Weekend at a Glance: Relaxation & Rejuvenation #55

FridayNo need to rehash the hell of a week that I had. Needless to say, I was extremely happy to spend a weekend of relaxation and rejuvenation.My friend Nykita is visiting from Liberia. We met up at Prickly Pear for dinner and drinks. Apparently, Friday was also National Margarita Day so naturally, I indulged in my favorite activity. I've been DYING to try this margorona thing since last Summer. Now I see what the hype is about. It's pretty much amazing.SaturdayMy sister invited me to a concert hosted by her group, SOP (Spirit of Praise). Sometimes, I hate that I'm highly critical of musical groups because it keeps me from enjoying the performance. But thankfully, my sister's group did pretty well! She's in the back (far right), getting a little too crunk.SundayMy friend Schemain treated me to a day at a spa called JeJu Sauna. Oh. My. Goodness. Let me tell you how my life was changed.First of all, my friend and I are probably closer now after being butt naked with each other. Seriously, I wonder how close a bond between women would be if we felt comfortable being naked around each other. Not randomly of course but...you get what I'm saying. Or how much closer couples would be if they took the time to really adore each others bodies. I have a greater appreciation for women's bodies because of this experience. It is truly a blessing to be a woman. So many different shapes and sizes. All beautiful.Secondly, if Bikram yoga feels anything like the heat in a wet sauna, I DON'T WANT IT. Not only could I not see when I walked into the room, but I could not breathe. It was like walking through a dense fog. Every breath I took felt like fire. I was in there for maybe six minutes, MAX.The most popular service is the hip bath. Basically, I sat on a chair while a bowl of water and 19 different herbs was boiling below my seat. As the water boiled, the steam rose, "curing" my lady parts of whatever maladies. I was tightly wrapped in a coat and dripping in sweat for 45 minutes. Basically cooking. Say goodbye to your cute hairstyle, ladies. Pretty invigorating experience, to say the least.The body scrub! All I can say is you've probably never been scrubbed like this before. I was almost embarrassed to see all the dead skin on the table after I was done being scrubbed.The food was awesome! We shared the Korean BBQ beef tips platter. Finger-licking good.Children are allowed in the sauna area where everyone is naked. I'm sure that probably would've made most Americans cringe. While I was cooling myself off in the wet sauna with ice chips, a little girl and her mother entered the room. I mean, I could barely breathe in that room and here comes a little child (with a cough, her mother said) braving it better than I was. I want to say they were from Poland. All of them seem to be very comfortable being naked. Is it just an American thing to be ashamed and/or obsessed/unhappy with our body image??Six hours later, I was thoroughly relaxed and rejuvenated. Ready to tackle this work week.