A Blissed Out End to Summer
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Take a big deep breath and picture this: two days of peaceful yoga in light filled indoor studios or outdoors, surrounded by the stunning and serene Murrumbidgee River overlooking the Cotter Valley.
In between classes and seminars by some of Australia’s most knowledgeable and experienced yogis, you saunter through the exhibitors stalls and at sundown, enjoy a cooking demonstration, dinner and gather with likeminded souls around a crackling campfire.
Feeling blissed out already?
This isn’t your average yoga retreat – it’s the Summer’s End Yoga Festival, and it’s happening on Saturday 5-6 March right on Canberra’s doorstep at the stunning Greenhills Centre. I caught up with the brains behind this incredible event Jen Brown – yogini by day and festival organiser by night – to find out exactly how the Festival was created and what it holds in store.
Jen was first introduced to yoga in 1995 in Austin, Texas from a ‘hippy friend’ from California. “I didn’t quite know what to expect – maybe some chanting and incense – nevertheless I thought the stretching would be good cross-training for rock climbing, which was my sport of choice back then.”
Jen Brown
“I stayed with this lyengar teacher for 8 years… over time what I discovered was that it not only helped me physically, but also mentally and emotionally – something I really needed to get me through my 20’s.”
After moving to Salt Lake City in 2003, Jen began practising Power Yoga in the Baptiste style. She consequently required wrist surgery in 2005 and gave birth to her first child the following year. After falling off the metaphorical yoga bandwagon, it wasn’t until 2007 when Jen moved to Canberra that she once again returned to a steady yoga practice.
“Becoming a yoga teacher was fairly easy decision for me. Teaching is in my nature. I taught desktop publishing for five years in Texas, French and Spanish for a few years in Utah. After raising two children, teaching them everything I know and sending them off to school, I asked myself ‘what else can I teach?’ and yoga came to the top of the list. I’ve enjoyed it so much that I hope to be teaching for the rest of my days.”
What is it that Jen loves so much about yoga?
“Yoga takes people places – and I don’t just mean yoga retreats in Bali. After a yoga class, I want my students to feel as if I have taken them out of their ordinary lives, on a journey of self-exploration. We connect with something deep within ourselves: we get to know our bodies and minds better, we challenge ourselves, maybe have a laugh or two – and as a result for that hour or so, we are so far removed from our regular lives.”
If Jen’s name sounds familiar to you, you may have heard of her first yoga event that took place last year, the Canberra Yoga Conference held at Exhibition Park. Following a year of reflection, Jen is excited to bring the event back – and it’s not just the name that’s had an upgrade.
“We’ve change quite a lot from last year—all for the better. One of the reasons that we changed the venue is because it is more spacious. This venue will allow participants to roam more freely between sessions to visit with friends, browse the trestle tables of Exhibitors, visit the stalls in the Marketplace, and grab a bite to eat. We have also lengthened the time of the sessions to 60 minutes, instead of 50, as well as the time gap between sessions from 10 minutes to 15 in order to give participants more time to get where they need to go and to rest in between. We’ve added two cooking demonstrations on Saturday which also include meals, one for lunch, one for dinner. Last year, we had one guest presenter come from Queensland, this year we have four.
Summer’s End Yoga Festival 2015
“These are very senior teachers whom you would normally have to pay a lot of money to see. This is in addition to the other 50 presenters, mostly from the ACT, but also from NSW and QLD. By extending the event to two days, instead of just one, we’ve been able to add more sessions. So now participants can choose from over 60 different sessions in order to create a weekend that suits them and their abilities.”
“What’s more, having accommodation on site will allow attendees to return to their rooms whenever they need a break, to sleep in a bit later and to make a weekend of it. This makes it so much easier for our out of town visitors to attend, but it’s also an opportunity for Canberrans to feel like they’ve gone away to the bush for a yoga retreat. They will return home at the end of the weekend, exhausted, yet content with the experience they had.”
Jen knew upon her first visit to Greenhills Centre that it was perfect for her event. “What sold me on the new venue was the feeling I got once I visited the place. The surroundings are absolutely beautiful. It’s something so unique to Canberra, and I think people will feel that when the go out there. “
The Festival promises to broaden your horizons – introducing attendees to new styles of yoga, new ideas and of course, new friends.
Summer’s End Yoga Festival 2015
“Guests will come back a different person. They may go back to their regular lives and routines, but the effects from the festival will resonate with them long after the event is over. It might change their personal yoga practice, they might discover a new way to meditate, they might create new connections with kindred spirits, and something they learned at the festival might be the impetus they need to make lifestyle changes for the better.”
Jen says that it’s not just about what takes place over the Festival’s two days, but the relationships and connections that are forged and the legacy left behind.
“Summer’s End Yoga Festival is about building up the yoga community in our region. I would love to live in a city that has more people per capita practising yoga than any other capital city in Australia. Cultivating community has always been something that has brought me joy and that I hope to share that with others through this event.
Summer’s End Yoga Festival 2015
It’s important to know that this is not a corporate event run by some massive, faceless entity. When you send an email to be@seyf.com.au, it comes directly to me, at my home. The number on the website is mine, a fellow Canberran, mother of two, and local yoga teacher. This event was conceived by me, but it is only with the support of some wonderfully generous yoga teachers (and a spouse), that I’ve been able to pull it off. Without them, there would be no event. Their support is critical. We hope to create an unforgettable local yoga event. We are doing this for the love our community in an effort to bring it together for a weekend of yoga and unity. I can think of no greater purpose than that, and I hope everyone will want to be a part of it.”
the essentials
What: Summer’s End Yoga Festival
When: Saturday 5 March – Sunday 6 March 2016
Where: Greenhills Centre, 1437 Cotter Road, Stromlo ACT
Website: seyf.com.au
Contact: be@seyf.com.au
Tickets: If you’d like to be a part of Summer’s End Yoga Festival, you can purchase your ticket at seyf.com.au/tickets.
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