palau relaxing

One thing we did on Palau was get a massage at the Mandara Spa.

The Mandara Spa is a worldwide chain and Palau has two, each located on the grounds of two different hotel properties.

Check out their website for a spa nearest you. (I also found out that Hawaii has three and Tokyo has one.)

We had the chance to visit the one at the Palau Royal Hotel, where Satoshi tried their free 5 minute massage.

This was also where we were introduced to their ginger tea. A refreshing blend of ginger, black tea and some sugar. (you can kinda see it in the first photo, they give you a small cup and a large pitcher of the tea to sip while you wait for your massage time or just to relax.)

While Satoshi got his 5 minute massage, I browsed and bought a lot of spa products (actually this photo is only a portion of what I bought)--some to give away as omiyage and some for me.

Then, while we stayed at the Palau Pacific Resort, we went to the Elilai Spa which is also run by Mandara Spa.

Their massage rooms are located on a hillside overlooking the ocean.

Satoshi had their Balinese Massage, 50 minutes, a full body massage, US$85 and I got the Fancy Foot work, 50 minutes, a foot massage, US$85.

Talk about "melting"! There were some pressure points in my feet and calves that I never knew even existed. Kind of pricey but totally worth every penny!

Before leaving, I asked one of the massage therapists if she would share the recipe for their ginger tea...here it is...

Mandara Spa's Ginger Tea : makes 1 liter
1 liter boiling water
2 black tea bags
2 tablespoons sugar
6 slices of fresh peeled ginger (each one approximately pinky finger size)

Add sugar and ginger to boiling water and stir until sugar is dissolved.
Add the tea bags and leave to brew.
To extract all the ginger flavor, you will need to steep for 30 to 45 minutes, but you can remove the tea bags as soon as it reaches your desired strength.
Remove ginger slices.
Enjoy hot or chilled.

NOTES: You could use your sweetner of choice and adjust the amount according to your tastes. I made a batch as soon as we got back and used Assam tea to brew, it tasted just like what we had at the spa--the cup I have pictured is 3/4 cup.

The brochure says that ginger "stimulates blood circulation, calms motion and digestive sickness, relieves rheumatic joint pain, staves off fatigue and increases the appetite for healthy foods". I think we will be enjoying this during the cold and warm months.　

Palau Royal Resort (ask for Mandara Spa)
Phone: 680.488.2000

Palau Pacific Resort (ask for Elilai Spa)
Phone: 680.488.2600

For most of the week, the weather was quite windy and cloudy, especially during the early evenings. Since the Palau Royal Resort faced the east we weren't able to see the sunset, and while we stayed at the Palau Pacific Resort (which faced west), only one night was the sunset visible.

This ends my posts on Palau. Hope I didn't bore you and you enjoyed our adventure as much as we did.

"Mechikung" ("Goodbye" in Palau)

p.s. Have a good weekend!