Wow! It’s been a rather exciting bank holiday weekend as we ran our first ever yoga and alpaca day in conjunction with the wonderful Arkadia Alpacas in Woodford Halse.
The day started with tea, wonderful homemade cookies (thank you to Arkadia Alpacas’ resident baker Emily), greetings and getting to know one another. Whilst the weather wasn’t as wonderful as it had been all week, we still braved the outdoors for our hatha yoga class. We started the session by each drawing a card with a positive affirmation for the day. Everyone was encouraged to take this card home and use the affirmation throughout the day, especially as their sankalpa (resolve, affirmation) during yoga nidra later.
We were joined on our mats by a couple of the alpacas – Ralph and Prince – who were very intrigued by a group of people doing rather strange things in their field! We all managed to get some lovely photos posing with the alpacas – Warrior II and an alpaca anyone?
Just as we reached the end of the session, the heavens opened and we retired back to the workshop for more tea and biscuits. After tea, we moved our restorative yoga and yoga nidra session into the barn. This was such a cosy space and so very rustic. Getting people to listen to the sounds around them was incredibly profound; there was the buzzing of a bumble bee, a parrot and a chicken having a ‘conversation’, alpacas humming (yes, they hum!), and the usual sounds of the countryside. We couldn’t have asked for a more relaxing space.
After this incredibly relaxing session, we had lunch which was absolutely delicious, and yes, even more tea!
After lunch, Drew took us on a walk round the local countryside with the alpacas.We learned all about the history of alpacas, the role they play in Peruvian culture and about how their fleece is used. We also saw firsthand how they interact within their own family and social groups.
It was an absolutely amazing day and I can’t thank the wonderful people at Arkadia enough for allowing us to come and enjoy their fabulous space and befriend the alpacas. I’m sure everyone experienced the wellbeing benefits of being around the alpacas and doing yoga.
We are hoping to run over sessions over the summer, so do keep your eyes peeled as they will be posted on the website.