WITH so many things to attend to, life in general can be overwhelming. That’s why taking a short break from this topsy-turvy world is a must every now and then. While others travel to escape and go on adventures, some choose to travel to immerse themselves in other cultures or attend retreats where one can join spiritual and fitness activities.
Thankfully, you don’t have to spend thousands of pesos and travel miles away to find a place where you can enjoy some “me” time. The journey just takes about an hour’s drive from the city proper, far from the noise and pollution. As you arrive, you will enter a mystical and serene retreat home where you can find inner peace and light for a life-changing experience.
Soul Sierra, nestled on top of Barangay Babag, offers a holistic healing for mind, body and spirit. There are also wellness retreats that will surely clean away your dirty energy. The place also aims to provide a place where everyone can feel love and happiness through its curated healing methods and activities such as cacao ceremonies, a yoga or fitness class, Reiki, massage treatment and sound healing.
According to social entrepreneur Kymberly Maitland-Smith, the cacao ceremony is a great avenue to silence your mind while connecting to the wisdom and spirit within you. Cacao ceremony has been around for hundreds of years, originating all the way back to Mayan and Aztec traditions in Central and South America. Pure cacao is used for spiritual, ceremonial and medicinal purposes for creative guidance, inner healing and awakening. During the ceremony, guests sit in a circle, set intentions, pray, sing together with sincere music or sound healing, share their thoughts depending on the ceremony master, consume the cacao together and dance gleefully as a group.
Reiki is a Japanese alternative medicine for stress reduction and relaxation, which promotes energy healing. Reiki practitioners use a technique called “palm healing” or “hands-on healing” by placing their hands either directly on you or above you to stimulate your body’s natural healing abilities.
Sound healing or sound bath, on the other hand, uses vibrational sound therapy, which uses special sounds to produce vibrations and incorporates it with musical instruments, such as crystal bowl and gemstone bowl, to bathe guests’ energetic space—in a lying or sitting position—with mellow repetitive vibrations at different frequencies to bring focus away from any thoughts.
At meal times, one can enjoy delicious plant-based meals and tasty elixirs from Soul Sierra’s Soul Food menu by its plant-based chef, Divine Maitland-Smith.
One can choose between its Daily Wellness Package for a quick getaway and spend the day by its pool or immerse in wholesome living with its Overnight Wellness Package and stay at one of its four Zen-inspired bedroom suites with a picture-perfect view of nature and take pleasure in its small gym, roof terrace, spa and yoga studio. Or customize your own retreat based on your needs.
After one of her retreats in Bali where she felt positive changes in her being, Kymberly felt the urge to bring this kind of place to Cebu.
“I want to have a place here where everyone—from all different walks of life—is welcome; A place where they can open up, express themselves and be able to release past traumas and whatever thoughts and emotions they are bottling up.”
To book and check out its special events, message Soul Sierra on its Facebook page.