I am back after taking care of our first visitor (you know who you are!) and ready to write about our adventures. We took some time off and went to Malaysia for a week on the beautiful island of Langkawi were we spent a couple of nights in a swanky hotel on the east coast and then moved to a delightful boutique hotel on the west coast. Langkawi is really a gem with lush vegetation, soaring mountains and lovely beaches. If I had to be picky I just might say that the water was not really inviting as it was really murky but for all I know it could have been the season or just the area we were visiting. In any case a dip in the Ocean was always welcomed. During our stay we took a couple of tours and walks and I will tell you about some.
On our last day we walked along the beach looking at tourists scrambling atop banana boats and being whipped about. Why anyone would want to be subject to a 10 minute hard bounce in the water on top of a yellow long sausage like float beats me but then we all do silly things on holiday which is why it is a holiday in the first place and why it is so much fun!
Anyhow the day was a gray one and it drizzled on and off the whole morning so after a while we got tired of watching silly tourists and headed towards the village center lined with cheap sarong shops, massage parlors and restaurants. Max then spotted a Fish Spa.
Since I have arrived in Sing I have seen Fish Spas dotted here and there but I have been too chicken to try them out. I asked Steph to try them with me but she told me I was a banana and what was I afraid of so clearly I was not going to get any support there.
So when Max said we should go in the shop I giggled nervously and looked around me with wild eyes for means of escape but naturally mom immediately jumped up and down with glee and boldly entered the tiny shop so my hands (or rather feet) were tied.
In the shop there were 5 small tanks and above them some soft seating. The Spa owner made us take off our shoes and wash our feet , sit on the benches and then one after the other lower our calves in the tanks. Immediately our feet were attacked by hundreds of tiny black tadpole like fish that started nibbling at our dry skin and in theory removing all parasites (?) and rotten (?) skin, promoting our immune system (?) and longer life (???). This is at least what was written on the Spa brochure that I was reading with intense concentration to avoid thinking about those little hungry piranha-like mouths tickling my feet. I was finding it hard not to kick all these little vampires out of the tanks and had to concentrate hard because the truth is that I cannot stand having my feet touched, in the same was as I cannot stand the idea of a massage by a stranger, (clearly if said stranger were Hugh Jackman well then it would be a TOTALLY different story). I only had one spa treatment in my life and I hated every second of it wanting to escape the candle lit, harp music filled chamber but not being able to in view of a) being naked, b) being covered in black, smelly goo -supposedly algae of some sort- and c)being wrapped in film like a horrible turkey....never again I promised.
Now the fish thing was not that bad and though it felt more like hours after only 5 minutes the torture was over. My feet were still there and I suppose all the parasites have been gobbled up so all in all it was an adventure.
