Sarah’s Favorite Mindfulness Books

This post was first published in March 2016, but we’re back today with three new suggestions.

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Namaste 🙂 Want to practice being mindful? I have a little list of books to get you started, or further you on your way, if you’re already a meditatin’ fool. Each time I post something on instagram that is introspective, I feel like I’m preaching a little bit.  That makes me a little self conscious or unsure because I never know how you’ll react, but time and time again it’s been well received, therefore I can only assume you’d like to know more about being mindful since that’s where all these post stem from.

What does it mean to be mindful? To me, it means living life with intention and opening your awareness in the present moment without passing judgement.  It’s kind of like being a screen door on a breezy day. There’s a lot going on outside the house as well as inside, but you’re simply an observer of both. You’re enjoying the breeze, feeling the sunshine or raindrops, but you’re not reacting to either, just enjoying the flow of life.

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Packing for the Annapurna Circuit Trek

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Namaste, I’m leading a trek in Nepal in April 2019. If you’re coming with me, here’s a quick list of what you should bring and why. If you’re headed down up the trail alone, stay tuned for a more comprehensive Annapurna Circuit trekking guide to be released here this summer. You’d have more fun with me though, check out the details of my Meditation and Trekking in Nepal trip here.

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My 200hr Yoga Teacher Training Experience with Rishikul Yogshala in Pokhara, Nepal

I first published this post a year ago, but I woke up dreaming of Nepal this morning, so I wanted to share it again.
Want more yoga and exercise? Become a woods warrior, try this lower body workout, then end the day with bedtime stretches that relieve lower back pain. Check out my 200hour yoga teacher training experience and read about the school I attended here.

live seasoned yoga teacher training rishikul -1-2 PEOPLE! I’m officially a yoga teacher. What does that mean? Well, last night I registered and paid my dues with the Yoga Alliance.  The Yoga Alliance is the largest nonprofit association representing the yoga teaching community. Basically registering with the Yoga Alliance gives one credibility because they review the certificate of completion from your yoga teacher training course work and all that other good stuff.  It’s a seal of approval and something to make you sound super official when you prance into a studio looking for a job.  I haven’t started that part of the process yet, even though if you recall, one of my New Years resolutions was to teach a class by the end of January.  Lay off, I have one more week!     live seasoned yoga teacher training rishikul -2-3live seasoned yoga teacher training rishikul -12

Should I pursue a yoga teacher training?

With that mini hurdle (shelling out $105.00 for a figurative stamp of approval) out of the way, I’m feeling pretty official over here and I wanted to share my experience beginning to end with you just in case you’re contemplating a 200 hour course.  First you have to ask yourself all those hard questions like, “Am I willing to put my body through mild forms of torture for 28 days?” “Am I that into yoga?” “Do I plan on teaching?” “Do I value my self practice enough to pay upwards of $2,000-$4,000 to improve it?” All these extremely valid questions that honestly, I did not ask myself until after I put down the $200 deposit with my school. I just went for it and then my mind threw all these questions at me immediately after I confirmed my payment method. That’s how I handle life altering decisions, you too? Continue reading

Bangkok Airport Transfer

DMK —> BKK ? NP!

Need to transfer from Don Mueang Airport to Suvarnabhumi? No worries. The transfer is painless and free. There’s no need to make arrangements before hand, just show up at the ticket desk and you’ll be directed onto the next shuttle bus. While the transfer is reliable and easy, there isn’t a single sign to point you in the right direction. Let me do that for you.

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If you’re picking up baggage :: get your stuff from the carousel, head out the main doors (there is only one set) and turn right.

If you didn’t check luggage :: take the escalators down into the baggage claim area and walk straight through the main doors (there is only one set) to leave the baggage area and turn right.

As you head down the corridor, you’ll see escalators heading up, walk to the right of them and keep going.  Then you’ll pass a bunch of counters for cell SIM cards and you’ll see no signage for the bus. At this point, you’ll think you’re going in the wrong direction down a deserted hallway.

You’ll come to a wall and the only way is left. Once you turn the corner you may be overwhelmed by the amount of people. They’re all waiting for taxis, keep going, veer to the right and head out either door 7 (right by the bottom of the escalators ) or the next one to the right, door 6.

Once outside you’ll see a small bright blue counter and a long row of chairs. The counter says AOT (Airports of Thailand). You must get a stamp from this counter or you won’t be allowed on the shuttle. Show the worker your boarding pass or some confirmation number for your upcoming flight and he’ll give you a stamp. Since you probably won’t have a physical boarding pass or access to a printer, simply screenshot the flight and confirmation number from your email or airline app. I do this every time.

 Shuttle buses leave from directly in front of the counter. If there isn’t one waiting already, you’ll know when it arrives as everyone with a stamped hand will board. Buses leave every 15 minutes or so.  If you want a good seat and you have time to spare, wait for the next one.

Just so ya know :

Seats in the back row have an attractive amount of legroom, but do not sit there. Machinery under the rear of the bus makes those four seats overwhelmingly hot. You’ve been warned.

Beware that Bangkok traffic is insane and it could take you up to two hours to reach the airport as it’s quite far away. Think about rush hour, timing, days of the week and holiday madness while concocting your plan. That being said, most times it’s a quick 40 minutes.

You Should Definitely Take the Shuttle Because :

It’s free

It’s reliable

It’s convenient with about four buses leaving every hour

It’s free 🙂

Good luck & safe travels!

Travel Bug: Bangkok, Thailand

I’ve doubled my days in Bangkok this past year – enjoy our updated BKK guide.

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If you have never ventured to Bangkok, you probably have a few ideas of what it is like from movies like The Hangover Part II, Dangerous Bangkok, and Into The Sun (plus a trillion other action movies); if you have been fortunate enough to miss those thrillers, picture bright lights, speedy taxis, street food and lots and lots of people.  Bangkok is one of those cities that takes you in, spins you around and spits you out.  Thankfully there are lovely Thai beaches just a bus ride away and after a week in BKK one needs a nap, a really long nap.

As a traveler, cities aren’t high on my list.  I try to stick to small towns and natural attractions; I tend to search for those hidden gems and slices of everyday living, but because I spent the better part of a year in Thailand, I learned to love and embrace Bangkok, a city with more than 7 million inhabitants.  I had the opportunity to explore Bangkok multiple times for various reasons like typical tourism, friends’ birthdays, English teaching orientation, family visits and weekend-long shopping sprees.  Each time I ventured into the city, I felt more and more comfortable and willing to explore new places and enjoy old hangouts.  Bangkok was no longer an enormous scary city (ok, it’s still pretty huge), but rather a transit hub and pit stop that I visited every month while living in Thailand.  I began to recognize neighborhoods, streets, parks, particular statues, elevated walkways, and even specific vendors and food carts, it became a city of smaller neighborhoods and much more manageable to wrap my head around. Continue reading