A Summary of Carly and Jessy's 2013 Adventures

We want to share with you a recap of our highlights of 2013 and we are grateful to have shared some of them with you. In our opinion the best way to get our year started is with a Polar Bear swim. The last few years we have been jumping into the frigidly cold waters of the West Coast of Canada and starting our year fresh! We look forward to our ice cold dip of 2014 and we hope you consider doing the same.

We had some fantastic travel opportunities this year that we will treasure for a lifetime. Jessy started with a spring getaway in March to Arizona. She spent her time playing tennis, hiking the red rocks of Sedona and meditating amidst the famous energy Vortexes!

Jessy then traveled to Ecuador with some of her Virtuoso Travel Colleagues. This is a destination that she is extremely passionate about. She was in awe of the landscape in the highlands as farmlands and quinoa fields climbed the mountain sides. She was surprised by the beauty of old town Quito where she walked through the quaint streets of San Francisco Plaza. She picked up a new hobby of bird watching in the cloud forest of Mashpi Lodge. Finally, she had a magical experience on the Galapagos Islands. She watched the moon rise, witnessed the northern and southern constellations in one sky, snorkeled with sharks and got up close and personal with giant land tortoises, blue footed boobies, magnificent frigate birds, marine and terrestrial iguanas and sea lions. Due to a back injury she was not able to do what she looked most forward to, dive with the hammerhead sharks at Wolfe and Darwin Islands of the Galapagos.

That back injury turned into the worst back episode she has experienced yet. After an MRI, she learned that she had a trio of disc herniations in her lumbar spine. She had 3 crucial months of healing where her mobility was limited and pain was constant. Trying to stay positive through it all she took this as a huge learning experience and a challenge to stay in the present moment. Fortunately, she gained her mobility back and she is active again and pain free! It is experiences like this that remind her to be grateful for every day, to believe in magic and to continue to be social as human interactions are key to happiness!

At the end of the summer, Carly and Jessy explored Western Canada. Carly designs travel for many International Clients who are traveling to Western Canada. Many of her itineraries include the Rocky Mountains. At the end of the summer, she felt it was best to experience Western Canada as her client’s do. Carly and Jessy then went eastbound on a Rocky Mountain train from Vancouver to Jasper Alberta. Carly’s favourite thing about the Rocky Mountains was the drive from Jasper to Calgary, experiencing Yoga on Athabasca glacier, a quick dip in Lake Louise and mountain biking in Canmore.

In October, Carly was then invited to London for the International Luxury Travel Market Spa conference. Away Carly and Jessy went again, this time on their first trip across the Atlantic. They had a fairy tale trip; they loved the rich history and architecture of London, traditional afternoon tea and the countryside of Hampshire where they stayed in the Treehouses at Chewton Glen. Jessy will never forget her evening in Arsenal watching Arsenal FC play Napoli FC at Emirates Stadium.

To finish off a busy travel year, Carly and Jessy traveled to Tucson Arizona. They experienced two wellness resorts, Canyon Ranch and Miraval. They had an equally wonderful time at both properties. They were able to hike, mountain bike, participate in numerous fitness classes including yoga, TRX, boxing and Zumba and participated in the high ropes courses. They returned feeling fit, healthy and excited to ring in the New Year.

Life is precious and we hope you are all living a life you love!

Best wishes sent to you for 2014.

Green Love,
The Renshaw Sisters

 

Sparkling Hill - Charge your Batteries for the Holiday Season

A local spa holiday in early December is a nice way to charge up your batteries before the hectic holiday season. Vernon BC is the location of the Swarovski Crystal infused, European Spa and Resort, Sparkling Hill.

I awoke from a nap on our 5 hour road trip as we drove into the grounds of the resort property. The trees were dusted with frost, I had to rub my eyes to make sure I was not still dreaming. It looked like we entering into Rivendell (for those who are familiar with Lord of the Rings, for those who aren’t it was a mystical winter paradise). The resort is located on the top of a hill overlooking Okanagan Lake and the Monashee Mountains. As I entered the lobby I was in awe, Swarovski Crystals were everywhere. At first I was unsure if this opulence was quite my style but after spending a few hours experiencing the resort I enjoyed  seeing the Crystals in all corners of the resort.

We checked into our lake view room. The rooms are spacious and of course infused with crystals. We then dined at Peakfine, their restaurant on property. With sweeping views of the lake, Peakfine is a perfect place for those Romantic dinners! The food has a local inspiration, taking pride in the agriculturally rich land nearby.

After dinner it was time for the Kur Spa. What I had been looking forward to all day. In the Kur Spa, there is an indoor & outdoor pool, hot tub, cold and hot Kniepp Spa Walk, different themed hot sauna and steam rooms and the famous cold sauna (110 C below).

I love going between the hot sauna and steam rooms and the igloo chill room. This change in temperature stimulates circulation and drainage of the lymphatic system. My two favourite steam rooms were the salt steam and the rose steam. I felt both were very helpful for clearing my sinuses. In addition to the steam and sauna room’s there are experience showers. These shower make you feel like you are in the tropics caught in a warm rain downpour, a cold thunderstorm with lightning or a misty jungle. If you spend your evening in the spa as I did, I must bring to your attention that 9-10pm is European hour, swim suit attire is optional!

Now for the main event….the cold sauna! Kur Spa offers a Cryotherpy sauna measuring in at -110 Celsius. This cold sauna at Sparkling Hill is the only one located in North America. The concept was created for people suffering with inflammatory conditions. The creators of the cold sauna wanted the benefits of ice baths but to have that experience without sitting in the ice water for 15 minutes. The sauna is a dry cold which changes the skin temperature but does not have impact on our core temperature. For those dealing with arthritis it is recommended to have 2 sessions a day for 5 days in a row. If you are only going to have one session your system still reaps the benefits. The process of the cold sauna includes wearing a bathing suit, socks and closed toed shoes, mittens and a surgical face mask. You stay in the -110 Celsius chamber for 3 minutes. You are asked to walk around and move your body slowly. Afterwards, you are directed to let your body warm up on its own with no use of outside heating sources for example drinking tea or submerging yourself in a hot tub for at least one hour after.

I highly recommend finding a spa in your local area. Even if it is a day spa, the benefits of taking time for yourself before the holiday season are insurmountable. Go ahead and treat yourself!