4. October 2020 • Katja Laurien
The guest house
This human being is a guest house
Every morning a new arrival
A joy, a depression, a meanness -
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows
who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thoughts, the shame, the malice,
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13. September 2020 • Katja Laurien
Voilà, la Crème de la Crème de la Bretagne: Crozon Peninsula! To me, this peninsula was really the highlight in Brittany. Even though the peninsula is not very big, it offers a variety of natural landscapes, such as a stunning coastline, sandy dunes, dramatic cliffs, heavenly smelling pine forests and bright heather in different colours (when you come in the right season which we luckily did!). In between this wonderful landscape there are beautiful, small villages with cute stone houses.
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6. September 2020 • Katja Laurien
This is the final post of a series of posts about understanding and dealing with our defense mechanisms which can help us see through the illusions we create in life. Therefore I’d recommend you first read the first two posts before continuing with this one. The approach I’ve been describing in these series is based on the work of the Dutch psychologist Ingeborg Bosch and her book “Illusions - How to escape the labyrinth of destructive emotions”.
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9. August 2020 • Katja Laurien
Étretat is probably the tourist attraction in the Normandy, and that for a good reason. The view from the two famous cliffs, Falaise d’Amont and Falaise d’Aval, are indeed well worth a visit. Obviously, this is what thousands of other people think, especially when you go in the middle of the summer. But despite the crowds, I have to say, I enjoyed myself (and so did my mum who was my travel companion for this Tour de France).
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2. August 2020 • Katja Laurien
This is the second part of a series of posts which intend to help you seeing through life’s illusions. These posts are based on the work of the Dutch psychologist Ingeborg Bosch, who has developed the Past Reality Integration (PRI) Therapy which I personally find highly effective. In order to see through the illusion, you first have to start by understanding and recognizing your defense mechanisms which I described in the last post.
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26. July 2020 • Katja Laurien
In terms of nature Switzerland is definitely one of my favourite countries. It’s not only insanely beautiful, but it’s also pretty versatile. Mostly known for the magnificent alpine landscape, it has so much more to offer though. Such as for example the beautiful canyon Creux du Van near to Neuchâtel.
Before going I searched the internet for hiking trails. For some reason there was only one hiking trail I consistently kept finding, which is a round trip from Noiraigue to Le Soliat which leads alongside the canyon and seems to take about 4.
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5. July 2020 • Katja Laurien
The past months I’ve gone through an emotionally very turbulent period. This was not the first roller coaster I’d been through, but the fact that I couldn’t really pinpoint the problem, made it very confusing to me. I didn’t really understand what was going one with me, but I wisely decided to switch off my brain and just watch my thoughts, feelings and behaviour. Thanks to my dedicated meditation practice, it was not that difficult to stay in the observing mode.
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25. June 2020 • Katja Laurien
I had introduced the Lake Oeschinen (Oeschinensee) briefly in my post about the Jungfrau region, but at that time I had only managed to hike to the lake from Kandersteg and go back again. Since I liked this lake so much, I decided to go back to the lake to discover more of it. With its beautiful blue colour surrounded by a dramatic scenery, this lake is definitely one of my favourite mountain lakes in Switzerland.
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16. June 2020 • Katja Laurien
Are you looking for an easy, accessible hike with a great view over the lake of Thun? Then the round hike at Heiligenschwendi is a great option. The hike starts at an elevation of 1125 m at the Rehazentrum Heiligenschwendi and takes about 2-2.5 hours. The highest point is the view tower Blueme at 1392 m from where you can enjoy a 360 degree view over the area.
From the Rehazentrum start following the signs to Niesenbänkli.
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7. June 2020 • Katja Laurien
We’re more than just physical beings. Most of all we’re vibrational beings. We attract and repel things, people and situations into our lives according to the frequency we’re vibrating on, therefore our “vibrational hygiene” is of utmost importance. Maybe you don’t really believe in this wishy-washy idea of vibrations and frequencies, but I’m pretty sure you know at least one person who seems to magically attract negativity and who (surprise, surprise!
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