Two Teachers Travel To Crete

We knew before we came that we would have two full days on Crete after TCW so we booked two excursions: The Samaria Gorge and Gramvousa and Balos Lagoon. On Monday, we did the Gorge. Here is a good site with all the information you would need about the hike:  https://www.west-crete.com/samaria-gorge.htm Our day started at 5am. We had ordered a wake up call from the front desk just in case. I was surprised that I popped out of bed as soon as it came through. I guess I was excited!  Since breakfast wasn't going to be open before our bus came at 6:10am, our hotel packed us a breakfast package. Really it was a Samaria Gorge package that included a banana, water, and two foot long baguette sandwiches. They definitely came in handy and were really quite good! Our bus picked us up in front of the hotel and was already full. We were the second to last pick up that morning. The bus was a regular size charter bus:  I was certainly not prepared for the ride up the mountain. Th

So, when we were asked to walk around the area and find something that reminded us of our childhood, I thought, "What could possibly be here that would bring back those memories?"  And to my surprise, right away there was a green, similar to the one in Waterbury, CT, where I grew up.  It reminded me of my high-school years.  We would take the city bus downtown, walk through the green and continue to our school.  Then, after school, we would do the same to get back to our buses.  But first, we would get pizza or caramel corn, or go shopping for clothes.  So many memories!  As I continued back to our hotel, I came across a shop selling plants:  basil, parsley, tomato plants... WOW! More memories flooded back to my father's garden he planted every spring.  I used to help him weed it when I visited.  We would use the herbs and tomatoes for our Sunday sauce. So, you have to remember to have an open mind when you are given an assignment. 

Sunday -our last day of our workshop here in Chania.  Our observation "victims" from the week get to tell each other secrets about themselves.  What is your other life? Your parallel life that you would like to be living? Transform yourself into an animal with wings or scales - real or imaginary- write about it or draw it. How is it different from the life you are living now? These are the questions and activities that we think about and write about or draw. Why do we feel guilty when we take time to have fun?  Away from rules and restrictions? Remember the 3 P's:  play, process, and pleasure!  It's not all about the product.  Let us be mindful of the creative part of ourselves. Take 30 minutes every day to be creative. So, we will leave you with the thoughts above to think about for yourselves. We wrapped up our session with creating a 3D mandala of sorts from our fragments of the week. Photos of windows, doors, and other assignments. Then off to lunch at

I have to admit that when our workshop ended today, Kirpal made a comment that made me feel a bit sad. He said "We will end our physical time together tomorrow, but that doesn't mean that our time will end indefinitely. We have become a community here in this workshop. Some came knowing none and will leave with 13 new friends. For some of us, this workshop will only live in our memory" The last part really stood out to me because today's activities were all about memories and resurfacing them in creative ways. One activity was to take a walk, alone, around the perimeter of our hotel and through it. We were to find something that reminded of us our childhood. Then, we came back together and he had us team up randomly in groups of 3 or 4 and take our group members to the thing that triggered a memory. When I went out alone to find something, I felt forced. I found myself thinking of my childhood and trying to find a time in which I could connect something to here. For