In February 2017 Cynthia attended an 8 day training in The Arvigo® Techniques in Maya Abdominal Therapy. Arvigo® Therapy is founded on an ancient Maya technique of a non-invasive, external abdominal massage. Arvigo® Therapy stimulates circulation and blood flow within the abdominal area, supporting the body for optimal function of digestive and reproductive health and wellness. It is a therapy that can be applied throughout every stage of a woman, man or child’s life. After the training Joe and Cynthia bounced around between the beach and the rain forest of Belize and had a true Belizian experience. In addition to all the natural beauty and activities you can do in Belize, the locals are some of the friendliest, most hospitable people you can find. The fact that they speak english there is a real bonus too!
Tag: travel
Chile (Julian) Feb 2015
Chile Highlights:
We started in the capital city of Santiago, by far the most modern city we visited. A interesting city but not one of our favorites, you have to try a hot dog from one of the street vendors. The port of Valparaiso just outside Santiago was really cool, had a great hippy vibe. Kind of a San Francisco feel. From here we traveled up the coast of Chile and visited some cool small towns along the Pacific ocean. The city of San Pedro is in the Acadama desert (the driest in the world) and is a cool tiny star gazing town. Actually it is considered one of the best places in the world to look at the stars!! We didn’t visit any wine regions in Chile due to time constraints but heard they were really nice.
We did not visit anything around Patagonia in South Argentina or Chile because it was so far but heard it was a amazing place.
Argentina (Julian) Feb 2015
Argentina Highlights:
Buenos Aires and Mendoza! Mendoza is located at the foothills of the mountains and is the most famous wine growing region in South America. Mendoza is a small city with lots of wine and outdoor adventure activities and friendly people. We could have spent a month just here. Buenos Aires is the capital of Argentina and a cultural hub, called the Paris of South America. A large city with tons of neighborhoods (called barrios), very cool place to explore. Lots of people will say that there is lots of crime (muggings are common at night in some parts)but we never felt unsafe. Lots of historic things to do and markets for shopping. The city is alive all night long! It is common for locals (called portenos) to go out for drinks at 3am!
Peru (Julian) Jan 2015
Peru Highlights:
We arrived in Peru in the capital city of Lima. We found the people very friendly and excited to share their culture (especially the food). From Lima we went to Cusco (the historic Inca city that people travel to before visiting Machu Picchu), it is possible and much cheaper to travel to Cusco from Lima by bus but we heard it was a awful ride and the flight was worth every penny. We loved the city of Cusco, very touristy and lots of cool day trips offered from the city. We did the 4 day 3 night guided hike along the Inca trail to Machu. The hike was amazing (and really hard) and we all enjoyed the hike more than the time we spent at Machu at the end of the hike. Machu Picchu was a really interesting place however there are tons of people there and it kinda feels like a tourist trap, the hike there was what made the experience.
Cynthia’s Favorite Resources
Women’s health has been my focus for many years and here are some of the resources I refer to when I need guidance. I have attended online courses with some of these experts in the field and regularly enjoy listening to podcasts they produce. There is always more to learn and I am ready to absorb all I can get my hands on! Take your health into your own hands. It can be very empowering to know you have control and can change your health with the choices you make. I am available as a sounding board should you need someone to listen to your concerns and help you find the resources you need.
https://avivaromm.com/ – Aviva Romm MD is one of my personal favorites in women’s health. She was a midwife and herbalist for 25 years and then went to Yale and became a medical doctor. She specializes in women’s and children’s health. Check out her blog posts and podcasts.
https://nutritiousmovement.com/ – Katy Bowman says ‘You are how you move’, and this website can help you restore your body by moving towards more nutritious movement. Move, have fun, and feel good!
https://wellnessmama.com/category/health/ – Be sure to look ‘all around’ this website from remedies to recipes to motherhood to natural home and more. Loaded with helpful information.
https://wholewoman.com/ – A revolution in women’s heath. Learn about women’s chronic conditions and how you can heal yours.
