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Many of the new hotels in Nicaragua are promoting themselves as yoga and wellness spots, hosting retreats led by world-renowned gurus and offering all kinds of classes. One such property, Aqua Wellness Resort, is on the Pacific Coast, an hour-and-a-half’s drive or so west of Granada at the end of ….

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Oxygen Magazine’s photograph of Grace on Aqua’s yoga platform has been published in this month’s edition. A popular fitness magazine, Oxygen will feature a picture of Grace, which highlights her balance and poise as a yogi as well as the peaceful atmosphere and beautiful vista on the yoga platform.

Liana Louzon from Oxygen Magainze describes Aqua’s atmosphere as “breathtaking and peaceful as the sun was rising over the studio and the waves crashed on the shore.”

Stay tuned for more magazine features of Grace, including an article “The Right Fuel for your Body” in Premier Magazine and many more upcoming publications in June!

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Dates TBD

UPGRADE THE QUALITY OF YOUR LIFE WITH REIKI A SIMPLE NATURAL HEALING METHOD LET ME BE YOUR GUIDE AND TEACHER.

SYLVIA TIELMAN
Reiki Master/Guide

What is Reiki?

Reiki is a Japanese technique of natural healing by hand for stress reduction and relaxation. It is administered by ‘laying on hands’ and is based on the idea that a unseen ‘life force energy’ flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. If one’s ‘life force energy’ is low, then we are more likely to get sick or feel stress, and if it is high we are more capable of being happy and healthy.

Reiki is a simple natural and safe method of spiritual healing and self-improvement that everyone can use. It has been effective in virtually every known illness and malady and always creates a beneficial effect. A treatment feels like a wonderful glowing radiance that flows through and around you. Reiki treats the whole person including body, mind and spirit creating many beneficial effects that include relaxations and feelings of peace, security and wellbeing. It also works in conjunction with other medical or therapeutic techniques to relieve side effects and promote recovery.

It’s use is not dependent on one’s intellectual capacity or spiritual development and therefore is available to everyone. It has successfully thought to thousands of people of all ages and backgrounds. While Reiki is not a religion it is still important to life and act in a way that promotes harmony with others. Dr. Mikao Usui the founder of Reiki system of natural healing, recommended that one practice certain simple practical ideals to promote peace and harmony, which are all universal across all cultures.

Sylvia Tielman, Reiki practitioner, -healer and –guide of more than twenty years, teaches Reiki in the Caribbean, Trinidad, St. Martin, Bonaire, Curacao, and has taken her healing and counseling work to Canada to a Native Tribe, and to people from a Native Tribe from New Mexico. As well as to The Netherlands, Germany ,Belgium and Bali/Indonesia. As an Indonesian woman, she is very much used to natural ways of living and healing. At her beauty parlor for the Soul, where people can come for treatments and counseling they call her the medicine woman.

Of course she would love, to let you experience this wonderful energy of REIKI during a treatment or during a workshop at AQUA NICARAGUA Wellness Resort.

www.gracias-curacao.com

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SAN JUAN DEL SUR, NICARAGUA—“Is it safe?” people asked when I said I was going to Nicaragua.

“I hope so,” I replied. According to my guidebook it’s the safest country in Central America. Yet now that I’m standing here on a bumpy back road in a tropical forest, I admit my fear. Not of violence and civil strife — the country has been peaceful for years now — I’m worried a howler monkey is going to poop on my head.

“It’s one of the weapons they use if they feel threatened,” says Julio, my guide.

A barking howl fills the air, a branch rustles overhead, and that close-up monkey photo no longer seems so important. I dash back to the van and we’re on our way to Morgan’s Rock Hacienda & Ecolodge.

Located on the southwest coast, 18 kilometres from the upbeat surfer town of San Juan del Sur, Morgan’s Rock was the first luxury eco lodge in the country. New resorts are moving in, however, as Nicaragua becomes a prime destination for green travellers. Still unspoiled, with coastline on both the Pacific and the Caribbean, the country is a nature hound’s dream – a land of sulphur-spitting volcanoes, tangled rainforests and a scattering of lodges-with-a-conscience that blend jetsetter chic with sustainability. It’s still not a well-oiled tourist machine and at some point you’ll likely find yourself on a jarring dirt road, but you’ll also find a warm optimistic vibe and a country teetering between discovery and grit.

Award-winning Morgan’s Rock is made up of 15 deluxe bungalows constructed from exotic local woods. Throw in a quiet beach, a pool, a working farm and an 800-hectare nature reserve and it’s clear why it remains a favourite.

