“The Autumn Forest Yoga Retreat” Follow the forest!

“Armonia” Nature Yoga retreats
“Armonia” travels!

In every change of a season, a retreat, ever based on yoga and our connection with the Mother Nature, takes place on a mountain or at the sea.
Our retreats comprise activities such as climbing, rafting, canoeing, and swimming in rivers / lakes, sea, visits to wineries, etc.
We choose hospitable hostels in northern Greece, supporting the alternative tourism development of the areas around Thessaloniki.
We invite you to our company, despite your age, beliefs, tradition!
Keep yoging in nature!

“The Autumn Forest Yoga Retreat”
Follow the forest!
10-12/11/ 2017
Montanema-Handmade village
Anthochori, Mouzaki Karditsa
with Vayia Chanou
Montanema

Beautiful natural scenery in the virgin forest, surrendered to oblivion and absolute peace, full of landscapes like taken from fairy tales and only 4.5 km from Lake Plastiras awaits you to discover it, step by step.
A handmade village of hospitality, where love for nature and art, the taste of tradition, ecological consciousness, authentic hospitality acquire meaningful context.
The design of the complex follows the principles of bioclimatic architecture and ecological building with wood and stone being the predominant materials.
The yoga practice is to be held in a wonderful 250 sqm yoga shala into the forest, with a breathtaking view at the gorge of Anthochorion.
All the meals are prepared with ingredients from our garden and with the hands of our grandmother.
Come! Just follow the forest!

Our Yoga Practice:
Hatha Yoga (Iyengar based)
Bhakti Vinyasa yoga / Prana Vinyasa inspired

The sessions combine:
Asana with emphasis on alignment
Pranayama & Kriyas
Meditation & Mantras
Yoga Nidra

Practices are suitable for practitioners of all levels.
Beginners are welcome.
Experienced practitioners will be able to deepen their practice with appropriate guidance and variations.
Upon request, there will be guidance in English for our foreign friends.

Our program

Friday
Free arrival from the morning.
17: 30-19: 30 Iyengar based yoga & yoga nidra
19:30 Dinner

Saturday
08:15 awakening with mountain tea
08: 30-09: 00 Meditation, Pranayama
09: 00-10: 30 Iyengar based yoga
11:00 breakfast
13:00 activity
17:00 return, rest
19:00 Dinner

Sunday
08:15 awakening with mountain tea
08: 30-09: 00 Meditation, Pranayama
09: 00-10: 30 Bkakti Vinyasa
11:00 breakfast
13:00 activity
Check out after 17:00

Our stay:
Montanema-Handmade village
http://www.montanema.gr/

Our nutrition:
From excellent raw products, exclusively from the local vegetable and fruit courtyards, hand-made cooking with fresh ingredients in a wood-fired oven and traditional earthenware pots; the old recipes from local housewives
Rich traditional breakfast
Served traditionally, 5-course vegetarian menu at each meal
Unlimited consumption of excellent local wine and beer during meals

Our activities:
Walking through the fir forest to the post-Byzantine church of St George.
Collecting wild mushrooms in the Agrafa forest.
Climbing down to the gorge of Anthochorion and the waterfalls.
(The choice of the above activities will depend on our free time, mood and weather)

Participation per person:
Single room: 260 €
Double room: 190 €
Triple room: 180 €

Includes:
2 overnights with vegetarian breakfast
2 vegetarian dinners
3 two-hour yoga practices
The activities

Important
Children up to 5 years old free of charge (accommodation and meals).
Children from 5-11 years old 25 € per day (accommodation and meals).
If enough children are gathered, at the time of our practice a yoga class for children will be organized by yoga instructors.
Entries as well as cancellations and refunds – until October 21.
A priority list will be followed.
Confirmation of booking only by paying the participation fee until 21/10.
For those who are not in a position to organize the transit alone as well as in order to minimize the transportation costs we will try to organize car pulling.
The minimum of 10 participants is needed for holding the yoga class.
Every participant needs to have their own yoga mat, blanket, pillow for meditation.

Information / Subscriptions:
Armonia -Yoga & Meditation Center
www.vayiachanou.com
https://www.facebook.com/ArmoniaYogaCenterGR/

A few words about me

Vayia Chanou
Graduated at the Higher Professional School of Dance of the Municipality of Thessaloniki with teacher of classical ballet Dimitra Koroneou.
Founder of the Yoga & Meditation Center “Armonia” in Thessaloniki since 2000, where teaches and organizes the activities of the studio.
Yoga Teacher 500 EYT specializing in Vinyasa and Iyengar based yoga, with over 17 years and 30,000 hours of teaching experience.

Teacher of Prenatal and Postnatal Yoga (Birthlight).
My personal experience with my two pregnancies and my children has led me to inspire and teach (along with my babies) the unique and well-known yoga programs of Armonia for mothers, babies and children:
Pregnancy; Mom & Baby; Parent & Child; Little yogis; Big Little yogis.
Co-founder and member of the Thessaloniki Yoga Festival Board since 2012.

I’ve been apprenticed to several Iyengar & Vinyasa yoga teachers, some of whom are:
B.K.S. Iyengar, Geeta Iyengar, Sophia Chatzipanayiotou, Vivi Letsou, Rusty Wells, Petros Haffenrichter, Shiva Rea and others.
My current teacher and inspiration is Shiva Rea, who’s training for Prana Vinyasa teacher 500 hours, I attend.

All that I have been tought and all that I love is harmoniously combined in my teachings.
All those things that guided me through my many years of experience have led me to create my own style, Bhakti Vinyasa yoga.
Bhakti: devotion, offer, love.
Vinyasa: flow, link, sequence.
A complete Yoga Vinyasa practice.
A dancing, slow and based on the alignment flow / Vinyasa, where Pranayama, Mantras, Meditation, Yoga Nidra have the place they deserve.

My love for yoga and nature and my amateur, though regular engagement in mountaineering and rafting inspired me to create “Armonia Nature Yoga Retreats”.
Like this, we travel together in wonderful places, mostly in Northern Greece and enjoy our yoga practice along with alternative activities in nature.
Armonia is my home but I’m traveling for classes, yoga retreats and seminars wherever friends and students ask for it.

You will find me here:
Armonia-Yoga & Meditation Center.
www.vayiachanou.com
I have two small sweet girls and an even sweeter guy that flood love and enliven my life.

I hope our paths will cross sometime.
With smile,
Vayia
Namaste