It been quite an exciting time for me here at Thai massage school, 2.5 weeks in out of a total of 5 weeks and I already know how to give a complete 2 hour massage with multiple sequences based on ailments. With almost 3 weeks left and still more to learn, I highly recommend this center for learning as I feel very confident in sharing this therapeutic healing practice that combines both Indian Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine.
More than half of the students in this group have amazing careers as massage therapists in Swedish, shiatsu, acupuncture, sport therapy, etc. We've all come together to learn, expand our current skill set as therapists, and most importantly grow, because you never stop learning once you have a practice, no matter what it is.
This school is about an hour outside of Bangkok, in Salaya, and we stay in a dorm like setting with either shared or private rooms. We have people from all over, like France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Indonesia, and I'm the only one from the U.S. in this group, but also Thai! As a matter of fact, Europeans seem to make up most of the Wat Pho alumni in terms of out-of-the country students. The school is split up by Thai speaking course and then an English course for foreigners.
To be honest, I thought I was going to learn a few 60 to 90 minutes massage sequences and walk away with a basic knowledge of general Thai massage, I was wrong!
That is just a fraction of what was included in this 165 hour Professional Thai Massage Level I. You learn anatomy, again for all of us, but with faculty from nearby hospitals or medical school with a focus on Thai massage therapy. We learn to treat general conditions such as headaches, backaches, no power arm and "office syndrome", pain from sitting on a desk all day staring at your computer!
So far our typical day goes like this, 6 days a week, with Sunday off.
7:30am - Breakfast
8:30am - Prayer and Meditation ( to give thanks to the father of medicine)
9am to 4:30pm - Class, Theory, Practice, Massages, Massages, Massages!
4:30 - Thai Yoga, ascetic stretching
Tomorrow is Sunday, we're taking a group trip to the local floating market and temple, a day to unwind with delicious street food and culture, as we prepare for week 3.
