Book Review: Lonely Planet Wellness Escapes

Available in bookshops nationwide.

Wellness escapes have been around for quite a number of years but most of us only dream of escaping everyday life to kick back and relax for a while. These escapes come in many forms. Many more than most of us could even imagine. They’re in many countries with some having a big price tag and others more affordable.

To help you along the way to choose an escape to fit your time frame and budget this book by Lonely Planet is divided into different sections. Active – yoga – outdoor adventure – fitness classes. Calm – yoga – nature – meditation. Healthy – nutrition – nature – spa treatments. Indulged – spa treatments – food & drink – luxury. Inspired – creative classes – personal growth – culture. Some are just destinations where you can stay elsewhere and attend classes during the day as often as you want or go and enjoy a day spa, while others are live in and all inclusive. The latter rather appeals to me, but then that would depend where you go and how much you can afford. Some are quite reasonable while others sound as though you need to mortgage your life away. The destinations are as exotic or as remote as you like – close to home or in some wonderful island destination.

New Zealand has a number to choose from. Aro Ha in Glenorchy just out of Queenstown. At one end of the price scale, a 5-night wellness adventure with gluten-free and vegetarian cuisine will set you back $NZ5200, or you can go to Split Apple Retreat for a Taste of Wellness package from NZ$6700, while at Solscape in Raglan you can get a  double tipi (tent) for $NZ87 per night with organic plant-based meals (or bring your own food to prepare in the communal kitchen.) Split Apple Retreat offers meditation, spa treatments, hikes in the beautiful landscape finishing the day off with an evening meal with multiple courses leaning heavily towards locally sourced vegetables and fish. As a bonus at this retreat you are given a complimentary cookbook to take home as a memento of your visit.

If you fancy somewhere more exotic you could travel to Costa Rica to Blue Spirit. This is perched on a hilltop overlooking white-sand beaches and the Pacific Ocean. This retreat offers an all-inclusive retreat with prices starting at $AUS1500. Local, organic, gourmet, mostly vegetarian food with some fresh fish is offered. It offers simple rooms that take advantage of the ocean or nature views or you can choose to stay in an eco-cottage or glamping style tent pitched in the lush rainforest. Spa treatments, a salt water infinity pool and an inviting ocean via a lush walk through coconut palms. You can also add a “longevity” programme to your visit, taking advantage of the opportunity to thoroughly cleanse and detox during your stay.

I enjoyed fantasising about which retreat I would like to travel to and stay. But when I really thought about it, I know that I am quite happy to indulge myself every now and then in a few spa treatments at a local beauty salon near home. I have the choice of one across the road (a spa business run from home) or going through to Rotorua which is only a 45-minute hop from home to a day spa at the Polynesian Pools. Neither of these are featured in this book – mores the pity!

Reviewed by Christine Frayling

Lonely Planet Wellness Escapes
Published by Lonely Planet
ISBN 9781787016972

Book Review: London – 24 hours and 160 photos in one city

Available in bookshops nationwide.

Lonely Planet continue to produce superb guides for travellers. Once the basic stuff has been covered (and I have well-thumbed copies of many places in Europe and Asia ) the challenge is to take the traveller aside and tempt them with something else.

In London, the something else is to revisit old favourites and discover new treasures. Both photos and text capture another view of the city and enable the traveller to stray behind the scenes. While some of the more familiar places are included such as Kew Gardens, Battersea Power Station etc, the text and images give a slightly different perspective. I loved the 8am section on the full English breakfast. Here we see local pensioners catching up at Formica tables while eating the traditional fare. The text is sympathetic and informative. No judgements are passed on the way of life portrayed. Rather, it suggests that this should be part of your visit and allow you to experience a different side of London life.

Another morning activity is swimming in the Serpentine. This is a long held tradition but as the temperature never exceeds 15 degrees, I suspect most visitors might pass on the opportunity. I sent some suggestions to my nieces who live in London. They tracked down the Nomadic Community Gardens and enjoyed meeting a Kiwi who has a regular plot there.

This book could easily be another coffee table treat, but I think it has more to offer the repeat visitor who desires a little more from their visit. The photos and text work well together to suggest an alternative excursion for the curious traveller.

Reviewed by Kathy Watson

London: 24 hours and 160 photos in one city
Published by Lonely Planet
ISBN 9781787013438

 

Book Review: Heavenly Hirani’s School of Laughing Yoga, by Sarah-Kate Lynch

Available in bookstores nationwide.

What happens to women who have devoted themselves to their husbands and children when those they have built their lives around no longer need them? This is the difficult, emotional question at the heart of Sarah-Kate Lynch’s latest novel Heavenly Hirani’s School of Laughing Yoga.

The answer, at least for our protagonist Annie, comes in a vibrant and unexpected package.

