Finding renewal
From massages to muay thai, plentiful activities across Thailand aim to relax and rejuvenate
KOH SAMUI, THAILAND— This is your Rocky moment, Renée. Just do it. Thwack. I’m at Super Pro Samui, sparring with muay thai champion fighter Choomuang Pitakkroochay, in 36 C-heat.
Drenched in sweat and struggling to breathe against the stench from the borrowed gloves I’ve noosed around my wrists (the odour seeps so deeply into my skin that it reeks hours later, despite industrialstrength washes), I lash out as many roundhouse kicks I can muster to the beat of my trainer’s “Kick! Twenty!” command.
Hopped up on adrenalin, either from finding my inner warrior or heat exhaustion, the 10 minutes lengthens to 20, although I’m sure it’s been hours in another space-time continuum. Thwack-thwack. Then Keng Sarikadong steps in. Amused by my persistence, the multiple champion fighter eggs me on with his intervals. “Twenty!” he taunts through smiling eyes.
Thwack-thwack. He flips the sparring pad to the left. “Twenty!” Then back to right. “Twenty!”
In a moment of weakness, Sarikadong locks my leg mid-kick within the bend of his elbow and playfully pulls me across the floor. Defeated, I can only hop along on one leg in submission, humbled back to reality.
Admittedly, intense exercise in scorching conditions might not be everyone’s definition of rejuvenation, but an increasing number of travellers have been turning to lifestyle-driven retreats as a way to integrate healthy habits into their vacations.
Drawn to the bevy of choices and the affordability of Asian wellness services (in contrast, similar services in the U.S. are generally 10 times more costly), travellers are descending on Thailand in search of mind and body renewal, or to achieve their health goals. In fact, spa and wellness-related services make up a substantial part of the country’s economy — about $10 billion (U.S.) — according to the 2014 Global Spa & Wellness Economy Monitor, and it’s expected to grow.
Like many muay thai training camps across Thailand, Super Pro Samui has opened its doors to travellers interested in the country’s national sport. Similar to yoga or meditation retreats, the camp has further accommodated its guests by offering all-inclusive packages that bundle short-term training programs with clean, but basic, onsite lodgings.
Looking for ways to relax, I journey off the coast of Ko Tao to snorkel — low impact and light on the joints — at the relatively secluded Mango Bay. I float my way to bliss, let the calming sway of the clear turquoise water carry me away, and admire the tangle of coral below.
I didn’t find Nemo, but I did see a couple of facekinis.
At the country’s oldest massage school in Bangkok, students at watpo Thai Traditional Massage School learn the art of using their hands, feet, knees and legs to relieve symp- toms by pressing and stretching therapeutic points (as opposed to the conventional aromatherapy massage). Programs range from five-day courses to professional certification, with optional room and board. Or take my lead, and drop in for an inexpensive treatment from one of the advanced student practitioners in the school’s communal pavilion.
Wellness travellers are also working up an appetite for food-based activities.
I continue north to Chiang Rai, an area of outstanding beauty with tranquil mist-shrouded mountains and lush rolling hills. Notorious as the former world opium trading centre, these days the Golden Triangle area is celebrated for the quality traditional teas produced at Choui Fong Tea.
Due to ideal climate and soil conditions, the tea produced has been “One tambon (meaning sub-district), one product” (OTOP), recognized by the Thai government. I stock up on the hand-picked ruanzhi oolong, partially because of the mounting evidence supporting the benefits of drinking tea, such as tea being a source of antioxidants, and entirely because I can’t resist its intoxicating aromas and smooth finish, or the wholesale price.
My half-day course with Spice Spoons cooking school starts with a visit to a bustling local market, where chef Wichit Niyompolprisri introduces the class to an assortment of native flavours used in Thai cooking. In our pristine kitchen classroom, we chop, dice and pluck our way through the bouquet of produce, then sit down to a flavourful fourcourse feast composed of our tangy, spicy and sweet handiwork, including a punchy prawn pad Thai we wrapped in an egg net.
It’s only after a week of chasing nirvana that I start to unwind. I appreciate the beauty and serenity around me, but it hadn’t settled in.
Then I find paradise at Six Senses Samui. It comes as a villa perched on the northern headland of Koh Samui island, with a private infinity pool that bleeds out to the horizon of the Gulf of Thailand.
In my villa life, I meet the warmest staff and the friendliest neighbours. We feast on excellent fresh seafood and the sweetest fruits. We watch movies by the pool at night, and in the morning we practise yoga in the environmentally focused resort’s vegetable garden, with bleating baby goats in the background.
I even indulge in one more Thai boxing session — in a ring on the beach no less, before having the best massage of my life.
That night, under a canopy of stars visible from my villa’s floor-to-ceiling windows, I lose myself in the abyss and have the most restful sleep I can remember. Renée S. Suen was hosted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, which didn’t review or approve this story.