Massage therapy...kind of

ok....I know this is a little bit of an odd topic for my blog....but I feel it's a story that must be shared.  A few weeks ago (before our vacation), the hubby had booked a massage appointment for me (bonus points for that one!).  It had been months (full of much packing and unpacking of boxes) since my last "professional" massage and I had knots on top of knots in my back!

I have to admit I was slightly leery as I approached Sabai Thai Massage....maybe I had watched too many movies with seedy massage parlors....but necessity pulled me in the door.  I should also mention that the aforementioned hubby had visited this same establishment a few times himself, so it had better be legit!

Looks ok, right?

When I walked in, I was greeted by a polite receptionist and was asked to have a seat.  My massage therapist arrived shortly thereafter and off we went.   Now, for those of you who are familiar with massage therapy, you know that the therapist leaves you in the room to disrobe (except for the undies) and you crawl under a sheet or blanket and wait for her (or him) to return.   However, this massage table had no such sheet or blanket....just an averaged sized towel...so I assumed I was to attempt to cover up with that.  Apparently I was mistaken.  I quickly learned that I was to lie on TOP of the towel and then the therapist would cover me up after she came in the room.  Note to self...check your modesty at the door!

No covers???

I need to advise that if you are looking for a calm, gentle, relaxing massage...this is NOT the place for you!  Calling this a deep tissue massage was an understatement.  There were several moments when I thought the tiny little massage therapist had stopped to rest and an NFL linebacker had taken over!  If the top of the walls weren't open to the adjoining room, I would have considered crying, or yelling out in pain, more than a few times.  However, I refrained...not wanting to alarm the other clients.

Sound proofing the rooms would be a good investment!

That being said, this was the type of massage I wanted (or at least it's what I THOUGHT I wanted) so I really can't complain.   The last highlight of my torture....uh.. I mean massage....was when the therapist asked me to sit up on the table.  "This is a bit odd", I said to myself.  Then I thought that perhaps my 90 minutes of bliss was over....wrong again!  The tiny woman actually got on top of the table so she could better dig her elbows into my back and shoulders.   That whole configuration was certainly unexpected.  At this point you might be wondering,  "Didn't your husband give you a heads up about this unexpected deviation from the typical 'American' massage??"   Nope.  I guess he wanted me to be surprised!  Sharing the massage table with the therapist?  Yup....definitely surprised.

Although I was thrown a couple of curve balls during my first visit to Sabai Thai Massage, I was actually very pleased with the whole experience.  The therapist found, and conquered, months worth of knots and stress that had been largely ignored.   In addition, the prices are EXTREMELY reasonable....about $70 for a 90 minute deep tissue massage!   I will definitely go back....just call me a glutton for punishment!