I’m curious about the competition, however, and Aqua Wellness Resort is not far away. Located near the fishing village of Gigante, Aqua is the only property on crescent-shaped Redonda Bay. Its 24 treetop villas are spread out over the hillside so be forewarned, you’ll do a lot of walking, but it’s all part of the get fit process. Aqua is known for its yoga retreats and has a holistic-minded spa. With plunge pools, paths lined with lava rock and villas surrounded by wild ginger and banana trees, it’s a jungle getaway worth the trek.

Down at the beach, the setting sun colours the sand gold and spills honey-tinted light onto the boulders at the edge of the shore. After splashing around in the sheltered bay, I make my way to the beachside restaurant to meet Aqua’s Canadian co-owner, Trevor Barran. His enthusiasm about the country is infectious, and he sums it up when he says, “Nicaragua is going through a massive growth spurt for tourism and we’re lucky to be here in this moment.”

I’d like to stay a few days, but there’s another property to check out. It lies further north near Granada, a colonial town on the shores of Lake Nicaragua. Centuries ago, when Mombacho Volcano erupted, enough rock flew through the air to create Las Isletas, 365 islands sprinkled over Central America’s largest lake. Some hold nothing more than a tree and a few cormorants. Others house the mansions of the elite. And one is owned by Karen Emanuel, a British woman who opened Jicaro Island Ecolodge in 2010.

Picture a porcupine but instead of quills, imagine ferns, ceiba trees and birds of paradise bursting out of the ground. Tuck in nine casitas (villas) constructed from reclaimed wood, a yoga deck, lookout tower, open-air restaurant, infinity pool and lakeside spa pavilion and you have Jicaro.

There is no beach, but you can swim in the lake. In the early morning I kayak through lily pads while egrets and herons flap overhead. It feels remote and tranquil — and hard to believe we’re just a 20-minute boat ride from lively Granada with its candy-coloured shops, spacious plazas and neoclassical cathedral.

Darkness hits swiftly on the island. After a twilight massage and a dinner of grilled fish, I pad down the path to my casita. Inside, something is wrong. Either this isn’t my room or someone has snuck in and neatly packed my suitcase. Embarrassed, I backtrack and find the right casita. I’m in my nightgown when the door slides open and an American woman walks in.

“Oh, sorry!” she exclaims. “I was looking for number 4.”

“It’s okay,” I say. “I was just there.”

We laugh and I think back to before I arrived, when I wondered if the country was safe. Now here I am, such a short time later, so comfortable I forgot to lock my door.

Just the facts:

ARRIVING: Delta flies from Toronto to the capital city of Managua via Atlanta ( www.delta.com). From Managua private transfers to the lodges can be arranged through the hotels.

SLEEPING (*Rates go up during high season, but check websites for specials)

Morgan’s Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge. Rates start at $161 pp in a double with breakfast and dinner. www.morgansrock.com Tel: (505) 2563 9005

Aqua Wellness Resort. Rates start at $175 for 2 per night including breakfast and wellness classes. www.aquanicaragua.com Tel: (505) 8849 6235

Jicaro Island Ecolodge. An inclusive package with meals starts at $380 for 2 per night. www.jicarolodge.com Tel: (505) 2558 7702

In San Juan del Sur, Pelican Eyes Resort has pools, gardens, curved white walls and was home base for the production crew during Survivor Nicaragua. A 5-night Nicaragua Bliss package starts at $1,290 for two. www.pelicaneyesresort.com Tel: (505) 2563 7000

Up and coming: a swanky $250 million resort complex, Guacalito de la Isla, on Nicaragua’s Emerald Coast is set to open in late 2012. With an 18-hole golf course; MUKAL, a boutique hotel; and a world-class spa, it promises to bump up Nicaragua’s tourist profile. www.guacalitodelaisla.com

DOING

Zip line over a coffee plantation on the slope of Mombacho Volcano. Drive right up to a simmering volcano at Masaya Volcano National Park. Oro Travel can arrange various tours and activities. www.orotravel.com.

Don’t miss Granada, one of Nicaragua’s top destinations. See the colonial architecture of Hotel Dario on Calle La Calzada ( www.hoteldario.com.), get a $24 massage at the organic Cocoberry Spa ( www.cocoberryspa.com) on Calle La Calzada and feast on grilled steak at El Zaguan restaurant on Calle El Arsenal.

WEBSURFING: For information, tours and travel specials visit the website for INTUR, the Nicaraguan Tourism Board http://nicaraguatourism.us

SAFETY: Nicaragua is a friendly country but use common sense. Don’t walk alone at night. Keep an eye on your bags. Drink filtered water, use mosquito repellent and buy travel insurance.

Carol’s trip was subsidized by INTUR, the Nicaraguan Tourist Board. Visit her blog at www.wanderingcarol.com

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