London's top 10 massage!!

Read the following reviews from a newspapers sometime ago and I thought it sound quite reliable. however, i lost the newspaper clippings!

Now that i finally found it again, I copied the whole London massage reviews here for fear of losing it again!!!

My new resolution in life is to try all these massages once in my life, maybe except those offered my males, and scored less than 8/10.

Some are damn ex...............I got to save for the MLD one...





THE EYERMAN TECHNIQUE

Ken Eyerman is a bit of a legend; he’s been working at Natureworks and Skyros for longer than he’d care to remember, and has been pummelling dancers back into shape for 25 years. I took my first massage course with him (since then, I have been on half a dozen other courses, having become hooked while at university; I love giving massages to friends and family); so including Ken was essential.

He combines deep-tissue work with knowledge of yoga and Feldenkrais Method, a technique to help you retrain your body into a better posture. Eyerman’s work is basically sourcing the problems within the body, trying to rebalance muscles, realign posture and teach clients how to look after themselves better.

In my hour-long session, fully clothed, in a quiet, pleasant therapy room, Ken worked at freeing my stuck neck, ribs and hips, with a variety of stretches and manipulations. Some of it was ouchy, most of it I felt was doing me good.

I came away knowing my body much better – my breathing was shallow, my left hip was weaker than the left, and my spine needed more work to align it – and feeling I’d been to see an expert.

Clients: mainly dancers and actors, but manic office workers, too.

Contact: Ken Eyerman (keneyerman@onetel.net) and at Natureworks, 16 Balderton Street, W1, 020 7629 2927; £65 per hour,

Rating: 9/10


LA STONE

The still deeply trendy therapy of the past 10 years, La Stone puts massage into a new context. Hot and cold stones are used by the therapists either to heat up your muscles or encourage excretion of waste products. It sounds flaky, but this is a clever treatment.

I went to the dark, stone-floored room (lit by lots of ceiling lights like tiny stars) at the Berkeley Health Club and saw Tracey Cross, who has a mere four years’ experience but is very competent and confident. I was asked to lie down on a line of hot stones (covered with towels), which, surprisingly wasn’t uncomfortable. The stones warmed up my back prior to being rubbed. Then I had my limbs worked on with the stones.

It was very slow, very meditative and deeply effective. The music wasn’t great (New Agey), but the whole experience was remarkably satisfying.

“A stone massage stroke is the equivalent of six hand strokes,” said Tracey. “They warm up the muscles, so fewer strokes are needed to achieve the same effect.” At the end ice-cold stones were used on the face and back. I left feeling relaxed and energised.

Clients: well-heeled travellers, spa flies.

Contact: The Berkeley Health Club and Spa, The Berkeley, Wilton Place, SW1, 020 7201 1699; a day pass to the gym area is £65 while treatment costs £90 per 75 minutes.

Rating: 8/10.


LOMI LOMI

This Hawaiian massage claims to heal you in strange and deep ways. “You should feel loved and nurtured in a lomi lomi massage,” said therapist Rosalie Samet. Oh dear. I’m not very good at being loved and nurtured by a total stranger and being totally naked, too. This massage features flowing strokes across the body, but I insisted on leaving my knickers on as I lay on the table in the big therapy room (more down-to-earth clinic than luxury spa).

The Hawaiian music was a bit weird, the oily massage was very quick and fluid, and Rosalie used a lot of forearm contact which felt strong but good. I couldn’t see where the deep-healing came from, or the Hawaiianness of it all, but it was fine as a massage went. Teresa Hale, owner of the Hale Clinic, rates it as her favourite massage.

Clients: self-help junkies, office workers, those odd souls who want a fully nude massage.

Contact: Rosalie Samet on 07974 083 432 and at the Hale Clinic, 7 Park Crescent, W1, 0845 009 4171, £85 per 90 minutes.

Rating: 6/10.