Annie is about to hit rock bottom – and with good reason. She almost never hears from her son Ben and her overindulged daughter Daisy only gets in touch when she wants to make a withdrawal from the bank of mum. Annie’s own gentle and loving mother has just passed away after a short battle with dementia and her husband Hugh has become more like a flatmate than a husband – he’s there but does he actually “see” her anymore? Just as Annie teeters on the brink of despair and depression, the disappearance of her beloved canine companion Bertie tips her over the edge.

When Hugh presents Annie with tickets to accompany him on a work trip to India, she cannot think of anything worse than a holiday in smelly, dirty, crowded, humid Mumbai. She has no intention of venturing past the gates of the hotel and every intention of staying in her air conditioned room ordering from room service. But fate has other plans and through a friendly waiter named Valren she is introduced to Heavenly Hirani’s School of Laughing Yoga.

It’s unlike any Yoga class you have ever heard of: held on the sands of Chowpatty Beach as the sun comes up on the frenetically paced city, the forced laughter exercises soon induce genuine mirth and joy. Despite her myriad of initial misgivings, Annie is drawn back each day to the embrace of this circle of men and women and their kind-hearted leader Heavenly Hirani. It also sparks off a chain reaction within Annie, and as she begins to explore the treasures of Mumbai aided by her devoted, unintentionally comical (and very wise) personal taxi driver Pinto, she learns all manner of things about herself.

This is Sarah-Kate Lynch at her funny, clever and insightful best. At times I wanted to shake her character of Annie as she curled up inside her timid shell, but by the end I wanted to hug her tight for the brave and honest transformation and self-discovery she had gone through, staring down empty nest syndrome and firmly kicking its butt. It’s a story younger women will connect with, perhaps having seen Annie’s dilemmas reflected in their own mums, while older readers will nod their heads sagely and with a wry smile think “yep, been there, done that, lived to tell the tale.”

And no matter what age you are, you’ll be captivated by the crazy, colourful, chaotic city of Mumbai brought vividly to life on the page by Sarah-Kate’s gorgeous descriptions. Like Annie (and the author), I have never had any desire to visit India but all that changed reading this novel – maybe Sarah-Kate needs to start charging the Indian ministry of tourism commission!

Heavenly Hirani’s School of Laughing Yoga is tender, big hearted story about a woman rediscovering herself and her place in the world, infused with all the wit and warmth we have come to know and love Sarah-Kate Lynch for.

Reviewed by Kelly Bold

Heavenly Hirani’s School of Laughing Yoga
by Sarah-Kate Lynch
Published by Black Swan NZ
ISBN 9781775537052

Book Review: Full Tilt, by Rebekah Tyler

Rebekah Tyler is a New Zealand author, living in Auckland with her two sons. This is her first novel – a memoir. She has written a wonderful laugh-out-loud story.

Rebekah’s mother dies when she is 4 years old. Her grandmother (Nanny), still grieving for her daughter, takes on the responsibility of a small child (Rebekah). Rebekah’s upbringing is anything but conventional, but the love between the two of them gets them through the many challenges that life throws their way. Rebekah’s Uncle Andrew moves to New Zealand and a few months later, persuades Nanny to move from the U.K. to the other side of the world, where Nanny works well into her seventies as an accounts clerk to support her only granddaughter. She would have to leave at 7 a.m each morning travel by ferry and bus to her office and often worked into the night after she returned each night.

Her Nanny teaches Rebekah to be independent and reliant on nobody but herself, but regardless of that she ends up with one failed marriage, the end result being a small son to bring up on her own. Further down the track, with another failed relationship and pregnant, Rebekah finds herself solely responsible not just for one child, but two. When Nanny dies, the world feels as though it has fallen off its axis for Rebekah. Her mentor and her rock were gone. She knew life had to change and the only person who could change it was herself. So change it she did – sold her house, quit her job, packed up their belongings, moving most of it into storage.

The story that follows is a joy to read. It’s not easy travelling with two sons, one two and the other ten years of age. They embark on an eight month long adventure taking them around the world, to Canada, England, France, Italy and Vietnam.

Having travelling with two daughters, but with a husband, I can relate to some of the stories of tantrums at inappropriate places with a two-year-old, sleeping in so many different beds in strange cities, eating strange food (well to a child it is!) and of course the many friendships made along the way. I understood Rebekah’s challenges along the way, and saw her strength in her ability to cope.

It’s then time for the adventure to stop and return home to New Zealand. Boarding a plane, settling the boys into their seats, putting the ear plugs in, turning up the iPod, makes the journey home a lot less stressful. Small incidents, that once upon a time would have been major, were now minor blips.

I hope Rebekah keeps writing – this is a wonderful light hearted account of travelling with her boys. Having a sense of humour in times of adversity is sometimes the only way to move forward. She is a remarkable woman with a great sense of humour.

Highly recommended

Reviewed by Christine Frayling

Full Tilt
by Rebekah Tyler
Published by Full Tilt Press
ISBN 9780473247423