N O .2

H O N O U R I N G H E A L I N G CU LT U R E S

DEC ’23

SECRETS OF
THE FOREST
Therapies based on the healing know-how of the indigenous Orang Asli.

A WELCOMEMESSAGEFROM CHIK L AI PING

brought on by the pandemic also means that we are able topause, reset and re-assess our lives. Changing directions tomake our lives better – and perhaps slower – has become
more imperative than ever. With all this comes a renewed
focus on wellness and that is a most welcome development.
The experiences crafted by YTL’s Spa Villages around theworld has always been guided by our ethos in which wellness
revolves around the whole being – the health and also
happiness which you enjoy in your life. Our recent accolade
from SpaChina magazine for Best Wellness Concept at
Spa Village Pangkor Laut Resort attests to this unchanging
philosophy where happiness and health is one. And in
this, Spa Village continues to maintain its unique andmarket-leading recognition. Our DNA of incorporating spa
design and experiences is to marry the idea of leaning on
local healing cultures that is inextricably tied to the happinessof its people. It’s undeniable that we are constantly inspired
and greatly endowed by the age-old traditions of the locales
in which our Spa Villages are situated.
Our collaboration with Ninie Ahmad, the founder of Upward
Yoga, at Spa Village Tanjung Jara Resort has been very
popular with guests seeking a holistic holiday and looking toenhance their wellness through breathing and movement
practices. Soul-searching guests may also enjoy theupcoming Mother’s Day Retreat led by Ninie in Spa Village
Resort Tembok Bali, where you will be surrounded by theendless expanse of natural landscapes, from the majestic
mountains to the velvet blue Bali Sea.
In this festive season, my wish is for gratitude, compassion
and joy to all around us, and for the re-prioritisation of ourphysical and mental compass to endure. We are ready towelcome you to our Spa Villages around the globe.
Dear guests,I hope this second issue finds you well and eager for theNew Year and all its coming joys. When reflecting upon thelast few years, the eventual realisation is that the pandemic
has represented a pit stop in life. The pauses in travel andmovement were scarcely imaginable before, but it would takethe better part of two years before some normalcy resumed.
Now that it has, we see friends and our guests making up
for lost time with their families, and taking the opportunity totravel, never again taking it for granted. This change in mindset

S PA V I LL AG E

May the warmth of the season fill our hearts and homes.
Yours sincerely,

Chik Lai Ping
Senior Vice President,
Spa Division, YTL Hotels

PAG E 2SECRETS OF THE FORESTTherapies based on the healing know-how of the indigenous Orang Asli.
The forest apothecary has been utilised for centuries for thetraditional healing therapies of the Orang Asli. Indigenous tothe Malay Peninsula as well as the rain forests of Borneo, theOrang Asli peoples have been acutely aware of the bountyof nature – the fruits, berries, roots, bark, leaves and flowers
found in South-east Asian forests make up their pharmacopeia.
Spa Village Cameron Highlands Resort have designed theirtherapies based on what they have learned directly from thehealing encyclopaedia of our indigenous peoples, in particular
the Semai.
The Semai are one of 18 ethnic subgroups of Orang Asliof the Peninsular Malaysia who commonly live in the Cameron
Highlands area. Many continue to live in the forest as
subsistence farmers relying on the land for their food,medicine and fuel. It was serendipitous that a Spa Village
therapist and healer, Sairani Ahmad, struck up a friendshipwith an assistant tok batin or chief of an extended Semai
family. Over a period of time, Sairani learnt a lot about Semai
herbal healing from this tok batin, Rahman also known as

S PA V I LL AG E C A M E R O N H I G H L A N DSPAG E 3

Bahtuin, and his mother. This insight into Semai wellness
recipes has been the basis of some of the treatments at Spa
Village Cameron Highlands Resort.
The Semai Scrub, perfumed by the apothecary of the jungle
penetrates deeply into the skin to cleanse and firm it,promoting new cell growth. It is made with nutmeg, clove,galangal, turmeric, and a host of lesser-known barks, roots
and rhizomes. Many of the Semai folk remedies remain
undocumented and there is a real risk of losing theirknowledge. This makes the relationship between Rahman,
his family and the Spa Village practitioners in Cameron
Highlands all the more precious and vital in preserving
their age-old formulations.
Two other spa rituals, the Tok Batin Mystical Tradition for
Him and the Jungle Secrets of Anti-Aging for Her, arebased on ancient Semai health remedies. The two rituals
use aromatic rambutan wood, henna, tea and betel leaves,ginger, cumin seeds and kaffir lime for rejuvenation andhealing. Madi the resident naturalist at Cameron Highlands
Resort likes to remind us that we have a lot to learn from ournatural heritage, ‘The forest holds many secrets,’ he wiselyquips.

