VIRKELIG SUMMER RETREAT
VIRKELIG - REALLY open
monday july 29 - saturday august 3
it's time to open!
if you want to conclude the summer with greater openness and a deeper contact to yourself and your inner life, this retreat is for you
the retreat will take place at a beautiful retreat center 'Inspiratoriet' on the eastern side of the quaint island Samsø - close to the beach in rural surroundings.
the team from VIRKELIG, comprised of yoga and Alexander technique teachers jeppe, anne, sarah and ida, will guide you through the week with a curious and investigative approach and will also provide delicious vegetarian and organic food
we will open up the physical body through both powerful and gentle yoga, we will open the inner body through meditation and contact work, and we will open ourselves up into dance and movement
so look forward to a week full of nourishment for body, mind and soul.
about the retreat
openness is one of the finest and most important qualities we know
bodily openness, emotional openness, mental openness
if we are not open, nothing new can come in
and if we are not open, the dynamics cannot flow to where they need to go
but to really, authentically open up requires a mixture of safety, calmness and courage
we try to give it all to you in the best way we can
every morning we slowly open
awaken the inner life and connection
and from there we move on to either something quiet, something deep or something wild
the day decides..
in the afternoon there is yoga
either dynamic ashtanga yoga, or more workshop-based yoga where we work with different ways of opening the body physically
in the evening there is dancing, meditation and contact-work - and a festive conclusion on Friday
in the middle of the week we break the schedule and everyone gets an individual alexander technique session and a trip out on an adventure!
we consciously make room for different people needing different approaches; we guide all participants individually towards the best and most authentic opening up that is available to them at the present time
we will experiment with a short fast (one day) one of the days
special food needs are accommodated to the extent possible
all the food is organic and vegetarian
practical information
The retreat is held at the retreat center Inspiratoriet on Samsø. It is a wonderful place with nature and the sea as neighbors and a permaculture garden that you can explore. You can get to Samsø by ferry from both Zealand and Jutland. We will help arrange carpooling/pick-up at the ferry to the extent possible. Ballen ferry port is approximately half an hour's cycling distance from Inspiratoriet, if you want to bring your bike with you or rent one a the harbor.
It is possible to rent bed linen on site, or bring your own.
We speak both Danish and English.
price
Bed in double room DKK 7400
Single room DKK 8400
PROGRAM
(changes will occur!)
Monday
at 14.00-16.00: arrival and check-in
at 16.00-18.00: short welcome and astanga yoga
at 18.30-19.30: dinner
at 20.00-21.00: introduction to the week and inner awareness
Tuesday
at 7.00-9.00: light breakfast
at 9.00-10.00: opening and connecting / morning workshop
at 10.00-11.00: deep, wild, quiet / themed workshop
at 11.30-12.30: brunch/lunch
at 13:00-15.30: break / personal time - time for relaxation, walk, beach trip, etc.
at 15.30-17.30: yoga
at 18.00-19.00: dinner
at 19.30-20.30: dance/contact work/meditation
Wednesday
at 7.00-9.00: light breakfast
at 9.00-10.00: opening and connecting / morning workshop
at 10.00-11.00: deep, wild, quiet / themed workshop
at 11.30-12.30: brunch/lunch
at 13:00-18:00: individual alexander technique sessions / out on a samsø adventure
at 18.00-19.00: dinner
at 19.30-20.30: dance/contact work/meditation
Thursday (fasting day/one meal a day)
at 8.00-9.00: opening and connecting / morning workshop
at 9.00-10.00: deep, wild, quiet / themed workshop
at 11:00-12:00: guided walking meditation
at 13:00-15:00: sensory nourishment - alone, together or in nature
at 15.30-17.30: yoga
at 18.00-19.00: dinner
at 19.30-20.30: dance/contact work/meditation
Friday
at 7.00-9.00: light breakfast
at 9.00-10.00: opening and connecting / morning workshop
at 10.00-11.00: deep, wild, quiet / themed workshop
at 11.30-12.30: brunch/lunch
at 13:00-15.30: break / personal time - opportunity for relaxation, walk, beach trip, etc.
at 15.30-17.30: astanga yoga
at 18.00-19.00: dinner
at 19.00-: party! cacao, kefir, dance!
