We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dawn Feuerberg, Founder of Aurora Adventures, LLC, a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Dawn, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?
Many years ago in 1988, I took a big risk which shaped my life’s trajectory to travel the world and eventually share my access to unexplored authentic destinations with others. I was 21 and decided to circumnavigate the Contra-Sandinista war in Central America because my desire to seek the undiscovered and learn about indigenous cultures was greater than the fear of the unknown. As I sat in on the front porch talking to Hilda, a middle-aged woman in war-stricken Nicaragua, the whole construct of my life’s view was crumbling. My conversation with her and many other residents of Nicaragua who had been enduring a 17 year civiI war was heart-breaking, unbelievable and educational for a 21 year old from idyllic Southern California.
I had just finished studying Philology and Central American Politics for a year at the University of Costa Rica with the University of California’s Education Abroad Program. The 17 year Contra-Sandinista Civil War in Central America was heating up in Costa Rica’s border state, Nicaragua. The United States was denying that it had anything to do with the war and national investigations were just starting. Even though I informed my concerned friends and family that Costa Rica was a peaceful country, and that in the 1940’s the first democratic President Jose Figueras (whom I would later meet) abolished the army, it still didn’t seem to phase their judgement that I was crazy to go there.
Dawn in Cahuita, Costa Rica 1988
I did indeed have an incredible year in Costa Rica exploring its undiscovered virgin beaches and jungles, reaching my goal of becoming fluent in Spanish, completing one year of university classes, and having an immersive cultural experience. It was a third world paradise with, of course, the natural growing pains of studying and living abroad. It was a unique time to be in Costa Rica; North American cars and goods were scarce and today’s bustling city of San Jose was more like a small town.
Winners of the 2nd annual Coco Beach Triathlon, 1988
Being one of the few international students from the United States brought about some unique opportunities. I was asked to train with the Costa Rican Olympic track team, I met the Abraham Lincoln of Costa Rica (President Jose Figueras,) I coached gymnastics, surfed uncrowded breaks in remote locations, trained with top athletes, and won the women’s division of the 2nd annual Coco Beach Triathlon. However, nearing the end of my year abroad there was one thing still missing that I had truly hoped to experience: I yearned to connect with Pre-hispanic indigenous cultures more than anything else.
While living in Costa Rica, I naively discovered that the Mayans from the north and the Incas from the south had not settled in Costa Rica. The closest archeological ruins and intact living indigenous cultures were in the countries to the north, so at the end of my second semester, I began to make plans to head north by land on my own to Honduras to the ancient ruins of Copan, and then on to Guatemala to connect with the Maya Quiche. The only problem was that the only way to get to Honduras was either through El Salvador or Nicaragua, and both were considered unsafe—especially for a woman.
Crossing the border into Nicaragua, 1988
So after doing some research, I found a fellow North-American student named Ed, who was also planning to travel north by land to Guatemala at the end of the term. I proposed we travel together. Assuming he might not want a travel companion on his solo adventure, I suggested we would spend our time apart during the day and that in the evenings we would meet for dinner and share our experiences. He agreed and we got to planning our route. It became clear that Nicaragua was actually safer than the gang violence in El Salvador but we would have to plan carefully to avoid the hot war zones. We had one month to travel through Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala. I bought the only backpack I could find from the surplus store, just a little larger than a knapsack, and threw in my small point-and-shoot camera and a few clothes. A few days later we set off by land to the Costa Rican-Nicaraguan border.
My uncontrollable urge to explore the indigenous cultures in Central America led me to Hilda’s front porch in decimated Managua, the capital city of Nicaragua. When she asked me where I was from, I was a bit nervous to say that I was from the United States of America, because it became apparent that the U.S. army was indeed funding the civil war by running arms across the border from Honduras to the Contras in Nicaragua. When I told her that I was “norte-americana,” I asked if that upset her. She said, “No te preocupes”—don’t worry. She told me she was happy I was there to get the true story out into the world, explaining that though she wasn’t in agreement with her own government’s policies, she was aware that if I was there in her country, I also must not be in agreement with my government’s policies. “We are one and the same,” she told me.
