Thumbs of Steel

It takes 150 hours of training to become a masseuse in Thailand. I am convinced that 148 of those hours are spent refining the fine art of putting 500 lbs of pressure through the thumb (or elbow, or knee, or whatever) of a 92 lb Thai woman.

I had a full hour herbal massage last night, and even with the thumbs of steel prying into every muscle tissue, it was a very relaxing experience. For the herbal massage, a hot herbal compress is pressed onto the skin, warming up the muscles. While the masseuse did her massage work, she set the compress on my back or stomach, where it would strangely get hotter not cooler. Just about when I was at the point where I couldn't take the heat, she would move it a few inches. That seems to be a common trait of masseuses world-wide - knowing when you are just at the verge of pain, then backing off.

This was actually my second massage in Bangkok. My first night I tried out the much talked about foot massage. For those of you who are Amazing Race watchers, the Chinese version was featured this last season and had the racers writhing in pain. (But it is supposed to feel good later.) This was surprising mild, and again, very relaxing. It was a perfect ending to a day of walking around temples and exploring the city.

Oh, and the price of these little slices of bliss? 120 baht for the foot massage (1/2 hour), and 280 baht for the herbal massage. That works out to about $4 and $8. This could spoil a girl...