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bare your soul
Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos
In the hills north of Santa Cruz we arrive at a tiny village of yurts for the weekend. Our first multi-day retreat event and it was a beautiful and uplifting experience. Several workshop leaders gave mind and body exercises - dances - yoga - massage - and even a cuddle group. On the last day we did a fun scavenger hunt in the forest.

On Camera: Natasha, Tusitala, Cassidi, Kris, Mari, Ousia, Tedybear, kittikat, Lee, Kevin, Kalash, Milmo, Crystal, Tim, Bunnie, Flow, Charlie  -  Photographers: Len, Spencer, Digits, Paul, Zach, Nomad  - 
clothing-free crew rests on a couch
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 1 of 17)
        121 photos


  Thursday and Friday the first of us arrive to prepare for the weekend ahead.

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In the yurt space clothing-free bodies dance around each other.
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 2 of 17)
        104 photos


  Friday night most of us have arrived. We share a meal, then head over to the dance yurt for some close encounters.

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in the yurt body encounter workshop people standing in 2 circles
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 3 of 17)
        114 photos


  Flow (her name) leads us through some heart-opening exercises. Our little group becomes connected.

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outside on the lawn buff attendees get ready for a yoga class
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 4 of 17)
        109 photos


  The day begins with breakfast in the kitchen yurt, then some time in the hot tub before heading over for yoga.

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group of 15 on the lawn, arms in the air warming up for yoga
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 5 of 17)
        115 photos


  You have not really done yoga until you do yoga naked, out in sunshine and fresh air.

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on the lawn sitting on towels people stretch forward
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 6 of 17)
        103 photos


  Flo continues to lead the group through easy relaxing yoga and some breathing exercises.

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entangled arms game on the beach
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 7 of 17)
        128 photos


  Exploring the dunes we climb up mountains of sand then leap into piles of softness.

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all the yoga people lie down on the lawn overlapping with each other for a voice exercise
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 8 of 17)
        122 photos


  After yoga we spontaneously crowd together in the middle of the lawn like one big amoeba. After that,... group photo!

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naked partner massage class is underway in the yurt
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 9 of 17)
        115 photos


  Saturday afternoon, back to the yurt for a massage workshop with Ousia.

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in the yurt in massage class she leans over him and applied elbow
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 10 of 17)
        101 photos


  Partners work on each other's bodies releasing the tensions of too many earlier days in the clothed world of barriers.

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close view as he massages her stomach area
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 11 of 17)
        103 photos


  This is a pure non-sexual pleasure. A unique higher ecstasy and transformation.

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group dances in the dining room yurt
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 12 of 17)
        100 photos


  It is evening, after dinner and, of course, party time! Free form dancing in the kitchen yurt!

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in the evnt yurt there is quite a dog-pile of people but all is non-sexual
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 13 of 17)
        123 photos


  Sunday morning: the Intimacy Workshop (cuddle party) being lead by Lee. Challenge your zone of comfort!

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outdoors group has piled on top of a camping van for a silly photo
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 14 of 17)
        117 photos


  Kris and Mari plan and set up the scavenger hunt. Then the groups head out into the forest.

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four women walk away arm in arm up the hill away from us, naked
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 15 of 17)
        107 photos


  A map helps them find places and hidden clues. Then they must shoot a photo expressing a given phrase.

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in the forest a group four people leap up and throw their arms up.
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 16 of 17)
        115 photos


  We follow the third group as they find their fun clues and come up with creative interpretations.

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massage class again and we see she is sitting on his chest using a unique technique
    Bare Your Soul 2011 - photos (photo set 17 of 17)
        109 photos


  Sunday night and the guys stuck with cameras all day are pounced on and given massages by everyone!

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Nomad's Notes

The year prior to this event Erik told me about a retreat place called Salamander Camp not far from San Jose. It was a new idea to do something like this so we did a one-day event first, which you can see if you go back to Event-18 Dreaming in Color. This time it was a full weekend packed with activities and workshops. It went very well. But since then we have not repeated "Bare Your Soul" because of the cost of doing it. I would break even if I charged everyone at least $200 but most of the people I wanted to have there would not have come because of the financial barrier.


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