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1st
Day
I
arrived at 9pm in Lagos and Karuna was waiting for me with
a sign. When we left town, the night was already too dark
to see the way we were going. I made the last calls, from
now on the mobile phones are dead. I still arrived in time
for the soup, the last solid food for the next 10 days. Tania,
our wonderful cook, Shakti, who is also part of the house
team but is going to do the program with us, and Lalita welcomed
me. This time, they said, the group is only women, which is
very rare because men have been joining in this space much
more often. The sensation is a little unreal. "What have
I got myself into?"
2nd
Day
Our
group is small. Six women. Oshun, a magnificent black woman,
powerful image of the mother-goddess, lives between LA (in
the United States) and Montpellier (south of France). She
discovered Moinhos Velhos on the net. Silvia is spanish, immense
eyes, magnificient skin, an air hostess for 17 years. She
discovered this place by searching for "yoga". Kathryn,
beautiful, tall, runs a travel agency in London. She says
that "For years I have been organizing wonderful trips
for others. Now it's my turn!" As outras são irlandesas,
Yvonne runs a beauty salon near Dublin. Her cheerfulness fills
the room. Deirdre, her best friend, runs an interior design
shop. She thought she was coming to a spa. She found out that
it included a fast when she was boarding the plain. She is
a small brunet with intense blue eyes.
The
routine is organized to the sound of bells. The wake up is
at 7am. Then we have lemon tea, followed by yoga and meditation.
At 10am is the orange juice, at 1pm the fruit juice, and another
one at 4pm but a little less quantity. In the evening we have
vegetable broth.
Therapies
complement this detoxification and purification of the "body,
mind and spirit", as we can read on the brochure in the
bedroom. The broth, the juices, the herbs, the holistic treatments,
the meditation and yoga, all in this environment of enormous
beauty and serenity, complement the package. The result will
be a drastic bowel cleanse, giving time and space for the
body to heal itself. For this, we have an essential help:
twice a day, a clysmatic, for which we had a previous demonstration...
And at every meal a mantra - Om Namasivaya - and a prayer
thanking for the juices... And the days go like this, with
treatments (traditional chinese medicine, ayurvédic,
kinesiology, reflexology, sacrocranial therapy, etc), massages,
reiki, aquadetox, etc. It is normal to have some reactions,
headaches or heat sensation, a few minutes after taking the
food supplements, as the body releases toxins. After that,
they garantee us, our skin will look fantastic, the blood
pressure will be regular as well as our sleep. Some lose a
lot of weight, others not so much, many stop smoking for good
and we create habits that allow us to proceed with a fairly
healthy routine back at home. A big percentage of the clients
comes back every year.
In
the end of the afternoon, I fell in bed and only woke up at
8pm, when Silvia shows up because I had missed the evening
broth. "Are you alright? Would you like me to bring the
broth here?" It's 7.30pm and I am totally asleep. I accept.
A quarter of an hour later I have fallen asleep again and
only woke up the next day, with the 10am bell.
3rd
Day
I
woke up with the feeling that I have entered another dimension.
I have missed yoga and meditation. I slept 14 hours in a row.
I don't feel hungry at all. At 10am I drank the orange juice,
and at 11am I have an appointment with Trixie, the sacrocranial
therapist. In between one thing and another we all learn how
to wash our noses. In the garden, in front of the temple,
six heads curve to one side and the other, six mouths cough,
six faces grimace, six people noisily blow their noses and
once again. I have the feeling that the salty water is going
around my brain, from my nostrils to my ears. Karuna says
that once we learn how to do it, it becomes really easy and
it turns into a regular habit like brushing your teeth and
the tongue, avoiding a series of troubles in the respiratory
tract.
In
the afternoon we went for a walk. Leith, Kathryn, Silvia and
me. Twiggy, the dog, came with us. We went to the Barragem,
down to the lake bed, up the hill and back to Moinhos Velhos.
Later, we were going to meet Bhanu, who gives a workshop about
phobias in the temple. Some confess their fears on this subject.
Snakes, spiders, needles. She presents Emotional Kinesiology,
a very interesting therapy, and she is known in many coutries,
travels a lot, gives talks and organizes seminars, promoting
cicles of the therapy. She lives in Norway, with her husband
and daughter. At dinner, we talk about this strange sensation
we all have of being in a reality show. We talk for hours,
with people we barely know, as if we were friends for years
and years. Anyhow, the way that this project came to be in
each one of us lives makes the conversation simply hilarous.
