Most people go to the spa for a massage and for the purpose of relaxation. Getting scared in the process is definitely not a part of their plans.
But anyone daring to step through the doors of the Bali Heritage Reflexology and Spa in Jakarta, Indonesia will experience a scary sight if they opt for the python massage.
The Indonesian snake spa offers a unique massage treatment which involves having several pythons placed on the customer’s body. The movement of the twisting snakes and the adrenaline triggered by fear is said to have a positive impact on human metabolism.
But customers are encouraged not to worry too much – all are the reptiles used are said to be non-venomous. People are apparently queuing up for this unconventional therapy.
This Indonesian spa is similar to Israel’s Barak’s Spa which not only offers snake massages but also places scampering mice and rats on people’s feet to help relieve the stresses of the day.
Dressed only in a pair of shorts, customers seem to be completely relaxed as three pythons named Jasmine, Muscle and Brown get to work on their bodies.
The serpents are draped over the customers’ necks, they roll around on the person’s stomach and back and occasionally arch their necks and stick out their forked tongues.
Two masseuses also attend the session to ensure safety and to encourage the snakes — whose mouths are kept shut with sticky tape — to move around, making sure they don’t coil up and stay put in one spot.
Before the 90-minute treatment, the snakes are taken out of the plastic boxes where they are kept and cleaned with antiseptic.
While many people who get the massage at the spa are thrill-seekers or just looking for a new experience, a handful of them are trying to get over a lifelong fear of snakes.
“I used to be afraid of snakes, I had a phobia. But after getting this treatment several times, the phobia started going away and now I like snakes,” said Tilukay, an accountant, who has had three of the sessions.
The spa, which is decorated with wooden furniture in the style of a traditional house on the resort island of Bali, keeps five snakes that are fed a diet of live rabbits.
The snake massage is just one of 300 treatments offered by the centre — and many others are equally strange.
In one, a staff member dressed in a gorilla suit performs a massage and in another, the customer sits in a bathtub of beer receiving a massage while enjoying a lager.
But it is the snake massage, which started around a year ago, that has been attracting the most attention as well as a steady stream of customers.
What do you think about this python massage therapy? Would you go for it if the opportunity presents itself?
