Our story
We met in Dublin in 2015 when Linda was about to move to Ireland from her native Holland for a job. Three years, a marriage and a move to the country later, we find ourselves poised on the brink of an exciting new adventure. Opening up and running a workshop and retreat centre in the heart of Ireland’s Ancient East is a dream for both of us. We were so fortunate to find this hidden gem at the banks of the River Barrow and have never once looked back. Giving up jobs in education and changing our lifestyle was the best decision we ever made (that and getting married!) We look forward to sharing our passion with anyone who decides to spend some time here at Mulvarra House.
The evolution of Mulvarra House
Taking over an existing business in mid 2017 has proved to be a very rewarding challenge. We were not alone in this and received considerable help from Noreen, the previous owner, who had run Mulvarra House very successfully as a guesthouse for over 15 years. We opened our doors to our first guests within less than a week of moving in. It has been a very busy first year for us: we have continued to welcome guests to our home while work commenced on the Breathing Space. The opening of the Breathing Space studio represents the completion of the first phase of our long term plan to develop Mulvarra into a workshop and retreat centre. For more on our long term goals please keep reading.
Our Vision
Tim and Linda have created a wonderfully peaceful and relaxed environment at Mulvarra. When you come to stay at Mulvarra, you will get to experience the truly magical landscape which surrounds the ancient monastic site of St Mullins, the jewel of the River Barrow.
Anyone can come and stay with us to share a unique experience at Mulvarra. We welcome all of our guests with the same down to earth acceptance. It is important that we welcome a broad range of people in all stages of life rather than catering to one narrow demographic.
While we have worked hard to shape Mulvarra into a uniquely appealing venue, we have never forgotten our sense of humour. We seek to cultivate a lightness of touch in our approach, and laughter is never far away.
Tim
Yoga fell into my life with a Summer-long Eureka moment in 2007. I have been a grateful student ever since and after two long spells in India I am still just starting to find out how deep this rabbit hole goes. Along the way I have been blessed to have Sajeevan Arakkal Manoharan as a profoundly inspiring teacher who showed me how Yoga is how you approach your life and not just being able to do Asanas. Trained as a teacher in Classical Hatha Yoga at Yoga Vidya Gurukul I also trained as a Yoga Therapist. Integrating Pilates and Yoga within the rigorous framework of Hatha Yoga, my approach to Yoga flows from Patanjali’s second Yoga Sutra: ‘Yoga chitta vritti nirodhah’: Yoga is the Stilling of the Mind Waves.
linda
With a background in international education, I have been privileged to travel the world and meet the most amazing people. Even though we decided to make a life here in St Mullins, we still get the chance to meet people from all over the world and share our home and our passion with guests coming to Mulvarra House. Having organized numerous events in my previous jobs, I can’t wait to plan our own retreats and workshops.
Food has always been a source of joy to me. My favourite evenings are spent at the dinner table, sharing food with friends and family. A busy job never gave me the opportunity to dive into the world of preparing food, even though I have always loved cooking and baking. I believe that what you eat influences how you feel so experimenting with healthy, locally sourced ingredients is a real treat and I can’t wait to share it with you.