KANA RETREAT in Alentejo SePtember 2022
dates will be announced soon
due to high interest
please register and you will be first to know when new retreats are announced - HERE
This year we will be also announcing new locations for future retreats.
One week of pure magic.
~
In the Alentejo, they say life flows with the pace of the wind. Escape to this wild and golden landscape of wheat fields, cork oak, olive and orange groves.
Sometimes we learn and we feel more when we first slow down and we rest and reset.
~
You can expect lots of clay, good company, rural life, communal eating with organic and biodynamic ingredients, new friends, beautiful stillness, organic wines, wild walking with drawing, sculpture, still life drawing, fireside yoga, salt-water swimming, more wine and even more clay. The region and our residence is rich with beautiful, organic produce. Cucumbi’s undercurrents of deep belonging to community and family, as well as to their landscape and the ebbs and flows of its seasons, makes it the perfect place of warmth and brightness to escape to when more northern skies grow dark. Weaving together locally-sourced organic food with the magic of our gathering, you’ll be nourished every day with shared meals made with organically grown ingredients – sourced directly from the farm where we can. Beside gathering around food (and local wine), we will work in pace with the sun-baked landscape, exploring the earth through daily clay practices that call you to drop deeply into your body, refine your creative awareness and work with ancient practices of hand building.
We will work with clay as a tool to observe our surfacing of emotions, characteristics of our being and challenges of our personality. It is a perfect reflection of our sense of who we are right now. Recognising those feelings and emotions, we learn and we meet ourselves. It's a mirror that is so soft that it makes you softer too. It allows you to embrace, it allows you to observe yourself and embrace again. And most importantly it allow us to apply the change, and it teaches us how to change. You can slowly confront your challenges, you can stop and start again. And clay as a forgiving, soft, smooth material will kindly allow you to become who you want to be a little more or a little less. Dropping into the rhythms of this beautiful landscape, we will focus the week around hand-building organic, sensual and unusual shapes. I will guide you into the subtle ways you can develop and refine your own language in the clay – and together we’ll explore clay as an intuitive and spontaneous material the responds to and reflects our inner worlds.
~
Space is offered on a ‘first come’ basis for this beautiful experience, please book soon to avoid disappointment.
With love,
Ana x
WHAT IS INCLUDED
~
7 nights accommodation in beautiful ensuite rooms or apartments
6 full days of retreat programme
Daily guided workshops with Ana on sculpture and hand building techniques
Daily morning and afternoon space and time for self explorative practice
One to one sessions to support and mentor your self explorative practice
Still Life drawing classes by the fireside with local wine
Life nude drawing class with glass of wine, to embrace the working with body and reflecting on how we perceive the shapes that are so familiar since we all inhabit bodies ourselves.
Outdoor walks to inheal the nature. with soft yoga movement practice, creative drawing classes exploring wabi-sabi organic forms taken from the natural landscape
Daily yoga , movement and meditation practice
Guided Foraging walks, where we will explore living closely with nature and organic farm, and what we can harvest to make our daily herbal tea or add into our meal.
( full board) 3 meals a day: daily breakfast, lunch and supper with organic produce from the farm and locally sourced ingredients prepared by chef in residency
Use of the farmhouse kitchen and living space if desired (three apartments have their own kitchen and living spaces) , there are 3 fireplaces we can gather around and a pool table
Outdoor salt-water swimming pool
outdoor dinning under the wast Skys.
All materials , clay, drawing materials as well as inspirational and supportive Welcome pack will be provided.
CLAY - every participant will receive equal amount of clay ( 1 x 12kg bag of fresh clay, there will be more clay available for addition price), This Clay is to be used both for practice as well as for pieces that you will decide to have fired. This retreat is not focused on production of pieces but on experience , learning, exploring, practice while in space that allows dedicated time for your practice, provides with calm, encourages and inspires while makes sure this is also a relaxed enviroment. To clarify , as everyones pace and scale of work is drastically different , I have to clarify that You will most likely not be able to fire all of the work made and that is not intention of this Kana creative retreats. Everyone will have a limited amount of “kiln” space and amount of pieces fired depend on scale of your work ( as well as scale of everyones work) as well as drying process. We will be drying pieces along side our making process using windy and hot climate to manage this process for us, and as soon the load will be ready to be fired the kiln will be loaded and batch of ceramics will be processed, as we have only short period fo time together, this most likely means there will be around 2-4 kiln loads available to be fired, and we must make sure everyone will have a piece to treasure from this experience, the rest of the pieces will be reclaimed and process back in to clay to be used and reused another time… During our process of learning to work with clay you will be working on your creative practice, learning new techniques and new ways of working, we will be focusing on experience and your practice over the production. That is what is most valuable and you will be able to carry with you back home and into your further practice. Pieces will not be glazed, additional firing and glazing service and workshop will be available on our return to London. for those that that have been asking if you could come to my London studio for further process. If you are not from London, you will be equipped with information about the time of clay and firing range which will allow you to glaze them in your own studio or local ceramic workshop if thats available for you.
