Stress Relief

推拿 This is a phrase that many of us become very familiar with. It is pronounced "tuīná" and refers to a form of deep massage or "manipulative therapy." There are lots of places to go in Wenzhou that offer 推拿 but the one that I like best is directly between 2nd and 8th Communities in Xialvpu. If you walk across the street from 8th community and head into the side street that has a name but no one remembers it, look up and right and you will see a blue sign. If it is night, the sign may or may not be lit by yellow string lights. This is the massage parlor I prefer.

It is a little run down looking and quite frankly I would never have walked into it had I not been with a Chinese colleague the first time. It is a little intimidating. When you walk in, the entry room is long and narrow with a series of foot massage chairs along the right hand side and a counter at the back. Usually there are at least three people sitting in the chairs either sleeping or lounging. These are the "masseurs" (although most are female). Sitting at the desk is an older man who looks to be about 55 or 60. Sometimes he wears glasses, sometimes not. He is the one in charge of the books for this joint. There is no menu. Customers must know what they want.

After telling him I want a back massage 背部推拿 (bèibù tuīná)he points up the stairs. The stairs are rather steep and they split at the top into a "Y." To the left is room that I know to be full of more massage chairs, although exactly what they are used for is anyone's guess. To the right is my destination. This room is divided into several areas by cubicle walls. Each area has two or three massage beds in it. I choose one and take off my.....shoes (get your mind out of the gutter). If I am wearing a jacket I remove that also, but the rest stays on. Right behind me is my "masseur." Now for bèibù tuīná I've discovered that there are only a few people who actually do this at this particular place; I think this has to do with the fact that the person needs some experience to know how hard to push and when to stop. After I choose my bed I lay face down. The "masseur" then places a white sheet over me and begins to work her magic.

To begin, she starts at the head or neck and it can be painful your first time, especially if you are really tense. Next come the shoulders and upper arms followed by the upper back. By now, the "masseur" has resorted to using her elbows rather than her hands; the better to get those tough muscles that we use for vertical movement to relax. She then works her way slowly down the back until the gets to my tail bone. Then she does a quick massage of first one side and then the other before moving on to the back of the legs and feet. When all of this is done, she does the once-over head to toes. This is the end of the bèibù tuīná. It is not the end of my massage however.

If there is time, she tells me to turn over onto my back. Once I have managed to flip myself over using muscles that are way too relaxed to accomplish this gracefully, she begins to massage my neck and shoulders again, but from a different angle. Then she moves up to the head and scalp, grabs my head firmly and gives long tug. This is one of my favorite parts of the massage. I can feel all of my vertebra align themselves properly. She gently puts my head down. Next she massages my arms and hands right down to the finger tips. The final area she does is my legs. She pays particular attention to the quadriceps and IT bands that are always tight. Lastly, she lifts my legs and manipulates the hip joints; first one then the other. She also does this to my shoulders. Then I am done. For 15 yuan I have gotten a 45 minute massage that will last me until next week--or at least until I feel like going again.

If bèibù tuīná is too aggressive for you, here are some other forms of massage:

按摩 -- ànmó--literally "massage" just point to the area you want massaged. bèibù ànmó= "back massage"

头 -- tóu -- "head" or "top"
颈 -- jǐng -- "neck"
脚 -- jiǎo -- "foot"


NOTE: There are some things to remember about Chinese Massage parlors and spas.

Rule 1) Pink sign or lights=brothel
Rule 2) Blue lights or sign=legitimate massage parlor
Rule 3) Men will remove their pants at all massage parlors so if you don't want to see a middle-aged Chinese man in his skivvies, close your eyes.
Rule 4) You will often see patrons sleeping or hear their snoring. This is normal. It is OK to fall asleep, however I don't recommend staying there too long.