A World of Well-Being
Stiff in Singapore? Kinked in California? Find relief with this international little black book of feel-good practitioners.
Paris, France
Spending long hours sitting on wicker bistro seats sipping coffee and watching the world go by can be murder on your back. And those tiny hotel bathrooms requiring contortionist manoeuvres in order to shower? An accident waiting to happen. When it does, certified masseur Craig Dennis is the man to get you back in prime Paris form. Making your way to his offices – one around the corner from St Germain’s Prada-base, the other a few hundred metres from the doors of the Louvre – qualifies as a Parisian adventure in itself. A 90-minute session will cost €90, with appointments available from Tuesday to Thursday.
Craig Dennis Integrated Bodywork, 76Bis rue des Saints-Pères or 42 rue Richelieu, Paris, +33-014 260 4298.
Laguna Beach, California
First gaining popularity as an artists’ community in the ‘60s, Laguna Beach has managed to maintain its air of mellow, hippy-esque Southern Californian charm – despite the vast real estate development occurring in surrounding suburbs. Perhaps it’s no surprise, then, that alternative health practitioners thrive. And the best of them is Dr. Ping Wu, qualified medical doctor and Chinese acupuncturist extraordinaire: Wu has been credited with helping everything from chronic back pain and infertility to sports injuries and anti-aging (a huge market on the youth-obsessed West Coast). She’s even found time to pen a book, available at Barnes and Noble stores. Sessions are in the vicinity of US$80 for an hour, with the practice only open Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Ping Clinic, Suite B. 225 Thalia Street, Laguna Beach, +1-949 415 1165.
New Delhi, India
An oil head massage is the ultimate Indian therapeutic experience. No doubt after a few days in New Delhi traffic – where car horns are used to simultaneously signify abuse, frustration, boredom or thanks – you’ll need it. Ambika’s Salon in New Delhi’s Panchsheel Enclave offers some of the best. The male therapists (stronger hands, apparently) release tension from the scalp, shoulders and arms, giving hair a first-class oil conditioning treatment in the process. Treatments are rupee-cheap, and you will find yourself in good company (owner Ambika Pillai attracts rich and idle Delhi-ites with her famed make-up and styling.)
Ambika’s Salon, Panchsheel Enclave in New Delhi, +91 11 264 90101.
Vancouver, Canada
Yoga fashion finds a responsive audience in the Canadian capital – sweats and leggings are second only to polar-fleece hiking gear when it comes to local clothing preferences. Luckily there is a plethora of yoga studios to support the trend (or at least give it some currency). The best of these is The Yoga Space, and your best bet a session with certified Yoga Iyengar instructor Deborah Peake. Her Friday night back-focussed session is a great cure-all following the 20-hour flight, though privates can also be arranged by request. Drop-ins cost CAN$15 per session, with privates starting at CAN$80.
The Yoga Space, 1715 Cook Street, Suite 202, Vancouver, +1-604 876 9600.
Johannesburg, South Africa
Physical ailments are not recommended baggage on African expeditions, which makes a visit to Michelle Wiggens a must before climbing aboard any open-topped jeeps. A specialist in massage, acupuncture, iridology and reflexology, Michelle has an impressive arsenal to treat everything from long-standing aches and pains to temporary glitches brought on by long-haul trips. Explore her true speciality with a hot stone massage – a soothing balm to jangled nerves and the perfect thing to get you in perfect safari condition.
Michelle Wiggens, 15 Frangipani Cresent, Randpark Ridge, Johannesburg, +27-11 793 7138
Smith Street, Singapore
Deep in the heart of Singapore’s famed Chinatown, Smith Street offers cure-alls of any description (fancy a pinch of dried scorpion for that indigestion?). But away from the hawker food stalls lay the darkened stairwells leading the way to massage heaven. While Dr. Lee – reflexologist extraordinaire – had moved house the last time I returned, there are plenty of fantastic experts to take his place. Feel free to pick a therapist and enjoy the experience. The perfect prelude to a bowl of pork dumpling soup from any of a huge array of hawker stalls. Sessions cost about AUS$20.
Chinatown, Smith Street, Singapore