Yogis in Mazatlan, Mexico
Do you ever go on vacation and feel like you have to leave behind many of the activities you enjoy doing at home? It might be playing and instrument, painting, riding a bike, or as it is in my case, doing yoga. I love to travel, but I don't like to disrupt my practice. I'm just a beginner student, but yoga brings me peace and tranquility on a daily basis.
My first recommendation: Check-out the local yoga scene.
In Mazatlan, there are several fantastic yoga studios that you can visit if you come here on vacation. I started here at Yoga en el Dorado, with Anusara yoga classes taught by instructor Dayanna Gonzalez. Yoga en el Dorado is a yoga studio for women. A place for women to practice together, to bond, and to grow together. Dayanna offers classes for beginner, intermediate and advanced students, as well as childrens and prenatal classes. The first class is free for new students, and classes can be paid for individually or by the week or month.
One of the things I love best about practicing yoga in Mazatlan, is that I can practice by the sea. I can wander down to the beach at any time of the day, roll out my mat, and get to it! On Saturdays, there are a couple of studios who offer classes at the beach. Dayanna often teaches a free class in-front of the Hotel Las Flores, and Karina Barcena, of Kirana Yoga, offers a class in-front of the Pueblo Bonito Hotel.
For vacationers spending time in Mazatlan's Historic Centre, Villa Margarita offers yoga and surf classes! Villa Margarita is located just across the street from the Plaza Zaragoza, and would be a great place to get a practice in either before or after visiting the Organic Market on Saturday mornings!
Remember: Just because you are going on vacation, doesn't mean you have to leave your yoga practise behind.
My second recomendation: Bring your practise with you.
Bringing your practise with you, wherever you may be, can be very centering and enhance your sense of fun and adventure. We all know that being away from home can sometimes throw us off a little bit. So what exactly should you bring with you? A travel mat for sure. These mats are thin and light weight compared to many of the mats we usually use. They won't weigh-down your luggage, and you can even put them in the overhead bins as a carry-on in the plane. Aside from your mat, you may want a yoga strap with you (if you use them regularily in your practise), as well as some yoga clothes...or a really cute swimsuit!
You might want to download some audio or video yoga classes, or join a website like www.myyogaonline.com that will give you daily classes to follow from wherever you are in the world.
As I mentioned earlier, Mazatlan is a great place to practise yoga on your own. The beach runs for miles and is very quiet the farther north you head, or the earlier you get out in the morning. You can also feel free to practise in your hotel room, around the pool, at the Sanchez Toboada square...just about anywhere where you feel comfortable...do not limit yourself!
We all travel to refresh our lives and sometimes even to experience something new. Yoga is a powerful tool that can prepare and open us to whatever comes our way.
See you in Mazatlan!
Namaste.