http://www.drnorthrup.com/ – Christiane Northrup MD is a visionary pioneer and a leading authority in the field of women’s health and wellness, which includes the unity of mind, body, emotions, and spirit.
https://www.sagemountain.com/ – Rosemary Gladstar, Herbalist. This is the place to go to learn about herbalism. I attended her three year online course, ‘The Science and Art of Herbalism’ and gained a solid foundation in herbalism. I enjoy growing many of the herbs I use for cooking and medicine.
http://www.susunweed.com/ – Susun Weed, author of the Wise Woman Herbal series, is an extraordinary teacher with a joyous spirit, a powerful presence, and an extensive knowledge of herbs and health. She guides women in activating the energy of their bodies and reclaiming the wild in themselves. Understanding the creative essence within your own center is the key for giving life to your dreams.
Vietnam Cave Hiking
(Sadie’s post from backpacking with her brothers through southeast asia for two months) Vietnam cave hike. Tu Lan Cave System in Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park. This 12 hour hike traverses over and through two mountains. Part of the hike includes swimming through pitch black caves in ice cold water on a freezing day, fully clothed. Needless to say, I ended up with pneumonia by the end of the trip and when we got back to Thailand I spent a week in the hospital.
Arrived in Bangkok
(Sadie’s post from backpacking with her brothers through southeast asia for two months) First beer in Thailand! We made it to Bangkok, let the fun begin! We were told later that that particular beer has formaldehyde in it. We landed in Thailand the night before and had to walk through a protest to get to our room, because the taxi driver refused to drive through the protest. We stopped for this first beer after exploring Bangkok the first morning there.
Cheers Austalia!
February 28, 2011
The time has come to depart this beautiful country! We are packed up and ready to head to the airport first thing in the morning. Bondi Beach turned out to be ok after all. Not my favorite place, but ok none the less, with an amazing beach and famous walk along the rocky coast, which covers three other beaches.
Yesterday we took the bus into Sydney for the day. We explored the “Opera House” and the “Harbor Bridge”. The “Opera House” is amazing and very impressive. I read that the Architect that designed it got the idea from an orange. He was eating an orange and playing with the peels when he got the idea for it. If you take all the sail looking pieces of the Opera House and put them together, they form a sphere.
Today we had a lazy last day and tonight the older kids are taking the bus into Sydney to go to “Kings Crossing”. I guess it is a popular place for the young people to go out at night.
We have met so many travelers that have traveled to so many places; places I have never even heard of! It seems it doesn’t cost that much more to go to numerous countries than to just one. One young German couple was traveling around the world and it only cost them $200 more to go around the world than to go to New Zealand and back home. We made connections in both New Zealand and Australia and have friends should we ever want to come back.
We have done an amazing job of getting along with each other and leaving with positive feelings about group travel. We have planned meals, shopped together for them and then prepared them together “every single day”, oh, and worked on clean up together too! No complaints! The longer we’re together, the sillier we get. These days we’re laughing over just about anything! We’ve had numerous discussions about everything under the sun. We’ve gotten very relaxed and comfortable with traveling and moving from bed to bed.
Our statistics:
*We took nine flights
*Flew 50 hours
*Traveled for 86 days
*Slept in 37 beds
*Drove 10,000 Kilometers “on the wrong side of the road!”
“Cheers” Australia!
Blue Mountains, and Bondi Beach, Australia
February 26, 2011
We’re in Bondi Beach today and we’ll be here until we leave for home on Tuesday. We heard that Bondi Beach is famous for its beaches and surfing. We didn’t actually want to stay in this town, but this happens to be a very busy week-end in the Sydney area and “everything” else was booked up. We’re only about 15 minutes out of Sydney so we’ll still go in for the day. Bondi Beach isn’t what I expected. It’s crowded and not very pretty or quaint. I guess you could say this is the first place we have been to that I was not excited about. Maybe it’s all in the plans, so I’m not too sad about leaving!