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PAG E 4

WELLNESS FROM MALAYSIA’S BELLE EPOQUE
World's only spa to base its therapies on the healing heritage of the Peranakan culture.
The beautifully restored 1920s mansion of a prominent merchantin Malacca conceals a wonderful secret. It is now the Majestic
Malacca Hotel and houses the only spa in the world to base its
therapies around the healing culture of the Baba-Nyonya culture– a marvellously exotic fusion of Chinese and Malay heritage.
According to the Malay Annals or Sejarah Melayu, a romanticised
account of the origins of the maritime empire of the Malacca
Sultanate, an imperial Chinese Princess Hang Li Po was sent by
the Emperor of China to forge a marriage alliance with Sultan
Mansur Shah of Malacca in the 15th century. The story of her
legend makes her a precursor of Baba-Nyonya culture whenmembers of her Chinese entourage inter-married with the local
Malays of Malacca.

S PA V I LL AG E M A L ACC A

Today the gentle driving force behind the Spa Village Malacca’s
Baba-Nyonya treatments is traditional Chinese medicine herbalist
Lee Jok-Keng. The Malacca-born Lee grew up enamoured by aclose family friend who was an elder Taoist shaman. When Lee
was 15, he had become this traditional doctor’s full apprentice.
By western standards it was an unusual apprenticeship. In
addition to harvesting herbs for his teacher in nearby woodsand speaking to his Indian and Malay herbal sources, Lee also
tutored the doctor’s children in English and cleaned his brushes
and ink-tray. ‘In traditional medicine you become involve withthe whole family as well as your field of study – it was a processof observation and immersion,’ Lee explains.

PAG E 5

The Spa Village Malacca’s treatments are custom-designed forthe individual spa guest. This is because the Chinese believethat true wellbeing is predicated upon a healthy balance of yin
and yang (dark and light, hot and cold). Before you start yourtreatment you will complete a spa questionnaire which revolves
around your digestion, sleep patterns, and body temperature –all of which gives the therapist an insight into whether a warmor cooling experience is right for you. The yin/yang philosophy
is practiced at the Majestic Malacca using the many foods foundin a typical Baba-Nyonya kitchen cupboard including coconut
milk, rice, galangal, candlenuts, pandan eaves, tamarind juice
and lemongrass.
This has resulted in some delightfully named treatments likethe Suam-Suam Panas Experience and the Shiok-Shiok SejukExperience. When roughly translated they may raise a smile– ‘Tepidly Hot Experience’ and ‘Enjoyably Cool Experience’,
nevertheless they each involve a very unusual sequence oftherapies inspired by Baba-Nyonya and traditional Chinese
medicine.
A cool person is recommended a Malacca palm sugar and honeyscrub, a pandan leaf and coconut milk hair masque and a beauty
facial that uses a jade roller and fermented tapioca. The warm
energy person would be directed to balance the body with ascrub made from yogurt, chopped guava leaves, followed by acalamansi lime and yoghurt hair mask and a beauty masque using
star fruit, highly prized by Baba-Nyonya culture for its vitamin-richqualities.

S PA V I LL AG E M A L ACC A

PAG E 6MEET THE HEALER
A discourse with those who make spirituality their every day.
To the Balinese, spirituality is as vital as breathing itself. It is themerging of Hinduism with the ancient belief in the spirits of thenatural world. These animistic beliefs are brought to life by thephysical landscape itself. Mount Agung, the awe-inspiring 3,142
meter high (10,300 feet) sacred volcanic mountain is locatedin east Bali. It is the abode of the gods; while the surroundingisland is the home of the Balinese people; and the sea is fullof demons, distrusted and feared.
To maintain the delicate balance of this tri-partite structureof beliefs, the gods need to be worshipped and the demons
need to be placated. Fortunately Tembok Bali is graced by thepresence and healing powers of a balian who is a traditional
shaman blessed by spiritual powers and the ability to enter themystical world to commune with spirits. There are many typesof balian - some are healers, others spirit mediums, some cancast spells while others interpret phenomena. Each village inBali would have at least one balian.
At Tembok Bali, the late Kak Nyoman Tis was a healer with theskills of a masseur; he was not a shaman. As a boy he observed
his grandfather giving massages but Kak Tis himself did not starthealing with his hands until he was about 70 years old. When
asked about this while he was still alive, he said he suddenly felt
the calling to do so and discovered he had inherited the powersof his ancestors.
All of the massage treatments of Kak Tis were very vigorous anddynamic in true Balinese tradition. A therapeutic session withhim as he worked on areas with lymph nodes or energise theS PA V I LL AG E R E SO R T T E M B O K , B A L I

