My Feet Thank You: A Blissful Foot Massage to Remember

I had been neglecting myself for sometime and my feet were an absolute mess. No truly, they were dried, cracked and my skin was flakey. If I had been thinking, I would have taken the before and after shots of my feet because what a transformation and a fabulous hour spent making me feel wonderful, at The Shampoo Lounge in Seminyak.

When owner Shierley Koval invited me to sample their new building extension and service, I jumped at the opportunity. The Shampoo Lounge is well known in Bali and beyond for providing excellence as a spa, hairdressing and barber salon.

A walk through this modern salon or via a yellow door on the side of the building leads you into the new extension. A stucco interior of exposed brick and plaster it is quite different to the existing build. Cleverly designed, a shower nozzle provides a good stream of warm or hot water for the beautiful copper foot bowls and staff just pull the plug for the water to disappear. Ergonomically fabulous, staff no longer need to carry these heavy bowls of water to service clients.

Old-fashioned rattan chairs are presented for your seating comfort and allow you to relax as your therapist takes  control so you can enjoy your foot massage reflexology   session.

Before commencing my treatment I was offered tea or coffee  and given a bottle of water to drink. My feet were then placed  in a bowl of warm water and the honey, milk, salt scrub I had  chosen was applied up and down my legs to get the blood  circulating and make my legs super smooth, like a  baby’s bottom.   

Foot massage or reflexology is an incredible healing force  that can improve circulation, reduce stress and anxiety, headaches, lower blood pressure, alleviate chronic fatigue  and more, so I knew that I would benefit from this. 

When the scrub was washed away and legs and feet dried, dead skin was removed with an abrasive paddle and alcohol was sprayed onto the area to

sanitize it, before almond oil was rubbed all over and I relaxed and enjoyed a fabulous foot massage.

             

My foot massage therapist was fantastic. Constantly asking if the pressure was right, answering any questions about product I posed and when she didn’t know, she asked other staff who were able to assist.

Blissfully relaxed the treatment continued with a foot mask. A creamy white paste created from a sweet fruit known as Bengkuang that has Vitamin E properties, was painted onto my legs then we had to wait for this dry. Moving from my feet, Yuni my therapist, started to massage my head, neck and shoulder. I really hoped that this foot mask took a good long time to dry, as I didn’t want this other massage to stop, it was sooo… good.  

After wiping the foot mask off with a wet cloth another surprise awaited me. I dipped my feet in the copper bowl of warm water to discover a mélange of colourful flowers.  The treatment was coming to an end and as the finale, the Aloe Vera lotion was rubbed along my legs and feet.

For anyone visiting or living in Bali, this is a fabulous foot treatment that I highly recommend. You will walk out wishing that it could have gone on for another hour.

Uncovering the Great Outdoors in Bali

As the water flowed past at an unknown speed to the sounds of squeals of delight and trepidation, our group of five floated down the canyon river in tubes. Over rapids, down drops to finally reach the flying fox and onward to complete the 6 kilometres journey an hour and forty minutes later.  What an amazing journey, we loved it.

Our day started with a 9am pickup and a 2hour drive through the scenic countryside to the North of Ubud. It was an auspicious day for cremations and we came across many as we made our way to the Bali Quad Discovery Tour location. With many questions asked of our wonderful driver along the way, he responded with knowledge and composure about his culture.

Arriving at the location we were given a range of waivers and insurance paperwork to sign and to indicate what activities we were doing. Due to the nature of the activities, this company is well insured and includes its insurance in the price of the ticket, as well as transfers and a small gift pack of goodies at pickup, lunch and two activities, Canyon Tubing and Quad bikes or Buggies. You can decide when purchasing the tour to have one or both activities.  For us it was a full day of fun outdoors.

We stored our gear in lockers then sat down to watch the safety video prior to embarking on the canyon tubing adventure. Though the presenter was humorous and tried to put us at ease in his presentation, a few others and I felt nervous. How were we going to remember everything; hold the front handles then the back handles, move side to side if stuck in rocks, don’t worry if going backwards, if you fall out don’t hold onto the tube and more. Thoughts were flying, this was the first time I was doing anything like this and maybe I had made a mistake and shouldn’t do it, what if I didn’t remember the instructions and got hurt. Obviously I wasn’t the only one thinking this as we strapped on our helmets and buoyancy safety jackets and climbed into the jeep to be driven down the valley towards the waters edge.

 On reaching a clearing we walked a short distance and were rewarded with the breathtaking scenery. Clear flowing water, light filtering through crevices, moss covered rocks, ferns stretching out their limbs, dense jungle and tall trees with white strands of thousands of fine roots floating as if trying to form a universal communication system.

Our guides reminded us of the safety instructions again then one by one we stepped into our own individual tubes as the guides with ease jumped into theirs to place themselves at the front, middle and end of the group ensuring all were looked after on the journey down the river.

 Laughter, spills, screams, tubes full of water as we progressed down the flowing stream, pushed and cajoled as we made our way to the landing area of the flying fox. A few of us decided to try this so were harnessed up and then jumped out with bended knees to fly through the air and ungracefully land in a large net while the others watched us. 

 A climb down to join everyone and once again we were on our way to complete the journey. At a small landing with a wooden bridge that blocked any tubes floating away, we came to a stop and the guides once more helped us out of our tubes.

A single quad bike awaited us and some people sat at the front and others at the back as we made our way up the hill to where the jeep lay. This was repeated a couple of times to get everyone back to the Bali Quad Discovery Tour compound.

Change rooms and a hot shower awaited us on our return and we changed out of our wet clothes to enjoy a warm buffet meal consisting of soup, vegetables, chicken curry, noodles and rice as well as fruit, cake, tea or coffee. You certainly build up an appetite in the outdoors and all enjoyed heaped plates.

Our next activity was the Quad bikes or if you chose a buggy, there were two available. Other travellers join us as we strapped on helmets, jumped on bikes or buggies and took laps around the dirt compound training ground to be comfortable with what we were driving. Children joined their parent’s tandem while others drove individual motors as we started our next adventure.

It’s dirty stuff quad biking but lots of fun as you follow the leader up and down hills, through potholes, onto paved roads, through villages where some people come out to watch and children wave and smile, across muddy banks, past rice fields, banana plantations, orchards and cabbage patches, all the while the tropical jungle and beauty of the environment surrounds you.

 

When staff at Bali Quad Discovery Tours say in their confirmation letter bring two changesof clothing if doing the canyon tubing and quad bikes, you certainly need them. Closed shoes are also definitely required to prevent foot injury. Make sure the ones you bring can handle both activities or bring more than one pair. Hot showers at the end of the hour and forty minute long trail was a welcome relief before heading home in the people carrier that awaited us all.

Who says age matters? This certainly was not the case with ages ranging from 12-60 on the day.

Exhilarated, wet and dusty what a day shared with Bali Quad Discovery Tours and their amazing team. Not cheap but certainly worthwhile, an adventure not to be missed when you visit Bali. A provider on the Bali Tourist Card.