Egg-streme Massage

Bette Davis's quip "Old age isn't for sissies" applies to undergoing a Mayan massage with native Islanian Martha. It takes fortitude. This middle-aged woman has the strength of a linebacker.

 Nancy's and my favorite massage therapist on Isla Mujeres, Maria Luisa Harmel (see blog post Mystic Massage), has been back in the U.S. for awhile, so we needed an alternate. We asked around, and Martha [pronounced Marta] was recommended.

 Martha's husband acts as the massage table sherpa, hauling it up to our 3rd floor condo. After he leaves, Martha sets up the table and covers it with our beach towels. She doesn't cover us with anything. It's simple and easy, and we don't have to leave home.

Nancy gets the egg treatment from Martha

 With an uncooked egg in hand, Martha raps various parts of the body. The egg responds to energy blockages and tells her where to work. These are not all gentle taps. They can be hard knocks, especially on the skull. If an egg breaks, it means the egg couldn't contain all the negative energy, and Martha digs in. Nancy has been having bronchial challenges, and two eggs broke, one on her back and one on a meridian that Martha says corresponds to her lungs. Without Nancy having told her, Martha zeroed in on the points that support lung health. Martha can go as deep and hard as we let her. I felt pain, but let her work on my blockages.

After two massages that felt extreme, the third time I asked for a gentle massage and she lightened up and give me the fluff and buff treatment, very relaxing. We like Martha and are pleased that she can adjust the intensity of her massage. We also like the Mayan customs of requiring no covering towel, massaging the belly, and, now, employing an egg as a diagnostic tool.

 After the massage, no one is to touch the egg. It contains energy that should not be released into the world. Martha puts the egg directly into the garbage.

 Martha comes from one of the original families on the island--born in 1966--when it was a sleepy fishing community, and what is now Cancun just a coconut plantation. When she was young, huge lobsters could be plucked a few steps from the beach. Now, fishermen have to travel miles off shore to find big lobsters. [For a wonderful history of the island see the blog in Isla Mujeres Magazine.]

Nancy and Becky at pool at Nautibeach on North Beach

 Still there is the fabulous north beach, voted one of the top ten of beaches in the world on Trip Advisor, and Isla Mujeres itself, voted the 6th best island in the world. There is plenty to love on Isla. Now we can add Martha to the list.