Donna Day 6

I told Joanne that today has been my favourite day so far, but that’s not true,  because every single day has had its joys and there’s always been something to love. Today I had a foot massage and a facial on the beach. Joanne insisted we took a glass of wine with us because she’s done that before and felt like a lady of leisure  drinking her wine and having her eyelashes done. However, what neither of us expected was to be told to lie down on our tummies while we has our feet softened and scraped. Quite an interesting, occasionally painful, experience. Our yelps and gurning faces made the masseurs laugh. Well, it made both of us laugh too! One thing I’ve learned on this trip is that laughter is an international language. My lovely masseur had the gentlest, most beautiful smile and every time I yelped, he giggled and that made me giggle and then he giggled more  until two people who couldn’t speak one another’s  language were laughing at a silly shared joke, catching giggles off one another, understanding that human beings are more similar than different and we all understand the power of a good giggle.

Joanne was having her toenails painted so I was asked if I wanted a facial, with my laughing man. I said yes, because that’s what I’m trying to do on this holiday- say yes to every experience and not be afraid

The facial was wonderful, I was scrubbed, cleansed,polished, wrapped in ice cold cucumbers and bonked on the head a few times. ‘Oh that smells nice,’ I said when my guy powdered my face with something unknown. I finally stood up, feeling like a million dollars.

I didn’t look a million dollars though. Thai people think white skin is beautiful (we were later told by Joanne’s friend, Sassa); the powder had been whitening powder and my carefully developed face tan had been blotted out and my face was as white as Christmas snow.

Joanne took a photo. I hate the photo, because I look horrible but  I loved that moment when we all realised what had happened, and everyone was laughing and Sassa was trying to rub the powder off my face with a tissue and the pure fun of the moment is captured in that photo. So what have I got to be embarrassed about? It’s a bad photo but a wonderful memory.