REMEDIAL MASSAGE

Clare Maxwell-Hudson is the queen of massage. She wrote the first popular book on the subject, and has been teaching for 25 years. I went along to see this warm and charismatic guru at her school. I had a back massage in her treatment room, lying on a heated couch, swathed in warm towels, while she worked on various bits of my bod. No music this time.

Clare began a classical back massage; using her own range of blended oils, she used firm sweeping strokes, focusing on the tight spots in my back and kneading out the knotty muscles around the shoulders. “I love trying to make someone feel better,” said Clare. I left feeling soothed and nurtured, knowing I’d been to see a remarkable healing talent. Top class.

Clients: devoted fan base, including high-fliers from showbiz, royalty and politics – Clare as flown abroad to see some stars.

Contact: Clare (she charges from £70 an hour) at the Clare Maxwell-Hudson School of Massage, Lower Ground Floor, 20 Enford Street, W1, 020 7724 7198; she normally refers to her team of therapists.

Rating: 9/10.


MANUAL LYMPH DRAINAGE

This technique helps not just those wanting some relaxation, but also anyone with a serious illness. Manual lymph drainage is a very gentle massage, focusing on improving the flow within the lymphatic system, which can be affected by serious illnesses and surgery; MLD works to restore circulation and thus boost immunity and reduce tissue swelling.

I saw Anne Vadgama at a massage training school, which wasn’t ideal, as the room was large and people could be heard outside (no music either).

However, she put me at my ease and I had a very soothing experience, with work being done to my neck, stomach and face. “It’s also got a great reputation for making you look younger,” said Anne. I left disorientated and spaced out, but perfectly calm.

Clients: people avoiding facelifts (MLD promotes circulation and rejuvenation of tissues) and recovering from them (swelling can be a problem); cancer patients (oedema, the swelling of tissues, is often a side effect of chemotherapy); anyone suffering from oedema in general.

Contact: Anne Vadgama: 020 8650 5677; home visits £65 per hour.

Rating: 8/10.


CHAVUTTI-THAI

Talented body worker Soliman Laurence does this new hybrid therapy combining half an hour of deep stretches (forget your modesty, he has your legs up around your ears) with half an hour of Indian rope massage – the one where they hang from a rope and use their feet on your pressure points. I was sceptical, but I really couldn’t fault it. Soliman stretched the parts I didn’t think he would.

Thai massage is a bit like being yoga’d – the therapist stretches out your limbs and twists you around in some challenging poses. And being soaked in olive oil and trodden on for the Chavutti (foot) element wasn’t so bad either. The first bit is clothed, the second, down to undies. Julian Clary, among others, is a fan. At the end it felt as though I had come out of a strenuous gym work-out. The treatment room was pleasant enough.

Clients: yoga fans; horse-riding fanatics (must be those hip stretches), and stressed Harley Street dentists.

Contact: Soliman Lawrence at The Joshi Clinic, 57 Wimpole Street, W1, 020 7487 5456, www.thejoshiclinic.com; £85 per hour.

Rating: 8/10.



DELANTA (ETHIOPIAN MASSAGE)

Liz McLarnon (from Atomic Kitten) and Jayne Middlemiss are said to be fans. Masseuse Yerous Sissaye-Raya is a natural bodyworkers, Ethiopian style, who has combined her ethnic knowledge with modern Swedish massage. In her cosy salon room in Clerkenwell, I lay down on the couch, ready to be impressed, but oh dear, this was just too hard; I felt as if I was being poked around.

The therapist worked with oil over my back, using deep friction movements, which created far too much heat for me. I said a couple of times she was working too hard but it didn’t make much difference. And the head massage of just poking did nothing for me. Maybe fingers of steel appeal to others.

Clients: lawyers and City types wanting an unforgiving massage – those knots will be ironed out, like it or not ...

Contact: Yerous Sissaye-Raya works from the Anita Cox Salon, 62 Britton Street, EC1, 020 7251 8220; £50 an hour.

Rating: 4/10.


