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PAMPERING YOURSELF WITH ASIA’S FIRST RHYTHM & MOTION SPA TREATMENTS AT ROCK SPA @ HARD ROCK HOTEL PENANG

Written by crizlai on Sep 10th, 2015 | Filed under: hotel, life, lifestyle, living, massage, penang, product, promotion, review

Whenever I see someone struggling with life and not setting his/her life in proper rhythm, I would always throw in this question, “What’s the purpose of your life?” It caught many off guarded by not being able to provide a proper answer. Most would answer that they would want to have a stable career, set up a family and grow old gracefully with their grandchildren. Is that the ultimate answer to the question? Well, there’s no right or wrong answer to the question as each individual has their own mindset on different life purposes. As for me, I would strive for a balance in everything – the Zen way of bringing the mind, body and senses in a state of togetherness. When you work hard, you must always play hard too. Thus, this brings me to the topic on how to rejuvenate ourselves, mentally and physically by giving both states the necessary alignments to move forward in our daily lives. I’m glad Rock Spa @ Hard Rock Hotel, Penang, has the same ideology as me by transcending the current spa rituals with their “Live Hard, Purify Harder” slogan and bringing in Asia’s first and the world’s 5th Rhythm and Motion Spa Treatments, with the other four sets in HRH Ibiza (Spain), HRH Palm Springs (California), HRH Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) and HRH Riviera Maya (Mexico). Being the world’s first fully immersive music centric spa menu by utilizing amplified vibrations, pressures and patterns as the foundation of its treatments, this groundbreaking experience takes guests on a rhythmic massage journey, utilizing Hard Rock’s differentiator (MUSIC) to connect the healing power of music with the artistry of massage therapy.

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Located at beach front of Hard Rock Hotel, Penang, is a little tranquil yet natural sanctuary by its own named Rock Spa. Upon nearing the premises, you would smell a nice scent lingering through the air. That’s the spa’s way of welcoming you into their little haven with the free flowing of relaxing aromatherapy essential oil called “Perk Me Up”, a combination of lemongrass, peppermint and eucalyptus oils to soothe your mood prior to your spa treatments. Other than being the natural deodorant, it also acts as an analgesic, antidepressant, antimicrobial, antipyretic, a digestive support agent, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, decongestant, antiseptic, antibacterial, stimulating and other medicinal qualities. What a great scent to have especially during this cold and hazy weather~ 🙂

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Upon your acceptance to experience the spa treatments at Rock Spa, you would first be served with a hot cup of Ginger Tea. It’s a relaxant beverage which would help in relieving your stress level, strengthen your immunity, improving digestion on top of it other anti-inflammatory and anti-respiratory health benefits.

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There are 3 packages, namely Synchronicity, Face the Music and Heat Wave, available for your Rhythm & Motion Spa Treatments as shown on the menu below. Basically, these 3 options are add-ons to their existing spa treatments (a gentle Hard Rock Massage/a more pressure point concentrated Traditional Malaysian Massage, a facial concentrated Essential Aromatherapy and the more energy points focus Hot Rocks treatment for the seasoned spa-goers) with the usage of the state-of-the-art music systems.

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You would also be given another option to choose the type of massage oil you would want to utilize during your massage session such as Balance (detoxification: rosemary + orange + basil), Energize (relieve muscle stress: ginger + grapefruit + eucalyptus) or Chill (relaxation: lavender + geranium + cedarwood).

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As I’m always down with muscle stiffness and back pain due to my hazardous working style, I opted for their Heat Wave package plus the usage of their Energize massage oil. Firstly, as part of their Etiquette Rules, all spa treatment seekers had to change to their provided “disposable” undergarments. It felt like putting my “ahems” into an airy recycle bag~ LOL~ 😛 However, you don’t have to worry as you are in the good hands of the skilled therapist as he/she would always ensure comfortable and proper draping procedures to protect your privacy. Other Etiquette Rules include punctuality (at least 10 minutes earlier) before your scheduled appointment, no inappropriate behaviors and the advice of not bringing valuables into Rock Spa. The treatment room would also a wardrobe for keeping your belongings, a basin with mirror, drinking water, comb, hair clips, etc at your disposal.

