“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
Mark Twain
I skipped morning yoga today. I just wasn’t feeling it.
After breakfast we hit the road. Today we would go to Rari. This town has small family owned artisan shops that have crin. Crin, which means horse hair, are pieces of jewelry and artwork made from dyed horse hair, from their tails… no animals are harmed in the making of crin, or Natalie would never bring us there to buy it. The horse hairs are washed, and then dyed and dried. The women of Rari pass down the art of making crin jewelry, figurines, bookmarks, etc. from mother to daughter. Some add cooper or other metals to their designs. A single bookmark can take two days to make, and a pair of earrings, depending on the design can take up to a week.
Each artisan invites you into a room in their home to look at and purchase their crafts. The first home we stopped at, the woman was so excited to have 11 women from the USA that she brought out a piece she is working on and showed us how she weaves the hairs, explaining if she went in a different direction it would change the color pattern.
I bought earrings – most I can’t post a picture of because they are for my sister for Christmas. A bookmark for my friend Lisa who is an avid reader and traveled to Phoenix to care for my dogs while I was away, and a Christmas tree ornament. Early in my travels I started the tradition of buying a Christmas tree ornament in every country I go to. Now every year when I’m putting up my tree, it’s a trip down memory lane. My tree is a reflection of my travels around the world. Every ornament has a story. That’s probably why Christmas is my favorite time of year. While we were walking, we heard loud music being played, then a small truck drove by, filled with vegetables and fruit in the back. We saw the women come out of their houses, and make their purchases. It reminded me of the ice cream truck that used to come through my neighborhood in the summer ringing their bell.
After we visited a number of shops, we took a quick ride to Termes de Panimavida. You can buy a day pass there, it gives you full access to multiple thermal pools, hot tubs, the spa, and a buffet lunch. It was the perfect way to finish off the day. The grounds were beautiful with trees, flowers, and statues. The pools were all a bit different, primarily by temperature, and the giant jacuzzis were relaxing, but the water was very hot. Anyone who knows me, knows I hate cold water, but it even took me a few minutes to get into the water, once I did, I felt all the soreness just melt away… literally.
We returned to the Hosteria for a special evening event. Lillian, the masseuse at the Hosteria was going to do yoga sound therapy. She was going to use a set of “singing bowls”, the vibrations of these bowls make beautiful sounds, that can put you in a highly relaxed and meditative state. She worked with each one of us, getting rid of our negative energy, then giving back to us whatever positive energy we requested. I had her pick which energy she felt I needed, she is the expert not me.
You can roll your eyes, and make sarcastic comments, but this 413 Girl is a believer in eastern medicine and their healing properties. People shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss complimentary and alternative medicines. When I was at Duke, any time I got the opportunity to research and write a a paper on this topic, I took the chance to learn more.
We all laid quietly on the floor, face down on our mats, lights off, as she vibrated the bowls over us. She placed something warm and heavy on my lower back, then proceeded to touch my mid back and between my shoulder blades, I remember feeling a slight chill when she did this.
At the end of the session, we all talked about what we felt or saw. I told them I was surprised that nothing fell off my back when I rolled on my left side. She never placed anything on my back. We were shocked, everyone thought they felt her touch them. This feeling was the release of the negative energy, I clearly had a lot, given I thought she left a weight on my lower back. The positive energy she felt I needed was “strength”. Some how she must know I’m a Neurosurgery nurse, and gave me exactly what I will need when I return home.
After dinner and a game of Farkle a group of us headed outdoors to enjoy our wine under the stars. It was another brilliant night. You could clearly see the Milky Way and many constellations. I’ve never seen a sky so black with stars so brilliantly shining, and I’ve never seen the Milky Way before. It was mesmerizing. I could have stayed in that spot all night looking up at the sky. I wish you could all see it. I tried to get a picture, but it didn’t work. I really need to take some private photography lessons. I hate that I couldn’t capture this moment on film, but it will forever be in my mind. I decided at that moment, my favorite place in the world is in the mountains. It’s the only place you can see the stars the way I did that night.
Ciao-
413 Girl Travels the World 
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