Pampering your feet is a must, especially after standing on them the entire day. And with all the walking we “dakilang alalays” aka medical clerks do, feet pampering becomes an essential if not a requisite.

I received a text message from my ex-roommie Mela this afternoon asking if I was free for pedicure and dinner. It was the perfect moment. We were from duty the previous night and a few hours relaxing our tired feet is the cherry to cap our duty. But imagine our dismay when we discovered how the three affordable salons near our place along E. Rodriguez could not feed our needs. While we were walking, we chanced upon a tarpaulin advertising a new place offering foot and body massage services at such a very, very friendly price.

The place is called Feet Galore Spa which is gps systems-friendly located at the 2nd floor of Dona Anita Bldg along E. Rodriguez Ave. in front of St. Luke’s Medical Center and Burger King.

The place is new – barely a week old – according to the front desk attendant whom I surmise to be the owner. The ambiance is so relaxing that I’d really want to doze off while plopped on such a comfy chair if only I wasn’t very ticklish. Mela and I availed of their foot scrub which came with a pedicure. Their foot scrubs come in three variants: peppermint, strawberry and milk. I was told most of their guests prefer the peppermint scrub which the both of us tried. The service lasted about an hour and a half as my attendant, Joyce, very carefully scrubbed my feet (she was too careful that I honestly think she could have scrubbed my feet harder than she did). I was told that their pedicurist wasn’t around so what they’ll be doing after the scrub is only to push the cuticles and clean my nails without removing toenail ingrowths. Good enough for me as I just had a pedicure exactly a week ago. There aren’t much nail colors to choose from but it didn’t matter since we’d be wearing closed shoes most of the time. What delighted me was the massage part of the foot scrub which bolstered my desire to try their other body massage services in the future. I can’t vouch much for their services as I’ve only tried their foot scrub but their pocket-friendly price and accessibility alone is enough for me to come back for my weekly feet spa-mpering.

Wanna try their services? Visit Unit 211 Dona Anita Bldg. E. Rodriguez Ave. QC or call 466-0861 for inquiries. Say “hello” to them and don’t forget to drop my name (Marinel) or mention my blog.

Services:
Foot Scrub (Choice between: Peppermint, Strawberry and Milk) 199
Authentic Thai Foot Massage 199
Traditional Foot Massage 199
Foot Reflexology 199

Body Massage:
Head and Shoulder Massage 149
Swedish Massage 250
Shiatsu Massage 250

Manicure 70
Pedicure 70
Manicure and Pedicure 120

I love pampering myself. After a long week’s worth of lectures, patients and papers galore, I always look forward to the weekend and what pampering treatment I’d get for myself. I am a self-confessed spa fanatic. I love getting a nice, long massage to relax my tired muscles. For me, the very first sign that I am under stress is when my upper back (the Trapezius to be more precise) starts to get really sore and hard. And when it does, I go straight to one of the spas that litter the metro.

Last night, I was supposed to be at the Cinemalaya with my blog friends but Bee decided it was a night that the two of us should be spending together. He bribed me with a dinner date and a free spa. It was actually the third time he brought me in to get a nice massage. We were supposed to go to Spa 168 where I’m a regular client (I brought him to the place a few weeks ago) but there were no parking spaces available so off we went to Excelsior Spa just across the street. I’ve tried that place once and the massage that I got there on that first time still tops my list (but that was last year and I forgot to note who gave me the best massage of my life). The price for their Swedish massage had increased from 380 to 400 but I don’t really mind because the staff were very accommodating anyway unlike in some spas that I’ve been to that literally would leave you clueless and alone (I’ll blog about them some time soon). The massage was relaxing but I thought there was nothing much special about it. I wonder though if it was because I wasn’t as super stressed out unlike my usual trips to the spa or the masseuse wasn’t as good as the others.

The place is a lot smaller than the other spas I’ve been to and I feel it was rather cramped. The ladies’ area consists of two showers, one toilet and a small sauna. The common massage room is located upstairs. I don’t really recommend the place for first-timers or for the more conservative types because you share one big room with three other clients and there’s really no privacy at all. No divisions to hide you from the other clients. Not even a curtain! When the place is fully booked, it gets a little cramped – what with 8 people inside the room. The toiletries, towels and robes were clean and fairly new and the locker room lady is really accommodating and would assist you with your needs. Having someone to assist you is a MUST in every spa. Especially since not every client knows what to do and how things go about inside the spa.

The verdict for this trip?

I’m giving an extra because it’s free.