Rediscover Your Joy at "The Joy of Being Retreat
2-9 JUNE, 2024
A retreat to remember ourselves and the sacred fun of life.
Are you looking for something more? Would you like to remember your joy as an innate state of effortless being? Do you want to have some authentic fun?
Everyone has the joy of being within- It’s something that’s already yours- let us support you to remember it.
About the Joy of Being
The Joy of Being is a transformative journey that combines elements of a retreat and pilgrimage,
taking you on a profound exploration of your innate joy and connection.
Our adventure will lead us through the captivating landscapes of Crete, guiding you to remember your true self and the
effortless joy that resides within.
About the Journey
For the first two days we will land, with each other and in our bodies, in a beautiful location in the welcoming bosom of Crete. We will gently guide you to let the layers where we tend to hold tension drop away and return to yourself, aided by the soft power of the Cretan nature and delicious food.
Then we will begin excursions to carefully chosen magical spots on the island. Places where we have felt in our bodies a sense of power and communion – that we wish to share and support you to experience.
This promises to be an enriching and joyful experience offering an opportunity for a deeper connection to yourself and to the surroundings then visiting as a regular tourist.
Who This Retreat Is For
This retreat is for people of all ages, genders, and backgrounds who feel the call to embrace the innate and effortless joy of their being. It´s for those ready to thrive and claim their birthright of an easeful, embodied enjoyment of life.
What You Will Experience:
- Self-Discovery: This retreat offers an opportunity for deep self-connection. You will gain a clearer understanding of who you truly are, what brings you joy and a renewed connection with your purpose.
- Visit Sacred Sites: Explore ancient and sacred locations on our journey that resonate with power and communion, experience the deeper meaning of these places and receive empowering personal and collective guidance.
- Find / Expand your Tribe: Create lasting friendships with people from all walks of life who share the desire for reclaiming their joyful nature.
- Embodiment Practices: Learn practices that can be a doorway to personal transformation, helping you tap into your inner joy long after the retreat ends.
- Voice and Movement: Immerse yourself in the magic of dance and the power of your voice. Uncover your unique expressions of joy through movement and sound.
- Live Music: Experience the transformational convergence of the rhythmic pulse of live music intertwined with the essence of joy and creativity. Unlock the unique melodies within you and explore co-creating a harmonious connection with the whole.
- Relaxation and Rejuvenation: Enjoy time and space to unwind, relax, and find your center amid the beautiful and serene natural surroundings.
- Integration: Our experienced facilitators will help you integrate your experiences, providing you with potent dynamics to apply the transformational experiences of the retreat back into your daily life.
- Delicious Healthy Food: Savour nourishing meals prepared by our chef to support your overall well-being.
- Four Unique Facilitators: Our dedicated team shares a passion for awakening consciousness and the joy of life, guiding you on this profound journey.
Who We Are
Between us we hold many years of experience of embodiment, dance, music making and voice connection. We will guide you to easily and gently find these ways to connect with yourself, the group, the environment and your unique relationship to Source- so that you can access the guidance you need in your life.
Daphne Kourkounaki
Daphne Kourkounaki. Inner Worth Cheerleader. was born and grew up in Crete, Greece.
Daphne supports people to embrace their value, embody and share their gifts and create the life they truly want. She infuses the space with care, inspires confidence and clarity in the face of unpredictability and encourages the continual expansion of life’s potential.
She facilitates people’s life path renewal using various modalities including coaching, astrology, medative movement and nature connection. She runs a retreat venue in Crete and her passion is to support people to live a deeply satisfying life.
At 18 years old she moved to England where she obtained a Masters’ degree in Electrical Engineering followed by a postgraduate Masters’ in Environmental and Energy Studies.
Her earlier career paths involved engineering, sustainability consultancy and career coaching.
She then found herself being called to embodiment to ‘look outside the box’ for new pathways for personal transformation and finding inner harmony. She has since dedicated the last ten years of her life to her soul awakening and the reclaiming and sharing of her authentic essence.
Emma Sampson
Emma Sampson. The Dreamweaver is an English singer, artist and facilitator of spaces for us to remember our innate connection- to our own nature and the big Nature.
Emma weaves the power of the wild nature and that which is in the dreaming and invites us to remember our true nature and individual magic
She has worked with sound vibration as a healing modality for over twenty years, composes her own songs, has held a community choir and trained in Collaborative Vocal Improvisation. She is passionate about the transformational power of sound and singing- having journeyed herself from extreme shyness and vocal block to performer.
She is a student to the wisdom of plants, stewards land and grows medicinal herbs to share with other people as a way of then meeting themselves.
