How About a Face Massage !

So what do you do in Saigon when your belly is full?  Perhaps you just finished some great street food and you’re NOT looking for the best place to eat in Saigon. Maybe you’ve already taken a walk in the park or swum in one of the city’s Olympic-size pools. Now what?  My situation exactly this Sunday afternoon.

Hai had the answer!    [Luckily, he had closed his restaurant for two days – today and tomorrow, for the first mid-month, full-moon Buddhist celebration of the New Year of the Dragon. It seems a large portion of  Vietnam’s population want to eat only vegetarian food for the first mid-month celebration of the lunar New Year .  It also seems Hai’s staff wanted time off for the occasion? I also played a role in the suggesting it would be nice to share a day or two together before I head back to the U.S. for a short time to deal with a rotator cuff injury – major ouch! So, Hai’s restaurant is closed today and tomorrow. Two free days – no clears plans.]

Hai’s answer – Let’s get a massage.  Not just any massage, a Face Massage.

YES, what a fun idea!  An hour or so of relaxing facial pampering sounded like a perfect way to pass a quiet Sunday afternoon.

We jumped on the motorbike and took off to District 11, a short 20 minute hop over to Co Nam Massage on Tan Hoa street. Sunday traffic is seldom crowded. And it’s a far more pleasant ride through town when you are in continuous motion and the breeze keeps coming head-on to keep things cooler than the 93 degrees would suggest.

If you consider visiting Co Nam Massage, be fore-warned.  This is not a typical District 1, tourist-catering, luxury facial spa.  It’s simple, basic, and not expensive – serving local residents in need of a break from the trials of urban chaos, or a complexion upgrade for the week.

Come in, take off your sandals, lay down on the raised massage table face-up, close your eyes, relax … plan to escape from reality for an hour … ENJOY.

If you arrive here with a Vietnamese friend, you can discuss treatment options and have him/her select your treatments from the posted menu.

If not, don’t worry.  Just lie down on the table and trust the friendly young women to do what they do best – go through a series of oils, pastes, masks, and treatments until your face is smiling, clean, and renewed. And don’t worry about the price. Without any pre-agreements or clear understandings, I’ve never been asked to pay more than 200,000 vnd ($10 USD) including a 30,000 vnd tip! A great value in my eyes.

Today, as I first closed my eyes and adjusted my head in the soft pillow I immediately felt two cool moist cotton pads slide over my eyelids, wipe across my forehead, and circle down over my cheeks, my nose and chin … and again … and again … and yet again . I felt Saigon’s heat being pulled out of my face  into the pads.  I felt the stress of the day begin to lift as well. I gave a deep sigh and my head sunk deeper into the pillow. I thought to myself, There’s no need for her to stop anytime soon, please continue.

Eventually, she did stop the face wiping and rubbing.  For a few moments. just silence, then I heard the quiet hum of the small vacuum machine being revered up.  A pencil-eraser-sized suction tube began to move gently across every square inch of my face, .  Each and every facial pore was tugged at by the mini-Hoover. The young woman focussed her cleaning work on the folds and creases where my nose met my cheeks, over my chin, and across my forehead. It was a mildly strange sensation, but it was clear as she finished that any unwanted clutter and city grime was now removed from my pores.

Next, I felt a paste being applied to my face.  It was smooth, yet gritty as she massaged it into my skin. This was clearly yet another  facial cleansing as the gritty cream soaked up and scrubbed away the vacuum’s harvest.  Then, another complete facial wash, removing the scrub and leaving behind only my cleared skin.

Now, something new! Each eye was individually coved by a small “protective” cloth pad. Of course, I saw nothing, but felt the next treatment. Slowly the air meeting my face became warmer and warmer until it was just short of hot. Clearly, some heat-generating device was being passed over my skin. A small iron? A mini-heatlamp? I really don’t know.  But after several minutes, my face was moist and glowing from the radiant treatment. At this point, I began to drift away into dreamland.  (I assume they’d wake me at the end of the session, if necessary). Then, for some unknown period of time, rubbing, massaging, and other facial pampering went on and on as I passed in and out of consciousness

Finally, she stopped.  Nothing for a minute – was she finished? I hoped not, I wanted more! Then, one of the more unsettling moments occurred.

A chilly, gooey, gelatinous substance was plopped down, then painted across my face – only avoiding my eyes, lips and nose holes for breathing. It was surprisingly dense and heavy. And then it began to dry … hardening over the next several minutes, it began to grab and pull at my cheeks, my nose, my forehead. Within a few minutes, I was wearing a dry hardened-rubber mask.  (Later I saw on Hai’s face, who was laying at the next massage table, that it was a vibrant green, rather unsettling-colored mask!)

I layed there, masked, for some time recalling from previous visits that this would be the final application. Just breathing, enjoying, relaxing.

After the final face rinse wiped cleared the mask, I was gently urged to get up from the table.  I listened to the Vietnamese music coming from the big-screen and played with the family dog laying on the floor with my toes while I waited for Hai to emerge from his massage-induced nap. What a Sunday afternoon treat!

Until next time ….

I’d say a real YUM YUM massage experience!

OPEN 7 A.M – 7 P.M.

Co Nam Massage
4 Tan Hoa Street
P.1, District 11
HCMC

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