Rancho La Puerta - Three Words That Spell Paradise

I must have the best teaching "gig" in North America - teaching photography classes at the heavenly Rancho La Puerta in Mexico. "The ranch" is like no other place I know - providing dessert beauty, perfect temperature, the aromas of herbs and flowers that wave past you constantly as you walk the grounds, freshly picked and prepared organic food served in a beautiful setting by friendly local people, beauty around every curve - where to begin? How about waking up at 5:30 am to meet a group of people for a 7 mile hike up Mt. Kuchumaa, stopping along an awe inspiring view of the valley below to eat breakfast, all to make it back to the ranch in time for a yoga class? Okay, to some of you that may not sound like paradise, but you'd be welcome to sleep in and just go straight to your delicious breakfast which includes homemade breads, cereals, jams and fresh fruits. Then you can lounge away the whole day with a book if you like, get a massage if you must! This year I brought my dear friend Karen Deans, artist and owner of woodentile.com - she not only offered great companionship but helped me present "Self Expression Through Photography". Even the room where we did the presentation was beautiful - the Oak Tree Pavilion (below).

On top of all that relaxing and eating, I met some really interesting people at the ranch, as always. Among them was the guest chef for that week, Kathleen Flinn, author of "The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry". Kat taught a wonderful hands-on cooking class that I was lucky to be able to get into, and we had quite a few post-dinner fun times together back at her "casita". Deborah Madison, chef and cookbook author, as well as environmental activist, was also at the ranch with her sister Jamie, and I was fortunate to sit between these ladies at dinner and hear some great stories!

While it was a great week, it was a difficult re-immersion back into the real world, as happy as I am in my world for the most part. I am already looking forward to going back June 11th, 2011! I'll be teaching digital photography classes again and would love to see some familiar faces. I even have a $250 gift certificate for a first time ranch goer.