She also uses her artwork, embodiment practices and rebirthing breathwork to support individuals and groups to remember who they really are beyond their conditioning.
Joan Condal
Joan Condal. The Heart Healer, a musician of the heart and a raiser of consciousness.
Joan brings heart healing, humility, and opens spaces for vulnerability, fostering balance amidst polar opposite forces, he creates a spaces for honest and truthful prayer, establishing a bridge between spirituality and mundanity.
Fascinated by the human experience and the process of spiritual evolution, he studied psychology and social and cultural anthropology at University. This curiosity, and passion for embracing life in all its manifestations, then led him to develop his music career as a vehicle for connection, communion and celebration. This included music therapy and sound healing. His speciality is the mantras and the opening of the heart through the sacred songs, offering an experience of connection with the ‘true essence’. He has performed extensively all over the world, and recorded four personal albums and one with the Mahavishnu group. He has a versatility of styles including mantra, world music, chill out, reggae, pop, but always with a focus on raising consciousness.
Since 2010 Joan bas been also teaching courses of spirituality and personal growth in different countries, facilitating the awakening and the flourishing of the heart from those seekers who commit themselves with their inner transformation and freedom.
Elisabeth Serra
Elisabeth Serra. The Wild Freedom Enchantress
Experience innate, intimate, untameable wild freedom within. Elizabeth unites polar opposites, guiding us to rediscover the divine pulse in our bodies and bring forth our unique gifts. She also shares the gift of eternal youth.
She is a dancer, awakener and visionary with a gift for empowering people to remember their essential nature and freedom. She sees herself as ‘a bridge between opposites’ and has supported many people to find their unique gifts and offer them to the world. She is also a Mother, runs a retreat centre and has a great love for performing in co-creative and solo theatre pieces.
She trained and graduated with a masters in psychosynthesis therapy and held a private practice as a therapist using psychosynthesis and other embodied modalities for 15 years in England. Together with her former partner, Mark Josephs, she co-founded a movement called social alchemy and over twenty years offered various programs to hundreds of participants in Europe and the US.
In all her work she brings a deep seeing of and reverence for all of the human experience, and a childlike playfulness that is contagious and inspiring. She is led by the wisdom of the body, the heart and a profound intimacy with her intuitive connection.
Watch a video of the Joy of Being facilitators speaking about the retreat
The Details
Dates
2-9 JUNE, 2024
Location
We will be exploring the Cretan landscapes where the ancient civilisation of the Minoans thrived.
We will be based in Douliana, a picturesque traditional village in the beautiful countryside between the towns of Chania and Rethymno. From there, we will take various short trips to carefully chosen magical spots on the island.
Food
Enjoy delicious and nourishing food prepared with fresh, locally grown and mostly organic ingredients. Most meals will be prepared at the venue (17 meals).
We will have 3 meals out in beautiful local restaurants.
Accommodation
Enjoy shared accommodations at Armonia, a beautiful retreat venue in the heart of the picturesque village of Douliana https://www.armoniaretreat.com/ Please get in touch with us if you have a need for a single room (at a supplementary cost) or have any other special needs.
Cost
Early Bird Price (before the 4 th of March 2024): £2,822 / €3,221
Regular Price (after the 4 th of March 2024): £3,656 / €4,181
A deposit of £705 / €806 secures your place and the rest is payable by the 4 th of March 2024. If you
book after the 4 th of March 2024 you have to pay the amount in full.
What´s Included:
Facilitated experiences and sessions
Shared accommodation in triple and quadruple spacious ensuite bedrooms. Single and double occupancy is possible at an additional cost.
17 meals (which is all meals apart from 3 dinners that will be out at local restaurants).
Transportation and entrance to sites
What’s Not Included:
Your flights to and from Crete
Travel from Chania airport to the retreat venue (we can provide details of taxi services)
Meals or drinks outside the venue (there will be three diners out)
Massages or other additional private sessions
Travel insurance
Cancellation Policy
Travel insurance Cancellation Policy:
You are responsible for purchasing your own travel insurance
Please note that your deposit in not refundable unless the retreat gets cancelled in which case you will be refunded in full.
If you ‘ve paid the full amount:
Canceling after May 1 st 2024: No refund
Canceling after March 4 th and before May 1 st : 50% refund
Canceling before March 4 th : 75% refund
Deposit (Secure your place with a deposit) Full Payment (Pay in full)
Join us on this extraordinary journey to rediscover the joy that resides within you. Connect with us to reserve your place or if you have any questions.
