Our Costa Rica weeks will be led by Lucy Bremner or another International Yoga practioner in the Sunflower Retreats team;  Lucy is the co founder of Sunflower Retreats. and has been a holistic practitioner in the UK and worldwide since 1988. She specialises in a wide range of body work, therapies and energy and spiritual balancing treatments such as Chakra Balancing and Reiki.

Lucy was drawn to the practice of Hatha yoga and the yoga philosophy while studying holistic therapies professionally in London in 1989. In the late 80's and early 90's, then in her twenties, she travelled independently when at that time it was not common for women to travel alone, her journey took her to Nepal, India, Thailand, Malaysia,Indonesia, Bali, Australia, New Zealand, Sudan and the USA, where she broadened her studies of yoga, Eastern philosophy and the healing arts, including the American Indian tradition and philosophy.

Lucy is a qualified Holistic Therapist and international yoga teacher, accredited by the Friends of Yoga - a society and examination body for yoga in the UK and India which is recognised by Yoga Alliance©, as an international yoga school. Over the last twenty five years she has helped thousands of people with healing therapies and with yoga instruction, either through her yoga classes and treatments, or through all she has coordinated in the yoga and healing section at Sunflower Retreats' centre in Casperia. Lucy specialises in working with women’s issues and health and wellbeing and her interests also include Ayurveda, Soul food cooking, Shamanism, Astrology, art and the study of the sacred and divine feminine.

Lucy's group yoga classes are holistic and grounding, fusing the elements of Ying and Yang, yoga asanas and practices with some flow sequences and traditional asanas in order to bring balance (union) to the body, mind, emotions and spirit. She also teaches Water Yoga or Acqua Yoga where certain yoga asanas are practiced within the element of water; water being a supportive element for physical and emotional health and wellbeing.

Lucy loves to share and communicate the ancient knowledge of Western and Eastern traditions so to infuse our connection back to Mother earth, our body & self , this is done directly through the healing power of yoga and meditation and Yoga nidra, both in her classes and her treatments.

 She is a gentle teacher, encouraging and supportive in her teaching and holistic therapy work. 

A mother of two children born by natural childbirth methods, she also teaches pregnancy yoga and preparation for natural birth.

Empowering people is the most rewarding gift I can receive. With passion to help others find their magic within themselves- I've dedicated my teachings to others for the past four years.

My goal is to help people find movement- find their youth within their bodies. Having studied at Kripalu Schools of Yoga and Ayurveda, the outlook on yoga itself gave me a whole new meaning. Going deep into the studies of anatomy, our different levels within the body, and true yoga philosophy, it has became a way of living, rather than a practice of having.

I hope to spread as much knowledge as I can with others, exceeding their abilities to be here in the present moment; to be strong physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Practice with me and understand the underlying principles there is to yoga, rather than just the asana you are in.

My classes are fun, invigorating, renewing, and empowering. I hope you think so, too! 

As an enthusiastic student of yoga since my aunt first introduced it to me at age 17, I wanted to go deeper into my practice and so I went to Neyyar dam, Kerala, south of India on 2004, when I was 24, for a Sivananda Yoga teacher training course. The idea of the ashram was to mimic the way the old yogis who have lived with their guru, eating with him and spending their whole day with him. After practicing asanas, meditation, karma yoga, Ayurveda, philosophy, ceremonies, mantras, I was ready and excited to share my knowledge with everyone.

Through the years, and after becoming a mother to three beautiful children, I came to realize that yoga is a daily practice and manifests in all aspects of life. It is in everything we think, feel or act. It is though consciousness, understanding, self acceptance, ease, vitality, that we can reach high levels of frequency and live fully.

 Living in the jungles of Costa Rica over twelve years and creating a life in the pace of nature, have gotten me to keep the Sivananda teaching as a back round of classic hatha yoga in my classes and choose to teach more of a flowing Vinyasa sequencing.

I put a great emphasis on breathing methods and exercises, and use them as a meditative base of the practice.

Lisa Quish, certified through Yoga Alliance, has been a popular member of our teaching team for many years.

Lisa's mom taught yoga and she grew up in a household where it was part of life. In her teens she studied ballet and contemporary dance and when she later qualified as a yoga teacher it felt like all the pieces of the puzzle had come together. Yoga, like dance, is about movement of the body but also works to harness the breath creating a rhythm which allows the body to flow and open to grace. When the body is bright and healthy, the mind is clear and the spirit is full one cannot but engage with the world in a lighter way.

