CASA AMRITA
Casa Amrita is a renewed colonial house on one and a half hectares of land in the beautiful flowing hills of northern Abruzzo. The property has a stunning panorama with in the background the Grand Sasso mountain peaks. The garden hosts a variety of abundant fruit trees.
The house has 4 comfortable guest rooms with space for a maximum of 10 guests. Two of the read more
rooms connect directly to a sunny balcony with breathtaking views.There is a cozy communal living room with wood stove, internet access and a small spiritual library. Downstairs is a large reception area, a comfortable yoga hall with mats, pillows and blankets and a communal breakfast and dining room. The garden contains a salt water swimming pool and has places for both sun and shade seekers. We like to prepare our vegetarian meals with local, fresh products as much as possible and are setting up our own vegetable garden in order to provide more products directly of our own land.
FOUNDERS
Casa Amrita is founded by Marco Bandera (Prem Sudeva) from Italy and Ingrid Svasti Goudsmit from Holland, an enthusiastic and welcoming couple. Both Marco and Ingrid have been living, studying and working in different parts of the world for many years, deepening their practice and understanding in yoga, meditation, music and general well-being. After meeting during their read more
studies in India in 2014, Marco and Ingrid have been longing to share and integrate their experiences back in Europe. A place to welcome guests from around the world in a space of tranquillity, rejuvenation and beauty. A place where people can reconnect with themselves, offering the possibility of yoga, meditation, massage and healthy vegetarian food. This longing, in 2017, brought them back to Marco’s country of birth, Italy. In the region of Abruzzo, the heart of Italy, they found the home to realise their dream
VISION
The vision for Casa Amrita is a place for guests to come and return to the beauty of the present moment. A place to reconnect, relax and unwind through yoga, meditation, massage, nature, healthy food and the simple beauty of the surroundings. A place to feel at home and at ease, within and with others.
INGRID GOUDSMIT (PREM SVASTI)
Ingrid is an experienced yoga and meditation teacher as well as a massage therapist. She was born and raised in Holland. From a young age she had an interest in Buddhism and her first direct encounter with meditation was with her Zen teacher in Holland. After completing her university studies in creative communications in 2004, Ingrid decided to travel to Asia where she came in read more
contact with Yoga and other forms of meditation and spirituality. During her first intensive yoga training in Thailand she noticed how strong injuries and pains left over from a car accident 7 years before, started to diminish drastically and even disappear. This, along with the eye opening yogic philosophy, gave Ingrid the inspiration to train as a yoga and meditation teacher in order to share this ancient wisdom with others.
Since then Ingrid has taken two different in depth yoga teacher trainings, both IYF and RYS, 500 hours, in classical hatha yoga, with focus on the Advaita Vedanta and Tantric traditions. She has continued to deepen her practice and studies with a variety of masters as well as teaching for teacher trainings, helping others to become teachers.
As a support to the yoga and meditation, in 2007 Ingrid started training in different forms of massage in order to help people deepen into relaxation, release and healing. She also discovered the transformative power of mantras and has been part of several kirtan (devotional mantra music) groups as a musician.
For more than 15 years Ingrid has been able to guide and support people from all walks of life concerning their physical, mental and emotional well-being, working with groups as well as individual clients. She offers classical hatha yoga and meditation with a strong base in mindfulness, along with professional massage, mantra and kirtan.
Ingrid feels deeply grateful to her teachers on this journey, especially Sahajananda (Hridaya Yoga), Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev (Isha Yoga) and Sri Prem Baba (Sachcha lineage), for their guidance and inspiration, and she is looking forward to embody and share the gifts she has received at Casa Amrita.
MARCO BANDERA (PREM SUDEVA)
Marco is a professional musician and a delightful chef. He was born and raised in northern Italy, Trentino. Growing up in this mountain region has given him a true love for the outdoors and high peaks. As a teenager he started his musical journey on the drum kit. This was the beginning of a lifelong in-depth study into percussion and rhythm. In 2004 Marco left Italy to live in Spain, read more
where he continued to deepen and expand his music skills in a variety of traditions. His main instrument became the tabla (Indian drums) which brought him to study in India. After some years his focus for being in India widened to yoga and meditation when he met his master Sri Prem Baba. Here his love for music and his longing for inner development came together.
During the same years Marco developed his passion for cooking by working in a variety of restaurants among which a vegetarian restaurant in Oslo, Norway. He is happy to bring this wonderful skill with him to Casa Amrita.
In 2014 Marco bought his first handpan which became his favorite instrument. Since then he has performed in many occasions in different countries with a variety of kirtan bands and music ensembles as well as street performances and events. He continues to enrich people’s lives with the celestial and captivating sounds of the handpan. He is looking forward to implement music and sounds as a part of the nurturing environment of Casa Amrita.
