Span. (spä)

As A Malay Middle-Class Culture

Origins of the Spa as we know it

• Pre-historic hot & cold springs

• Aegean Bathing Rituals

• Aquae Spadanea of the Roman Empire

• Turkish Baths

• Asian Localization/ Exoticisation of Spas

Spa as part ofmiddle-class consumption

• Servility

• Privilege of the Leisure Class

• Exclusivity (Access & Attainment)

• Spa as socialization space of middle-class

• Need for specialized knowledge

• Concern for health & wellness

Greek Bath at Pompei

Greek Bath at Pompei

Greek Bath at Pompei

Greek Bath at Pompei

Roman Baths

Roman Baths

Roman Baths

Roman Baths

Turkish Baths

Turkish Baths

Turkish Baths

Turkish Baths

Early Spa Culture in Singapore

• Aspara Spa & Renewal Day Spa (1994)

• Singapore Spa Association (1999)

• Reclassification of ‘Spa’ as different from massage parlours (2001)

• SPAcademy by Raffles International (2001)

• Singapore as Spa Tourism Hub (2002)

Spa culture among Malays

• Wayan Retreat & Spa (2003)

• first Balinese Spa in Singapore

• first Malay-owned spa

Trend of ‘Malay’ Spas

• Back to Basics Muslimah Hair Spa

• Lymphatic Wellness

• Chantique Spa

• Kaki-Kaki

• Turned many ‘tokoh’ (eg. at Joo Chiat) into make-shift spa places

Trend of ‘Malay’ Spas

• Back to Basics Muslimah Hair Spa

• Lymphatic Wellness

• Chantique Spa

• Kaki-Kaki

• Turned many ‘tokoh’ (eg. at Joo Chiat) into make-shift spa places

Patrons of Culture...

• Scrubs: Lulur, Boreh, Kemiri

• Baths: Mandi Bunga, Mandi Susu, Jamu Herbal bath

• Massages: Kampung, Javanese, Balinese

• use of Malay herbal concoctions

• Gaggang, Kempis Perut, Seri Pengantin, Urut Bayi

...and Globalization

• Scrubs: Lavender, Eucalyptus

• Baths: Vichy, Jacuzzi, Spa Pools

• Massages: Swedish, Shiatsu, Thai, Deep Tissue

• use of oils, creams and tea

• Ear Candling, Slim wraps, Pedicure & Manicure

“Ada yang housewife, husband pergi kerja isteri pergi spa... Ada satu group cikgu-cikgu pencen... Tapi yang biasa selalu yang bekerjalah... Penat, stress, sengal-sengal, jadi spa relaxing for them. Untuk perjalanan darah, hilangkan stress... Students jaranglah buat spa.”

- Kak Wati, masseuse from Chantique Spa.

The New Malay AND Muslim Spa

• differentiates non-Malay treatment and ‘non-Muslim’ spa

• ‘Spa’ differentiated as distinctly different from the traditional pre-existing ‘urut’

The Pre-existing Malay Urut• home-based

• facials are home-made D.I.Y; idea of petua

• massages are functional; health purposes, not leisure

• pre & post natal

• ‘bekam’

• ‘salah urat’, aches, etc.

Who is the Tukang Urut?“The tukang urut was knowledgeable in the practice of traditional Malay medicine and was a popular source of medicinal assistance in the kampung (village). The tukang urut would dispense traditional Malay medicines, treating common ailments using plant or animal-based ingredients.

Tukang uruts were knowledgeable about various conditions of the human body and relied heavily on their knowledge of the human anatomy during massages.”

Evolution of the ‘Tukang Urut’• Spas offering home-based traditional urut

services

• tukang urut services incorporated into spas (Spa Elements, Damai Spa, Chantique Spa, etc)

• Tukang Urut offering more recent treatments

• i.e Ear Candling, Swedish Massage, Using of lavender, eucalyptus oils

• Tukang Urut setting up physical shops

“Going for a massage” —Shift in meanings

• from necessity and recuperation to one of luxury and pampering indulgence

• from a village level, accessible service to one that is exclusive and for the privileged

• reverence to a traditional tukang urut as healer VS masseuse today as part of the servility

• The Spa remains as a sign of prestige and status; a lifestyle of its own

Experiential Learning Anyone?

Acknowledgements

Chantique Spa & Bridal Spa ElementsAegean Spa

ReferencesBoëthius, Axel & Ward-Perkins, J. B. (1970). Etruscan and Roman architecture. Harmondsworth:

Penguin.

Bourdieu, Pierre (2000). ‘Conspicuous Consumption’ in Martyn J. Lee, The Consumer Society Reader. Masachusettes: Blackwell Publishing.

Gary Bodeker & Marc Cohen (eds.) (2008). Understanding the Global Spa Industry: spa management. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.

Global Information Hub on Integrated Medicine (2010). Traditional Malay Medicine [Online]. Available: http://www.globinmed.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=50:traditional-malay-medicine&catid=45:malaysian-perspective&Itemid=137. Accessed on 13 October 2010.

Nurbaiti Hamdan (2009). Document Traditional Spa Practices [Online]. Available: http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2009/2/10/central/3067934&sec=central. Accessed on 16 Octorber 2010.

Nurhidayati Yahya (2010). Butterflyrubrics: Weekends in Spore — Spa Jelita [Online]. Available: http://butterflyrubrics.wordpress.com/2010/02/21/weekends-in-spore-spa-jelita/. Accessed on 12 October 2010.

Paige, John C. & Laura Woulliere Harrison (1987). Out of the Vapors: A Social and Architectural History of Bathhouse Row, Hot Springs National Park. U.S. Department of the Interior.

The Malay Medicine (2009). Tukang Urut [Online]. Available: http://malaymedicine.blogspot.com/2009/08/tukang-urut.html. Accessed on 16 October 2010.

Veblen, Thorstein (2000). ‘Conspicuous Consumption’ in Martyn J. Lee, The Consumer Society Reader. Masachusettes: Blackwell Publishers Inc.

Yilmazkaya, Orhan & Deniz, Ogurlu (2005). Turkish Baths: A Light Onto a Tradition and Culture. Çitlembik

Thank YouQ & A

Thank You