It's hard to believe that this was published under 2 years ago . . .

As we think about the close of 2012, and look back on the year, it seems amazing that Sarah (on behalf of the Church Times) was here just over 2 years ago to prepare the article below. A LOT has happened since then!
Interestingly a good 95% of what was hoped for and communicated at the time to Sarah has actually happened - not a bad result.
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We were very happy to make the front page of the Church Times recently, and also have a feature article in their "retreats and holidays" supplement.

Text of the article is attached below:-

Church Times - 21st January 2011
The sunny side of the retreat (by Sarah Meyrick)

"IF YOUR idea of going on retreat involves a cold cell, a narrow bed, and institutional food, then LosOlivos, in southern Spain, may not be for you. If, on the other hand, warm sunshine, comfortable bedrooms, generous hospitality, and an intriguing programme appeals, then LosOlivos may be just the thing.

LosOlivos is a brand-new ecocentre, set in 20 acres of glorious national park in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, in Andalucia. It is the first Christian art-and-spirituality retreat centre in Spain, and it formally opened for business this month. LosOlivos is the initiative of the Revd Dani Munoz-Trivino, who left his post as Team Vicar of Marlow, in Buckinghamshire, a year ago, to set up the centre with his partner, Guy Wynter, who has a business back - ground. They spent four or five years researching and planning the project, and moved to Spain at the beginning of 2010. The past year has been spent meticulously restoring and fitting out the 200-year-old hacienda, and devising the retreat programme, which includes photography and flamenco, and stone-carving and cookery, as well as more traditionally themed weeks.

Course leaders include the Bishop of Chelmsford, the Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell, and John Bell, of the Iona Community. Visitors are welcome to sign up for a course or retreat (which generally run from Monday to Friday), or to come on an open-house basis and do their own thing — which might include walking, bird-watching, sightseeing, or taking part in the creative activities on offer. “One of the things that triggered this project”, Mr Munoz-Trivino says, “is the fact that both of us have been involved in art and spirituality projects in our churches in the UK, as part of the emerging church scene. “I’d been on retreat a couple of times to lovely places, but they were fairly basic. We found ourselves thinking, wouldn’t it be amazing if there was a really comfortable place people could go and have a more holistic experience, and explore their faith through creative courses.”

THEY turned to Spain for the perfect location — somewhere beautiful, reasonably accessible, and close to cities of historic, religious, and artistic interest. “When we found this place, it just somehow fulfilled all those criteria,” he says. Indeed: drive north for half an hour to reach Granada and the spectacular Alhambra Palace, or half an hour south for the Mediterranean. Córdoba, with its stunning Mezquita Catedral, is a little further, but still in reach; and so is Seville, at a push. Throw in a climate that offers 300 days of sunshine a year, and it is hard to imagine a better spot for a break. The vision was always to create somewhere carbon-neutral. All heating and power is generated from renewable energy sources: photovoltaic panels, windmills, and a biomass boiler. To minimise the impact, the centre takes only small groups (no more than 20 at a time), and works in partnership with Climate Stewards, part of the environmental charity ARocha, to offset the carbon generated by guests’ travel. Some of this has been made possible through EUsponsorship, in recognition that the project is both innovative and brings something of value to the community.

That relationship with the community is part of the vision. “It’s good to bring back life to this bit of the mountain. This place has been derelict for the past three or four years,” Mr Wynter says. They hope to attract both English and Spanish guests, and are working hard to get to know the local Christian communities.Last autumn, a handful of people were invited to spend 48 hours putting LosOlivos through its paces, ahead of the opening. My husband and I joined a small group of expatriates from nearby Anglican churches.

The experience began with a warm welcome and pre-dinner drinks and a fabulous Spanish dinner — wonderful food, it turns out, is a hallmark of the LosOlivos experience. Its hosts are determined that the centre should be as comfortable as a boutique hotel, but feel more like staying with friends. The nine rooms are simply furnished, but individually decorated and extremely comfortable. There is plenty of privacy, if you need it (and my husband did, having recently been very unwell). But there is also the chance to relax in common areas, such as the comfortable sofas set around a wood-burning stove — very welcome, as the temperature in the mountains in October suddenly plummets at dusk.

In progress outside are a quiet garden, an open-air chapel, and an art-tent workshop. For now, if you want peace and quiet, there are 20 acres of almond and olive orchards to lose yourself in. A few metres beyond the boundary lies one of the “grand routes” of Europe, and a walk up into the snow-capped Sierra Nevada. 

THE days are framed by morning and evening prayer in the chapel, and afternoons are designed to be quiet. Guests are expected to respect the rhythm of the centre, even if they are not taking part in a programme. For us, Messrs Munoz-Trivino and Wynter had put together a taster programme so that we could sample some of the activities from the courses on offer. The first activity was a taste from “Sea and Sierra”, a photographic workshop and walking week. Our photography tutor was Mr Wynter, who took us through some basics of composition before leading us into the mountains with our cameras. Later, we downloaded our pictures and compared notes. It became clear that not only had our skills improved, but we had gained something by considering the landscape so carefully. We had noticed more detail over the course of the morning: changes in the position of the moon, a whiff of cloud, the fall of a shadow. Later in the day, we spent some time getting to know San Juan de la Cruz (St John of the Cross), the mystic who is an inspiration for the project. San Juan de la Cruz — whose works hold an importance for the Spanish equivalent to Shakespeare for the English — spent an important part of his life in Andalucia, and it is where he completed one of his bestknown works, Dark Night of the Soul. There is a stunning statue of the saint in the central courtyard of the centre by the sculptor Daphne Tengbergen.

On this occasion, we had time only to hear a little about the saint and his works, and, under Mr Munoz-Trivino’s guidance, to contemplate one of his poems, which has a strong resonance of the Song of Songs. But June has been declared “San Juan de la Cruz month” at LosOlivos, and there are three four-day courses on offer then to explore his works through flamenco, through sculpture, or poetry as spirituality.

THE next day, our small group was set to work harvesting almonds. The land has been neglected in recent years, and will take some management, but for now the trees are laden with nuts. The process involves spreading nets beneath the trees, bashing the branches, and gathering up the nuts in baskets — a recipe for much hilarity. A two-fold purpose lay behind this: LosOlivos offers low-cost eco-weeks, harvesting olives (in February) and almonds (October); so we were piloting an activity; but we were also gathering a vital ingredient for lunch.

The final activity involved a cookery lesson: how to make an authentic Spanish paella for lunch. The almonds needed shelling, blanching, and peeling for the accompanying salad. We had already discovered that our tutor (Mr Munoz-Trivino) is an inspired cook, and the paella was delicious. It took a while, of courseall that choosing, chopping, and stirring is time-consuming — but in a soothing and satisfying way. There is something about cooking and sharing a meal together that is wonderfully restorative to the soul. As members of the group dispersed, they had a visible spring in their step. My husband felt stronger. In just 48 hours, we had all slowed down to the tempo of the centre. We had laughed a great deal, alongside the quieter times. “Our hope is that a lot of people can come and enjoy this place, and be refreshed and re-energised,” Mr Munoz-Trivino says. “We’ve got a brilliant team of course leaders from lots of different backgrounds, but the great thing about coming here is that it is not like going back to school when you come for a course. It’s about having afun time and enjoying it.”