~
Group trips and extras
Day trip to beautiful coastline and beaches, natural parks / nearby town (additional cost to be confirmed)
Retreat transport to and from Lisbon Airport to Cucumbi: approximately £40 per person/each away. Applicable for specific flights/timing only. See “Getting Here” section.
wine and drinks with meals when not provided.
~
What’s not included
drinks except on any of activities where stated otherwise
Flights and shipping of ceramics ( we recommend booking and bringing additional suitcase)
Personal Transport / Airport Transfers (see group transport above)
Travel Insurance ( obligatory)
Covid PCR or tests on arrival / and departure ( we can help with arranging) and cost of quarantining if required
~
COVID POLICY
All guest Must be vaccinated OR show a negative PCR test result not older than 48 hours.
Please check with your government as well as with Portuguese government if you are allowed to travel to and stay in Portugal. Kana Retreats is not responsible for your additional travel efforts and costs such as COVID test and quarantining.
READ HERE regular updates and plan your travel accordingly - www.visitportugal.com/en/content/covid-19-measures-implemented-portugal
PRICES
Pleaser read carefully our Terms and Conditions on Bottom of this page.
Your spot on retreat as well as specific suit is reserved once we receive either payment in FULL OR payment plan is available with a £500 per person REGISTRATION deposit ( non refundable) , if you are booking double occupancy please select REGISTRATION for 2 people. Only once you receive confirmation from us this is confirmed. With Paying retreat in full or Registration Deposit you agree that you have read and agreed to our Terms and Conditions.
if choosing payment plan - once we receive REGISTRATION Deposit payment, we will be in touch with you to discuss and to confirm your payment plan and confirm your reservation.
We offer payment in full option or payment in 2 - 3 remaining instalments. Payment has to be made in Full, latest 4 weeks prior start of retreat.
All prices below are INCLUSIVE of £500 deposit which in case of refund is not refundable.
get in touch ana@kanalondon.com if you wish to reserve your space with deposit and discuss payment plan.
PRICES
Please read carefully our Terms and Conditions at the bottom of this page.
l prices below are INCLUSIVE of £500 deposit which in case of refund is not refundable.
get in touch ana@kanalondon.com if you wish to reserve your space with a deposit and discuss a payment plan.
Your spot on retreat as well as specific suit is reserved once we receive either payment in FULL OR £500 per person REGISTRATION deposit (non-refundable) , if you are booking double occupancy please select REGISTRATION for 2 people. Only once you receive confirmation from us this is confirmed. With Paying Registration Deposit you agree that you have read and agreed to our Terms and Conditions.
if choosing a payment plan - once we receive the REGISTRATION payment, we will be in touch with you to discuss and to confirm your payment plan and confirm your reservation.
We offer payment in full option or payment in 2 - 3 remaining instalments. Payment has to be made in Full, at latest 4 weeks prior to start of the retreat.
Double Rooms (four available)
All beautifully designed double rooms have an ensuite bathroom and a private outdoor terrace.
*One person on the full retreat programme, with a partner sharing their room and joining for all meals. A little holiday.
Double Apartment Suites (two available)
The beautiful, peaceful apartments are perfect for two and come with ensuite bathroom, private kitchen, living areas and terrace.
E*One person on the full retreat programme, with a partner sharing their room and joining for all meals. A little holiday.
Cottage (one available, four people)
This cottage is perfect for four friends sharing, otherwise will be our shared accommodation. These two rooms share the cottage’s kitchen, bathroom and beautiful private living space.
~
Space is offered on a ‘first come basis
Prices are per person
Spaces are non-refundable but transferable to a friend
Please get in touch for any special arrangements needed or with any questions: ana@kanalondon.com
~
FLIGHTS + GETTING HERE
Cucumbi rests between the two small cities, Montemor-o-Novo and Alcácer do Sal, close to the small village of Barrancão. It is just 1.5 hours south-east of Lisbon. There are direct flights to Lisbon from London and most UK airports, and most European cities. For guests travelling on the below flights, or arriving into Lisbon at the same time, we will arrange a return shuttle from Lisbon airport to Cucumbi for a supplement of £40 per person each way. Any guests travelling on different flights will need to make their own transfer arrangements. There is space to park, so you are very welcome to rent your own car if you want the freedom to explore nearby.
searched on 20/07/2021
~
ABOUT CUCUMBI
Cucumbi is a beautiful, conscious and minimal conversion of a family-run organic farm. Set in the golden Alentejo region of Portugal, Cucumbi rests between the two small cities Montemor-o-Novo and Alcácer do Sal, close to the small village of Barrancão, within rolling hills and over 100 hectares of private land filled with cork oak, olive and orange trees. Cucumbi is just ninety minutes south-east of Lisbon. Cucumbi is nestled in a beautiful rolling estate of hazy golden fields and orchards, with sun-filled terraces with wilderness to explore.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
With making a payment of Deposit you agree to our Terms and Conditions.