4the
Day
I
am never hungry. Sometimes I feel low energy, but that has
been happening to me already for the last few years. We are
always walking around everywhere. The rooms are in the bottom
of the valley, the clinic in the middle and the dining room
on the top. The view is most beautiful and the garden most
wonderful. High up is Frank's house and a little bit further
down is Anne Karine's, which will be arriving shortly after
the end of our program. We are always busy. Meditation, yoga,
appointments, massages and therapies, in a very impressive
package of alternative therapies. Padma, the ayuervedic doctor,
came by looking for me: it was past the time of our appointment
and I had completly forgot, laying in the sun. It's like summer...
and I'm not the only one. Padma asked me lots of questions
to determine my physical type and to be able to prescribe
the right diet for me. In the afternoon, I bought books and
had a massage with Leith. What powerful hands that man has!
5th
Day
Yoga,
this morning, went very well. I can not sit in the lotus position,
but there are some other things that I have been managing
to do, without having my joints complaining too much. Also,
meditation isn't so strange anymore. Today, when I weighed
myself I saw, with grateful surprise, that I had lost 3 kilos.
After the 10am juices I had a Thai massage with Lalita. The
technique is very soft, you almost don't feel the hands working.
All of a sudden I started crying. I cried and cried and cried.
I had no idea that it still hurt so much. How did Lalita's
hands opened the door of the basement where we keep all that
we miss so much?
Finally,
in the end of the afternoon, Peter Hall (Traditional Chinese
Medicine practinioner) gave a fascinating talk on the digestive
function, alternative medicines and, most specifically, about
Traditional Chinese Medicine. "In China, the doctor is
paid to keep people healthy, he doesn't receive anything when
they fall ill and he must accompany them until they are well
again." Peter was in China several times, where he trained
at hospitals, and he is a teacher in the United Kingdom. Tomorrow
the morning class will be with him, Zen meditation and Chi
Kung. However, today he gave us some really basic exercises
to let us have perception of the Chi, our vital energy. At
night, we watched the new movie sensation, The Secret. It's
a compact of miracles, very practical, with very materialistic
examples. But, we couldn't watch the whole movie because we
all fell asleep on the sofas. We will watch the rest of it
one of these days. It's full moon on Sunday and Oshun proposed
to do a Sweat Lodge, if we would like to join in. It's a Native
American ceremony, to mark the occasion.
6th
Day
I
had a nightmare but I forgot to write it down. I feel extremely
tired. I want to be alone. My body weighs tons and my joints,
at Yoga, sometimes seem to recognize the pattern of mobility,
and sometimes they complain as if I am chained to my own bones.
Impatience is the term that comes to mind. In the end of the
afternoon, I went for a walk with Silvia to the lake of the
Barragem. Beautiful place. Silvia said: "This detox looks
more and more like The Big Brother! Did you know that Deidre
and Yvonne are leaving on Monday?" At dinner, the soup
has become my favourite meal. Outside the sky was clear, we
could see stars forming constellations and the moon is almost
full and glorious.
7th
Day
Today
Yoga went very well and my body is moulding itself better
to these strange positions. I felt muscles that I didn't even
know I had and I heard organs that are normally silent. My
joints crack, screak and sigh. But, opposed to yesterday,
it doesn't fell impossible anymore, to adapt my body to these
shapes and conjugate breathing with them. We are fasting for
seven days, but I'm not hungry. However, unexpectedly, the
olfactory memory of Bacalhau á Braz (a typical cod
dish) came to my head. Strange... it's not even one of my
top 10 dishes. Meanwhile, everybody went to Lagos today. "To
walk around, see shops and buy things! Woooow!" Oshun
puts on a white dress and lets her hair down, Deirdre and
Yvonne put on makeup and lipgloss. I chose to stay. Silvia
also, she has to finish her treatment with Frank. I weighed
myself and I've already lost 4 Kilos!! Oshun, eight. Yvone,
five! All the faces are slimmer, everybody's skin is resplendent
and all the bodies better defined. Today, at 10.30 pm, there
was a total eclipse of the moon, but unfortunately I was already
in deep sleep by then.
8th
Day
Leith
started working around 11am, cleaning the ground of weeds
and stones and leveling it. At 6pm I joined the small group.
There already was a small bamboo structure being erected.
A big fire was lit since 2pm, with the ceremony stones getting
hot for later tonight. As the night falls, I rehaerse an excuse
10 times. I am tired, there are lots of subliminal transformations
happening in my body, others not as much (I have definately
lost weight) and I want to sleep on all of this. On the other
hand... The magnificent moon raises over the hills. We write
aims and dreams in papers that get folded and placed on the
altar, on the side of the Sweat Lodge. Around 9pm, we go change
clothes (nothing that seizes movement and no undewear). Outside,
we do a brief ceremony around the fire, and then we get in,
according to Oshun's instructions. Leith brings the first
stones inside the tent. The heat raises from the floor and
sorrounds us. Lastly, he lets down the rugs that cover the
entrance and we dive in an opressive and total darkness, breathing
really hot air. I lay on the ground, that feels cold and damp
on top of the rugs. I feel my heart beating really hard and
I take several deep breaths. Oshun asks if we are ok, if anybody
wants to get out, and I have no courage to say "Me!".
