Do you do this? Fret about finding the perfect holiday WITH A PURPOSE? Recently, I went around in 238974897 circles trying to find the best place to do a traditional Indian treatment. That’s what I do. I Over-research. Eventually the right answer pops up in front of me. So obvious. I didn’t want to travel to India. India ain’t good for us vatta types. But, it turns out, the first ever ( officially recognised ayurvedic wellness retreat outside of India is in Ubud, Bali at Como Shambhala. This place is the bomb. Beyond anything you could expect. Perched high in the jungle, just an hour from Denpasar airport (they come and grab you as you step off the plane and high-tail you through customs and immigration and drive you direct). The food is unbelievable (a lot of it raw food; the chef is from Rockpool, Sydney) and the ayurvedic treatments by Dr Deepak are drenched in love and care. I did a cellular cleansing program to stoke my pitta. It wasn’t arduous, which is the point of ayurvedic healing. I ate simple vegetable meals and had my body systematically drenched in oils by practitioners twice a day. After one week, I lost 2kg (and have kept it off) and my energy evened out. The first four days were messy, as the chaos left my body. And then a calmness oozed over me. And the sun came out. And I felt healed. For now.
Como Shambhala ain’t super cheap. Check out their site for details. But the experience is everything you need in one pristine package. Especially if you’re part of the Eat, Pray, Love generation, wanting a spiritual/healing escape on your own, an adventure that’s easy to do when you only have limited time off work. Wellness in a week, without jet-lag. Coincidentally, they’re currently filming Eat, Pray, Love in Ubud.
PS. save yourself the spiralling research and do as I eventually did and contact Caroline at Ayurvedic Health Retreats in Australia.
Here’s something I wrote on my oil-drenched cleanout in Good Health magazine…here!
For reservations, email [email protected]
