February 12, 2014

Real Talk: I LOVE winter. Love, love, love it.

But this it getting to be too much for me.

I need some days when I can walk around and enjoy the scenery. Relax and enjoy the outdoors without freezing my toes off.

Actually enjoy my Canadian winters outside.

So when I was offered an opportunity to go and tour the outdoor Thermëa Spa being built at Crescent Drive Golf Course my heard skipped a beat -this is definitely the kind of "winter activity" I can get into during a winter like this one.

So I bundled myself up last Saturday and went to meet the GM, Frederic Jenni, who walked me around the grounds and explained the different services that the spa is going to offer once it opens in the early spring.

He explained that Thermëa is a Scandinavian-inspired spa, so it offers humid & dry saunas, a hot tub, cold & temperate pools, and a Finnish Sauna (which hosts an Aufguss Ritual twice a day) in addition to massages, body treatments and etc inside.

(Clearly not taken on the weekend. This gives you a better idea as to what it will look like than my snowy pictures will and also makes me yearn for summer... sigh...)

Honestly though, when I was standing in the middle of a bunch of snow in -35 weather, shivering in my jacket, toque, winter coat, mittens, boots, etc I wasn't quite sure if the idea of sprinting from one warming hut to another in a bathrobe was really something I'd be into.

Then I was told that there will be heated pathways during the winter.

(I think my toes just sighed at the thought of it. Clearly I need a space heater.)

It's funny how a detail like that can make all the difference, though: I immediately went from being a bit skeptical of the whole idea to being absolutely in love with it.

The idea of sitting in a hot tub or a sauna in the middle of a crisp winter day seems like such a great way to unwind, doesn't it?


(Here's a more winter-y version of what the finished site will look like.)

Until last weekend I'd never considered myself a "spa" person. I'm super anxious by nature (remember when I told you I got stressed out during that massage?) and until last weekend the idea of going somewhere specifically to relax seemed like a super weird idea.

However, after going and learning about all the careful planning and care that goes into building something like Thermëa, and the effort involved in crafting an experience where you basically show up, hang out, and relax, I'm really excited to check it out!

The spa is scheduled to open in late April, so I'll definitely be going at least once during the summer, But it's during the winters that I think the experience they're going to offer is really going to stand out.

I can't wait!

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