Saturday
at 7.00-8.30: light breakfast
at 8.30-10.00: opening and connecting / contact work
at 10.00-11.00: reflections and concluding session
at 11.30-13.00: brunch and farewell/departure
the teachers
For this year's summer retreat, we are a team of 4 teachers who together are responsible for all teaching, workshops, individual Alexander Technique sessions and cooking. We all work together on a daily basis at VIRKELIG in Nørrebro in Copenhagen.
We are a team with very varied personal experiences of what creates the best possibility for opening up for each of us. Therefore we can provide a broad spectrum of methods and approaches during this year's 'REALLY open' retreat. We are deep, wild and quiet - all to different degrees and each in our own way - and have great respect and understanding for the fact that needs can vary from person to person and from day to day. We look forward to meeting you where you are, and together discovering exactly how your path to greater openness reveals itself.
Jeppe
Jeppe has more than 25 years of experience working with yoga, Alexander technique, nutrition and therapy. Yoga teacher since 2001 and alexander technique teacher since 2009. In addition, Jeppe is a certified imago relationship therapist and is a senior candidate at the Jung Institute. His different approaches are all joined by a desire to help people become better and more real versions of themselves. And from an understanding that it is only possible by working deeply and patiently. Jeppe gives individual sessions, teaches teams and trains Alexander Technique teachers.
Anne
Has practiced yoga for 20 years - and taught since 2017. She discovered Alexander Technique in 2015 and hasn't looked back since. Graduated as an Alexander technique teacher in 2021. Anne teaches yoga and Alexander technique and enjoys both the direct bodily and muscular approach, and the more gentle, slow and inner aspects.
Anne works from the hypothesis that deep change often originates in pain, but that lasting change must be rooted in pleasure.
Sarah
Yoga teacher since 2017, alexander technique teacher since 2021. Sarah teaches both yoga and gives individual sessions and workshops based on an alexander technique approach to the world - and is currently taking a master's degree in philosophy at UCPH specialializing in body phenomenology. Sarah works based on the idea that people's inner body can be found and developed through the Alexander Technique, so that it can grow and become a natural experiential starting point in daily life. That the world can become a little bit more magical, in all its simplicity, by digging deeper and rediscovering the tragically neglected aspects of our bodily presence in the world.
Ida
Graduated as alexander technique teacher in 2024. In addition, Ida is an engineer with almost 15 years in the private business world under her belt. Ida teaches both Alexander Technique in a 1:1 format, but also explores the Alexander Technique approach in other formats - such as workshops and group lessons in dance, contact work, walking meditation, cacao ceremony, etc.. For Ida, Alexander Technique is a way to practice feeling the world in a more unfiltered way. This allows us to touch layers of ourselves, others and the world around us that are not normally accessible. It is a tool that continues to bring new perspectives to life. And opens up a gentle, powerful and wonderful way of being in the world!
about alexander technique and contact work
A key foundational element for all our work at VIRKELIG is contact. The work with contact is rooted in an Alexander technique approach to people; as whole beings composed of physical body, nervous system, emotions, thoughts and energies.
Alexander technique is an approach to bodily and therapeutic work, by which we gently and without forcing anything explore the possibilities of experiencing and using ourselves better and more appropriately - both in a concrete bodily sense and in a more psychological and emotional perspective. When we work from an alexander-approach, we apply a special listening quality in the contact, which allows the nervous systems to communicate through touch - and from here we collaborate in discovering the next necessary step forward. We guide you towards a more natural and deeper contact to yourself, other people and the outside world.
sign up
You can reserve your spot by emailing us and transferring a deposit of 1000 dkk to the following account:
reg.nr. 3409
kontonr. 13188998
The rest of the fee will be requested at the beginning of July
The deposit is non-refundable, unless the spot is filled by someone else - and of course if the retreat cannot be carried out.
For more info and registration, don't hesitate to contact us
kontakt@virkelig.nu or (+45) 27 20 13 43 (jeppe)