What do you do when the sky is a cottony shade of gray and the rain is an unshakably cold companion? You go to the spa, of course!
Apparently, thermal waters are popular with the Swiss, who believe in the benefits of soaking in mineral baths and saunas. On 6/19, I joined two of my co-workers, Jenny and Ahmad, in visiting Kurzentrum Rheinfelden -- which, acccording to their website, "boasts a bathing and spa tradition that dates back to the 18th century."
This spa was unimpressively pragmatic in decor, but surprisingly opulent in its variety of options. We first went to the outdoor pool; against what I suspected would be my better judgment, I joined the circular stream that pulled everyone around a nucleus of jets and bubbles. Thankfully, it induced more fun than nausea.
I then went to my hamam massage. I had never had one before, so I didn't know what to expect. It was definitely an experience: before the light massage, I was scrubbed with rose-scented bubbles while lying on an octagonal marble table. The bubbles formed such a pleasant layer of warmth and fragrance that I started asking myself why I don't take more bubble baths at home...and then I remembered that I am "too busy" when in my daily routine.
The most awesome room in the spa, though, was the super-salinated (12%) pool. I passed by multiple signs requesting silence as I descended the stairs, and they were serious -- they even had someone on "shhh" duty. Although the room was constructed of industrial-strength concrete, the gray surface was an unexpectedly suitable canvas for the red neon lights from below and the natural sunlight from above: as I floated on my back and listed to the underwater music, I looked up at the rippled light reflecting from the water and felt completely transported. I didn't even try to take photographs anywhere inside the spa because of practicality and politeness, but I was able to get a picture of this room from their website:
We also visited the indoor pool (usually used for exercise classes), the salt inhalation grotto (Jenny said that she could taste the salt simply by breathing in), the fire-and-ice pool (I sat in the hot tub and avoided the cold counterpart), and tropical rain and alpine waterfalls (again, I stood under the warm water falling from huge circular shower heads and stayed away from the frigid downpour so cold that it gave me goosebumps when I passed by).
We finished at the aromatic steam baths. One room was citrus, another was menthol, and the last was -- WAIT FOR IT -- pastries! Okay, so the official label of the scent was "exotic," but that room smelled like fresh cakes and cookies to me. In fact, I felt like a cupcake baking in the oven while I sat in the misty enclosure, and I totally loved it even though I usually don't like either wet or dry saunas.
We stayed a shocking 5 hours at the spa, and it only cost around $65 -- including my massage! In my book, that's money and time well spent. :)
