Join us for our Silent Spring retreat by the beautiful river Alva in Portugal, from 3rd to 10th May
To enter into spring, we invite you to one week of silent practice. By this, we do not only refer to sitting on your cushion, which proves to be quite a challenge for a lot of us. During this week, we will do silent movement meditations, walks, and other ritual practices. You will be guided through the day, work with clear scores for your meditations, and we allow for enough variation for your body to feel welcomed into the work, and for nature to support your practice.
Practicals
Arrival: on Monday, the 3rd of May, by 5pm
End of the week: Sunday, the 10th of May, after lunch, 2 pm.
Price/retreat: 250 euro.
Accommodation: 25 euros per night—sleeping in a tent or camper van, 15 euros per night. If you want a private room their is a B&B in the village (15 min walk) contact us for preferable rates.
Food: We prepare vegan food, and share the costs (100 euro each for the week)
Non-residential: If you want to stay off the premises, you can pay 250 euro for all the days of the retreat, or 50 euro per day, + 16 euro for food daily.
If non-residential, we ask you to come each time for a whole day, arriving at least 15 minutes prior to first meditation. To make it possible to work comfortably together in silence, we also ask you to come on the first day (Monday) at 6pm for the general introduction to the week.
Living and working together in silence brings the practice much closer to home. You are no longer the consumer of an offering, but you take part in creating it. You work on intimacy with people you share a space with for a whole week. This allows the work to gain in strength, as does the natural setting, and the privacy.
If you want to come, make sure to reserve a spot in time (maximum 8 people)…. If you’re coming from afar, we try to all arrive in Coimbra around the same time to make transport easier to organise.
To reserve, send an email to: silentretreatsportugal@gmail.com
A day of practice
- 7.00: first meditation and mantra
- 8.00: breakfast
- 9.30: movement, walking, sitting Meditation.
- 11.00: break
- 11:15: silent ritual practice
- 12.00: lunch (preparation)
- 14.00: Free movement, then sitting meditation
- 15.15: Break
- 15.30: Outside individual ritual meditation. (Optional)
- 16:45: sitting meditation
- 17.30: Silent walk/ somatic therapy/ teacher guidance
- 18.30: Light dinner
- 20.00: evening ceremony/last sitting.
The teachers
Robin Amanda
Robin Amanda is a mindfulness practitioner and teacher with deep roots in both personal contemplative experience and formal clinical training.
She completed a Master of Science (MSc) in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapies and Approaches at the University of Exeter, where the programme integrates theoretical understanding, clinical evidence, and the experiential practice of teaching mindfulness-based interventions, including Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction and other related approaches. The training encompasses mindfulness as informed by neuroscience, cognitive behavioural frameworks, and buddhist Psychology alongside extensive experiential practice and curriculum-based teaching.
In addition to academic training, Robin Amanda brings over 20 years of sustained personal mindfulness practice, including 10 years under the teacher Thich Nhat Hanh in the Plum Village tradition. This long-term engagement with Mindfulness informs a grounded, compassionate, and embodied teaching approach.
Robin Amanda facilitates silent retreats with a focus on holding a space for people to deepen their meditation practice, whatever tradition they come from. This is done in an environment where participants help in creating a temporary community which allows for integrating a spiritual practice into daily life. During these retreats, if need be, participants may also receive individual guidance on meditation practice, informed by clinical training, contemplative experience, and careful listening.
Alice
[BIO ALICE]
While meditation practices remain central, the facilitators additional areas of knowledge — including somatic approaches, artistic research, addiction awareness, hypnosis, and ritual practices — provide a supportive background that enriches the guidance offered.
This work is offered to those seeking a quiet, structured, and well-supported environment in which to explore their meditation practice in depth.
