After lunch, I took Jake to a traditional Chinese sauna. I had never been there before either, so I wasn't sure what to expect. You walk in and immediately jump in an elevator. Guys have one floor and girls another. So I unceremoniously dumped Jake on his floor and said good luck, see you in a few hours. I went up to my floor, and immediately this old Chinese lady greets me and asks what I want. Sauna massage? Sauna massage? I nod vigorously. She gives me a locker, robe, and towel, has me change, then immediately sends me to the shower to wash before going into anything else. After the shower, I head to the steam room, which had so much steam I couldn't see. I managed to stay in there maybe 7 minutes before having to bail. It was just so ridiculously hot. I must have come at an unusual hour, because I had the place to myself. All I could think of was "i am going to pass out in here, and noone will know for hours until the tiny little Chinese lady comes looking for me. And when she finds me, she wont be strong enough to pull me out...." Next was the sauna, which was less hot so I managed to stay in there longer. They even had a TV in there behind glass.
After the steam room and sauna, you take another shower. This time you want to because you are so covered in sweat. After that, you walk into the lounge room that is filled with leather recliners. You sit in your robe, they bring towels to put over your feet, tea to drink, even a bowl of noodles if you're hungry. Then you can hang out indefinitely, watching Chinese soap operas, which is what everyone in there seemed to be doing, or read the paper which is what I did. When you have had enough lounging, you tell the little Chinese lady you want a massage and she goes and gets a room ready for you. I walk in, and really no one closes the door. I guess I am used to everything being private in the US, but considering this was an all women floor, I don't think privacy was a main concern.
The following 45 minutes of my life was torture. I think this is the plan. They butter you up into complete relaxation in the sauna and lounge room, only to kick your ass in the massage rooms. The massage was a traditional Chinese one, meaning a lot of acupressure with a Chinese lady standing on your back. No long smooth motions we are used to in a Western massage. She knew exactly where every pressure point was, every gland, every node, and she would go to town. Several times I had to use deep breathing just to keep from yelling out in pain. It was never relaxing. But, I guess that is the point of this type of massage. They are working out the toxins and junk in your system. That evening I felt like I had been hit by a truck. I had bruising all over my back. All I wanted to do was sleep. The scene below is Lucy Liu from Charlie's Angels.
Jake's experience was a bit different than mine. Maybe I am a wimp, or maybe he had a gentler, lighter lady, but he enjoyed his massage. Afterwards he was relaxed and not under the weather. Plus, the guy's floor has a jacuzzi while the women's does not. I am still deciding if I ever want to go back, or bring anyone else there in the future. Overall, the experience was a unique one, something you could certainly never find in the US. But, at the same time, I couldn't subject anyone else to what I went through. Do I feel fine now? Sure.
After the sauna, we walked through the Wan Chai wet market to show Jake a bit of local culture. We tried some of the funny looking fruits you cant get back home. He even tried an egg tart!
For dinner, we all went out for dim sum at one of our new favorite restaurants. Then we got mango pancakes for dessert. Drew and Jake went to the Peak to see the view of the city as the rain had finally cleared. They then went out, as Jake likes to enjoy the nightlife. I stayed home and crashed.
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