I just returned from two Learning Vacations in the Galapagos Islands and Machu Picchu. This slide presentation should give you a tiny glimpse of what we experienced. All the pictures were taken by our guide Jonathan Green. Turn your speakers on so that you can listen to my commentary. Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: Machu Picchu, Galapagos, Learning Vacations, Adventure Travel, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

One of the wonderful elements about my job is that I get to travel to magical places like Machu Pichu. One of the not so wonderful elements is that when I return, I often find piles of work that have accumulated while I was gone. So here I am, finally making the time to post about PL&L’s most recent Learning Vacation – Spirit Quest.

It is really hard to describe with words alone my experience. As people have asked me the inevitable “How was it?” question, I find myself answering with words like “incredible”, “fantastic”, “top five,” etc. However, none of these words really capture the essence of this trip.

There is something very special about this place. People talk about the place having a special“energy.” Maybe that is it. I can’t tell you what it is exactly. But I can tell you that it is there. While I was there, I felt a sense of calmness and connectedness that I can’t recall ever feeling. The course content also provided me with an opportunity to learn several powerful lessons. I will be sharing some of these in upcoming posts.

Another thing that I believe played a big role in my experience, was knowing that I would be returning to Machu Pichu next June – we have another Learning Vacation already scheduled there. Because of this, I didn’t feel a sense that I had to “see everything” on this trip. I was content with taking my time exploring parts of the park and not visiting others – like the famous “Inca Bridge” - knowing that I would have another opportunity to visit the rest in the near future. This was a new experience altogether.

While I personally didn’t take any pictures, many of our course participants did. I have asked them to share them with me so I can share them with you. In the next few weeks I will be posting pictures that will give you an idea of how majestic this place is.

Technorati Tags: Machu Pichu, Peru, Learning Vacations, Xtraordinary Living

Tomorrow my partner Lindon and I will be heading to Machu Pichu to co-lead one of PL&L’s Learning Vacations. If you are a regular visitor to this blog, this means that I probably won’t be posting until my return on December 8.

Interesting how this past week I’ve run into 6 different people who have recently been to Machu Pichu. I never stop marveling at how the law of attraction is always working!

Talking to these people not only raised my level of excitement, but it also gave me a renewed appreciation for what my partner and I have created in our business. While these people were talking about a “trip of a lifetime” for me, it is the “second trip of a lifetime THIS YEAR” – you can read about the first one here.

Gary Wade, a long-time client and regular participant in our Learning Vacations, had a great quote that really captures how I feel: “So many unforgettable trips that I can’t remember them all!”

Another benefit of having started this blog, is that years from now I will have a place to go back to and remember all these “unforgettable”
experiences.

Technorati Tags: Machu Pichu, Law of Attraction, Learning Vacation, Xtraordinary Living

Many people asked me to share my pictures of this trip. Since I didn’t bring a camera, I had to wait until some of the participants shared their pictures with me. By the way, this is another value added of the PL&L Learning Vactions – you get many excellent pictures that otherwise you would have missed.

If you would like to see some of the things we saw, please check Rachael Cadden’s slide show. Rachael did a wonderful job of capturing the “feel” of the trip.

Technorati Tags: Portugal, Learning Vacations, Xtraordinary Living

I just returned from the Time for Intentions Learning Vacation in Portugal. The trip was everything I hoped it would be and more!

Portugal is a beautiful country with very friendly people. Our local guides, Vittor & Pedro, provided us with a great amount of insight and perspective about the Portuguese culture that added much depth to our experience.

Another wonderful thing we got to experience, was Portugal winning a couple of their Soccer World Cup matches. It seemed like a continuous week-long celebration was in place.

Our group consisted of 15 people who were eager to embrace the challenge and adventure of traveling through a country in a less than traditional manner. We covered almost 300 miles along the beautiful Costa Azul (Blue Coast.) For most of us, the journey began many months before when we started getting in biking shape for this trip. We had a wide range of biking experience – from 3 very accomplished riders who regularly ride 100-200 miles per week to some people who hadn’t been on a bike in over 20 years. We all had different goals and objectives as it related to the biking. The biking experience added a wonderful component to the course. There were many lessons learned and in the end, we all felt a wonderful sense of accomplishment.

I’m sure I will be sharing more about this trip in the near future. However I just wanted to post a quick update and get back into my blogging mode since it’s been a while since I posted.

Technorati Tags: Portugal, Learning Vacations, biking, Xtraordinary Living

As you may know, this coming June we will be holding one of our Learning Vacation’s in Portugal. We will be bike riding along the coast while doing some work on our Intentions. One of the elements that are great about my job is that not only do I get paid to have these wonderful experiences, but I also get paid to learn new things – like Road Biking.

Given that we will be riding a bike an average of 30-40 miles/day while in Portugal, I need to get in shape to be able to do this. So I went out and bought my first Road Bike. After years of wondering what it would be like to ride “one of those things,” I finally got to experience that. And what a thrill that was! It’s like going from driving a big truck to driving a Ferrari.

Those of you, who know me, know that I don’t particularly like to exercise. I do it so that I can enjoy the benefits that it brings me. However I constantly look for doing the least amount I can to take me there. I was thinking the same way about biking. After doing my research, I figured I would NEED to get on my bike a couple of times a week so that I could build my endurance and that once I got to where I could easily ride the 30-40 miles then I would stop. I was planning on checking that off my list. But much to my surprise, I have found an activity that is “good for me” and that I actually enjoy doing. So as of now, I’m really looking forward to getting in riding shape vs. HAVING to get in shape.

I’ve told people for years that the course starts the moment you register for it. It’s great to re-experience that. Our Learning Vacation’s are a great way to have new experiences and you never know where the journey to get there will take you. If you have never done a Learning Vacation, I invite you to do so. You can find out more about them by visiting our web site Learning Vacation Schedule.