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SwellWomen Day Retreat
Debbie Blyth
Reprinted from Maui Weekly: May 12th-18th, 2005
It was a Hawaiian Islands day vacation that left me feeling totally blissful-which is exactly what SwellWomen’s founder Me-Shell Barnas, my hostess for the day, had intended.
Barnas has been running week-long SwellWomen Hawaiian Islands surf and yoga vacations for more than a year. And now she is offering day spas for those who don’t have the time, or the money, for the full seven-day Hawaiian vacation experience.
I joined other SwellWomen guests for a morning’s surf session at Thousand Peaks, with Maui Surfer Girls instructors Dustin, Kelly and Barnas herself.
As most of the others had already had their first taste of the surf the previous day, they paddled into the ocean with Dustin and Kelly. That left me and fellow “day girl” Holly to have a surf session with Barnas.
First up was a pep talk on safety and rules of the waves. Then we got our first experience riding a board- on the sand! Practicing “pop-ups” on dry lands seemed easy, but I doubted that would be the case in the water.
As we paddled out with Barnas toward the white water of the surf, I was a little apprehensive. It didn’t help when my first attempt saw me nosediving and falling off my board. But as instructed by Barnas, I did my “beauty pageant wave”- covering my head with one arm and putting the other arm out of the water to check that my board wasn’t directly above me- and popped out with a relieved smile and a determination not to give up.
It wasn’t long before Barnas’ soothing manner calmed my nerves and I was ready to try my Hawaiian Islands day vacation surf experience once again.
I didn’t have to wait long, and with a cry of “go, go, go” from Barnas, I paddled hard and caught the wave. The acceleration was exhilarating, and gave me the boost to try standing up. It may not have been the most graceful of “pop-ups” but at least I did it and rode the wave for a good few hundred yards. What a thrill!
Next, it was Hawaiian Islands vacation day guest Holly’s turn. With far more grace and poise, she caught a wave, popped up and was riding like a seasoned surfer. Her achievement was accompanied by much cheering from the other Hawaiian Islands vacation guests around us.
After almost two hours of paddling, more paddling, standing up, and plenty of falling, it was time to head back to the beach for a much-needed yoga class at SwellWomen headquarters.
Our yoga teacher, Laura, soon had us stretching out and relaxing our tired muscles, and building up even more of an appetite for lunch.
Later, as we dove into a fresh veggie salad and homemade curry, discussion turned to the morning’s surf session with the Hawaiian Island Vacation guests.
“I’ve tried surfing before-in Washington where I’m from-but that was the very first time I’ve managed to stand up,” said a delighted Holly.
Helena, who’s from Great Britain, was just as enthralled with the whole Hawaiian Islands vacation experience, saying, “ I’m loving it, and it had helped me become much more aware of the power of the ocean.”
And Annie from San Francisco has not only fallen in love with surfing but Maui itself. “It’s my first time here and I think it’s amazing,” she said.
While the weeklong Hawaiian Island vacation guests come from all over, Barnas emphasizes that the idea of the day spa is for locals to experience a mini-vacation on Maui. They can come and do all the events and get away from their day-to day routine. Where else can you go on Maui to have a break from it all and have great fun at the same time?”
Hawaiian Island vacation day spas are available throughout the year. To find out more information call SwellWomen at 800.399.MAUI or on the Web: www.swellwomen.com.
Contact: 800.399.MAUI or visit www.swellwomen.com
