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SPACE TRAVEL russia: STAR CITY • 00000 @@ o l.Q..UTFITTERS o e The Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, trained its namesake for his only space mission, the first human orbit of Earth on April 12, 1961. Since then, every cosmonaut in the Russian space program has passed through its doors. Today, ordinary civilians are able to access this inner sanctum of space exploration. Through a variety of simulations "real people" are put through the same paces as the cosmonauts who still train there. You don't have to leave the ground to experience the weightlessness of a space walk-just plunge into the Hydrolab for an experiment in neutral buoyan- cy. Or, perfect your somersaults while the parabolic aerobatic maneuvers of a Zero Gravity Flight send you floating fo r thirty-second intervals. To satisfy more intellec- tual curiosities, the Soyuz Simulator trains you to pilot a space capsule during each phase of a real mission, and you can learn to steer by the stars with the Navigational Simulator. An Edge of Space flight in a MiG-25 catapults you high enough to see the curve of the Earth and the blackness of space. Space tourism is still in its infancy and an orbital trip to the International Space Station like those of Dennis Tito and Mark Shuttleworth, the world's first space tourists, is a luxury few can seriously contemplate. In case you're wondering, that would cost you about six months of your time and around $20 mil- lion. Still, if the Final Frontier sparks your interest, you can sample from a smor- gasbord of activities according to your time and monetary budgets that don't have to be galactic in proportion. -Karen James I YOGA I puerto rico: CULEBRA 00 00 e / ~: ... . .... ---.......... ---.....; ...... ----.... ----- Called the Spanish virgin island for its unspoiled. pure and breathtaking beaches. Culebra. sits just 20 miles east of the main island of Puerto Rico. While it is not the spiritual mecca that India is, nor is it as intense as a downtown Manhattan yoga studio. it is the perfect setting for a rejuve- nating yoga retreat. With an average temperature of 80 degrees Fahrenheit and a con- stant whisper of a breeze, you'll want to stay on the beach all day in savasana, a pose of total relaxation. Culebra is close enough to home to make it a convenient destination, but far enough away so that when you approach its tranquil turquoise waters and palm- fringed shores, you can feel your old life fade away and a new one come into view. Just seven miles long and four miles wide, Culebra is also home to tropical dry forest, man- groves and grasslands, large seabird nesting colonies and multiple species of sea turtles. The best way to soak up the calm spirit of the island is through a yoga retreat. Mornings should be spent meditating on the beach, or on your mat in 30 I ATLAS AEROSPACE, RUSSIA Based in Moscow, Atlas Aerospace has provided commercial cosmonaut training and space tourism since 1999. Atlas space tourism options include all of the usual techniques and simulations that Russian students training for careers as cosmonauts would be subject to, including survival training, for when your shuttle lands off-course. Custom trips can include: thirty seconds in a centrifuge, $690; Zero Gravity Flight, $3,999; Edge of Space Flight, $9,300; year-round; 7-095-797-1957, http://atlasaerospace_net/eng, SPACE ADVENTURES, USA Virginia-based Space Adventures, responsible for putting Tito and Shuttleworth in space, offers very high-end, customizable space programs in Star City. Their "Right Stuff Cosmonaut Training" package includes a little bit of everything. They also do shuttle launch tours at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida (and diving tours of the Titanic). The Right Stuff: 7 days; $35,980; custom trips can include: Zero Gravity Flight, $5,400. Edge of Space Flight. $12.595; year-round; 888-85-SPACE. www_spaceadventures.com. info@spaceadventures.com INCREDIBLE ADVENTURES, USA Incredible Adventures. based in Florida. has offered a variety of customizable adventures since 1993. and employs a full-time staff in Russia. If you prefer a package deal, their "Ultimate Space Week" will give you a taste of the training needed to be "space worthy." (This company also offers shark diving, and some bizarre fantasy camps, including body- guard training. and land warfare.) Ultimate Space Week: 7 days. $23.415; custom trips can include: Zero Gravity Flight. $5.500. Edge of Space Flight. $11.900; year-round; 800-644-7382. www.incredible- adventures_com. info@incredible-adventures_com 000 @@ asana practice (the practice of holding postures). Focusing won't be a problem, since there are few cell phones to distract you. Your greatest challenge will be to keep your mind from drifting to your probable midday snack of fresh mango or pineapple. Afternoons are best spent exploring Culebra or taking time to study yoga philosophy and yoga therapy. Continue your studies into the evening, or treasure the spectacular sunset. Sleep in a villa with an outdoor deck overlooking Culebra's serene harbor, or at the Flamenco Beach campground, where you can fall asleep to the sound of rolling waves. Mindfulness, or being completely focused or present in what you are doing at the moment, is one way to define yoga. Culebra offers more than one way to practice "mindfulness." You can also focus on swimming, snorkeling, diving, kayaking and sailing. While yoga excursions are becoming more popular worldwide, Culebra is the way it should be done. The continuous sunshine, and laid-back energy of the locals provide you with peaceful energy that will last you through the end of winter. With only a week of yoga to cleanse your body and soul, you might not have time to enjoy all of Culebra's tempting extracurricular activities, but you won't mind-the more time you devote to yoga, the more meaning there will be to your practice, your life and your trip! - Regan Clover OUTFITTER THE HARD & THE SOFT ASTANGA YOGA INSTITUTE, USA Renowned yoga teacher and author of Power Yoga, Beryl Bender Birch, who is based in New York, has led a weeklong Culebra trip for The Hard & The Soft Astanga Yoga Institute every March for the past six years. All levels are welcome. The trip can serve as a fifth of the 250-hour national teacher-training certification program in Patanjali's classical 8- limbed path of Astanga Yoga. One week; $1,895; maximum group size 40; March; 212-661-2895. www_power-yoga_com. yoga@power-yoga_com