1 post tagged “must do again”
I slept well last night. We moved the futon mattress to the floor where Gary and I are sleeping, and I slept the whole night through, once I actually got to bed. I got up and had cereal, and eggnog, and some milk.. started having trouble with my knees.. when I first started to try to put weight on it, the cup of my knee would start tingling.. and then if I put more weight on it, it started hurting very much. Managed to get dressed anyway (power symbol shirt FTW). We headed out to the Davenport hotel here in downtown Spokane. A *beautiful* hotel. Very ornate woodwork.. lots of marble. It was very comfortable though. It felt lived in. I'll post pictures later.
We made our way down to the basement to Spa Paradiso. Once you check in, they take you back and take you to a locker room. There are big, waffle weave robes waiting for you, along with little (or in my case, not so little) teal flip flops, and a big fluffy towel. You go into one of the rooms on the side to get out of your street clothes and into your robe. They also have you fill out a quick questionnaire about your likes, dislikes, allergies, etc. They then lead you to the Serenity room, which is a dimmer room with large, comfy chairs, a fire in the fireplace.. classical chinese music playing.. cups, good tea (tlbud.com), and very little else. I had some chamomile while I waited. Then some white peony. They're very small cups. I loved both of them.
My masseuse came out to get me. I sadly can not remember her name. She led me to an almost dark room, with a small bed in the middle, and left me to de-robe and get under the blankets on my back (on my back?). The bed was a chocolate colour and very fuzzy, with almost a sateen liner on the cover, and it was very, very warm. She slid a pillow under my knees, and gave me a choice between lavender and jasmine lotions. I chose the lavender, and she slid her hands under my shoulders (it should be mentioned at this point that I got a head neck and shoulder massage), and then worked on getting my neck loosened up. It started out feeling like she was trying to pull my skull up by the top of the back of my skull, and she kept working up and down my neck, and around my collarbone, and in on the sides of my throat. Apparently there's a relaxation technique where you can hold the head on your fingertips by a specific spot, and eventually the neck will relax to a point where it will relax and fall into her palms. She also massaged my scalp, which was really wonderful. We chatted a little, but I can't remember many specifics. I liked her a lot. They apparently have a reader on staff too, so she already knew what I was talking about when I talked about my aversion to people touching me.
After my massage, she left me in the room to re-robe myself at my own pace.. listening to the incredibly sedate versions of Irish reels. I got into my robe before any vocals showed up, thankfully. I made my way out at my own contemplative pace. She led me back to the locker room area, and offered me the use of the sauna, showers, and Serenity room. I finished my peony tea and waited for my mother in law (the whole reason I was there) to get out of her massage. We decided to go to the sauna, so I got down into my towel. It was wonderful. The room was 10 by 10, if that, and the air was so thick with mist that I could hardly see. It was hot and perfect. I scrubbed myself to get anything off my skin. I eventually headed out and got a shower. They have absolutely wonderful shampoo and conditioner. the conditioner was almost like putting lotion on my hair. I had a nice long shower and washed my hair, and scrubbed every part of me with the soaps that they provided, and when I had dried off, I slathered myself in this wonderful lotion.. head to toe, almost. It was a lime based lotion, but it was very subdued. I need to find out what it was. They also had orange vanilla and unscented, but the former was too floral, and the latter too dull. I hope I have the opportunity to buy all the products I used there.. they're wonderful. My hair was soft and tangle free (that NEVER happens, even when using the detangling shampoos) for at least 5 hours, and my skin is incredibly soft. I loved it.
After all that, I got dressed - finding myself loathe to acknowledge the symbol that I was going to be leaving - as cliche as that sounds. I got dressed quickly enough, and then meandered out to the front desk and looked for the lotions and shampoos that I had used in the bath. I didn't see them, but I wasn't looking very hard, because I hadn't noticed I was hungry until then. I did swipe a sampler pack of their soap though. I should call them soon and see if their bathhouse products are available for purchase. I also must see about arranging another visit soon...
We decided that we were going to see if a) Linens and Things were still open, and b) if they had any blankets, so we headed out to the valley mall. We ate at T.G.I.F (split a Jack Daniel's sampler, and I had fried macaroni on the side. numm!), found out that no, Linens n' Things was indeed closed, and headed home.
And then watched the Colour of Magic.
