In the tourist zone of Bangkok, there is a glut of massage parlors – on Sukhumvit Soi 22, there seems to be a storefront massage parlor every three businesses or so. Sometimes two competing massage parlors are even side-by-side.

Many of these massage parlors are kind of seedy, and the rooms they use for body massage are severely lacking in ambiance. In most instances, the rooms are not very private at all – either the walls are very thin or more commonly, adjacent rooms are separated by a mere curtain.

While many of the ladies who work in these establishments can give you an outstanding therapeutic body massage - more often than not – from my experience as a male, I get solicited for extras such as Happy Endings and the like. I cannot really fault them for offering these “extra services’ as the money they receive for ”these extras’ is clear profit for them - they don’t have to share it with the house .

During my recent stay in Bangkok, I decided to go to the very respectable Health Land for massage treatment as opposed to patronizing one of the many local massage parlors located near my hotel. The reasoning behind my choice was very simple – I wanted to avoid solicitations for extras and I preferred a place which had better ambiance than the local massage parlor.

Health Land is very popular with the more affluent residents of Bangkok; however prices are competitive with the “run of the mill” massage parlors that are so numerous in the tourist zone.

Approaching Health Land Spa & Massage (Ekamai Branch) from the street, it looked like a hotel or an upscale medical clinic. Walking into the lobby, there was a large reception counter where customers register with a uniformed lady for one of the various massage treatments. Checking out their spa menu, I opted for a 90 minute Aromatherapy Body Massage. Price was 850 baht (about $26USD). Fairly affordable, in my humble opinion!

All the young ladies at Health Land (massage technicians) have been properly trained in the art of massage and conduct themselves very professionally. There were absolutely no solicitations for extras. In addition, the massage rooms at Health Land are equipped with a proper massage table as well as having the proper feng shui. Some soothing ambient music was piped in while getting the massage.

After the massage, I felt like “a newer man” – considerably less stressed and more relaxed. I liked Health Land so much that I returned there for a follow-up treatment the day before flying home to San Francisco.

Health Land, my verdict? Thumbs up!

My body needed a tune-up after a 4½ hour trek into the jungles clad hills of the Cameron Highlands. It wouldn’t have been so bad except for an arthritic right hip which started acting up about 600 meters into the hike. Talking with other members of the small hiking group afterwards, it seemed that everybody had the same thing in mind – MASSAGE tonight!

Later that evening, I wandered downtown Tanah Ratah looking for a place where I could get a therapeutic massage. At the end of the strip, I found a massage shop that looked pretty respectable, so I walked in. After being greeted by the Mamasan, a middle aged Chinese lady, I told her that I wanted a one-hour full body massage. She quickly hooked me up with LULU, a rather vivacious young Chinese lady who had recently arrived from Beijing, China. Apparently Lulu was on loan to the Mamasan who knew her family back in Beijing. Even though Lulu had a very limited facility with English, I was able to communicate with her that I wanted a moderately hard massage. Now I have had plenty of massages (both body and foot) before in Southeast Asia – mostly Thailand - but Lulu’s massage technique was far superior to any massage that I’ve had in recent memory. She kneaded my muscles in my legs, shoulders, arms and upper torso thoroughly. Lulu was exactly what the Doctor ordered. She is what they call, a Natural!

After the massage was finished, Lulu escorted me back into the lobby. With Mamasan acting as a translator, I was able to have a conversation with LULU and found out more about her. When I inquired why Lulu had left her homeland to work in this small, quiet mountain resort town in Malaysia located a good 4 hours from Kuala Lumpur, the answer was very simple (and just as I expected) - MONEY. According to Mamasan, Malaysia was considered an upgrade from Mainland, China – the standard of living was higher, and most Chinese people could make more monies in Malaysia doing the same type of work. In Lulu’s case, she could make far better monies working as a Masseuse in the Cameron Highlands than in her native Beijing.

As a young lady of only 31 years, I asked her whether she missed the glittering discos, fancy nightclubs and bright lights of the big city. Shaking her head, she said no. Even though Tanah Ratah had virtually no nightlife, it suited her fine. When I asked her whether she had children or a boyfriend in China, she shook her head again, smiled and said no. Her plan was to stay in Malaysia for 2-3 years, make some monies, then return home. As it was time for me to leave, I thanked LULU for the wonderful massage and giving her a healthy tip and I told Mamasan (the proprietor) that I would probably return the following night.

I returned the following night, and this time around I had LULU give me a 1-hour foot massage. As she massaged my feet, she allowed me to take a series of pictures of her working me over. Again, she did an excellent job. Before leaving, I took some pictures of Lulu with Mamasan and her coworker just outside the shop. Since it was my last night in Tanah Ratah, I told Mamasan that I would return later and take all three of them out for dinner at a nearby Indian Restaurant. Mamasan said that she would be delighted.

Upon my return a couple of hours later, Mamasan apparently had a change of heart. She decided it wouldn’t be feasible for her, Lulu and her other employee to join me for dinner as she would have to close up the shop for an hour – she didn’t want to lose out on any potential business. No problem, I said, as I bade farewell to Mamasan and to LULU, thanking her again for her wondrous service. She was the best masseuse this side of Beijing, China.