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The spa treatment was remarkably an out-of-the-world experience, none that I’ve encountered through my various spa treatments. It started off with some soothing yet TREBLE based beats from the overhead semi-sphere like space-age musical source with ripples of BASS slowing seeping into the body with mild vibrations via the massage table. Wow! This is the kind of therapeutic massage I’ve been seeking for a long time! I was in such a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere that I almost dozed off in zero-stress mental state. The music emitted which I presumed had a balance of frequencies such as Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Theta waves indeed churned out the best in me – energy wise, alertness wise, creativity wise, memory wise and more. My brain cells were totally revitalized and I had a great sleep that night. On the other hand, the Vibration Therapy via the massage table did improve my muscle soreness and my body felt more relax and not in such a tense mode as it used to be. Bravo to the latest spa treatment technology brought in by the Hard Rock Hotel, Penang. My therapist, Vixin, also did a great job in rejuvenating my body with her gentle yet dedicated touches by the mode of hot volcanic stones. Not only were her steady flowing strokes pinpointed all the muscle sores on my body, she did put in the extra effort in soothing the sinus issues I had on that day. Thank Vixin, you are my savior. I would say those volcanic stones do have extraordinary therapeutic energies stored within. With right combination of heat and oil, I can feel that some of my sport related injuries got better and I’m now more energized with a better blood circulation. Moreover, with such a relaxing treatment, I’m now quite stress-free. Thumbs up! Another of their product which the therapist used on me was their Eye Pillow, a pillow filled with flax seeds with a light spray of their Lavender Essential Oil. For those who are suffering from sleep issues, it would be great if you could purchase the products from them. Not only was the freezer-chilled pillow soothed the lethargy eyes, the scent from the lavender oil relaxed my mind and pushed my mental and physical states towards Dreamland.

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Overall, I had a great session at Rock Spa as my assigned therapist, Vixin, was skillful in her job and was tactfully knowledgeable in explaining all the processes in the treatment. If you were to ask me to recommend a spa treatment package, I will still choose the Heat Wave Rhythm & Motion Spa Treatment. Though it’s the most expensive package at RM390nett (1.5hours), it’s the most practical one to go for especially when you have gone through years of stressful life without ever finding time in rejuvenating your body to stay healthy for years to come.

Please call +604-886 8071 to make your reservation at least 4 hours prior to your appointment as Rock Spa would need adequate time to prepare to ensure your memorable spa experience. For more information on their other spa packages, you can check out their full spa menu as well as their current promotions with some great bargains.

The Rock Spa is located at the left wing of Hard Rock Hotel Penang. Upon entering, just head for the nearest car park on your left and then follow the left side of the building until the furthest end near the beach area. Alternatively, you can walk into the main entrance of the hotel and head towards the swimming pool area and then walk through a pathway of sands towards the left side of the premises. My advice would be using the former route to avoid getting pebbles of sands on your shoes.

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Name: ROCK SPA @ HARD ROCK HOTEL PENANG
Address: Batu Ferringhi Beach, 11100 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-886 8071
Business Hours: 9.00am-9.00pm
GPS: 5.467659, 100.240869

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Pricing: 7.5/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 9/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