Also because one part of me intensely wants to take part of
this unique experience. She sprinkles scented oils on the
stones and throws water on top of them. A cloud of dense and
scented steam sorrounds us. Oshun tells us about the therapeutic
and magical properties of this ritual, she tells us of legends,
miths and stimulates a dialogue that I can not reproduce in
half a dozen lines. The curtaine raises and falls again four
times, and Leith brings in more stones. The heat is intense
and we are copiously sweating. Without noticing, we are following
the chants as if we all knew those strange words. Oshun is
a descendent of the Lakota indians, with a mixture of black
from the Ivory Coast and some Irish grandmothers. This afternoon
we found out what brought her to Europe, and what makes her
live in Montpellier is the fact that she is a High Priestess
of feminine cults and she integrates the higher rank of the
hierarchy, a gnostic order. When the heat becomes too intense
we lay on the floor. I feel, we feel, the radiant energy that
sourrounds us, fullfils us and gently takes us to get in the
rythm, shaking the maracas and singing. In the end, Lalita
suggests a special prayer to conclude the ceremony: "Here,
in Portugal and Spain, we have a special fondness for the
Virgin..." Oshun answers from the shadows: "In Montpellier
we pray the Rosary." When our voices rise, we pray Ave
Maria, silmutaneously in portuguese, castillian, french and
english. In the darkness, I hear Lalita's gentle cries, and
I feel that the tears are rolling freely down my face. Lastly,
outside, by the fire, we burn our prayers and wishes under
a splendid moonlight.
9th
Day
I
woke up earlier than the bell, filled with hope and powerfull
images of the ceremony. The red hot stones that Leith was
taking off the fire and bringing inside the tent. The fountain
water that Oshun sprinkled over them. The sessions, the prayers,
the chants, the mantras, the sound of the maracas, the scent
of the essential oils thrown over the burning stones. We found
a farewell card from Dierdre and Yvone on the dining table.
The house seems empty without them. In the afternoon I did
a Aquadetox with Lalita and I watched the water where my feet
were soaking turn into a foamy dark brown colour. Aparently,
heavy metals that I have in the body are drained into there.
Whatever. In the end of the afternoon, Frank joined us and
we listened to him for hours. This man's life wouldn't just
write one book. It would write several! He is a being full
of light and divine humour. He said that, yesterday, when
he heard the chants from his house, on top of the hill, he
almost came down and joined us. But then, he didn't think
it would be appropriate.
10th
Day
I
dreamt of a most beatiful garden where there were many eggs.
I think this must be an excellent omen. With all these talks
about miracles and the possibilities to make them happen...
as well as with all the distinct experiences that both Frank
and Peter, the pragmatic doctor that affirms himself as "non
spiritual" but follows the practical ways of Zen Buddhism,
have been giving us about diet and health, with real life
examples, it is very hard not to believe in miracles and magic.
Today, over dinner, Peter came to talk to us about important
acupuncture points and gave us some interesting recipes -
a 12 hours liver detox with a dandelion decoction.
11th
Day
Today
I had an amazing appointment with Frank. It's called Introspect
11, it's an amazing russian project, based on Quantic principles,
a concept that works with biofeedback, scanning the body from
the DNA to the cell, from the bowels to the brain, from the
bones to the epithelial tissue. An infrared light (invisible
to the naked eye) points to the forehead region and reads
the organs, comparing the readings with ones of organs in
perfect condition and placing them in a scale of 1 to 6. Frank
spent a few months in Moscow learning how to use it. The doctor
who trained him said she had already treated thousands of
patients in this way. He also works with the Quantum, another
technique also developed in the Soviet Union, that has been
used with astronauts, to detect organic deficiencies on the
computer, from a distance. It is all very mystical (as the
Quantic Mechanics also are) but... it is present in every
conventional hospital throughout Russia. On the computer screen,
we view my heart, lungs, eyes, and Frank introduces some corrections,
but, apparently, my general condition is pretty good. My pancreas
isn't so well. Several black squares signal the fragile points.
The treatment starts and most of them return to the colour
immediately below and many fall back down to yellow (excellent)
and orange (good). Sitting in front of the screen, without
being able to cross my legs, I end up laughing. "Frank,
this is magic!" He agrees entirely. We were still viewing
other organs when I have the strangest feeling. My bloated
belly disappeared. Just like that.
