By now, all of the participants will have arrived safely home. The last days of the Y-TOP Gathering 2017 were busy; full of movement and surprises (both positive and less positive ones). With this final summary of how the last days were, we would like to give the participants a last remembrance of our goodbyes, and to give those who weren’t with us a last impression of this Gathering. It sure was quite a journey. The next day the group of Y-Toppians slowly thinned throughout

By now, all of the participants will have arrived safely home. The last days of the Y-TOP Gathering 2017 were busy; full of movement and surprises (both positive and less positive ones). With this final summary of how the last days were, we would like to give the participants a last remembrance of our goodbyes, and to give those who weren’t with us a last impression of this Gathering. It sure was quite a journey. As many probably know by now, the last days of this Y-TOP were

By now, all of the participants will have arrived safely home. The last days of the Y-TOP Gathering 2017 were busy; full of movement and surprises (both positive and less positive ones). With this final summary of how the last days were, we would like to give the participants a last remembrance of our goodbyes, and to give those who weren’t with us a last impression of this Gathering. It sure was quite a journey. The hostel, which had been our home for the previous 9 days, wa

#Naturalhumancommunication

This day was completely dedicated to giving back to Portugal, its nature, and the communities around us. From the early morning, we spread ourselves all over the area of Serra da Estrela, and the villages in surrounding areas to do many different kinds of volunteering. Below, some of the Y-Toppians shared their experience. Nun-Nursery Mission: going to a local nunnery, where the nuns run a day care for young children, and work in the garden on their own produce of peaches, n

Today was the day of going to the lake, where the promises of pristine mountains in the distance and crystal clear waters became reality. The previous days' contents had been heavy and intense and nothing was more welcome than to simply go to the lake, no deep thinking or far-sought quests; to swim, play games, and relax. We built our own little Y-TOP Haven on the bank of the lake with plenty of shade, food, and several interesting Open Mind Passions. Still, the Portuguese su

The previous days were spent focusing inward, on communication with and within oneself. Acknowledging that there will perhaps never be a point where we know ourselves through and through, we have formed a good base. Now, it is time to turn our vision outwards: towards communication with each other. In many ways, the day’s program intended on exploring and improving connections between the Y-Toppians. The day started with a simple gesture of kindness: everyone was encouraged t

Day 5 - Our friends Regal & Essence kindly responded to our invitation; flying in from England to facilitate a days YTOP session on Language, Meditation and Mediation sprinkled with movement and a dose of astrology for good measure. Starting with an impromptu musical orchestra, a tuning in with the band on hand; summoned an atmosphere to begin proceedings with a series of curio's: The language of tone, the language of body, the language of walks and much more besides... "Wher

Within the realms of Natural Human Communication (the theme of this Y-TOP Gathering), there are many areas to be explored. We are automatically practicing all kinds of communication just by being here, being together and alone, and in nature. But, in order to grasp this theme as deep and fully as possible, there is a need to break it down into steps. After all, how can we be able to communicate with the world or even with people closely surrounding us, when we don’t know how

Waking up at 6:00 to the fresh air of Serra da Estrela was a special feeling, and we were excited to start the hiking day. Coming from different countries with diverse landscapes, walking down and up the rocky mountain was a new experience for some of us, that demanded the best of our efforts. The first stop we made was dedicated for stretching and tuning in, and later we reached a lake where we enjoyed the cold water. It took us a while to reach the end of the trail, but gro