Lisa's style of teaching is Hatha flow with a strong foundation in correct body alignment. Lisa's style of teaching is Hatha flow with a strong foundation in correct body alignment. She continues to refine her own practice and teaching skills and has commenced a level two teacher training programme and regularly attends teaching workshops to expand her knowledge and bring her students the benefit of her learning.

As a busy business professional and yoga teacher Lisa brings a balance of reality, commitment and fun to her classes, ensuring that students get an equal amount of space and attention so they can discover the freedom and discipline that a well balanced and joyful practice brings.

Ben Rakidzija, born in Germany in 1980, is certified by the American Yoga Alliance (500 RYT). We welcome him to back to Casperia to lead our retreats in June.

Ben’s teaching experience in retreats and studios has taken him as far afield as Costa Rica, Germany, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Italy and Switzerland. His yoga style is open; he practises a mix of Hatha Yoga, Vinyasa Flow, Yin Yoga and QiGong; also involving exercises in Facial Training and Contact Improvisation. The aim of his practice is a stable body and a clear mind.

Ben also teaches Zazen, the meditation practice of Zen-Buddhism, the aim of which is merely sitting, free from thoughts, images or judgments.He has practised Zazen for ten years with various teachers, such as Ryushin Paul Haller, from the USA and Shodo Harada Roshi from Japan. 

To further expand his education, Ben visits many seminars and workshops; most recently in Facial Training, led by Dr. Schleip (Germany), and an intensive course in Contact Improvisation, by Martin Keogh (USA). Another part of Ben's life is as a graduate Master of Arts in Philosophy and History.

We welcome back Jessie Jeanne Stinnett, from the USA, to Sunflower Retreats to teach in August.

Jessie began practicing yoga as a supplement to her career as a professional dancer. Jessie is a Yoga Alliance Certified instructor through Frog Lotus International. She teaches classes and workshops regularly in London and the US, and is also pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Practice.

Jessie teaches dynamic Vinyasa Flow yoga classes which focus on building strength, stability, and flexibility. She draws on her experience as a dancer/somatic movement practitioner to develop classes which condition and increase awareness of the body and heal, restore, and express one’s inner landscape.

The use of metaphors and imagery are key methods of Jessie’s teaching style which serve the purpose of guiding her students to a deep, subjective understanding of how the techniques and philosophies underpinning the practice apply to them as individuals. She encourages depth of understanding over superficiality: quality versus quantity.

The pace of the class generally includes a quiet time of transition through Tapas (Sanskrit: heat/self discipline), building the internal fire, as the physicality of the practice intensifies to resolution in the final moments of relaxation, observation and reflection. Students are left feeling energized and thoughtful and encased by the energy that their very own body-mind cultivated as a glowing membrane of radiance.

We welcome Cesare Dipiaggi, from Italy, back to our Casperia team this year.

Cesare started practicing yoga assiduously in 2010, after realizing that he could play a key role in treating disorders of the bodies and the minds of people weary from years of intercontinental travel. His job as a flight attendant made him aware of the negative consequences of nights spent on shift work and of jet lag.

After making several trips to Asia, he started the discipline of Hatha yoga through a method created by Supreme Master Gabriella Cella; the first woman to bring the ancient teachings the Sivananda to Italy. After studying for more than forty years in various ashrams scattered across India, she developed the Yoga Ratna method where 'ratna' means 'the jewel' through which we uncover our true being.

Cesare teaches a path that winds through the study of the elements, the asanas that represent the many deities of the Hindu pantheon, and the 'scruti' - listening to their energy impression. Pranayama helps spread this new information in depth, through breathing, and meditation of loving kindness serves as an aid to clear our mind of all negative thoughts. 

Rosi Robertazzi, from Italy,  joins us again this year.

Rosi specializes in promoting wellness through yoga, art and nature. She has studied and practiced traditional Kung Fu, Tai Chi and Qi gong for twelve years and has been a trainer facilitating a range of classes such as yoga and bodywork, movement and voice improvisation, and themed art classes. 

Rosi currently teaches yoga, Partner Yoga, Thai Yoga and Chair Yoga in Sabina, Italy and has been teaching yoga integrated with Thai massage in a way intended to merge, in a harmonizing dance, the individual’s body, mind and spirit. This holistic experience brings the body and mind into the ideal conditions to reach the deeper dimensions of spirit. Her lessons are are designed in a lively, entertaining and creative way.