ANAMAI (THAI MASSAGE)

This new therapy is a royal Thai massage using Ytsara-brand oils and herbal pillows, so it’s more spa-like than Zen-like. I went to see Corrinne Jenner, who has devised this therapy, and surprisingly it was pretty good. I had my feet washed, lay unclothed to undies under towels while various bits were massaged firmly and knowledgeably with oils; and had wonderfully comforting hot Thai herbal pillows placed on my spine and stomach to release tension. Nice smells, OK music (oriental); I couldn’t really fault it as a relaxing, regenerating experience.

Clients: Trendy types and anyone exhausted or rundown.

Contact: Corrinne Jenner, who works from Suwaay Beauty Retrat, 4a Thackeray Street, W8, 020 7376 0127, www.suwaay.com; £65 for 90 minutes.

Rating: 7/10.


AROMATHERAPY

This lovely soothing massage with essential oils is a real girly treat. And where to try it but Micheline Arcier Aromatherapy, a venue started by one of the goddesses of aromatherapy who devised her own oils and signature treatments more than 25 years ago.

Essential oils are reputed to affect mood, emotions and some physical complaints; I asked top therapist Elizabeth Leer, to sort out my buzzy head. She used camomile in the overall body massage, which was done down to undies as usual.

There was a sequence of moves, which were special to the Arcier brand – it wasn’t wildly different from other massages, but felt good, including firm, slow strokes across the back; shoulders, legs and arms.

She then put sandalwood oil on my face, and finished with a strawberry facemask and frankincense in my hair. The room was white, clean and quiet. Elizabeth was very competent, very attentive, very good.

Clients: Bridget Joneses, busy young mums, plus ladies who lunch.

Contact: Micheline Arcier Aromatherapy, 7 William Street, SW1, 020 7235 3545; £55 an hour, www.michelinearcier.com.

Rating: 8/10.


ESALEN

Coming from the very kooky Esalen Institute in California, this massage is rare in the UK. Therapist Mariora Goschen describes Esalen as a fusion of deep-tissue massage, Feldenkrais Method (postural rebalancing), Rolfing (deep, painful transformative massage) and the Trager Approach (bodywork using rocking and continuous movement to release tension).

I went along to an attractive room at the Hale Clinic and asked her to fix my weak left hip and tight shoulders. I was told to lie on a table undressed to undies. There was no music, and plenty of chat. First she did a slow, long oil massage, then adjusted the length of my legs by manipulating muscles around my hips, and release shoulder tension with her hands.

“Esalen is about problem-solving the body, while blissing you out,” said Mariora. At the end I felt aware of my breathing patterns, and despite my misgivings, I judged it a first-rate massage. Recommended for people who want insight into their body-tension patterns.

Clients: high-powered creative types.

Contact: Mariora Goschen on 020 7355 4796 and at the Hale Clinic, W1, 0845 009 4171; £50 an hour.

Rating: 9/10.

Got the content from This is London !

Heading for a good rub-head and shoulder massage

I am gonna go for a good shoulder massage.
Yes, good old seated shoulder massage. My neck and shoulder have been stiff after sitting here for so many hours.

I find that it is kind of unfair to these guys at Ko Hong. They have so far been consistently good (although I heard that the standards do varies sometimes). What is a neck and shoulder rub is like, friends have asked me. I know most gals are too shy to try it, since the masseur for this kind of rub is usually a guy. If you have tried it (and have stones for shoulder muscles like I do), you would have understood and appreciated why it is usually guys.

For one, the strength that they need to apply to "melt" my "stones" (this is how I refer to my stiff and bulging muscles) is no joke. My usual therapist, a small sized forty something "uncle", even have to stand on stools and and apply the weight of his body on his elbow to clear the knots I have. As you would have imagined, this could be painful sometimes, especially when the knots are worked on, and certain acupoints are hit. I sometimes refer to these 20-minute sessions "buying a torture".

