Valentines Day at Sahana Spa gives you the perfect stay-cation.
I headed back to Sahana Spa, this time with premeditated thoughts of scheduled relaxation, rather than the deadline of a writer. New to the spa scene, I called to make an appointment. I was given the recommendation of trying a deep tissue massage. Although a newbie, I took context clues from the name of such massage and opted for one that seemed more fitting for someone a bit more frightful of their first experience. The Swedish massage appealed with its description of “a traditional massage that relaxes the body, improves circulation and releases toxins,” as described by Sahana Spa experts. Sounds like the ultimate Valentines Day gift. Make Sahana Spa your number one gift for Valentines Day.
It came to the day of my appointment and I grew antsy as the time neared. Upon entering Sahana Spa as I once had scanned for my previous article, I was no longer just an observer. I was treated with the same kindness from a respectable receptionist, but this time as a customer, speaking my name with the knowledge I would soon be journeying on the stay-cation I had written about. After completing documentation that included basic information, any medical ailments and triggers to focus on during the massage, I then easily signed my name for the liability waiver. I followed the receptionist through the wooden doors and entered a place nowhere near home.
Montclair had vanished when the doors closed and I entered Sahana Spa. Daylight grew dim and the idea of a schedule was forgotten after reaching my destination on time. First, I was taken into, for a lack of better terminology, the women’s locker room It was a mini-spa in itself. Comprised of personal lockers with your own code to be made, steam showers and a vanity. It was complete with all necessary items to pamper oneself post-massage. I was handed a robe and sandals and was given instructions to change and meet outside the room. When I was ready, I was guided to my massage. After doing the following and feeling secure with my belongings locked up, I met my masseuse outside.
My thoughts of a typical masseuse diminished. The idea of a tall person with heavy hands linked to large muscles was not the actual package for this position. Linda of Sahana Spa would go forth to prove me wrong, from her anything but brawny representation, lacking a hefty foreign accent behind her speech. Linda, with her relaxing disposition, started with a warm footbath. Then, invited me to lie on a heated bed, as she stepped out of the room for a moment.
Nerves sank in, as I lay waiting for her return, with my head face down in a hole as instructed, unaware of standard protocol as to the pre-session. Linda entered after a knock and asked if there were any target areas to focus on. Being one to not speak up, I knew I would fall flat as a first timer asking for direction. The truth was, I didn’t think I had any specific targets and I was then interested to see how a massage could last an hour with no focus in Sahana Spa.
An hour felt like 10 minutes. There must have been some mistake. Sadly, to my dismay, it had been an hour. My stay-cation was at its end. Laying on the bed face-up, Linda placed my robe beside me and said to take a minute before getting up. She left the room to kindly turn on my steam shower and I couldn’t help but think that this could have been the worst thing for me to do. I wish I could have laid there in pain and thought of never coming back, but my drool reminded me that in one hour I was in another world and not Sahana Spa, with only the sounds of birds and the smell of peppermint. Even Linda’s presence alone added a calming nature with her thorough massage, which subsided the pain in the nerves of my back.
Making my way out of a room named “Jasmine,” Linda handed me a glass of lemon water that I took to finish my stay-cation in the steam. A steam shower completed the spa morning, garnished with shower gel, shampoo and conditioner, with towels in wicker baskets upon completion. After changing back into regular clothes, I felt rejuvenated and too relaxed with zero desire to attend my afternoon class. I thought to myself, I must share this experience to someone close to me. Perhaps a gift for Valentines Day. This Valentines Day, I will shower my loved ones with the gift of Sahana Spa. I will be remembered this Valentines Day this year!
After utilizing the amenities and taking my belongings from my locker, I went back through the wooden doors to the world of real people. I checked out at the front desk and left my tip as suppose to, in a small brown envelope, thanking Linda in written form with my name attached. I told the receptionist that I would most definitely be back and left my stay-cation feeling okay for the first time all winter, as I entered the cold. With my whole body and mind feeling nerveless, I walked away from Sahana Spa and down Bloomfield Avenue with a bit more pep in my step. I concluded that this Valentines Day will be an easy gift for my close ones.
The only thing I recommend for Sahana Spa would be to provide a warning label: do not attend activity that requires mental focus for at least two hours post massage. Expect to feel too at ease. Expect relief of tensions you did not know existed. Expect to be a returning customer, especially for Valentines Day.
Sahana Spa is located at 427 Bloomfield Avenue in Montclair, N.J. and is open on Mondays and Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit their website at sahanaspa.com or call 973-744-1001 for more information or to make an appointment for Valentines Day. Go ahead and make it special for someone on Valentines Day.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login