I went along to the Om Yoga Show London on Friday and Sunday and had a great time! Alexandra Palace, dubbed by Londoners as “Ally Pally” is an amazing venue. If you haven’t been before, the views from outside stretch across all of London and the gardens below are filled with lovely autumn colours at the moment. The event itself was well organised and very well attended.
As you would expect being around lots of yoga people, the good vibes were high and everyone was considerate, caring and open for a conversation.
There were plenty of classes and workshops to choose from. Some required you to book in advance, others were simply a first-come first-served basis and free to join in. From Vinyasa flow classes, to meditation tasters there was something for everyone. The Ariel yoga looked to have a lot of interest, as well as Acro yoga and Laughter yoga – these new types of yoga that you can find in many London studios now.
If you needed anything yogi or meditation related, the show certainly was a good place for some retail therapy. Particularly on the Sunday there were great discounts on yoga clothes, mats, bolsters, oils, creams, incense, accessories, trinkets, blankets, you name it, there was someone selling it!
Here are some highlights from my Om Yoga Show London 2016 experience:
LEARNING NEW THINGS: Mudra Yoga Taster Class with Dru Yoga
On Friday, I joined a lovely Mudra Yoga class with Annie from Dru Yoga.
Mudra Yoga was something I had heard of but not experienced in my yoga adventures to date, so it was interesting to learn something new. I thought the mudras she showed us were wonderful, and have since integrated the sequence into my morning “wake up” routine, which sometimes includes a full yoga practice, or just a few energising stretches.
A few days later and I can already feel the difference to my day! Thanks for that Dru Yoga! I’ll be looking up more Mudra yoga events in the future.
NEW CONNECTIONS: with Hackney based London yoga teacher – Sally-Anne Reynolds from Yoga Light Vibes
Sally-Anne is organising a Sri Lanka yoga retreat from 22 – 30 November which looks absolutely divine. Having been to Sri Lanka myself about 10 years ago, and to Tangalle, the spot on the south coast where the retreat is located, I can only say that this is a beautiful country with an absolute peacefulness about it.
With just a few spaces left on the retreat, Sally-Anne is offering a 20% discount for bookings before Friday 28th October.
Interested? More details here and you can connect online with Sally-Anne too – Twitter – Instagram – Facebook – Email
RETAIL THERAPY: Buying new kit from Kisaiya – Shoreditch based yoga clothes brand
I had been looking for some new yoga clothes for a while and the Om Yoga Show was the perfect place. There was incredible choice with patterned leggings and sports crop tops hanging off almost every other stand.
As I was leaving the event on Friday I spotted a lovely grey and pink sports top by Kisaiya. I took a risk and didn’t try it on, but when I got it home it fit perfectly.
When I returned to the show on Sunday I also bought some Aztec patterned yoga pants – on special offer as they were spreading the love to finish off the show!
Give them a shout on Twitter or Instagram or check out their collection online.
EXPERIENCES: Having a Mystic Therapy session with Javier de Salas
I was reading the programme on the way to the event, and I took some mental notes of a few things I wanted to hunt down. This was one of them. I was intrigued by the idea of “mystic therapy” and what it involved.
There was understandably a small queue but I didn’t mind waiting, as I could talk to Javier and his lovely team about what they do.
In a nutshell, the Mystic Therapy promotes a deep state of relaxation, allowing physical and emotional healing to take place.
I lay on the bed, covered in a blanket, with headphones and a lovely lavender smelling eye mask. It was a wonderful experience. I have had reiki before and been to various sound meditations, where it is possible to deeply relax, but this was subtly different. Even though it was a 15 minute taster, it was enough time to feel completely peaceful and switch off.
Javier de Salas and his team are based in Spain, but they are running some workshops on 29th and 30th October, here in London.
Check out their website for more information about Mystic Therapy. If you are interested in booking for their London workshops, email Javier on londonmystictherapy@gmail.com
There were many other great things happening too!
See you at the Om Yoga Show London 2017…
This review was written by Claire, I Yoga London, who visited the Om Yoga Show 2016.