Did you ever get a massage from a blind person, or from a prisoner, or from a trans-sexual, or ladyboy as they are called in Thailand? These are all fairly common scenarios here in Chiang Mai. I have tried them all and here is the story in video format.

*****Watch the video here*****

(video play time 4 minutes)

The easy and very affordable access to massage in Thailand is one of the bonuses for living here. Like everywhere in the world, the quality of massage varies greatly. I have received many great Thai massage sessions in Thailand, but I also had some rather bizarre experiences. This amusing story is from the lower end of the massage spectrum.

*****Watch the story on video here*****

(video run time 5 minutes)

Here in Thailand it is much easier to get a massage than in western countries. You just walk into one of countless massage shops and in most cases there is a therapist available right away. So that’s the easy part.

But how do you know who will work on you - is it just the luck of the draw? Most shops have several therapists on staff. They are automatically assigned to the customers depending on their turn in the cue. However you don’t have to accept just any therapist. You can ask for anyone who you feel comfortable with.

Here are some tips for improving your chance of getting a good Thai Massage. Read the rest of this entry

Nowadays there are several hundred massage styles, including several Thai massage ones. A hundred years ago massage was not so popular and widespread in the west. Compared to today, there were very few massage styles. In the last few decades many styles of massage, bodywork, physical therapy, yoga and energy healing were developed. What makes them authentic?

Let’s look at how such styles develop.

1. Someone keeps developing an existing system and turns it into something new. For example Swedish massage, deep tissue massage and sports massage are clearly related.

2.  Someone has a good insight and comes up with a truly novel approach. An example would be Trager or Feldenkrais.

3. Someone studies several systems and combines them into a new style. An example would be Thai Massage combined with elements from Shiatsu and Tui Na.

4. Someone modifies an existing system and gives it a new name. An example would be Thai massage and Thai Yoga Massage. Read the rest of this entry

Here comes our newly arrived Thai massage student to study with a well known master in Thailand. To his shock and dismay, the teacher keeps on smoking one cigarette after the other while he is teaching.

He goes to another famous healer/teacher and finds out that he does not smoke, but his personal life is a mess, and he has lots of girlfriend trouble.

Again another well known teacher has an overgrown ego. These are not examples which I just made up, but eleven years ago I was this newly arrived Thai massage student in Thailand, and I did study with those teachers.

Life is seldom how we think it should be. Our ideal perception of a healer is a calm, spiritual, modest, kind person, ideally a vegetarian, meditator, non drinker and non smoker. A saint in other words. Should the healing skills of the master not translate into every part of his life, shouldn’t there be a congruency between all aspects of his life? Logic tells us that it should be so, but life tells us otherwise. Read the rest of this entry

Would you be interested in better health, more relaxation, better circulation, greater flexibility, higher levels of peace of mind, an improved feeling of well-being, better ability to deal with stress, and a feeling of being totally revitalized? Yes? Then you are a candidate for a Thai massage. You might get some of the benefits or all of them, but you will certainly benefit greatly. Read the rest of this entry

After living in Thailand for many years and having received many Thai massages I have come up with a listing of different styles of Thai massage therapists you will encounter in Thailand.

1.  The social type: This is the chatty type. She will immediately ask where you come from, if you speak Thai, if you are in a relationship etc. She will chat with you during the massage and she will have lively conversations with her fellow Thai massage therapists who are working in the same room. She keeps her mobile phone next to her and she will take any call. Either she will stop the massage until she is done talking or she will hold the phone with one hand and massage you with her free hand. She is not really focused on what she is doing and sees the massage scene as a perpetual social gathering. It might really annoy someone, but there are clients who actually enjoy this party atmosphere. Read the rest of this entry

There are people out there who suggest  “no pain, no gain”.  Interestingly enough a lot of the Thai people actually subscribe to that. Many massage therapists in Thailand have told me that their fellow countrymen often prefer really strong massage even if it is painful, but in contrast the foreigners prefer a gentler and non-painful approach. I have also met a good number of  Thais who will not get Thai massage because they have heard or experienced that it can be painful, and so they stay away from it.

My personal experience has been that when I ask a Thai massage therapist to work on a tight spot, they often will just press harder and use their elbows to dig deeper. But this has nothing to do with Thai massage as a therapeutic system, but only with the way how it is applied. I have practiced and taught Thai massage for over 10 years and I don’t hurt anyone. Read the rest of this entry

Recently I visited a beautiful resort about 100 km from Chiang Mai. The owner is a naturopathic doctor who developed some amazing treatments for serious health challenges. He is committed to running a holistic spa and building a sustainable project. The food is healthy and clean, a lot of it grown on the resort’s own farm.  There is a steam sauna, two swimming ponds, beautiful grounds, horses, deer and other animals, and even a small golf course. Read the rest of this entry

Is traditional better than non-traditional?

Thai massage has almost a certain mystique about it. It sounds exotic and it looks quite amazing with all those stretches and yoga-like positions. It is the only massage system that I am familiar with which is branded as “traditional”. Whoever heard of ‘traditional’ Swedish massage or ‘traditional’  sports massage? But Thai massage is promoted as ‘traditional’, implying that this makes it somehow better than non-traditional.

Actually the truth is just the opposite. Some of the very best Thai massage teachers I ever had were all very much non-traditional. They developed their own style, they were very creative, came up with modifications and significantly diverged from the ‘traditional’ style that is taught in most schools in Thailand. Read the rest of this entry