Circumnavigating the war in Nicaragua near the town of Masaya
Hilda began to tell me a heart-wrenching story of how the Contras one day raided the movie theater, where her 17 year-old son and his girlfriend were watching a movie. They abducted her son and forced him into the war. Her husband was so angry that he joined the Frente Sandinista Liberación Nacional -the FSLN to fight against the Contras. She still did not know the fate of her husband or son. I sat beside her astonished to the core that fathers and sons were battling against each other. Hearing myriad horror stories of the war, observing the harsh living conditions, and facing the difficult truth that the headlines back home were lies was a hard reality to face. The journey through Nicaragua shifted my worldview, helped me grow up, altered my perspective on politics, taught me to question the media, and most importantly to be more empathetic.
A top the Hieroglyphic stair way of Copán Ruins, Honduras 1988
Ed and I did make it to the Nicaraguan-Honduran border, and on to the magnificent Mayan Copan ancient ruins that were under excavation. It was spectacular to be the only non-anthropologists there with the freedom to explore the intricacies of the ancient past. And our journey on to Guatemala with its vibrant intact indigenous cultures, humble villages, beautiful artistry, and grandiose ruins was another eye-opening adventure of connection with the local people and empathy for the unjust treatment of the indigenous Maya by their own government. This off the beaten path adventure gave me the deep belief that authentically traveling abroad has the transformative power to create a more compassionate world and that following your hearts desire leads to your truest life’s path.
Borobudur Buddhist Temple, Java, Indonesia 1990
I returned home from Central America, finished my bachelor’s degree and applied for graduate school; nevertheless, I had a burning passion to explore the rest of the world. So within the year in 1990 I was off again, but this time to travel solo through New Zealand Australia, and Southeast Asia. Seeking once again the unknown, the indigenous, the aboriginal, and the undiscovered. This led me to one of the seven wonders of the world: the 9th century Buddhist temple of Borobudur, and the magical ritualistic Hindu culture of the island of Bali. This began my journey into exploring the terrain within the heart’s mind and soul through Buddhism, Hinduism, meditation, and spiritual yoga philosophy. This inward dive of the soul has been the thread that has kept me resilient and grounded for the last 30 years. Along the way, I studied with masters of the Himalayan tradition, Siberian shaman, highly-regarded scholars of spiritual yoga philosophy and meditation masters, who offered their blessings for me to teach. I earned certifications in yoga, mindfulness meditation, yoga philosophy, and Sanskrit. Whereas my journey through Central America spurred my life-long enthusiasm of seeking the unchartered out in the world, the journey through Southeast Asia encouraged my life-long passion of exploring the inner landscape of the soul. And both of these paths have shaped my business today.
We appreciate you sharing this eye-opening journey and how it influenced your life and business today. We’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Dawn in her hometown of Morro Bay, Ca.
My name is Dawn Feuerberg and I am the owner and founder of Aurora Adventures, LLC, a wellness-inspired travel and experience company that curates soulfully integrated travel and mindfulness experiences that rejuvenate, educate and transform. We connect groups of friends, families, like-minded people, honeymooners, solo travelers and leaders in the community to indigenous cultures, wildlife, mindful travel and women’s travel in Oaxaca, Baja, Peru and Africa. We also offer 1 hour to one day wellness experiences that include, but not limited to, chakra meditation, breath-work, kriya yoga, full and new moon ceremonies. I live on the Central Coast of California and I am a lifelong surfer, a mother of two adult daughters, a nature enthusiast, a meditation guide, a yoga philosophy instructor, and a retired Spanish professor of 25 years.
