So, you’ve had enough of the overrun beaches, the tiresome tourist traps, the frazzled feeling that comes from fitting too much “fun” into your precious little time off. What you really want this year, you’ve decided, is not recreation, but re-creation—extending the peace, serenity, and sense of well-being you feel after yoga class. What better way to do this than by going on a yoga retreat?

You ask around for some leads, get on the Web and visit a few sites, make some calls, and soon you’re inundated with a stack of brochures promising unique, life-transforming yoga adventures, each one more tantalizing than the last.

But then what? Even if this is not your first yoga retreat, choosing among the vast number of offerings can be a mini challenge in itself. How do you select the experience that’s right for you?

With a bit of common sense and the right resources, it’s not as hard as it might seem. Ask yourself the right questions, and you’ll soon determine the type of yoga retreat that works for you.

You’ll want to start by looking for ways to narrow down the field of options. For instance, if you’ve already found a teacher and yoga technique you like, you’re in good shape. Even if your teacher doesn’t offer yoga vacations, she should be able to recommend retreats with other teachers of the same style.

If you don’t have a teacher or technique that you are committed to—or if you simply want to try out other styles—your range of choices is much broader. So start with location. In the United States, you’ll find yoga retreats in more than 20 states, from the serene mountains of Colorado to the woodlands of New Hampshire, from the lavish beaches of Hawaii to the mystical silence of the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona. Choose the destination, and then check out what’s available in that area.

If you have a taste for more far-reaching adventures, set your sights on India, Bali, Nepal, Peru, or New Zealand—or on vacation staples like the Caribbean Islands, Costa Rica, and Europe.

If you do decide to travel to distant shores, take special care to weigh your travel options. Some overseas yoga retreat are  packages that include everything from airline tickets to local accommodations and prearranged sightseeing trips. Others, however, leave you completely on your own.

Described by many people as one of the most beautiful places on earth. From art to food, from stunning and varied countryside Italy has so much to offer. This is the country that brought us Slow Food, devoted to the promotion of fresh products and fine traditional, cooking.

With 44 sites, Italy has more Unesco World Heritage sites than any other country on earth. Its great cities of art, like Rome, Venice and Florence, have been attracting visitors for centuries. Milan is up and coming creating one of Europe’s  biggest and most modern trade fairs and is planning a major residential development, the CityLife complex, in the heart of the city. Venice, the city of romance, is possibly the city that has, in appearance, changed least down the decades but it has recently opened a sleek new bridge over the Grand Canal.

Alongside Italy’s art treasures, you’ll find plenty to keep you busy in the countryside. You can ski in the Alps and hike the Dolomites. But as much as all of this, a trip to Italy is about lapping up the lifestyle. Taking a moment with a coffee and people watching is all you need on a bright sunny afternoon.

Most of us want to live on a happy green planet. But often we act in ways that undermine our opportunity to enjoy life on this planet.

Some say that yoga teaches us to be better observers to notice the effect of our breath. With luck this may translates the planet into the ability to notice things that we didn’t think about before, like the effect of our mood on a friend or of our consumer habits on the planet.

Adi Carter used the power of observation to notice how much trash I was creating—and to create less by being mindful of what I consumed. Inspired by the actions of four fellow AcroYoga teachers, she challenged herself to collect her own trash. For three months, she  carried everything with her that I she normally throw away or recycle. Her rubbish would travel with her everywhere she went. It would function as a visual aid to educate people about sustainability issues in a fundraiser for the Cambodian Children’s Fund. Called the Mindfulness Challenge, with proceeds going to help Cambodian children living in extreme poverty in rubbish dumps. She had to think ahead about everything she bought and ate cooking meals the night before, packing them in reusable stainless steel containers.

Apparently the average Brit generates four pounds of rubbish a day. By being mindful, Adi created a fraction of that. In three months, she had less than 10 pounds of rubbish and half of that was junk mail, it fit a large shoulder bag. Adi enthused “The trash tour was a brilliant learning experience. It’s easy for trash to be out sight, out of mind’ once we throw it away. But when we are faced with the aftermath our consumption every day, we can’t help but notice how our actions affect the planet. noticed the effects on myself, too. Buying foods without packaging, like produce and bulk grains, meant that I was eating fresh foods, rich in prana (life force) and nutrients. By planning and cooking my own meals, I felt healthier and happier.”

How can you help?

To get foods minus the packaging.

shop at farmers’ markets (for fresh produce) and stores with bulk bins (for staples like flour, cereal, beans, and grains).

Bring your own plastic and canvas bags.

Call catalog companies and ask to be taken off their mailing lists.

Pay your bills electronically instead of using paper.

Avoid single-use paper products, Substitute hand towels for paper towels, hankies for tissues, cloth napkins for paper.

Carry your own stain- less steel or glass water bottle. Carry your food in stainless steel containers.

There’s a beauty about Cambodia that will take a hold and never let you go. Ascend to the realm of the gods at the mother of all temples, Angkor Wat, a spectacular fusion of symbolism, symmetry and spirituality. Visit Tuol Sleng and come face to face with the Khmer Rouge. Welcome to Cambodia a country where the future is waiting to be shaped.

Just as Angkor is more than its wat, so too is Cambodia more than its temples. The chaotic yet charismatic capital of Phnom Penh is a hub of political intrigue, economic vitality and intellectual debate. All too often overlooked by hit-and-run tourists ticking off Angkor on a regional tour, the revitalised city of Siem Reap is finally earning plaudits in its own right thanks to a gorgeous riverside location, a cultural renaissance, and a dining and drinking scene to rival the best in the region.

Tourism has brought many benefits to Cambodia: it provides opportunity and employment for a new generation of Khmers, has helped to spark a rebirth of the traditional arts, and has given the country a renewed sense of pride and optimism as it recovers from the dark decades of war and genocide. Cambodia is in a great position to benefit from the mistakes of other countries in the region and follow a sustainable road to tourism development. Can Cambodia be all things to all visitors? So far, so good, but a new era is about to begin and the beaches are the next battleground.

Estate agents specializing in energy efficient homes give house buyers more options. organic garden and a geothermal heating system, which uses the Earth’s hot water and steam to warm the inside of the house. More and more conservation-minded causes specializing in sustainably designed homes and promoting energy conservation are educating the general public to make better choices. Generally if people know that there is something they can do, they will try and do it.

Among the services that are offered are a free energy audit help finding a broker who can write an efficiency mortgage, end resources for green remodeling. According to a recent study by the Green Building council, homeowners and homebuyers are more inclined than ever to make green choices when they renovate or buy a home. Green homes are the bright spot in an otherwise gloomy housing market. The demand for homes with green features far exceeds the supply. People who are interested in green homes are now also being helped to find a home they love and then helped to make them green. Whether people want to reduce their energy bills, or just do what they think is right.

Here’s a couple of ideas to be even greener

• ENERGY-EFFICIENT MORTGAGE
This type of mortgage increases a buyer’s borrowing power by adding the estimated energy savings to the borrower’s income and incorporating the costs of energy improvements into the mortgage amount.

• GREENPOINT RATED
A rating of a new Or existing home’s green features by the independent nonprofit organization Build It Green.

• HERS INDEX
A home energy rating system. The lower the HERS Index, the more energy efficient the home is. The HERS score determines whether a home qualifies for an Energy Star certification.