Yoga retreat in Cornwall – October 2024

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending a yoga retreat just outside of Penzance. Set in ancient woodland, and with an iron-age ‘fogou’ in the grounds of the house, Rosemerryn was a pretty spectacular setting for what turned out to be a deeply healing weekend filled with love, transformation and incredible plant-based food.

Hosted by my regular teacher and mentor, Lou Kitchener (https://www.loukitchenertherapies.co.uk/), and her long-time friend and sound-healing magician, Ali Gunning (https://www.resonantbeing.com/), the retreat incorporated somatic movement and sound healing alongside an interweaving of Celtic culture and deep connection to ancestors and land.

Along with three other women, I made the seven hour train ride from Norwich with a sense of excitement and a slight nervousness about what the weekend might have in store. I always find I go into a retreat space with a bit of apprehension – who will be there, what will we do, what will come up and how will I respond to it? This time, I knew as soon as we arrived at Rosemerryn that I’d made the right choice to come. Welcomed with a warm cup of chai and a huge smile from both Lou and Ali, I had a few minutes to put my things upstairs and begin to land before our first dinner of delicious and nourishing dahl, followed by a raw and grounding chocolate and orange cake.

This was also our first chance to meet the other five women that would make up our little group, which would go on to hold each other in such a special way throughout the weekend and form bonds that will endure for a long time to come. As we moved into the opening circle, we had the opportunity to set an intention for our time at the retreat – mine was to allow myself to be held.

Friday morning started early with meditation and a somatic yoga practice led by Lou. We followed this by a breakfast of stewed apples and a bracing swim in the sea, before heading back for another amazing meal of stewed squash in ras-al-hanout, with a millet salad and hummus. You’ll notice that this post focuses a huge amount on the food of this retreat – that’s because it was truly amazing, and even reduced some of us to tears of joy at various points throughout the weekend. We really couldn’t believe it when Ali revealed that this was her first time catering for a retreat!

We spent the afternoon with Ali holding us in a long sound healing session – coupled with the morning’s somatic yoga, I think this was where we all felt the beginnings of what was to come. After a beautiful dinner of beetroot soup, we moved into an evening chanting and singing session with both Lou and Ali holding space. These moments of slight discomfort and awkwardness (singing out loud in front of a group of people you don’t know is definitely way outside of my comfort zone!) actually proved to be deeply transformative, building trust within the group and a knowledge that within this space we were safe to as vulnerable and open as we wanted to be.

Saturday morning started with a bang for me. Already feeling open and emotional from yesterday’s practices, we opened at 7am with a walking meditation on the cold and dewy grass outside of the studio. Starting in a circle and then free to wander wherever we felt, we were eventually called back to the studio with a conch shell. Immediately this triggered in me a recollection of being called on to the marae during my time in Aotearoa, and the feeling of walking back into the studio accompanied by all of my ancestors especially my dad who passed away earlier this year. Bring on an absolute avalanche of tears and grief that I had thought I had mainly worked through over the last few months!

We moved straight into a deep shaking and somatic practice, expertly guided and supported by Lou – I actually have no idea how the others found that morning session, I was too deep in my own grief and sadness to notice, but I believe that all of us exorcised some serious demons and the mood for breakfast was one of silent respect for each other while we each acknowledged what had come up.

Breakfast was a beautiful and much needed grounding porridge with nut butter and some leftover stewed apples. We then had some free time which I used to go on a walk along the coastal path with two of the other women – we were lucky enough to see kestrels, a gannet, buzzards and a cormorant. It certainly felt like the wind had conspired to blow our cobwebs away as we hiked to the top of a cliff to enjoy the view across the sea.

Lunch was an absolute victory and was the dish that induced tears of joy in at least two people – I don’t know whether it was the release of the morning, the warmth of the Aga after a cold walk or whether it was really that good, but it was the best coconut cauliflower I’ve ever tasted! Ali swears the difference is the love she made it with, and it may well be true because it just didn’t hit the same when I made it at home the following week.

The afternoon was another wonderful and deeply healing sound journey with Ali, before a squash soup dinner. The evening was spent in the fogou, engaged in a ceremony designed to embrace the darkness of the womb and emerge rebirthed. It was a profound experience for all of us – some were gifted with visions, or a new sense of inner-knowing. Whatever magic is in that ancient cave, we all were lucky enough to feel some part of it.

Sunday arrived, our last full day, with a sense of renewal and clean energy. Lou led a powerful grounding meditation and movement practice before breakfast and some free time for another coastal walk and a dip in the sea. It was too rough for a full swim so we compromised by getting our toes in at least! Lunch was a sweet and spicy vegetarian chilli with quinoa and avocado.

After lunch, we took part in a pilgrimage to a local standing stone circle. Led by Ali, walked up the hill collecting offerings to the stones as we walked. The ceremony consisted of lots of walking and singing and sense of deep connection to the land and each other. There were also a few strange looks from members of the public, but I think we were well beyond people thinking we were weird by this time in the weekend!

We walked back to the house and shared our final dinner of carrot and butter bean soup before our closing circle. I shared that while my intention was to allow myself to be held, I felt that the lesson I had received was a deep reminder that with in the right environment (good food, movement, meditation, space and time, wonderful female companions) I actually have everything I need to hold myself. Later in the evening we had a fire and some of us also chose to burn something that had come up which we felt we needed to let go of. It was very special to be able to share these deep feelings and emotions with the group, without any requirement to explain or give details. Expressing the need was enough.

On Monday morning we started with a long meditation and a beautiful intuitive movement practice led by Lou, before moving into our final breakfast together before people started to leave.

I have no idea whether this post is enough to explain the transformative power of the weekend, but I hope it is enough to say that on leaving the retreat I felt more like my true self than I have in years. Lou and Ali, thank you for holding the space with so much thought and compassion and for providing everything we could have needed. To the other women that have now become a part of my heart, thank you all for such a wonderful experience and I hope we can always remember the joy that we created and shared together.