A Spa Day

I figured I needed a spa date for the following reasons.

1. I've been a good girl lately and decided that I deserved a treat
2. Someone made me cry and I needed some pampering that will help me get over it

And the most important reason of all

3. My coupon (that was a gift last Christmas) for a body massage will soon expire in a few days so gotta use it asap. :D

I went to the spa with a change of clothes having learned a lesson from my past spa visits. Its my first time at this particular spa which is on the higher end of the price spectrum. So I was wondering how much I should tip without appearing cheap. But anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself.

First they asked me if I wanted to try the sauna, I answered yes. Kasama naman sa coupon so sulitin ko na. They gave me a towel and led me to a changing room. I went to take a shower and was led to the sauna room. The first thing that greeted me in the sauna room was a totally naked woman, lying down. In all my sauna visits, this was the first time I encounted someone "sauna-ing" themselves au naturel. Everybody always kept their towels on. That sauna scene from Sex and the City quickly flashed in my brain.

I busied myself with my towel dipped in iced water and covered my face with it. It was hard to breath in the heat without the towel covering your nose. I stayed in the sauna for a good 15 minutes feeling the toxins being sweated out from my body. It felt really good.

I stepped out of the sauna and suddenly realized that I forgot my swimsuit when I saw the jacuzzi. Pero apparently swimsuits are not needed and you try the jacuzzi buck naked also. I did not refuse to go in the onsens in Japan just to try it in Cebu so no thanks. I decided to try the steam room instead. The second time still felt like the first time I tried a steam room. Mura ko ug nasunugan. I could not breath in the midst of all that smoke steam. I stayed a total of 5 seconds. After another shower, I went back to the locker room and was given a robe and a pair of shorts to change to.

I was led to a private room and waited for my massuese to arrive. The bed had an opening to put your face in. (Some spas dont have this feature. You endure being almost suffocated by your pillow.) But it did not help much because the view from the opening was of the steel crossbar of the bed. The bowl of pebbles they put on the floor did nothing to improve the view. I decided to close my eyes instead.

The massuese was good and I enjoyed my massage. It was a bit painful at times but I prefer a fimer massage to a lighter one because it just tickles if its too soft. She made me bend over and touch my toes something I've never been able to do before. :D Too bad there was no time to just sleep for a while after the massage. They make you go out right away.

Another feature they have in this spa is that they make you sign a piece of paper stating how much you are going to tip the masseuse. Which is kind of a turn off since it forces you to tip her. But I suppose it keeps everyone honest since if you give it to the receptionists, they might not give the whole amount to the masseuse. Still its a bit crass for me. Other than that though, the whole experience was quite pleasant. I might come again, that's why I made sure to tip decently. :D They had a hot cup of salabat tea waiting for me after I finished changing.

My ultimate spa though would be Chi spa in Shangrila Mactan. I haven't tried it there yet, but I hope to do so someday. All the write-ups make it seem so wonderful and I intend to try it for myself. But first I have to save up for the 14k pesoses treatments, unless someone gives me another coupon. :D