MASSAGE a la TORAJA

One thing that I am addicted to besides drinking coffee, is having a massage. Of course my husband loves giving me a massage, but it comes with strings attached…if you know what I mean…he…he…So, I prefer to have somebody else, mostly a lady to give me a thorough, long, relaxing massage.

I have tried massage with different styles. In a gazebo of a boutique hotel by the sea in Bali, two slim ladies in their sarong give me a massage from my head and my feet simultaneously. In Jogya, on the island of Java, the ladies put me in a bath full of red rose petals before giving me a deep tissue massage. On an island in Maldives after scuba diving, a tall and blond woman give me a Swedish massage…oh so soft that I fall asleep. In a suburb of San Francisco, a stout Korean lady gives me a shiatsu massage. Afterwards, my sister and I plunge into a hot pool. In Chiang Mai, a lady gives me a massage by twisting my body, my arms, my legs…then she puts me in a sauna smoked with Thai herbs before leading me into a plunge pool under her rice barn.

But in Toraja? Where can I get a good massage? I have tried the five star hotel, the hair salon…no luck! The massage I get is so..so…to put it mildly. It’s only…rub…rub … then it’s over! I guess, massage is simply not part of the Torajanese culture. Until one day, my beloved mother-in-law tells me that her next door neighbour is a good masseur. I ask her, how come she hasn’t told me before. “Oh, but the masseur often goes to Malaysia to be with her children and to serve her clients over there. She is seldom in Toraja.” So, that’s how I meet Ne’ Baruppu which means The Grandma of Baruppu. Baruppu is a hamlet high in the mountains, above the clouds in North Toraja. It’s famous for its beautiful girls. But Ne’ Baruppu says, “ I am the exception, because I am not beautiful at all”. Then she laughs with her toothless mouth.

Ne’ Baruppu gives massage by using the five fingers of her right hand. Sometimes, when stronger pressure is needed, like on the base of our feet – not unlike a reflexology, she also uses the back of her hand. She claims, that her massage is ‘cure massage’ as opposed to ‘relaxing massage”. She gives massage to cure sore back, twisted muscle, headaches, even limping caused by stroke. At the beginning of her massage, she asks her clients to sit up. Then she starts stroking our back with her five fingers. This way, she can find the muscle easier. Once a client insists on sleeping on his stomach-as is the common way- to be massaged and Ne’ Baruppu refuses to give him a massage. She says: ”This is massage Toraja style. You have to sit up. When you lie down, your muscles become flat and it’s hard to find!” After finishing our back, she will do our arms and our head. Then, only then we can lie on our stomach and she will do our legs and again our back. Lastly, she will give our chest and stomach a massage. Where necessary, she gives her clients an elixir of traditional Torajanese herbs.

Enough story…..I am waiting for Ne’ Baruppu to climb up to my house anytime soon!