Chilling from ‘farm to spa’

“AMUMA” IS a Cebuano word that can mean “pampering,” “nurturing,” or “looking after.” And that is certainly what clients get at this spa in Maribago Blue Water Resort just 15 minutes away from Mactan Airport.

Last weekend, some Manila media folk were accommodated at the resort to take part in the relaunch of Amuma Spa, dubbed “Farm to Spa” because it celebrates the use of local produce almost directly harvested from nearby farms and plantations, processed, and then lavished on clients availing themselves of Amuma’s treatments. This means that only the freshest organic ingredients are used to exfoliate, enrich, soften and polish skin and tissues dulled by stress and the urban environment.

We were taken to Amuma Spa after a sumptuous seafood lunch to choose our treatments which would commence the next day, after the relaunch ceremonies that evening featuring tableaus of the various “farm to spa” ingredients to be lavished on our tired, citified bodies, while a local dance troupe enacted tribal rituals invoking the blessings of the gods.

For my part, I chose the “Hilot Journey,” a premium service combining a wrap and a massage, followed by an “anti-aging” facial.

When I arrived for my treatment the next morning, I was first treated to a foot wash, after which my body was lavished with, first, an oil-and-calamansi blend supposedly to “exfoliate and invigorate” the skin, followed by a concoction of coconut cream and calamansi and then crushed mangoes, which felt cool and rich on the skin. Having been thus basted, my body was then wrapped with cool banana leaves, after which I was left to simmer in my own juices.

No wonder Sandy Masigan, daughter of colleague Deedee Siytangco, dubbed this treatment the “Lechon Cebu Special.” All that was needed was a bed of coals and a spit to turn one around to turn crisp, brown and oily.

Amuma Spa offers other, less complicated treatments—from massages (some with the use of hot stones and bamboo poles) to hair and facial treatments, even a special procedure for pregnant women.
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AFTER a few minutes and before I could fully doze off, my therapist returned, unpeeled the banana leaves, wiped me off, and bade me to soak in the flower-petal-strewn whirlpool tub, but not before sprinkling sea salt, coconut oil and more calamansi into the water.

After soaking in the warm, fragrant water, I was then told to shower before partaking of the “hilot” or Filipino massage, lulled to relaxation by the aroma of the ylang-ylang oil I had chosen when I first arrived at Amuma. I had long been bothered by stiff shoulders, so I asked my therapist to pay extra attention to them, my muscles softening under her expert hands.

As if this wasn’t enough, it was then time for my facial, although I don’t really know how much “reducing” my face underwent. By the end of the treatment, though, I certainly felt invigorated, overtaken by the illusion of youth and feeling rested and mellow. I wondered how many days I would continue feeling “chill,” though I must say the horrendous Manila traffic of the last few days has certainly eaten into my reserve of good feeling.
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BUT that is why we take weekend breaks, isn’t it? To take a respite from the daily grind and wash off the workaday tensions that besiege us, and to store up as much as we can of the pleasant vibes and warm memories until the next escapade.

Bluewater Maribago is one of several resorts run by the Bluewater Resorts group, a Filipino-owned chain that imbues its properties not just with world-class amenities but most especially with Filipino warmth and friendliness, beginning with the cheery greeting of “maayong adlaw!” (good day!) that every member of the staff utters upon meeting a guest.

Sprawled across approximately seven hectares, with a white-sand beachfront that is considerably larger and wider than the slivers of beach in other five-star properties, Bluewater Maribago is sprinkled with different swimming pools in which a distinctly family vibe reigns. During the weekend we were there, there was also a wedding celebrated at the “island,” built on top of a breakwater dike, as well as a class reunion of doctors, boisterous with their “groufie” sessions at the buffet breakfast the next day.

Members of the resort staff tell us that the top foreign arrivals are a tie between Korean and Japanese travelers, although the local market, from Cebu and other parts of the country, is fast catching up.

Rooms can be found in thatched-roof cottages that, at least in the room where I stayed, are air-conditioned and equipped with both a soaking tub and stand-alone shower. Along with cable TV, there is also free wi-fi access, a necessity these days.
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FOUNDED in 1989, the Blue Water Group offers foreign and Filipino travelers access to resorts in the Visayas region. Aside from Maribago, there are also Blue Water resorts in Sumilon, an island off southern Cebu, and in Panglao, an island in Bohol famous for its expansive white beaches. Word has it that the group is currently scouting for locations in other parts of the country.

Perhaps the unique “value added” to the Blue Water properties is the Filipino, family-owned ethic that translates to standards of hospitality, friendliness and intimacy that might not be so prevalent in foreign-owned or foreign-managed resorts. While the Amuma Spa (there are other Amumas in Panglao and Sumilon as well) now boasts of its use of local, native and farm-fresh ingredients in its treatments, it might well also boast of the Filipino DNA in its service—DNA that is found in everyone who works in Blue Water resorts, and benefits everyone who partakes of its hospitality.