4th Stop- Seattle

Seattle was my next stop because my college friend was getting married there.  I was excited to be around my old campus and friends so I decided I wanted to make the trip a few weeks longer to spend time catching up with them.  I emailed some studios and sure enough, the owner of Bikram Yoga Everett, Yu Wang, gave me a warm response.  She said she could give me classes for the month and I could stay with her.  She even put in a good word for me with another studio owner, set to open a studio the week I arrived- and this was before she even met me!

I drove up from California, staying the night in Oregon so I could practice at another studio.  I love to practice at as many studios as possible!  I stayed in Yu’s home since one of her daughters was away at boarding school.  I love her studio and the warm friendly staff who immediately welcomed me to their family.  What can I say, the students were great, the yoga was hot, and the teachers are genuine.  Yu was nice enough to cook for me all the time, take me hiking, and introduced me to a great Ashtanga yoga class.  I really enjoyed hanging out with her!

I also taught at a studio in Kirkland, which opened right as I arrived.  This was a great experience for me to have!  I got to see what it takes to start a brand new studio and watched the owner, Larissa, work her butt off!  I learned how to effectively teach 1-8 person classes.  I was a bit nervous for that at first but then I realized how comfortable I was with teaching this yoga.  Through seminars in which I have participated, research I have done, extensive discussions with other teachers, and practicing at as many different studios as I can, my teaching has tremendously evolved. I realized how comfortable I feel teaching.

Spending time with old friends seemed to fit perfectly into my teaching schedule.  Its good to know that no matter what different hobbies you have or where you live, good friendships are still the same.  I even connected with people I didn’t see much the first time I lived there!  I visited a few other Bikram studios in Seattle and a few friends joined me in those classes which was a real treat.

I drove back to California a month later with my dad, who flew to Seattle just to share the drive with me.  We practiced at more Bikram studios of course, this time in Portland and in Eugene.  A couple days later my whole family went on vacation in Santa Fe, New Mexico together.  It was so awesome for all of us to be together!  I even got to practice Bikram in Santa Fe and in Albequerque!