Bless this beautiful family who holds this space with such grace & loving kindness! Thank You! I will cherish my time with you forever and cannot wait for my return
Culture & Family
OUR CULTURE & FAMILY
A life in which one wakes up to a purple sunrise, silent meditation and yoga practice, and ends the day dancing with loved ones to Greek melodies, ouzo in hand, overlooking a blood moon lit bay.
CULTURE
The essence of Kea Retreat can be heard in the traditional Greek rebetiko music, when the bouzouki makes one hop and leap to the sky with ecstasy.
It is seen in the glistening silver leaves of the olive grove and blood-moon beams that rise mid bay and bring one’s eyes to tears. Smelt in the lavender blossoms that soothe the soul when the breeze passes through the valley.
DISCOVERING KEA
We discovered Kea almost 3 decades ago on a family vacation with our two boys. Coming from an urban background, we suddenly found ourselves warped back in time at the old Greek monastery, Kastriani. Without knowing a word in Greek, they immediately felt at home and fell in love with the abundant simplicity the locals and land reverberated. And, after a few days looking out at the infinite blue horizon and nights gazing at the star-filled sky, they decided to shift their life’s trajectory and move to live near nature.
Jonathan
Jonathan is the eldest of two sons, and the more meditative “spiritually-inclined” one in the family.
Due to his parent’s decision to move to New Zealand, connect with nature, and seek deeper purpose in life, Jonathan grew up in a spiritually abundant and experiential environment that heavily influenced who he is today.
This passion took form during his bachelor's degree at NYU’s Gallatin school for individualized studies, where Yoni researched and wrote a thesis about the effects of narratives and ideology on the development of self/identity and the power of meditation and psychedelics to reconnect with our true/natural essence.
Uri
Uri is the youngest of the two boys, and one could say he is our “in-house” artist.
From a very young age Uri found a passion in art, beginning with painting and music and expanding into product design and culinary arts.
His involvement in the family’s restaurant business over the years, including opening and managing a number of the group's concepts, eventually led him to pick up his knife and enter the kitchen, delving into the world of cooking / culinary arts.
Throughout the past 7 years, Uri completed extensive studies in farm-to-table culinary arts at the International Culinary Center in NYC and has spent time working at a number of the world’s most acclaimed restaurants – Noma, Ikoyi, Amass, Estela, and Blue Hill.