The kids are at a Rugby game in Sydney tonight. They took the 5:00 train, so I have the night to myself. I bought a nice bottle of red wine, fixed a vegetarian dinner for myself, and am quite enjoying the night.
Before getting here, we spent three nights in the Blue Mountains. Oh! What beauty! The Blue Mountains are two hours west of Sydney and unbelievably beautiful. We spent two days hiking and saw numerous waterfalls and the most wonderful forests. The hike on the second day had 900 steps down into the valley and 1000 back up! It was all worth it and we did it with no problem.
In the Blue Mountains, there were flocks of Cockatoos everywhere. I love watching them in nature and can’t imagine ever caging such a happy, free animal, or any animal for that matter. They were loud and not real serene sounding. There are also Black Cockatoos. I didn’t get to see them but Eliot saw a flock one day while we were driving.
Australia has been a real treat to visit. The people seem to be very relaxed and kind. I guess it’s hard to be in “the fast lane”, here as 95% of the roads are two lanes; including the freeways. The speed limit isn’t very fast and there are reminders everywhere to slow down and take a break. Driving the coast to this area was about a 10 hour drive and it was through little towns and forests. The freeway goes through the towns. It would be the equivalent of driving US1 all the way up the coast vs highway 95. In fact, that is the way my family traveled to Canada for many years before highway 95 was built.
I recommend visiting this country to anyone that has ever wondered about it. There is something for everyone here. It was nice to see that there isn’t as much “fear” of the crocodiles as we heard from the states, or of the great white sharks. Things are always different when you get somewhere. I’m happy that I have been able to see, first hand, what life is like in Australia and New Zealand! If my kids would come, I think Joe and I would try our best to move to one of these two countries.
Bryon Bay, Australia (Hippie Town)
February 23, 2011
We spent two nights in Bryon Bay! Byron Bay is a quaint, old, small hippie town a few hours south of Brisbane. Byron Bay has beautiful beaches, and one of the things that make them so beautiful is the coast line and the mountains in the background. There is a Lighthouse you can hike to and this Lighthouse sits on the easterly most point in Australia. At this point, the way the waves come in and break, surfers can get a 20-25 second ride; which is a long time standing on a surf board! Again, the tides were very strong; like it was hard to even stand in one place without being pulled. I guess that’s the story everywhere here.
We’re on a 10 hour drive to the Blue Mountains. It is supposed to be very beautiful and a great place to hike. We’re being brave and daring today. We started the day out at 6:30 and went to a place called “Minion Falls” for a five hour hike. It was drizzling when we got there so we decided we would start with an hour in and then reevaluate. About the time to reevaluate, we began noticing little inch worm leaches on our ankles and shoes. We had another encounter with them a few weeks ago and it wasn’t pretty! They look cute at first but then you realize they are burrowing into your skin at an amazing speed and you have to pull hard to get them off. They even burrow into shoes and socks! We decided with the rain, blood suckers, and the long drive ahead, that we had seen enough of Minion Falls. On the way out we got to see two large “Kookaburras”, which allowed us to get very close for observation.
Two things I love about Australia are the National Parks and the birds. Everywhere you look, there are National Parks to hike and explore. Although there is less than 10 percent of the Rainforests that was once here, there still seems to be a lot. The birds are so amazing! At Byron Bay there were flocks of hundreds of beautiful, colorful parrots flying around and chattering. The Magpie’s have the most amazing voice and I could never tire of listening to them. The Kookaburras too are so outstanding to see and listen to as they make a loud “laughing” sound, even in the nighttime.
Our time is nearing the end here and I am feeling a bit sad about it. I love this country and the diversity it has to offer. I am trying to remain on the vibration of “love” for what I have experienced here and not let the feeling of sadness enter. One of the most important lessons I have learned on this trip is “trust” and the faith to “let go” and know that there is a plan and it will be revealed every step of the way. We have completely lived one day at a time here and so many times what we thought we were going to do didn’t happen but something just as good or better did! I don’t even think more than a day in advance anymore. I wonder how that will work when I get home!