FREESTONE, CA, November 4, 2010—Osmosis Day Spa Sanctuary, the only venue in the U.S. to offer Japanese-style cedar enzyme bath treatments, has been named “America’s Most Spiritual Spa” by the prestigious magazine, Spirituality & Health.
Japanese garden expert Robert Ketchell from England will be visiting Osmosis next week. He will be conducting a special tour of the garden on Thursday morning July 22nd at 11am.
This is Roberts first visit to the garden since it was completed in 2003. Ironically, this is also the year of the Ox and it just so happens that the Osmosis garden is based on the Chinese parable of The Ox and The Ox Herder. On the tour you will see how this story, typically shown in wood block prints, is depicted with stone, plants and water features in the Osmosis meditation garden.
The magic of moon lit nights in Japanese gardens and festivals remain as one of my fondest memories from living in Japan. One of the most celebrated traditions of Asian gardens from centuries past was to hold festivals to honor significant points in the cycles of nature. A special spirit inhabits the air that is almost palpable. It has been most gratifying to recreate the experience here at Osmosis with our moon viewing ceremonies. The idea of having a Chinese harp concert came from the late Kit Nuesteader, a music aficionado who co-founded the Redwood Arts Council. She suggested that Weishan Liu was an extraordinary performer whose music would be a perfect fit for the atmosphere in our meditation garden. Kit could not have been more on target. From the moment Wei Shan stepped into the garden she recognized the deep intention of the garden and called it a temple. Her first concert at Osmosis was in 2005. She surprised us by bringing guitarist George Winston to accompany her. In addition to having grown up studying with the most revered teachers of the Chinese table harp in China, Wei Shan has created a learning center in the US that plays a key role in preserving the traditional art form of this instrument.
Just had to take a moment to share all the exciting activity taking place at Osmosis this week. The spa is closed for a major dress up and there are several teams of people working away to bring about quite the transformation.
The front lawn is being set up with permanent umbrella stands to provide shade for picnicking in anticipation of the many who will want to enjoy the sumptuous box lunches now available to our guests.
The small, rural village that is Freestone, CA packs a whole lot of fermentation into it’s little corner of Sonoma county. The population hovers around 100 residents, but the local businesses share a common theme… FERMENTATION! Osmosis Day Spa Santuary boasts the only authentic Cedar Enzyme Bath in North America. Wild Flour Bakery is the place to be for fresh organic breads and pastries. And, Freestone Vineyards completes the fermentation family with their amazing biodynamic wine.