Now, I did have some advance warning from my wife Anne, that personal modesty is almost non-existent in India, so I suppose I half expected what I got. Sat in the delightful waiting area on my first day, donning a giant colourful gown, I must confess I was wondering what was in order for me.
My therapist, Justin not sure that was his real name! Paper pants in place, I sit on a stool, have my feet washed and then have ample amounts of treacle like oil massaged into my hair for a 15 minute head massage. Very nice indeed! Next face down onto the massage table, having the aforementioned paper pants whipped off, for an oily, full body and I mean full body! There was definitely the odd finger slipping in the nether crack region from time to time. A light lunch later, and it is time for massage number two.
This time we are in one of the seven outside huts, each being a fully operational unit showers, oil burning stoves etc. What pursued is entirely my own fault. I made the error of informing the young, female Ayurverdic Doctor, that I had suffered a groin injury playing football around three weeks earlier. All the bruising had gone and it was well on the mend, but clearly she thought this was an area to focus on.
Light-fingered Justin was under orders to give me the hot oil treatment and cure that problematic groin. Laying there in all my glory, he proceeded to cook hot oil on the stove, then drip it on to my groin area and massage it in, gently easing anything that might be in the way, to one side.
Now, to be honest the oil and subsequent massage, felt great. As each day and session goes by, I find it less inhibiting and more liberating to completely doff off and allow another guy to rub me up for an hour or so, which is good because half way through the week Justin brings in a new guy for a four hands massage.
