Here's our experience at the cleansing retreat.

3PM, Friday: We arrive at Blue Pearl Laguna Beach along with 10 other weekend attendees. It's a huge house with bungalow atop a winding hill, with levels upon levels of outdoor wooden stairways. At the center is a pool and hot tub.

4PM: We're offered freshly-made cold, unsweetened goji berry tea and hot coconut tea.

4:10: We gather for outdoor yoga on a patio surrounded by mountains. The yoga is slow but challenging.

We're told to forget about our watches, and we lose track of time. We're served Katresha's famous vegetable broth. It is incredibly delicious. (Get the recipe here.)

We gather for indoor yoga in a high-ceilinged room. We practice on Tibetan rugs covered in dragons and tigers. The fireplace crackles as we learn energy-building exercises, then slow movements that strengthen and heal the body. I can't stop smiling--the energy is so positive.

We're called for dinner. No juice fast: this is a scrumptious nut loaf (like meat loaf without meat) and salad. Everything tastes divine. We enjoy unlimited mint-anise tea afterward.

We learn energy exercises from Geo. We focus our minds and lift people with our fingertips. People gasp.

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Saturday, 6:45AM: Geo knocks at our door to wake us, and we gather for hot water with lemon (a liver cleanse). We assemble indoors for morning power yoga. It's slow and steady. After yoga, we enjoy breakfast (muesli and fruits soaked in almond milk) and then leave for a hike into the surrounding mountains. We carry water and a small snack: four slices of apple and one mandarin orange.

After two-and-a-half hours of hiking, we do a few circuits of weight training, then have lunch: delicious sushi-style rolls.

During our free time, we decide to go to the town to check out the charming shops. We successfully resist gelato (the guy offering free samples is stunned), but give in to sharing a veggie roll and miso soup at the wonderful Hapi Sushi.

We return to Blue Pearl; we each do 15 minutes in the 153-degree sauna.

We gather for fresh fruit purée drinks and then, evening yoga. Dinner is a stack of local veggies, eggs and cheese followed by tea. After dinner, we learn color meditation with crystals.

We fall asleep early.

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Sunday morning, we're awakened at 7:11AM. We gather for lemon water, then do morning yoga with Geo, then yoga with Katresha--two hours and 40 minutes in all. Finally, there's brunch: cream-like whipped goat milk yogurt with fruit and almond; one scrambled egg with a mini courgette and squash blossom, and finally 1/2 a slice of grain toast with jam and tea.

We do t'ai ch'i, and finally, a closing meditation with Geo.

We stop for gelato on the way home...and discover we no longer crave it.