PAG E 7

meridians in the body was uplifting rather than relaxing, Todayat Tembok Bali a relative of Kak Tis by the name of Pak Jero hastaken over as the resident balian at Spa Village and carries onthe ancestral family tradition of spiritual healing.
The experiences at Spa Village Tembok Bali follow one of fourpaths to wellness – Balance, Creativity, Vigour and the CulturalAcademy. Whichever path you take, the spa’s emphasis is on
seclusion and reflection for you to commune with the island’s
ancient healing therapies.
The Balance Programme includes yoga, beach walking, andstar-gazing while floating in the pool at night. The Creativity
Programme includes wood carving, painting and weaving aswell as outings to attend a Balinese dance or musical performance.
The Vigour Programme tends to your physical side with lessons inthe martial arts of pencak silat, swimming, snorkelling and diving.
When you participate in the Cultural Academy you will really
immerse yourself into the island’s traditions and heal throughlearning Balinese massage, traditional Balinese dancing andgamelan music. With 27 rooms, two suites and two stand-alone
villas your search for seclusion and rejuvenation is already tailor
made by Tembok Bali’s layout and sensitive architectural design.

S PA V I LL AG E R E SO R T T E M B O K , B A L I

PAG E 8

SPLISH SPLASH
A delightful Bath House experience awaits at Spa Village Pangkor Laut.
At the one island, one resort paradise that is Pangkor LautResort, water is the wellspring to our Spa Village rituals. It is
the elixir of life for cleansing, steaming, bathing and relaxing.
So central is water to our ethos that every therapy you choose
starts with a complimentary 45-minute Bath House Experienceat Spa Village Pangkor Laut.
Bathing traditions abound in the Asian tropics. Hindus haveviewed bathing as a holy purification rite for centuries.
Muslims use water rituals for healing and purification. TheJapanese have understood the health benefits of hot springsor onsen since the Shinto period. In fact, the mention ofbathing practices has been discovered in Buddhist inscriptions
in Borobodur dating back to 824 AD.
Here in Pangkor Laut Resort, the Bath House ritual embraces
the multi-cultural ethos of the spa and starts with aChinese-inspired floral foot-bath whose origins date back to
the time of concubines in the Imperial Court. Your feet aresoftened in the bath and then tapped briskly with a wooden
mallet to open the meridian channels. Once you have changed
into a traditional batik sarong, next up is the cool ‘circulating’
Malay bath which is a recreation of a bathing experience in akampung or village beneath a waterfall. The aqua pressure on
your neck and shoulder muscles is tension-relieving.

S PA V I LL AG E PA N G KO R L AU T

PAG E 3Once you step out of the Malay bath, you are treated toinhalation therapy – a wonderfully aromatic experience whereyou breathe deeply over steam boxes containing pouches ofherbs wrapped in pandan leaves. Guests with respiratory issues
or even a simple cough find this immensely comforting. Afterthat you enter the shoji-screened Japan Bath House where youstart with a Japanese-style cleansing with a goshi-goshi cloth
before you dip in in a warm rockpool known as a rotenburo.
While you enjoy this dip in nature you’ll be served ginger tea.

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The wonderful Shanghai Scrub is a fitting finale to your BathHouse ritual where a therapist gently exfoliates the skin as youlie on a cool marble bed in the private scrub-house. In oldendays in China this privilege was reserved for male bathers only.
At the end of a gentle meander through secluded pools,
pavilions and a lush garden setting, you are set up in mind andbody for your chosen therapy or treatment. Now, just go withthe flow.

PAG E 4

Published every quarter, the Spa Village - Honouring Healing Cultures aims
to share the latest Spa Village news from our collection of spa destinations
worldwide. Coupling age-old practices together with modern approaches tohealth and well-being results in a tailored one-of-a-kind experience, delivering
award-winning results to our guests. Each Spa Village offers a consistently
unique and uplifting opportunity for rejuvenation.

Season of Gifting
If you wish to pamper a family member or a friend with the gift of a
spa experience, please email spareception.ritzkl@ritzcarlton.com /travelcentre@ytlhotels.com or call +60 18 340 9034

YTL Hotels Travel Centre, Level 2, YTL Plaza,
55 Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
travelcentre@ytlhotels.com.my | +60 3 2783 1000
www.ytlhotels.com