clear as a cloud…
maura and I went for the pamper day at grove house, in shanballymore. a quick swim, 20 minutes in the steam room, an exfoliating scrub, lounging in the conservatory and looking out at the rose gardens, an indian head massage, topped off with a lovely lunch complete with a glass of white wine and apple crumble. The scrub was nice – my skin felt incredibly smooth afterwards. But the head massage – wow. My whole body relaxed and my mind was cleared. all the static and junk floating around in there was flushed out. I don’t know what it is – perhaps a combination of reiki and traditional massage techniques, or maybe just the fact that it is nice to have someone rub your temples gently.
while I was sitting in the conservatory waiting for the head massage, I was reading an article (which seemed more like a story) about two girls who travelled paris looking for turkish baths (also known as a hamam). One girl was european, a kind of meditarranean princess type who had olive skin and the ability to wear high heels on a new england campus with dignity. The other was american, who enjoyed the fun and adventure the european girl sought out. The story followed these two girls to several different baths – parisian, turkish, and old baths converted into clubs. An interesting meta-experience to read about spas at the spa, but it made me think that perhaps the turks really knew how to bathe.
Giant steam rooms made of marble, with a central raised section with a fire beneath the stone – to keep it heated. Beautiful lamps and artwork on the walls. masseurs and gommage ladies to scrub and knead and lather. the experience was described as “being spoonfed chocolate icecream as an adult”. Pleasure in taking a basic necessity and doing it in the best possible way. at the end of the story, the american girl decided to tour around as many baths as she could, to decide on the best way to build their own hamam in manhattan. the only obstacle? the queasiness of americans and they way they view their bodies. The way they expect spas to be clinical and medicinal, not sociable and cleansing. I think there might be some truth to that…
