Miraval = Heaven

Last summer I decided to fulfill a lifelong dream of taking a health-oriented vacation.  A friend of mine had recently returned from Canyon Ranch raving about the classes, the food, the spa treatments...and I thought it might be time to take action and take a trip of my own.  I researched options and ran across Miraval on the Oprah website.  It seemed to have everything I wanted and more: a great location (Tuscon!), a yoga center, lots of interesting fitness classes, nutrition and weight loss classes, great food, a world-class spa and a variety of physical 'Dares' that challenge your perceptions of yourself (think walking on a tightrope 30 feet above the desert floor).

So I booked it last fall and have been counting the days ever since.  Yesterday was my first day onsite and so far it has been an amazing experience.

I landed in the Tuscon airport at 2pm and Dave, my Miraval driver, was waiting for me with a smile and a cute tote bag containing a guide to the resort, list of activities for the week, an awesome reusable water bottle and a voucher for a boxed lunch to take with me on my departure day.  Yay!  no icky airline food for me on Wednesday!  We chatted amiably throughout the hour-long drive to the resort as he told me interesting facts about the surrounding area.

I arrived at the resort around 3pm, and was in awe of the location - nestled at the base of the Catalina mountains, with miles and miles of desert landscape in all directions.  Heaven on earth, in my humble opinion.  The weather was uncharacteristically cold and rainy (and sadly, I think it will remain that way throughout my stay) but as I'm a bit tired of the bitter cold air, 2 feet of dirty snow and bleak landscape that Philly has to offer right now I was more than happy to suffer a few raindrops!

Upon arrival, another Miraval staff member greeted me at the front door with an umbrella and led me inside to meet Charlie, who had my check-in information waiting for me as well as my list of scheduled appointments during my stay.  He gave me a short tour of the main buildings and then another kind gentleman showed up in a golf cart to bring me to my room, where my luggage had magically appeared while I was on the tour!

Thus far, Miraval had not disappointed me - the grounds were lovely, the staff was friendly and professional and everything was running smoothly.  My living quarters - the word room just doesn't cut it - are simply stunning.  Behold the entrance to my personal casita:

 

 Home sweet home!  I opened the door to the nicest bathroom I have ever seen IN MY LIFE.  The soaking tub is next to a wall of windows that overlooks an outdoor shower - open to the sky above:

 

The bedroom and view were amazing - one side of the bedroom is a wall of windows that slides magically away to allow full access to the patio and desert beyond:

If you step outside, you can see the challenge course in the distance:

Giddy with delight, I skipped around the room for awhile trying to decide what to do first.  The soaking tub and outdoor shower beckoned, but I couldn't make up my mind.  So I did both.  First a bath, with a cup of chamomile tea and my yoga book, then a shower:

After that, I headed up to the lodge to relax by the fireplace and enjoy a glass of wine.  I took some photos on the way...

...and then my camera battery died.  But not to worry, I brought my charger and am all set to document day 2.

I meandered around for awhile checking out the grounds then found a cozy seat in the lounge where I had some healthy snacks (veggies, guacamole, bagel chips and salsa), a glass of champagne, and chatted with some friendly women seated nearby.  They gave me tips on how to make my stay as enjoyable as possible and clued me in to the smoothie bar which opens at 5:30am and has lots of cool juices to try.  

Since the majority of my food during the day was airline or airport based, I decided to count the snacks and champagne as my dinner and head off to my 7pm spa treatment, the Sonoron Mud Wrap.  Wow.  Just Wow.  The spa itself is amazing - hopefully I'll be able to provide pictures today - and my service provider, Melanie, was top-notch.  At 8:30 I walked home in my robe and slippers - too blissed out to even consider changing back into my clothes - and climbed directly into the huge, soft, fluffy, everything-you-imagined-and-more bed and relaxed with a good book (Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven, by Susan Jane Gilman) before drifting off to sleep.  Ahhhhhh.....

Today I have a busy day planned:

6:30 - breakfast at the smoothie bar

7:00 - morning stretch class

8:00 - 2-mile fitness walk in the desert

9:00 - spinning class

10:00 - back to my room for a shower and change of clothes

11:00 - yoga class

12:00 - lunch with the resident exercise physiologist

3:00 - lecture - Making Weight Loss a Reality

5:00 - outdoor massage

7:00 - dinner

I promise to take lots of photos today and fill you in on the delicious details tonight!

Before I get dressed and head off to breakfast, I'll share a quote I found in the resort guide:

"Change happens when the discomfort of the familiar outweighs the fear of the unknown"

I'm going to give this a lot of thought today as I try some new things and contemplate my journey...