces, kissing their noses, brushing their backs and doing everything that we can to help them trust humans again.

Oscar’s Place is an adoption center and sanctuary for donkeys. The donkey population is at risk because of the high demand for donkey hides in the creation of a traditional Chinese medicine. Two years ago, Ron King, the founder of Oscar’s Place, heard the call for help and created this loving and beautiful haven for mistreated and abused donkeys. A place where they can receive much needed medical care, rehabilitation and well as love and compassion. I recently returned from Oscar’s Place and experienced for myself the scars of the abuse these gentle creatures have endured, but also their gentle and curious personalities. Needless to say, I fell in love with all of them and am confident that you will too.

Retreat dates are June 21st-25th, 2023. The price is $2495 (double occupancy) for the non-tower rooms and $2650 (double occupancy) for one of the three Tower rooms. The rooms are first come, first serve. Here is a link to the different rooms at the Pinschower Inn; please note that the Asti room is not available.

Tower Rooms ($2650 pp)

  • Marian Tower (Q Bed)
  • Jones Tower (K Bed)
  • Simon Tower (Q Bed)

Non-Tower Rooms ($2495 pp)

  • Preston Room (Q Bed)
  • Speranza Room (Q Bed)
  • Kleiser Room (K Bed)

Pinschower Inn Address: 302 North Main Street Cloverdale, CA 95425

Airports Close To Cloverdale:

  • San Francisco: 1 hr 31 min (86.6 mi) from San Francisco via US-101
  • Sacramento: 2 hr 10 min (129.1 mi)  via I-80 W and US-101 N
  • Santa Rosa: 32 min (32.2 mi) via US-101 N

Retreat Price Inclues The Following:

  • Accommodations at the Pinschower Inn in Cloverdale, CA
  • 3 – 60 min Morning Yoga Sessions; vinyasa style.
  • 2 – 60 min Evening Yoga Sessions; a blend of vinyasa and restorative yoga.
  • 2 – Discussion Circles–Topics will cover Karma Yoga (what is it) Ahimsa, and retreat take-aways.
  • 4 – Breakfasts (prepared by Alison)
  • 2 – Box Lunches prepared by Epicurian Escape
  • 1 – Picnic Lunch at Saracina Vineyard; wine tasting included
  • 3 – Catered dinners at Pinschower Inn by Epicurian Escape; this will also include 3-4 oz tastings of two different wines from the Wilson Winery group.
  • 1 wine tasting dinner at Rustic, the restaurant of the Coppola Winery
  • Yoga Mat (yours to keep)
  • 2 Yoga Blocks (yours to keep)
  • 1 Yoga Blanket (yours to keep)
  • Beverages Included are coffee, tea, still and sparkling water, and wine at dinner (3-4oz pours)
  • Snacks

Retreat Price Does Not Include:

  • Alcohol outside of tastings.
  • Airport transfers
  • Travel to Sonoma Valley
  • Travel Insurance

What will we do during the retreat? I’m glad you asked because I have it all planned out! Below is an outline to give you an idea of how we will spend our days and schedule is subject to change.

Wednesday June 21st

  • Check into the Pinschower; Check-In is 3:00 on the 21st
  • Dinner
  • Discussion Circle–What is Karma Yoga and how does it relate to Ahimsa?

Thursday June 22nd

  • Morning vinyasa in the garden
  • Breakfast
  • Leave for Oscar’s Place (approx 20 min drive from the Inn)
  • Spend time with the donkeys
  • Have our lunch at Jaxson Keys Winery (approx 10 min drive from Oscar’s Place) Feel free to taste some wine during lunch!
  • Head back to Pinschower (approx 25-30 minute drive)
  • Free Time
  • Dinner
  • Evening Yoga

Friday June 23rd

  • Morning vinyasa in the garden
  • Breakfast
  • Leave for Saracina Vineyards (approx 20 min drive from the Inn)
  • Scampagnata Wine Tasting and Picnic Lunch at Saracina Winery
  • Enjoy another wine tasting DeLorimier Winery
  • Head back to the Pinschower
  • Free Time
  • Dinner
  • Evening Yoga

Saturday June 24th

  • Morning vinyasa in the garden
  • Breakfast
  • Leave for Oscar’s Place
  • Time with the donkeys
  • Lunch again at Jaxson Keys Winery
  • Head back to Pinschower
  • Free Time
  • Wine Tasting Dinner at Rustic at Coppola Winery
  • Discussion Circle

Sunday June 25th

  • Breakfast
  • Check out of the Inn and head home (I’m already sad)

I hope you can join me as I truly believe that it will be a special experience that you will carry home with you. If you would like to register, please submit the form below. To secure your spot, I’ll need a $300 non-refundable deposit. The balance is due by May 1st. There is no refund for cancellations after May 1st.

Once I receive the competed form below, I will reach out to you regarding payment details and room selection.

Go back

Your message has been sent