Kath's Farewell Eve at the CC

One of the women who worked, but didn't live, at Shambala is Kath. For her farewell, a bunch of us headed over the road to the Community Centre in Findhorn Park on a friday night. After a huge yummy meal - all vegetarian, of course - we had a few wines. And, next thing that happened was that Bec & I burst into song with 'Dancing Queen'. The whole centre joined us singing - it was great to hear.

Then William, this guy from the CC, started dancing with Kath. As Bec & I sand 'Hey, Big Spender', Kath was getting down & dirty with this guy - go Kath!!

A great night was had by all! Several of us even went back to Shambala & danced for a while longer.

Shambala - Fav Pastime #2 - Reading Cards

Shambala attracts a great many people interested in the spiritual path, like me. So, of course, there are a few people keen to read cards - tarot, Zen, gypsy,etc. And we did it every once in a while. Some very interesting insights came to light. And one particular reading was so profoundly accurate for me as the next few months unfolded - uncanny!!

Shambala - Fav Pastime #1 - Dancing

Yes, it is a Buddhist Centre, but that doesn't mean we couldn't get down & boogie some nights. And we did, in the staff kitchen, mostly to the tunes of ABBA & other remarkable musicians.

Findhorn Sunsets

One of the most wonderful things about living at Shambala were the sunsets that would occasionally bless us at the end of the day. And sometimes, I even had my camera on hand to take a few photos! They are really breathtaking!!

Life at Shambala

On the whole, life at Shambala was pretty easy. Yes, I often worked my arse off, but there was also lots of time to enjoy the tranquility of the surrounding environment. This meant lots of walks in Nature (on my own or with Bec or other friends), & regular visits to the local watering hole - pub. Much Guinness was consumed by me in my time at Shambala, but never to the point of intoxication. Midn you, I did notice (eventually) the kilos stacking on.
Living in a community was not my cup of tea. Every day, you woke up, went downstairs to find the same people greeting you for breakfast. There was minimal privacy. And if you didn't like someone, tough! You just had to get along with them. But most of the people were okay or really nice. And when I needed space, I'd escape to the Blue Angel Cafe across the road in 'The Park'. So, community living was (just) bearable. But I wouldn't do it again.

Offer to Stay at Shambala

Well, it happened. On the 2nd day of me being at Shambala, I overheard a conversation between Thomas (the Director) & Rebecca (the Operations Manager) about developing a vision for the centre. I offered to help them do that. We set up a meeting for the next afternoon to brainstorm the concept. It lasted two hours & was a great session.
The result of the session was that I offered to stay at Shambala & help them work on core business foundations & marketing, in return for getting free accommodation & board. Done deal! I was meant to stay for another week. I didn't end up leaving until the 26th Oct - mearly 3 months later. I worked 5 days per week & got heaps done for the business.
And I also developed a really lovely friendship with Rebecca.

1st Sep 09 - The Living Machine

I wanted to explore the Findhorn Foundation a bit, so the day after arriving in the Findhorn area, I booked in for a tour of the 'Living Machine'. It's a process the Foundation uses for cleansing their sewerage. It was actually pretty amazing, cause the result at the other end after coursing through all these bio processes was really pure water.

But because of the rigorous UK standards, they were only allowed to pump all the water back into Findhorn Bay - not allowed to use it in the village. Bummer!

Arrived at Findhorn - 31st Aug 2009

I arrived at Findhorn after a lovely drive up over the other side of Nessie. Saw the Culoden Battlefields along the way too, which were scattered with makeshift tombstones of fallen clans.
When I arrived at Findhorn, I asked at the Info Office where I could stay. The guy gave me a list of all the B&Bs in the village. So I wander about for well over an hour, knocking on doors, & trying to find somewhere to stay. But it was all filled to the brim, & no vacancies. I went back to the info office & he suggested I try Shambala, a Buddhist retreat centre across the road.
So I did. I booked in for 2 nights in to room 4 & settled in. I would never know I'd end up staying for a long time, but some people did warn me that tends to happen here.

Road Trip - Drumnadrochit to Findhorn

A gorgeous breakfast at the 4-star B&B prepped me sufficiently for the drive to Findhorn.

I decided to head back south to the end of Loch Ness (a town called Fort Augustus), then around to drive up the other side - far fewer tourists here & a couple of tiny little roads that took you through gorgoeus countryside.

At Fort Augustus, I stopped to take a few snaps of the Caledonian Canal which links four lochs together. But then it was back into Betty, & heading off on the B862 along the eastern shore of Loch Ness. I pulled up at to look over Loch Knockie & the surrounding hillsides - beautiful! Then on to a stunning waterfall stop.

After that, it was on up to check out the Culloden battelfields that was the stage for the battle between the British troops & the Jacobites back in 1746. A good, but very expensive museum was attached which I decided to save money & not go in.

Then on the the Clava Cairns, one of the best preserved Bronze Age (about 2000BC) burial sites in the UK. Quite eerie really.

Finally, I found my way to Findhorn. And there I planned to stay for two nights...