 |
| A Circular Mark Used By Early Native Cultures To Direct Wandering Tribes to the Hot Springs | | | |
“Arsenic Mineral Pool” the sign reads. Can that be true? I am sitting in steaming hot springs, trying
to read a posted sign under the light of a shining full moon. Just to be sure, I slipped from the 105
degree waters to get closer. Sure
enough, the only known one of its kind in North America - possibly for good
reason. But according to the brochure, “Arsenic
is a powerful and beneficial element in trace levels, as found in this
pool. It is supposed to help arthritis,
rheumatism, burns, eczema, contusions and even stomach ulcers, especially when
taken internally (which I did not!). It comes out of the ground at about 113
degrees but cools to about 105 degree in the open-air pool.” Hmm… I distinctly remember that it was
arsenic that did the job on the bad guys in “Arsenic and Old Lace”. Maybe I’ll just stay in for a few minutes and
switch to the “Iron Pool” which I figure worse case will give me Popeye biceps without the spinach.
 |
| The Arsenic and Mud Pools |
 |
| The Iron Pool |
These hot spring mineral waters are just one of the reasons
I am here in Ojo Caliente. Karen Voepel,
a friend and yoga instructor invited me to attend her annual
yoga/hiking/gourmet food/wonderful women retreat here in the Georgia O’Keefe
country of northern New Mexico.
Sorry guys, but sometimes women like to get away and connect
with women friends, practice yoga, hike, cook together, and, get ready for this
one….expand our personal universe with some meditative thinking. If you can do all this in a hot springs spa
setting during a full moon among the sandstone cliffs of Northern New Mexico,
so much the better.
You probably caught that word, “spa”. You all know that the word “Spa” and Julie
are usually never used in the same sentence.
I buy most of my clothes online from REI or Cabelas type stores and own
only one skirt to which I do have matching shoes. But no, Ojo is my type of spa. Ojo is not lavish. It has a certain
quirkiness that makes you smile and let go of any preconceived notions about
what a spa involves. We wore our robe and flip-flops for the short walk from our
group adobe lodge to the mineral pools and spa area. As one of our group said, “it feels really liberating to go around in
public wearing a robe.”
 |
| Yoga In A Yurt |
And freedom from all the hectic things we schedule for
ourselves is what a women
's retreat is all about.
Morning yoga practice in the yurt followed by
hot spring soaks.
Hikes among the
sandstone cliffs and Indian ruins.
Followed by hot spring soaks.
Homemade
gourmet dinners with eleven fabulous and fun women.
Yes.
All followed by hot sprin
g soaks.
So much of yoga practice seems
to draw directly from nature (common poses are named for animals, trees,
mountains and crescent moons), practitioners often say that doing yoga outside allows
for deeper connections.
I think it is
true – the eleven of us felt like we’d known each other since highschool –
though most of us had just met.
Yoga,
full moon, hot springs, great connections, gourmet food made by the group….
“Women’s yoga retreat” and Julie will
definitely be used in the same sentence again.
Maybe “Spa” too!
 |
| Full Moon Ojo Caliente |
