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A WORLD OF WELLNESS<br />
| HEALTH<br />
Had a bad day at work?<br />
Feeling tired and<br />
rundown? You don’t<br />
always need a two-week<br />
vacation to rejuvenate your<br />
flagging spirit. A spa treatment<br />
or a massage can be a quick and<br />
effective way to aid what ails<br />
the body and mind. Practised in<br />
various forms across different<br />
cultures, traditional treatments<br />
in particular have been called<br />
upon for centuries, and in many<br />
cases continue to be practised.<br />
No longer exotic, many of these<br />
unique treatments have been<br />
embraced by practitioners<br />
across the world. So if you find<br />
yourself in need of some ‘me’<br />
time to relax, recharge and<br />
reflect, consider these tried and<br />
tested rituals.<br />
A World of<br />
Wellness<br />
Different cultures practise different forms of traditional<br />
treatments. We explore some of them and feel all the better for it.<br />
Turkish Hamam<br />
A form of public bath, the<br />
Turkish Hamam is often<br />
located close to the mosque in<br />
order to serve the community.<br />
Involving a three-step<br />
process, bathers first unwind<br />
in a hot steam room where<br />
temperatures rise to 100°C.<br />
This is meant to relax the<br />
muscles, relieve tension<br />
and naturally alleviate<br />
pain. Immersed in the heat,<br />
the body’s natural cooling<br />
mechanism of sweating kicks<br />
in, clearing pores of dirt and<br />
dust. After a rinse, the bather is<br />
given a thorough scrubbing. It<br />
can be a little bit uncomfortable<br />
as skin that is dead and dirty is<br />
sloughed off. A massage follows,<br />
after which the bather retires<br />
to a cool room to rest. Often<br />
ornate places, this is a nice time<br />
to enjoy the surrounding as<br />
Turkish Hamam are typically<br />
beautifully designed and<br />
ornately decorated. Exported<br />
globally, the hamam spa<br />
concept has been adapted and<br />
developed to include a variation<br />
of spa treatments.<br />
WORDS BY PAMELA D’CRUZ<br />
81 JULY/AUGUST <strong>2018</strong> | TM
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