Geyserville, CA

        If you look out the airplane window before arriving in San Francisco, you will see tan mountains with bushy, dark-green trees scattered throughout. I wasn't too fond of the brown feeling. Being from Upstate New York, I'm a green girl by nature, so I was hoping Geyserville would be more forest-like. Yet, when I rode the bus from San Fran up to Santa Rosa, the tan looked more like a gold, and the grass looked more like hair that the wind brushed into place. I began to gain a liken for the landscape.

        When I arrived at Isis Oasis, I was immediately impressed, especially because the birds would give me the "you look good" whistle. They perked up their feathers to attract me and said, "hello!" and "hi!"
        Melissa, one of the priestesses, introduced me to

my room in the lodge. The theme is for Goddess Wadjet, the sovereign cobra Goddess of magic, so the snakeskin design and earthy greens and greys are prevalent. I have a queen size bed with a canopy, which makes it feel even more royal.
        I feel just like a guest, except that I'll be living here for two months rather than two days, and I commit myself to at least twenty hours of work per week, which will mostly include being front of house at the restaurant, Mummy's Kitchen, which is open on the weekends and serves Egyptian and Asian cuisine - mmm.

        Outside the lodge is the pool and spa, which is wonderful for the hot days and then the cool nights. It's not humid out here and when the sun is gone, I actually need a sweatshirt and socks.

         The property can be walked in about fifteen minutes. It includes multiple animal sanctuaries, housing

endangered felines, like ocelots, and exotic birds, like colorful pheasants and peacocks. Also on the grounds is a vivarium with reptiles, like bearded dragons, and insects, such as hissing cockroaches and walking sticks. If I walk further, I find the community garden with lots of veggies, and all throughout the property are plum trees. I cook in the restaurant kitchen, located in the pavilion building. Inside the dining room are board games, tea, books, a piano, and lounge furniture.

        There is a small temple that is always open for meditation and prayer and a larger temple, which serves as a theater open for special events. This center was originally ceremonial grounds for the Pomo Indians, then became a Bahai school. Loreon then bought it to create an Egyptian-style bed and breakfast. The temple of Isis became a legally recognized church in 1996, but the spiritual side of it has only recently been replenished by the arrival of Reverend Aryshta six weeks ago. There isn't a set dogma, but instead a kind of freedom and independence in thought stemming from the ancient wisdom of Egypt. There is also a 600 year old fir tree that many can hang around in order to gain a bit of wisdom as well.

 

        There have been a few coincidences here. I was thinking about taking some aerial ribbon dancing classes near San Fran this summer, but Melissa told me she knows an instructor in Sonoma that may be able to do a workshop here. Also, I was very happy to meet Liz, a yogi. Before I left Jersey, I took five yoga classes and decided I'd create my own routine to continue. It's good to have someone around that knows her stuff so I can perfect my technique. Plus, the piano in the pavilion has an instruction booklet. I took a couple lessons in Jersey but had no piano. Now I can spend some more time with it. 

        I shadowed Liz, who does a lot of the housekeeping, so I saw the Nesu house, a building that big groups can rent out. Outside of the kitchen, I saw a clay structure. I thought it was a sweat lodge; it turns out to be a pizza oven. I love seeing all these things that are not of the norm, especially the decor. Everything is colorful, and one can find anything from stained glass to palm trees to animal prints.

        Isis Oasis begins the main road of shops and restaurants. Geyserville is a small tourist town in Sonoma's wine country, so the storefronts only stretch what would be two blocks in Jersey. I can walk to the end and find Dan and Liz's home; they keep chickens and sell free range eggs. Other than that, there are two delis (one on each end), a vintage shop (with bicycles!), a feed/farm supply store, a couple wineries, a fancy pizzeria, a coffee shop, and a hair salon. The buildings have that old west feel with a little bit of adobe. Zahir told me there is a river about a mile away and the closest state park is a bike or car ride. In front of Isis is a bus stop, which I wasn't expecting since we aren't in a city, but it turns out that Sonoma County has public transportation (win!).

        Overall, I've been having a lovely time relaxing, meeting the staff (about a dozen people), and helping out in various ways. This looks like another great vacation on my lifelong vacation. Leaving Jersey was a bit sad, since I met so many wonderful people, but the last week was full of celebration, and even when I arrived here, there was a fourth of July barbeque and fireworks to kick-start the new.