Dawn leading Oaxaca Modern & Ancient Adventure, 2021
I have dedicated most of my life to offering alternative, independent and unconventional travel experiences. I myself am inspired when I observe my clients have those transformative moments of awe and wonderment. Those moments bridge cross-cultural differences, open the heart, and can ultimately create positive change for a better world. In 1995 I led my first tailor-made one month adventure to Cuernavaca and Oaxaca, Mexico, and a few years later became the director of several Community College study abroad programs. In 2008, I founded my first custom tour business called Viva Study Abroad, LLC that mainly offered family-friendly Spanish Language Tours in Oaxaca, Mexico. For 8 years I led a multi-generational 2 week Spanish Language and Cultural Study Abroad program for a bilingual elementary school in San Luis Obispo County.
Dawn far left leading the Family Friendly Spanish Study Abroad Tour in 2013
Over time my tour offerings expanded to offer more wellness-focused experiences that connect people to the wisdom of the whales in Baja, shamans and indigenous cultures in Oaxaca and Peru, and yoga, meditation and surf retreats. I eventually rebranded my business in 2017 to Aurora Adventures to better reflect these diverse wellness inspired adventures. We offer 2 ways to travel with us. One is a Self-Guided curated adventures where you choose the dates, the focus, and the pace, and we take care of all the logistics. The other is a guided founder led insider adventures where I personally lead the adventures for an all inclusive intimate journey.
Sunrise Yoga and National Geographic guide lecture at Monte Alban Pyramids in Oaxaca.
Baja Whale & Pre-hispanic Cave Adventure 2022
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Sacred Baja Whale Adventure in 2017
If you are alive today and living with moments of love and connectedness, you are resilient. I am 56 years old, and with all the joy and triumphs, there have been challenges of survival and resilience. My life has included life-threatening illnesses, divorce, autoimmune disorders, toxic work situations and loss. In 2017, after many years of wanting to leave a negative work environment, I finally took a leap of faith by quitting my 25 year teaching career to take my part-time travel business to a full-time venture. This was the hardest decision of my life because I was a single mom with two daughters, and the steady income and retirement in my lifelong career was valuable to me. However, following my love of offering wellness inspired authentic travel and becoming a full-time entrepreneur has been the best decision in my life. I’ve never looked back not even when travel was completely shut-down 3 years later in 2020.
Herbal, Healing Arts & Cultural Tour 2015
The ability to shift with unexpected change is now part of my part of my arsenal of resiliency tools. For me the key to being resilient is returning again and again to connectedness, wholeness and, ultimately, love. Living from a place of heart-centered awareness allows us to tap into our own innate wisdom to make discerning choices for our lives, and to continue to follow our hearts truest desires even in uncertain times. I am honored to help others do the same, to find the courage and resilience to move beyond their comfort zone and explore the world in off-the beaten path places.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
Post Pandemic shutdown in 2020, I officially opened our experience division called Aurora Meditations, Yoga and Rituals that offers meditation, breath-work, kriya yoga, full moon ceremony, shamanic rituals, and yoga philosophy classes. This pivot was necessary to keep operations open but it was also vulnerable because I began to share my personal and more private healing practices to a larger audience. However, it has been the most rewarding chapter of my life to help others up-level their lives by reducing anxiety and fear, and giving them the tools to live more vital, loving, and resilient lives. In my life, great unexpected change has been the impetus for growth and renewal. Today I am grateful I have combined my outward and inward journeys to create meaningful travel adventures and wellness experiences that change lives for the better. In 2025 we are expanding to Europe, India and South Africa, and are excited about our new partnerships and the ever-expanding possibilities.
New Years meditation & Rituals workshop, Jan. 2024
Dawn hosting a Summer Solstice Full Moon Ceremony, June 2024
Contact Info:
- Website: www.auroraadventures.us
- Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/auroraadventures.us & https://www.instagram.com/surfingsadhana/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auroraadventures.us
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dawn-feuerberg-00643914/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMC1o3_BKDR2z9VIQf_rxTw
Image Credits
Lela Brodie, Carly Kaiser, Dawn Feuerberg,