Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara is a lovely coastal town with a year round temperature of 70 give or take a few degrees. It has been dubbed The American Rivera for its similarity to such European cities as St. Tropez and Monaco.SB has winding hills,

Palm-lined beach fronts

And exquisite cuisine. California fare at Alchemy Spa Cafe,

Fresh pasta and noodles at the Santa Barbara Public Market,

Homemade tacos at Corazon's weekend pop-up,

Ethiopian at Le Petit Valentien,

And raw, vegan healthy at Kotuku Elixir Bar,

I have had the privilege of experiencing this quaint village on foot,

by bicycle,

by day,

and at night.

What I have discovered is an array of eclectic shops, delicious eateries

And wonderful cobblestone streets along hidden passageways.

For a taste of La Dolce Vita on U.S. soil, Santa Barabara can't be beat and; I recommend a weekend visit or prolonged stay if you have the time, to soak up the beneficent rays of this saintly town nestled in mountains and framed by the sea.

Yoga Healing Journey

Along with the amazing yoga postures awaiting mastery, I like to use key supplements to enhance my body, mind and spirit. Time and again, I come back to Scorpion Pose in order to measure my body's fitness level and test the effectiveness of new nutritional products I've been using. This stretch really lets you know where your muscle, joint as well as mental weaknesses are. If you are drained, fatigued and overly toxic from too much acidic factors in your diet and lifestyle, then the deep bends and curves of the Scorpion will feel more challenging. Your spine will resist the twist, your bones the shift and your mind the focus. Not being able to fully reach into that arch of Scorpion is a signal that your body is holding on to a lot of toxic residue and in need of an alkaline boost to clear the system. Here is my recommendations for a quick cleanse:


Skip the heavy traditional breakfast for a week and have a nutrient packed smoothie instead. Vegan Complete Whole Food Optimizer has everything and more in its complex formula and is convenient to add to the blender with the rest of your mix. Green foods, probiotics, antioxidants, phyto-nutrients, you name it, it's all in there! Use a high quality juice like Ceres, if you don't have the time to make it fresh.

Add some organic fruit of your choice,

Blend it all up, drink, and watch your body come alive due to the much needed rest from heavy digestive work. An improvement in your flexibility will naturally occur after adopting this simple detox strategy - the true breakfast of yoga champions.

7 Day Water Fast

Fasting for 7 days is like creating the world inside your body all over again. You totally renew yourself during this period and your mind, body and spirit are completely re-made. I humbly made it through each painstaking day drinking only reverse osmosis filtered water and came out on the other side of a very long week, a totally new being. Well, almost. I am still me, but somehow younger, clearer, more peaceful and happier. Food tasted different and new after my fast. A sliver of watermelon on the break-fast of my 8th day was like a royal meal.

I am now so much more appreciate of food, the act of eating and the quality of my body's digestion. For those first few days after the fast, I could feel each morsel of food as it integrated with my inner body. I truly understood that, "you are what you eat." I was fresh and new and each bite of food was making me up again, forming me. I highly recommend fasting as a spiritual and physical and emotional healer. Without herbs, vitamins or minerals from outside sources, my body's own intelligence mended itself. Without instruction from without, my body knew just what it needed to do for balance and wholeness.

So many of my ailments just got better as each non-eating day progressed. I healed and no one, nothing, helped me. And like God creating the heavens and the earth, I was put together by unseen hands. Before fasting, I was fatigued, allergic and irritable after a whirlwind trip from Florida to New York to West Africa and back. During and after I became very light, joyful and effortless. I floated through the days, although not without a price. The price being the excitement and thrill of eating, the overall stimulation food provides and the incessant boredom of watery days that took its place. Yes, water fasting is a challenge. One thing that kept me going was the wonderful findings of Maseru Emoto on the power of water which has been blessed with positive intentions. Through some of the toughest struggles to resist breaking the fast, I found peace in knowing I was filled with divinely inspired water crystals!

But, oh, the glory of food and drink imbibed after my fast. The pleasure of pure coconut water was unmatched.

Fresh coconuts can easily satisfy as meals for the week after a water fast.

And I dutifully enjoyed the fresh elixir as I reawakened my digestive system from its slumber. Many suggest fasting with the help of a trained specialist or healer. In my case, Divine wisdom was my guide. I simply listened to my body's deepest messages. I slept when it said lie down, drank water when my stomach churned with old undigested toxins, and meditated when it ventured to process all the emotional baggage linked in with substances my body wanted to rid itself of. I spent a great deal of time reading, doing simple yoga poses, appreciating nature and even a few nights camping on the beach

and another few, tiny house camping.

I came to more deeply understand that life is a gift, a simple pure and perfect reward for being who I am, what we are. Pure Spirit. And so I was, in a way, born again.

The Present Moment

There is no better place to be, but the here and now. As Ram Dass made clear in his timeless book, Be Here Now, the present moment is all there is. I had the pleasure of visiting a delightful place in St. Augustine, Fl, which takes its culinary inspiration from the timeless now. This haven for spiritual seekers offers up pure, vegan and raw food all made from fresh and local ingredients and with a palpable conscious awareness. It's called the Present Moment Cafe and is the antithesis of contemporary fast food, though the service is quick, kind and efficient.

 

The delicious food, however, speaks volumes about how high quality, minimally processed food can aid in keeping us present in the now moment- the only true space and time we have.

 

I have never tasted such enlightened cuisine. Everything on the menu is sublime. You can literally close your eyes and just point to something and rest assured it will be an aimmensely satisfying treat for your palate. Because every dish is as good as the next, I often found myself ordering the Chef's Sample plate. Look at this masterful creation.

On it you have a housemade pickle, raw corn chips, sunflower seed mock tuna pate, topped with a heaping salad of fresh local greens.

Another sampler includes raw vegan sushi with wasabi, pickled ginger and tamari, a saucy seaweed salad and a nut/seed veggie burger with marinated onions and provolone puree.

And yet another, highlights the unbelievably scrumptious white truffle zucchini pasta with pine nut parmesan and a barbecue portabella topped nut loaf. All raw!

As you can see, I couldnt get enough of these outstanding meals. And so, every day I found myself taking a moment to enjoy a delicious plate.

 

The soups here are so amazingly good, too. All raw and vegan, the culinary stars in the kitchen are adept at creating heavenly broths such as brocoli cheddar soup and spicy potato bisque. Oh and I almost forgot. The desserts!! Raw, vegan, sugar free delights.

This vanilla ice cream brownie sundae is made with cashews, agave and cacao. Clearly, it is not at all difficult to stay present in the beautiful city of St. Augustine. Everywhere you look, there is exquisite beauty.

The air is clean and fresh and everyone smiles at you as you walk along the cobblestone streets.

 

 

And as you make your way in the moment, the path before you establishes you in presence.

You are one with the simple pleasures of life. The sun and ocean breeze greet you at every turn. Even the shops dance in their array of finery. Inviting you to attend to the here and now.

For the present moment is all there is.