The Gratitude Vietnam Retreat Venue Blog

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Dear friends, We are delighted to share with you the new-look Gratitude Vietnam retreat venue website! If you would like to just have a look, visit https://gratitudevietnam.com, but if you have a little time and would be happy to feedback as you browse, please click here and follow the instructions given (all comments are completely anonymous). As with everything, we value your feedback and will use your comments to make improvements! Now that we are up and running, we would

Dear Friends, After six weeks of building work, the yoga sala structure now has a traditionally crafted coconut leaf roof, and the garden a bamboo fence! The natural materials used have transformed the space from an industrial-looking shell into a tranquil oasis, in keeping with the gentle rustling of the palm-trees beyond. Despite having a deliciously refreshing breeze, making it the coolest spot in the villa, we’re now having ceiling fans, sound system, lighting and plug s

Dear Friends, We are delighted to have received the news that the villa itself is now licensed as a ‘Tourist Villa’, which means that legally, we are operational! Following a major leak earlier in the week that set us back a few days, we are now back on track; adding details to the rooms, tidying some ‘interesting’ finishes on some of the building and finalising the website. Hesitantly, (as this is Vietnam, and we’re very used to unexpected delay!) we would like to announce

Dear Friends, The past two weeks have disappeared in a blur of ‘doing’ as we’ve been preparing the villa ready to open at the beginning of July! We have been promising photographs, and we’re thrilled to share a selection of ‘the details’ – room photographs will follow soon, we promise! The Villa The Pool The Sunset Balcony and ‘Bar’ The Room Details The Meditation Space and Snug Last night, we welcomed a group of friends from Hoi An for the first time! After a tour of the vi

Dear Friends, It’s been a sweltering week here in Hoi An – at 38°C (100.4°F), even Hannah who normally only sweats from her nose, has been wringing out her plait as she works around the villa! She wouldn’t let me share the photograph of her at work, so have included one of her with our loyal therapy dog, Poppet, who we belatedly discovered is actually of the male variety! We are amazed at how much has been achieved since we last blogged. Sample curtains are now up, beautifu

Dear Friends, It’s been go, go, go, since we last blogged about our journey towards creating our beautiful retreat venue! Yesterday, the villa was a hive of activity with a team of six completing a deep clean throughout, electricians installing emergency lighting, many deliveries, two measurements and quotes for curtains, and painters decorating the spa. The pool, with the backdrop of our landlady’s artwork, is now fully cleaned and ready to use, and we’re looking forward to

Dear Friends, As we frantically navigate the inevitably delayed finish of the villa, and ready it for photographs to be taken from Friday, we have encountered a day of balance. Balance of frustration and gratitude in equal measures! A day trip to DaNang is never really something we look forward to, as it means leaving our quiet bubble of happiness in Hoi An, however it had to be done! The electronics and cash-and-carry trip was productive, but the mission to get a VAT receipt

A year ago, I was rushing headlong to the end of a two year contract. I had signed the contract to save for a new life, start a business and leave the safety of the institution of education I had been happily ensconced in since starting school at the age of five. These two years felt like a life-sentence, yet when they had passed, it felt as though the time had run away in a flash! The impact of this perplexingly contextual perception of time during this period has stayed

Dear Friends, We hope you are well and enjoyed the Spring Break if you had one, and indulged on some lovely chocolate! The past few weeks have been a test of resolve and patience as we’ve negotiated (and renegotiated!) the design of the yoga sala in order to gain a permit to build! We are however at a point where everyone involved seems to be happy, and we now just need the government to approve the build, which we are told should be straightforward and relatively quick. In

Dear Friends, We are thrilled to share with you the first of our soft furnishings, handmade by the Hmong people of Hoa Binh Province in Northern Vietnam! Thanks to the warm support of Keith and Huong at Villagecraft Planet in Hoi An, we now have stunning bespoke Indigo Batik bed-runners and cushions to compliment the traditional architecture of the villa. The photographs below were taken step-by-step by the artisans as they created the beautiful decor, so that we could shar

Dear Friends, It’s been a hectic few weeks since we last blogged! The day after signing the contract for the ‘plan A’ land, we discovered that it was literally not worth the paper it was written on! To cut a long and complicated story short, we are still hoping the land will become available in the long term, but for now, have negotiated and signed for the ‘plan B’ land on the other side of the villa. Subsequently, we are delighted to announce that we have signed the depos

Dear Friends, Finally, the news we have been bursting to share! On Saturday 17th November, the day after arriving in Hoi An and the primary reason for such a swift departure from Phu Quoc, we viewed the most stunning villa. Still in the full swing of construction, we instantly fell in love with the antiquated architecture, location and feel of this beautiful building. Located in a quiet residential area on Cam Nam island, and only a 10 minute bike ride from the UNESCO Ancien

Dear Friends, This week or so has been a little hectic as we have moved house! Whilst we were sad to say goodbye to our indoor-outdoor home, we love our new place which has the essential third bedroom for visitors and practitioners who would like to utilise all of the villa bedrooms for their retreat guests! We no longer require an umbrella to get to the bedrooms though (as the house is all under one roof), which is a blessing. It is wonderful to know that we will be here fo

Dear Friends, We are thrilled to have received news that we have been granted three-year Temporary Residency Cards, which means that we no-longer need visas to enter Vietnam! The photographs are slightly interesting, as the lady we visited to have them taken (in the front room of her family home) spent a long time ‘improving’ our faces which has resulted in weirdly plastic looking versions of ourselves, but we have them, and are delighted! We’ve also collected our Visa debi

Dear Friends, We are delighted to have just completed a consultation with Jo Hendrickx of ‘Travel Without Plastic’ regarding our sourcing and plans for sustainability. Jo travels the world helping hotels and businesses to reduce waste and move towards a zero-plastic model. Jo has recommended that we apply for membership and eventually accreditation with Travelife – a GSTC recognised company that promotes worldwide sustainable tourism, with robust standards. She was fabulous

Dear Friends, This week has been one of joy and delight! Having met Rj Noble several times in Hong Kong at the Shakti Healing Circle for both group meditations and a one-to-one sound healing, I was privileged to complete a ‘bowl mastery’ and sound healing course with him in Doi Saket near Chiang Mai, Thailand. Everything in the universe is constantly vibrating. The smallest particles studied by Quantum Physics such as photons and quarks that make up every solid, liquid and

Welcome into 2019 everyone! We hope you had a lovely Christmas and New Year and enjoyed the time, however you spent it! This week, we have been mainly wondering how business was done in Vietnam before the introduction of Facebook! Since arriving in Hoi An, we have found: Our dream villa for the retreat (more news to follow soon!). The Help Expat Service, who helped us move into our home (which we also found on Facebook!). Our current home (mentioned above!) Hoi An Now – this

Dear Friends. It’s been another busy couple of weeks in Hoi An – weeks of consolidation, serendipitous occurrences and simple pleasures! Hannah found a message on Facebook offering a free photography morning for a group of 2-3 people, and after a little research, we decided to sign up as having been glued to our computers (still researching recipes and writing retreat materials!), thought it would be great to get out for the morning and learn something new. The evening befo

Dear Friends, As we approach the ‘Season of Good Will’, I’m struck by the question as to why so many of us perpetuate the ritual of Christmas when Christianity is not a part of our lives.  So many around the world, Christian and not, come together to celebrate at this time of year.  There is no judgement in this questioning, just curiosity. Is it the annual ‘excuse’ for family and friends to gather, that normal life just does not make time for?  Is it a time when all are allo