I love getting spa treatments — that little window of time for relaxing and revitalizing is a godsend, whether it’s a heavenly massage, beautifying facial, a glam hair treatment, or a foot spa for your aching feet.
One of my recent memorable spa experiences is the Lulur Ken Dedes massage at Win’s Spa in Batam, Indonesia (we took a ferry from Singapore) — around 175,000 Rupiah (more or less SGD 30 or USD $20), which is a two-hour package inclusive of a traditional message, sauna, body scrub, and herbal soak. Apparently, “Ken Dedes” is a royal beauty treatment named after Princess Ken Dedes of the Singosari Empire of 18th century East Jaya, and is a complete package of beauty care, especially for brides (they didn’t tell us that at the spa, or maybe they tried to but they weren’t speaking much English).
I love Javanese massage –it’s based on thumb pressure: pushing and circling the muscles while the palm strokes simultaneously, releasing the knots and improving blood circulation. Then the body scrub (“lulur”) — it’s a fragrant paste of sandal wood, turmeric, groundnuts, rice and other scented woods. The golden scrub is rubbed onto the skin for exfoliation and left to dry, then rubbed off again, leaving the skin rosy and silky smooth. A fragrant herbal bath follows, and they dress you in this luxurious batik gown, and give you a cup of ginger tea while you sit for a certain procedure that can’t be posted here (hahaha — my book club gal pals know, though). It was a great spa experience, and I’d go back to Batam just for this. I wonder what kind of massage therapy schools the therapists attended!
I mention this because of a book I recently discovered, Wellness on the Islands: The Philippine Spa Experience by Elizabeth V. Reyes, photography by Luca Invernizzi Tettoni (also the team behind design coffeetable books such as Filipino style and The Tropical House: Cutting Edge Design), which I reviewed for Zen Health Magazine.
Wellness on the Islands is a gorgeous coffee table book that celebrates the Philippine spa culture, which is becoming a part of more and more lives of Filipinos with the steady growth of the wellness industry in the country.
It’s a book for spa buffs everywhere, delving into the beginnings of the Philippine spa experience and discussing popular massage techniques, Filipino touch therapy (hilot) as well as spa therapies and treatments (coconut, hot rocks, ventosa, etc.), and materials (coconut, sea weed, scrubs and wraps). It also delves into other paths to wellness — aromatherapy, spa cuisine (with recipes for spa food and drink!), tai chi, and qi gong.
The highlight of the book is the rundown of the best spa resorts and destinations in the Philippines, featuring over a dozen must-try spas from Luzon, Metro Manila, Visayas, and down to Mindanao. The catalog includes popular spas such as The Spa, Shangri-la’s Chi The Spa, Sonya’s Sensuous Spa, The Farm and Nurture Spa, down to more exotic paradise destinations, such as Tau Hai Villas, Thunderbird Resort, Handuraw Spa, Lazuli Spa, and Ylang Ylang Spa. There is a feature on each of the 18 spas in the line up, taking you on a tour of what you can experience in each establishment, from the ambiance to the services.
The book also contains a section on natural healing, with a pictorial glossary that identifies healing herbs and medicinal plants as well as their various uses and health benefits. There are also features on personalities in natural healing, honey and bee sting therapy, and the Legazpi organic market. There is also a guide to popular organic products (like VCO and moringa supplements) available in the local market and a directory of wellness spas in the country.
It’s a very beautiful book with lots of breathtaking photos and a compendium of useful, reader-friendly, feature-style articles that offers a relaxing experience even as you’re reading the book — you can almost smell the coconuts! A must-have for both spaddicts and spa neophytes, and even for travel buffs and trip planners, the book is guaranteed to make the reader relish the thought of checking out all the spas on the list — I know I definitely am!
Wellness on the Islands is published by Sketchbooks, Inc. and is available at Fully Booked Stores for P1699.
***
hardcover with dustjacket (on loan from Zen Health); 5/5 stars
Book #28 for 2010
[amazonify]::omakase::300:250[/amazonify]
ahhhh, spaaa. me like. it’s one of those indulgences that just need to be met, at least once in a while! keep that book away from me ;P
It sounds so wonderful!! You must have hated for it to end!! I’ve never had a spa treatment–no massage, treatments, nothing!! But I have had ginger tea :)
@Aloi- Agree! Nothing like a spa session to work out all the tension-induced kinks in the body, relieve stress and lift the flagging spirit!
@Jeannie- the massage was wonderful, I wanted to stay there and sleep!!! Hahahaha. Unfortunately, we had to catch the ferry back to Singapore :D
No spas yet, ever? I bet your first one will be some sort of epiphany :)
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