Other than the neck and shoulder, they also massage the hands, crack the fingers and sometimes your back and lower back as well if they noticed that the stiffness originates from there. The session is usually not really painful, at times quite comfortable. At times, the discomfort and pain sometimes persist for a couple of hours after the massage. It all depends on how "stiff" you are when you go there.

But why do i go back to it?

It effectively clears my tension headache. I still remember a lecture a long time ago which talked about different types of headache. One type stands out to me- tension headache.

Tension headache is the type that some people complains can't be tamed by paracetamol or NSAIDS. Not suprised. The root of the problem is tense muscles, particularly those two long stips of muscles that are connected from the shoulder, passing through the back of the neck and almost circling the skull.

When I go for a massage, I asked for more attention on these culprits. And the massage have served me well as a headache prevention.

So, have I justified my S$200/10 session rubs? Ok. i am heading for a good rub before the stiffness build up further!

Foot massage in London

What is the cost of doing a massage in London?? The massage addict in me plays this question over and over again. Finally I decided to google for it!

Foot massage
For a foot massage in North London, I have to fork out £35 for a 1.5 hour session. That works out to about £23/hour or 1600B! Argh! It is 4-6 times the cost of doing it in Bangkok! And North London is not exactly " central". At this rate, I got to think many times before getting a good rub for my soles.

And now it scares me very much too to find out from another website that you just need to attend one day of lesson from 11 am to 5 pm and you get to be "CERTIFIED" and " registered" with some prestigious sounding associations. I am also quite curious with the fact that the "Thai foot massage" offered seems to cover hands as well in London.

Aromatherapy, Thai massage Tui Na, etc?
Hmm.. most websites are pretty "discrete" about it. Got to call for more information. However I read somewhere that it is easily £40-$100 per hour. While I question how "authentic" these massages are, I know that I do not have to worry much because at this rate, I will definitely be deprived of it.

Place for a good "clean" massage in London?
As the term used in massages seems to vary from place place, I think I better learn the correct terms. Indian Foot massage and Thai Foot massage is DIFFERENT! Would not want to end up in some places which offer "extra services".

Learnt two interesting things today

I learnt two interesting things today while reading other's blogs.

Pulau Weh is a paradise which survived Tsunami. For a person who had just been to Perhentian Island to scream that it is beautiful, it is must be beautiful!

Massage... while the Thai have their unique "body massage", the Indians have their "foot massage". Yeah, one use the body to massage you while the other uses the foot! Better double check what you are asking for!

(I have always wondered why the Thais dun call their "foot massage" as "finger massage" or "stick massage". Yeah, they use a wooden stick to press the acupoint!)

Foot massage at Bangkok's International Airport

Reflexology, especially foot reflexlogy is one of the best form of pampering, esp after all the walking. For a traveler, the legs are often the most tired and overworked part of the body.

I had a leg cramp at Bangkok airport. Since we were eating at the fastfood area near to Changs’ we decided to have a quick foot massage. This place is not a 'spa', but you get a picture window overlooking the landing and take off strips of the planes!

We thought we had enough time for a quick 30 minute massage before running off. After all, we had slightly more than an hour. We had told them how hurried we were, but they still took their own sweet time to bring the water, soap and brushes to wash your feet before starting the massage, and walk slowly to get the towel to rub off the cream after that. I had to point to an aeroplane taking off and then to my watch before they get the message, and quickly finish up, charge us, and off we went! A 30 minute foot massage turned out taking almost 45 minutes.




It takes at least 30 minutes to walk to the gate and clear immigration from Chang’s. We had to run. We almost missed our plane, after entering through the wrong terminal. Luckily, the terminals are connected, and the immigration officer let us in.


Although we felt that the young girls there were not as skilled as those we met in Chinatown, and the price slightly more expensive than in town, it was still heavenly. We felt much lighter after the massage, and had a very good sleep on the plane. I am really tempted to take up one of the massage course offered in Thailand.

