One thing not to miss when in Thailand is getting a traditional Thai massage from a full blown oil massage to just a foot massage your body will love you for it. You literally can’t swing a dead cat anywhere in Thailand without hitting a Massage shop, some offering the works to those just specializing in foot massage. Even on the beach you’ll be offered head, foot, and body massages.

Before we go any further let me just mention here I’m talking about real Thai massage not the western vision of exotic naked Thai girls ravaging your body from head to toe before giving you the happy ending, that’s called a soapy massage, I might tell you about them later… No, today we are gonna talk about foot jobs!

The first thing you’ll notice before or as you enter the shop are the ladies waiting to give you a massage. Some young and pretty and some older and not so pretty. The young ones know what they are doing but the older ones have more experience and know how to hurt massage you better. Then you’ll notice the very comfortable chairs.

For roughly 200 baht ($6.00) you’ll get an hour or more of pure bliss and a little bit of pain. The first thing the masseuse will do is cover one leg up to your thigh in hot oil and rub it in then wrap it in a towel. Then she goes to work on the other leg in earnest. Starting at the foot with hot oil she very slowly works the sole of your foot using every bit of her hands from palms to knuckles then she’ll work her way up to your thigh with a very deep massage that can be borderline painful for a second or two until you realize that second of pain leaves the muscles feeling warm and loose.

After thirty minutes on the one foot and leg then it’s time wrap that leg in a towel and start on the previously wrapped leg. Forty minutes in if you aren’t already comatose you’ll at the least be close to sleep.

Now the masseuse tells you to get up and you think “all good things must come to pass” but she hasn’t asked you to get up because you are done. Oh no, now you kneel on the foot rest facing the chair and she starts in on your neck and back, kneading and working all the tight muscles from your hairline down to your butt crack cracking your back along the way.

Some of the thumb and knuckle worth they do on your muscles can be a bit uncomfortable to downright painful but it’s kinda like a short burst of pain followed by a flooding warm relaxing sensation that will leave you feeling awesome afterwords. You’ll feel the affects of a Thai foot massages days later.

If you’re heading to Thailand put it on the list of things to do you won’t regret it!

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