Yogis flock to Virginia to celebrate summer solstice

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Saturday is the first day of summer, the “Summer Solstice” and the longest day of the year. To celebrate, some yogis were out on the golf course that morning for a morning stretch.

It’s a tradition in the yoga community to celebrate the summer solstice by doing 108 sun salutations.

“They’re doing it all over the country, in the studios where a lot of us are trying to do it outside just to celebrate summer,” says Suzie Mills, owner of Honest Soul Yoga Studio in Alexandria, Va.

Mills invited her community and patrons of her yoga studio to do a salute to the sun early Saturday morning. Yogis do 108 sun salutations to honor the changing of the seasons; according to Yoga Journal, 108 is a special number in the world of yoga.

“I’m not really much of a yogi,” says Ashley Scott. “I’ve only been doing this for a couple months.”

Though Scott understands the significance of summer solstice, she visited the Hilltop Golf Course and did sun salutations because “it just seemed like a fun event to try out on the golf course.”

“This is actually my first time here,” Tim Lockhart says. “Sometimes I like to do something crazy. It’s going to hurt since I’m not flexible.”

Chris Sokolowski admits she’s never done yoga on the golf course: “This would be a first. To most of us, it’s OK that summer is starting. It’s the longest day, [so] let’s start it in a good way.”

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