The Bongo Treatment

After watching a handful of friends explore the full-body massage scene last week, I decided to jump in head-first. Why not, right? I've never had a massage before, so every second of the experience was new. As the six of us walked in, we were asked to remove our shoes and replace them with some "Hello, Kitty" sandals. Our shoes were left behind in the lobby.

We ventured upstairs to a room with four massage beds. Andrea, Traci, Christina, and I changed into the provided yellow pajamas and each grabbed a bed. Patrick and Chris used a game of "Rock, Paper, Scissors" to determine which of them would be massaged by the only female in the crew. Patrick won the best of three series, and Chris was so distraught by the loss that he decided against the whole massage idea. An uncomfortable foot massage yesterday from a man really put a bad taste in his mouth, so he chose to head home and hang out in the baby pool for the afternoon. (By the way, the boys bought a baby pool to keep on the roof of our building to sit in when they get really hot). Patrick got his massage in a separate room.

Two of the masseuses were blind. Apparently this is a sought-after characteristic in the Chinese massage industry. They even advertise as if it is a draw for clients!

The girls will tell you that I got the "bongo treatment." I was beaten up and down, elbowed, rammed, and smacked like a set of bongo drums... and it was AWESOME!! Aside from the obvious awkward beating noises coming from my massage table, the rub down was really rejuvenating. And what was the best part about the experience? The price, definitely. Fifty minutes of full-body massage for just 88RMB, or about $13. Now where can you find that in the States?

XOXO