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Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE September 19, 2006
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| September 1, 2006 |
Piraeus, Greece – A Day of Healing |
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| Kerys, Gaia and Takis outside their home |
We boarded a bus and drove two hours out of Piraeus to Evia Island to visit Sunshine House, a progressive home where Thai and Ayurvedic massage, yoga, tai chi, organic gardening and cooking, fasting, Chinese medicine and Qi Gong courses are held. Kerys (a former Peace Boat web reporter and GET teacher from the UK) and Takis (from Greece) met in Thailand where they were taking a Thai massage course. They moved into Takis’ family home of five generations and started the community there two years ago, and last year Kerys gave birth to their daughter Gaia there. The placenta was planted under an olive tree in their garden. |
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| Peace Boat participants watch as Takis harvests a huge squash |
The air was clean and crisp. The yard was filled with healthy grass, there was an organic garden, a cool slate stone patio, an outdoor kitchen and a steam bath. The garden was full of life with pumpkins, eggplants, lettuce, tomatoes, artichokes, , basil, fig, almond, plum and and orange trees and much more. The moment we stepped into the grounds of their beautiful home, there was a sense of well-being, of quiet relaxation. They welcomed us with grapes, watermelon and Greek mountain tea. |
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| Inside the herbal steam bath |
We were then split into two groups. The first group went with Takis to learn how to cook beautiful vegetarian Greek dishes, which included baked pumpkin and tofu with a sesame and soy curry sauce, red pepper paella, a bean salad with miso dressing, fresh salads, hummus, tzatziki and much more. The other group went with Kerys for 30 minutes of yoga, including a short meditation session, followed by a herbal steam bath. The steam room was built last winter by a group of WWOOF (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) volunteers. It is inlaid with wine bottles that from the inside look like stained glass as they let the light in. The steam is infused with fresh lavender, chamomile, lemongrass and peppermint from the garden. Afterwards, the two groups switched. |
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| Participants helping themselves to the organic feast |
As we ate our organic feast on the grass, a group of performers danced a traditional Greek dance for us. Everyone was relaxed and healed to the core. After our meal I talked with Kerys about the philosophy of their community. She told me that their hope is to help people learn to be free and to rid themselves of the fear that society ingrains in our minds. “We want to help people become autonomous, to control their own lives and their own minds,” she told me. “We are something of an anti-globalization community. We choose to disconnect ourselves from society and through meditation we try to control our thoughts and cultivate love and compassion. You can practice this in many ways; through yoga, meditation and nutrition.” She hopes someday to open a Peace School for children.
You can learn more about their philosophy, the courses they offer, and some of the recipes that we enjoyed on their website: www.thaimassage.gr |
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