experiences

Thank you, Sharoni for your teaching and encouragement to all. We are so fortunate to be offered this retreat in Canada (and Sooke is so beautiful)... Such a great practice development program you have been bestowed from Faeq from Guruji. You and Ty have the years of devoted practice with direct inspired guidance to be capable of bringing us a direct experience of these teachings, while skillfully managing the constraints of our various gifts and impediments. Thank you for taking on the responsibility to sustain and spread the training. ~ Jane McFarlane

I have attended many yoga retreats with CIY in Puerto Vallarta Mexico. Dee, Ty and Sharoni have created a unique retreat experience. Dee the behind the scenes coordinator. Ty and Sharoni are exceptionally skilled teachers. The hours of yoga asana and pranayama practices are longer and at times challenging. Although, the way Ty and Sharoni build the sequences, it feels accessible. We share meals together. Delicious vegetarian food. Each day the chefs are creative and the food feels very nourishing. The Casa is cute. Old Mexican style. The practice space has an old charm to it with beautiful arches that open up to the outdoors with a view of the ocean. The accommodations are comparable to a 3 star hotel. Each unit has its own personality. Very clean. The Casa staff have been working for the owners for many years. It is safe and secure. Beautiful gardens, views of the ocean and a swimming pool to cool off after practice or walking the city. I recommend this style of yoga retreat. The practice schedule. Food and group setting has had a strong energetic impact on myself. It feels like an important part of my annual routine. Always feeling "reset" to go back to daily life. ~ De Orrell

It was my first retreat. I worried: Would I be able to “keep up?” Would the teachers be nice even when I couldn’t do stuff? Would I get bored/tired with the long classes? None of the above…. Ty and Sharoni were incredibly kind and supportive, and I LOVED every minute of all the classes. I found the practice interesting and was so nourished by it. When it was hard, Ty and Sharoni were always there with a jolly helping hand. I’ve been home a week now, and I feel longer! Stronger! I came home to life’s complexities with greater equanimity and calm. Can’t wait for another retreat. ~ Joanne Kates

Arriving at the Casa I was greeted by the lovely Kristen who helped me with my bag and get situated. The room I would be sharing opened up into a gorgeous large courtyard with a red tiled mosaic pool and surrounded by well manicured flora, and the other rooms. The Casa has a truly unique character and as the week progressed I came to learn that this Iyengar Yoga intensive was like no other I had ever been to. Ty's daily morning 'openings' classes both magically prepared us for the classes to come, as well as restored us from the classes of the day before. Enjoying tea in between our first asana class and pranayama we chatted, or stayed silent basking in the warmth of the morning Mexico sunshine. At first I wasn't able to stay awake during Pranayama but as the week progressed so did my learning thankfully to Ty's grounding voice. Sharoni's afternoon classes were vigorous and so full of fun. She brings such a spirit of joy to the classes. Both Ty's and Sharoni's classes played off of one another, as they took us steadily further and further into our own practice and by the end of the week it was magical to see how we were able to execute Hanumanasana. However more than doing any particular pose the retreat had a profound mental and emotional impact on me. By day 4, the practice had opened me up so much that some issues that were dormant in my tissues had been released. I spent a day sitting with these tough emotions and it was transformative because the next day I woke up feeling an intense love for yoga, and immense feeling of gratitude for the loved ones in my life. There is so much more I could say - about the huge array of vegetarian meals the friendly kitchen staff prepared for us, or Ty's evening Kirtan sessions - one evening I hurriedly returned back to the Casa not wanting to miss out, and was greeted by the group truly rocking out in such musical joy. Returning back to life in Toronto, I miss the yoga, I miss my fellow participants - a group of heart warming students that helped each other so much in class - and I miss the sunshine. I am carefully plotting when I can return to this type of practice with these teachers. ~ Shreya Shah

I had no idea how much this week would restore me to good health, to vibrant energy, and to a deep sense of wellbeing. The steadiness and commitment to the practice, the comraderie that developed amongst us all, the delicious food and stunning beauty of the area: all this combined created one of the best weeks of my life. I’m still flourishing from the effects! I am so grateful to Ty and Sharoni for their clear and focused direction, and for the warm and welcoming way that they met everyone’s needs while challenging them to push their own capacities. ~ Eva-Lynn Jagoe