12th
Day
Today
is International Women's day and the end of the fasting. Breakfast
with fresh fruit, pinapple, strawberries, mangos, kiwis, cooked
apple with cinnamon and quinoa, the cereal of the aztecs,
is delicious because the detox was so profound that it opened
up all our senses. I ate two forkfuls and three spoonfuls
and I felt completly full. At lunch we had a salad of really
fresh vegetables and an olive oil dressing with a little vinegar
and honey. It is just like mayonese.
13th
Day
I
got up and felt like taking it easy. Had a shower, washed
and dried my hair and I was still on time to catch the last
part of the yoga class and the meditation. In the afternoon,
I had a session on the Crystal Bed. A device with six arms,
that end in faceted quartz crystals, points to the places
where the chakras are, according to oriental tradition. Astrid
Bjerne, one of the Moinhos Velhos therapists, was in Brasil
for months and bought this bed at the House of Don Inácio,
in Abadiana, the Spiritual Centre where João de Deus
did the cures that made him famous throughout the world. This
device is sold only to those chosen by the spiritual guides
of the Centre. It seems that there are many other beds, but
none are as good as this one, which was designed under spiritual
guidance, says Astrid, and she adds: "We are pure energy,
the body is the case. If we balance the chakras, the rest
will balance itself." We don't have to do anything. Only
to lay down, with the eyes blindfolded. Everybody has different
sensations. Some very intense. But, there are also those who
sleep deeply. I ask myself: "How am I going to tell these
things without people thinking that I am delirious?"
14th
Day
Today,
Oshun and Kathryn left. Only me and Silvia stayed so we went
for lunch and a tour around Lagos, with Peter, and at night
we went for dinner (also to Lagos) with Frank, Peter, Lalita
and Shakti. Divine grilled fish at a restaurante outside of
the touristic circuit. It was hilarious because we decided
to chant the mantra and say the prayer, as we do in Moinhos
Velhos, ending with the inevitable "Blessings on the
dinner!" We became the centre of all attentions...
15th
Day
Back
home, I try to think about how am I going to put in words
these two last weeks of undescribable experiences. One thing
is for sure: I lost almost 6 kilos and my blood pressure went
back to normal parameters. I feel an energy that I didn't
feel in a long time. Dirk says that my skin is radiant and
that I have lost loads of weight. I feel more or less like
I am levitating.
A
well kept secret...
Somewhere
along the 80's, Frank and Anasuya, both norwegian and citizens
of the world, arrived in the Algarve and found, near Barragem
da Bravura, the place they had been looking for years. It
wasn't by chance. With a very active spiritual life and strongly
connected to oriental practics, like Yoga and alternative
medicines, they were searching for the perfect place to share
their knowledge and begin the Moinhos Velhos project. And
there they were, these splendid 16 hectares of wild beauty,
looked over by a little house. The heart was saying "yes",
but the head was refusing the herculean and wreking task.
But... the water and the air were so pure, and Frank and Anasuya
felt that they had arrived at the least polluted place in
the whole Europe. In the end of 99, Moinhos Velhos was becoming
an international reference, through word of mouth. The fasting
program, with juices and broths, clysmatic (daily cleansing
of the intestines), Yoga practise, the salt water pool and
the sauna, the library, with a pleasant video collection,
everything was coming together to have and keep on having
amazing results. Today, the Centre is internationally known
and the Guest Book registers impressive testimonials from
people who have stayed there. In Portugal, it is still a well
kept secret... although some portuguese have already passed
by there. Frank says: "I wanted to build the best detox
centre of the world." People that have tried many others
say: "He did it."
More
Spiritual than a Spa Break
Article
in Vogue magazine February 2006
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Peace
and quiet
If you're after something more spiritual than a spa
break, challenge yourself with a stay at a retreat.
Vogue tries out some of the best holistic havens,
from Surrey to South America.
Edited
by Calgary Avansino
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MOINHOS
VELHOS FASTING RETREAT - Portugal
Situated in a tranquil valley with no mobilephone
reception, radio or television, Moinhos Velhos is
a rustic refuge from the stress and routine of modern
life.
The
thought of a weeklong fast filled me with dread, but
the chance to break my smoking habit and experience
total body purification lured me to this small organic
health farm in the Algarve.
The
Moinhos Velhos juice - fasting program works on the
premise that the way we choose to live can make us
ill not only physically, but also mentally and emotionally.
They
apply a holistic approach to detoxing, paying as much
attention to emotional well being as physical symptoms.
Salt
scrubs, massages, saunas and daily colonies all help
to cleanse the body and yoga and meditation take place
at sunset and sunrise in a glass-walled temple.
The
great thing about not having to think about food is
that it gives you the chance to reflect on areas of
your life that are otherwise neglected.
More
of a spiritual sanctuary than a spa, this intimate
retreat is all about serious soul pampering.
My
time at Moinhos Velhos left me glowing with health
and, most importantly for me, I've stopped smoking.
AF
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