A tide from the past

While leafing through one of those improbable and dusty magazines you find piled on the coffee table of some doctor's waiting room, I came across an article describing the latest hip thing there is in terms of relaxation and welness: the SPA. Funnily enough though, this brand new trend (as well as the magazine describing it, mind you) comes from ancient times since it is rooted in one of the oldest traditions in which the Romans played a great role through their love of water, thermal sources, fountains and attention to health and bodily pleasures in general. Basically, and once again, we are experiencing the rebirth of a fashion from the past; a bit of relooking, a few perks here and there and the new SPAs are ready to open their doors! The trend is certainly not new if we think about the design or the car industries... And it is not new either in the welness branch, actually: think for example of Sud Tyrol where any hotel has some kind of SPA in its basement with a series of tempting options: frigidarium, foot bath, hammam, sauna, jacuzzi and so on. 

Unquestionably, in any of these welness complexes you will find something that will suit your mood or your needs. From the health point of view, jumping from one room to the other, from one swimming pool to the other may not be the best thing to do, but you will find yourself so curious about all the options that you will just want to test all of them. Kids are not allowed on the premises...or so the sign says...

Our latest experience in the field was just around the corner of our house, hidden in the woods like a well-kept fairy secret in a shrine called - appropriately - The Tides. We were not expecting to find a Roman behind the doors, but we absolutely enjoyed the hot stone massage we received and the minimalist decor between golden reproductions of Klimt's paintings. The treatment room is small, with subdued colored lights; the masseuse is very discreet and will start rubbing hot stones - 'cause that's what it is about, right? - over your body. The thing is though, you won't feel that these are actually stones and you won't realize there is actually a human hand acting as some kind of deus ex machina. The movements are slow and efficient, the warmth gains your body inch by inch and your mind starts disconnecting from reality in the midst of all the sensations and stimulations. For a control freak like me, the effect is amazing. After the treatment, you wake up from a fuzzy dream that will leave your head in the clouds for a qwhile. That is where the relaxation room takes on all its meaning: big windows look onto a wide wooden terrace and the surrounding woods. All is quiet, or almost, since during our visit some kind of lounge music kept playing in the background. Actually, that would be the only minus to be found in the entire experience, if you ask me; not bad then, hun?

If all novelties were treated in such a successful and satisfying way, I would definitely be more in their favor. The Romans knew what they were doing when they applied their motto, Sanare Per Aquam. We should just make sure we also do...