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.
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!!
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. 
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.
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.
