Back to nature

Why back to nature, you are outside quite often anyway? But tell me, do you often walk alone or do you walk through the forest chatting with your best friend? Maybe you like to plug in some nice music or a podcast and walk at high speed? 

Of course there is nothing wrong with that, only this way you miss a lot. I would like to give you three tips to experience nature in a completely different way.

Tip 1 - Swimming in nature

A blue pool at the hotel is of course fun entertainment, but in the context of 'back to nature' we look a little further. Do you have a beautiful nature reserve nearby where you can swim? What luck! Then dive into a cool puddle or splash in the sea and that really doesn't always have to be Scheveningen.

There is almost nothing better than a refreshing dip on a scorching summer day. Check here at Natuurmonumenten where you can safely swim in natural swimming water. The locations are in or near the nature reserves of Natuurmonumenten. Always check before departure whether the water is safe to swim in: www.zwemwater.nl

Tip 2 - Take a silent forest walk offline

Take a walk in the woods alone without your phone or with your girlfriend in silence. If you find this exciting, put your phone on airplane mode. Instead of a brisk walk, take a leisurely walk and look around you. Stand still and close your eyes. Because one of your senses is lost, you hear and smell better. Perhaps you smell the lovely meadow flowers or that wonderful smell of the Scots pine. Comparable to the smell of a fresh Christmas tree in your living room. The substance they excrete via the needles protects the tree against all kinds of bacteria, fungi and diseases. But it also works for us as an antibiotic and protects our airways. So breathing in forest air is very healthy.

Besides the fact that nature is good for us, there is also hard scientific evidence that the forest positively influences our physical and mental health, thus contributing to a healthier and happier life.

Tip 3 - Get completely relaxed in the forest

It may sound very strange, but in Japan people sometimes hug a tree every day. They call it Shinrin-yoku there, which literally means 'bathing in the atmosphere of a forest', in the West also translated as forest bathing. It is said that every tree has its own healing power and vibration frequency. By sitting, standing or even hugging a tree for 15 minutes, your body takes over this healing vibration.

Curious about what else the healing powers of trees can do for you? Experience what a whole day of bathing in the atmosphere of a forest can do for your entire system? Then feel welcome to come forest bathing in my own safely fenced forest of 2.3 hectares! It is said to feel like a relaxing day at the sauna!

Would you like to discover what else nature can do for you? 

Through various activities in the middle of the beautiful forests, such as meditations, forest baths, breathing sessions and rituals, you will experience nature and its elements (earth, fire, water and air) even more intensely. You will discover what the power of nature can do for you. At SaPeDi you will find various forest retreats .

Author - Samantha Pellicaan - Dik
Creative and great nature lover Samantha makes unique handmade illustrations on pruning wood and makes very inspiring products with it. Sustainable and very eco-friendly, because the pruning wood comes from her own forest. Check Sapedi.nl