Space is offered on a ‘first come basis for this beautiful experience, please book soon to avoid disappointment.
DISCLAIMER and STATEMENT 2021
In these unusual times, we have learned that change is the only constant once again. It took me over a year ( and 3 times postponing this retreat) to build the confidence that only those who rise to challenge, dare to dream and are willing to take risks will be riding the front waves of newly designed experiences in this world. It’s ok to be hesitant, it’s ok to doubt and it’s ok to believe and try new ways of travelling and living. I am more than ever before devoted to holding space and know that it’s time.
With everyone’s well-being and best interest at heart, it took a lot of love, courage, dedication, hard work, time and a big belief that this is truly what we ( some of us) needs and that is time to carve the way to unite on this creative gatherings again togetherness.
RESERVATION DEPOSIT - KANA as a small independent business its just me, my very small team and the people I choose to work with to create this special experience for you.Each one of you and each and every reservation is very important to us. Besides putting lots of love, time and energy into organising our retreats we also have to make non-recoverable payments in advance to make them happen, so please read our terms and conditions carefully before you book. Thank you!
When you sign up for a retreat, we ask for a non-refundable deposit of £500. Reservations via email or phone messages are not official bookings yet. We are receiving many messages and are only a small team. Only once we have received your deposit or proof of payment, your reservation is officially confirmed. By transferring your payment or deposit, you indicate that you have read and agreed to the terms and conditions on this page.
BOOKING + PAYMENT PROCESS & RESERVATION DEPOSIT
Your spot on retreat as well as specific Room, Suit or Apartment is reserved once we receive payment in. full or a non-refundable deposit of £500 per person, REGISTRATION deposit is NOT refundable.
The registration Deposit is £500 per person. If you are booking double occupancy please select REGISTRATION for 2 people.
Only once you receive confirmation from us to arrange a payment plan this is confirmed booking.
Once we receive the REGISTRATION payment, we will be in touch with you to discuss and confirm your payment plan and confirm your reservation.
We offer payment in full option or payment in 2 - 3 remaining instalments. Payment has to be made in Full, at the latest 4 weeks prior to the start of the retreat, or you have lose your space and paid in amount.
CANCELLATION POLICY
Kana retreats do not offer refunds of any kind for the retreat £500 deposit. Before signing up, please make sure you can make it. Refunds for the remaining amount depends on when we receive the cancellation. Should you need to cancel with more than 4 weeks until the retreat date, you will be refunded 100% of the total amount (minus the 500 EUR deposit). Should you need to cancel within 4 weeks of the retreat date, 50% of the total amount (minus the £500 deposit) will be refunded. Finally, under no circumstance will there be any refunds given for cancellation requests made within 2 weeks of the retreat date.TRAVEL & HEALTH INSURANCE
Nobody books or organises a retreat with the intention of cancelling it, but 2020 has shown us that unexpected events do occur, so we strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance. Furthermore, you participate in the classes, hikes and workshops at your own risk and you must employ your own judgment as to which movements, positions, and exercises are appropriate for your level of training, overall physical fitness and experience as well as mental stability. All participants are required to have international health insurance that also covers medical care and transport home if needed. All guests must either be COVID-19 vaccinated or show a negative test result not older than 48 hours.COVID POLICY
All guests Must be vaccinated OR show a negative PCR test result not older than 48 hours.
Please check with your government as well as with the Portuguese government if you are allowed to travel to and stay in Portugal. Kana Retreats is not responsible for your additional travel efforts and costs such as the COVID test and quarantining.
IN CASE WE MUST CANCEL KANA RETREAT
If we must cancel a retreat, we will notify you as soon as possible and you can request a full refund or you may transfer your payment to another retreat in 2022.Kana is not accountable for your expenses incurred in preparation for the retreat, such as airline tickets, loss of work, visas fees and/or other costs associated with preparation for your trip.
OUR RIGHTS AS ORGANISERS
Kana reserves the right the change the program, teachers or team members at all times.Kana reserves the right to remove a participant from the retreat if their behaviour is disruptive.
Kana reserves the right to keep a guest liable if they bring damage to the house or belongings.Kana reserves the right to take images and filming parts of the program, the footage taken for documenting and further promotion of the retreat will be always discreet. ( if you do not wish to be on any images used for our promotion please do let us know)
For more information or any specific questions, please email us at ana@kanalondon.com
Thank you for understanding and respecting our terms and conditions for 2021.
With love,
Ana x