International Day of Beauty and Rejuvenation without leaving California by Mary

Last weekend after my Lee La Thai massage which we wrote about the other day, I started thinking about how so much of how I go about feeling and looking my best has come from other cultures and picking up routines or rituals when I travel.

I got my first Thai massage in Pai, Thailand-- a beautiful, somewhat crunchy town three hours north of Chiang Mai.  As we went on and on about the benefits of Thai massage in our latest post, I was amazed at what a fantastic massage I could get for $20 and got over my mild germ phobia of getting massaged in a less than Westernized spa-like setting, but on a futon on the floor in an open room.

Before my massage last Sunday, I had been to a vinyasa yoga class.  I wish I could say that I had learned yoga in India, the birthplace of yoga, but I have not been to India.... yet!  I did learn this ancient practice which so many of us living in LA and NYC perceive solely as a workout, yet is so much more than that.  Risking sounding preachy, it is a meditation, a method for turning inward, moving towards the ultimate goal of enlightenment.  I learned from teachers that have been to India and studied for years with gurus and individually.  YogaWorks is a great place to learn yoga-- they have studios all over the country now.  Sara Ivanhoe is a great friend and teacher who teaches in Los Angeles and as we've said before, is a great balance of the physical and the spiritual.....

Finally after my yoga class and my massage, I did my own version of the Moroccan hammam, a bathing ritual that nearly all Moroccans practice weekly.  When I was in Morocco and had several traditional hammams, they were intense-- steaming (very hot!), being scrubbed with black olive soap, then being loofahed with a special mit, slathered in a volcanic mud paste, rinsed and massaged.  Alas, I cannot recreate the entire experience in my own bathroom, but I do have a loofah mit and black olive soap that I scrub myself with-- leaving behind super soft skin and helping my body detox-- skin is the largest organ and exfoliation we've been told is imperative for detoxifying the body.  I'm feeling inspired as I write this to order the clay which aids in detox, helps with dry skin (winter and the Santa Anas are making my skin feel dry), and improved elasticity.  And the rose water....

And then there is Chanel make up..... Viva France!

Would love to hear other international beauty/feel good rituals!!  Share!