Girls, do you want a body massage in Bangkok???

Massage massage.....The most common question that I get is:

''That place got hanky-panky?"

My reply:

"So you want a place with or without???" :D

My most important advice:
Never ever ask for a BODY massage!

I was asking the cab drive to recommend a place with good BODY massage (trying to distinguish from the FOOT massage), and wondered why he gave was quite shocked and turned around to take a good look at us at the next red light.

Then he started; about recommending an Italian couple and they thoroughly enjoyed. He asked us about our budget. Well , we were ok about anything not too outrageous, as I was aching everywhere and dying for a massage.

Apparently some popular places cost a few thousand dollars an hour. At that time, I was really curious and asked what is so special, and how come the locals will go for something so expensive. My Thai colleague told me that she goes for those 180B (2 hours) massage! Only then the driver realised we had a communication problem.

In Thailand , body massage means using someones's body to give you a massage.
How is it done?? Imagine that! Since we were stuck in a jam, he went on and on to give quite a lot of details to 'enlighten' us.

According to our driver, these are very popular among men: tourists and locals who are rich enough. The men get pampered like 'kings' there. They can pick and choose which girl they like, and the lastest craze were young teenage girls from Chin* with 'fair soft skin' and 'very sexy body'. They 'really know how to make you happy'. After taking their pick, the men will be given a bath by the girls. 'They bath with you, everything wash, clean, then can start'.

''They use their body to give you massage, not hands! Then after the massage you can do anything you like. What you want, just tell her. No problem. Clean. Very high class. Everybody must wear condom. When you go in , they will give you one condom''.

He went on and on to 'tempt' my husband and I to give it a try. Ha.. ha.. no thanks!
If you want to get a full body massage, either ask for Thai massage or traditional for the traditional Thai massage. These are done with your clothes on (fully clothed). If you like the swedish/balinese style or just something that is more gentle, ask for ''oil massage'' (clothes off, panties on).

''Foot massage'' is extremely popular (and no, they do not use their feet to massage you, they massage your feet). However, take note that ''foot massage'' includes your calves and up to the area around your knees. So if you are wearing as skirt, you might not be confortable getting a guy to do it for you.

My travel suggestion: Make sure you try the Thai masage at least once, and pick a 2 hour session if you can. The best place to try? Wat Pho. Although slightly more expensive that the typical massage set up, it is worth it! I sometimes go to Thailand just to get a dose of the real thing at Wat Pho.

Wat Pho opening hours and fees
Open daily from 8:00am until 5:00pm.

Fees
Thai massage
Half-hour massage 150 B
one-hour body massage-250
one-hour massage with herbs 350- make sure you wear pants and clothes that do not stain easily
600 baht per hour for outside services

Foot massage 45 minutes- 250 baht

Tips: Wear something lose and comfortable, and do not stain easily if you want to try the herb massage. However, they will provide you a change of clothes at no extra cost. Mornings on weekdays are usually less busy, but be aware that you might feel more sleepy after the massage, esp if you have not been getting enough sleep (too relaxed?). If that happens, rest a while before heading to your next stop!

You can read more about my Thai massage experience.

How to get there? I always go by cab! This is where I head to after my Grand Palace visit, and before I head for my late lunch in Chinatown.

But if you decide to try other ways, here are the info you need:
1. Bus Nos. 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, 25, 32, 43, 44, 47, 48, 51, 53, 82, 103.
2. Air-conditioned bus Nos. 1, 6, 7, 8, 12, 44
3. Chao phraya Express boat. Get off at Tha Chang pier, Tha Tien Pier or Pak Klong Talad Pier, then walk through Thai Wang Road entrance.

(Beware, the cab drivers like to take you for a 'ride' if you flag a cab around the Grand Palace area.)

Hint: always suft the net for the lastest promotions. Even established places sometimes offer a 10-15% discounts if you bring a printout of their "cuopon". I will write more about spas and massages next time!