About Hard Rock International: With a total of 201 venues in 64 countries, including 155 cafes, 21 hotels and 10 casinos, Hard Rock International (HRI) is one of the most globally recognized companies. Beginning with an Eric Clapton guitar, Hard Rock owns the world’s greatest collection of music memorabilia, which is displayed at its locations around the globe. Hard Rock is also known for its collectible fashion and music-related merchandise, Hard Rock Live performance venues and an award-winning website. HRI owns the global trademark for all Hard Rock brands. The company owns, operates and franchises Cafes in iconic cities including London, New York, San Francisco, Sydney and Dubai. HRI also owns, licenses and/or manages hotel/casino properties worldwide. Destinations include the company’s two most successful Hotel and Casino properties in Tampa and Hollywood, Fl., both owned and operated by HRI parent company The Seminole Tribe of Florida, as well as other exciting locations including Bali, Chicago, Cancun, Ibiza, Las Vegas, Macau and San Diego. Upcoming new Hard Rock Cafe locations include San Juan, Lagos and Busan, South Korea. New Hard Rock Hotel projects include Daytona Beach, Dubai, Los Cabos, Tenerife, Abu Dhabi, and Shenzhen and Haikou in China. For more information on Hard Rock International, visit www.hardrock.com.

I'm thirsty for a drink now. Would you be kind enough to treat me?


10 REASONS WHY I SHOULD AVOID STRESS

Written by crizlai on Sep 18th, 2014 | Filed under: health, holiday, life, lifestyle, living, rant, vacation

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A workaholic is always a workaholic as they will always give excuses that they do not have the time off as their schedules are always tight and sparing a few hours of their precious time will be super impossible. Stop being a badass and make excuses for all your shortcomings as there will always be an endless chain of work to be done. How you make time for everything and anything are within your own control. Good time management is vital for your personal lifestyle, a healthy one. No matter how short a holiday trip it may be, it’s a NECESSITY and not a LUXURY.

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Now stop being a hypocrite that you do not have time in your hands to improve your own life. Our bodies need a break away from stresses of any kind. We often ignore the importance of proper rest and relaxation until our body had become so fragile even to execute some simple chores. One health guru frequently reminded me on my failing health, “What’s the use of you resting many times in a day and yet not getting enough of proper sleep?” He was right. A body needs long and undisturbed sleep on scheduled sleeping time AT NIGHT to enable our body the adequate time to repair, recuperate and grow. In this technological era, we tend to spend most of our time poking our heads into other people’s affairs than finding ways to make our life more beneficial, physically, mentally, spiritually and morally.

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I often ask myself these questions, “Am I being an idiot and taken for rides all the time? Do any company and friends appreciate my insane working attitudes to make their lives more profitable? If so, where’s the gratitude?” Most of the time, it’s all about money and secondly it’s about given opportunities. In the end, it’s about taking things for granted and forgetting about the roots on how a person’s life became more at ease and bearable. I have come to the state that slogging so hard for others is not my main priority now. I would rather take a break away from the hustle and bustle of a mad concrete jungle and spend my time doing what I loved most at a more relaxing pace – living my life to the fullest with more happiness and less stress.

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Here are my reasons to stay idle for some time until I’m fully charged for the next phase in my life:

Restructuring the body against burnouts – Staying away from any sort of work tend to give the body the required time to repair itself and the brain to be free from any commitment it had pre-programmed to do so. A carefree lifestyle can prevent one from falling into depression, anxiety, temperamental and more. So, let’s go for a work-free vacation now.

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Regaining fitness – You might not believe it but you tend to walk more during trips even if it’s just for a few hours. The wonderful thing is that you won’t realize that you are actually burning up more fat and calories~ LOL! Due to all those little sightseeing walks or even shopping sprees, you are actually being forced to walk more than usual, pumping up your heart for better blood circulations, thus making you feeling fresher than ever.

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Breathing a different air – Instead of sitting down on the same spot for years and breathing in the same stuffy air, it’s always great to send yourself onto a new expedition, to an unexpected destination out from the normal populated areas and into the wilderness of the sea, land and air. At least the lungs have enough fresh air to repair themselves. Let’s go Kakadu~ Wait! Where is that? LOL~ 😛

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Rekindle your long lost connections – When was the last time you met up with your great grand aunt who is from another state or country? Well, that might be quite hard as it might incur more time and expenses, unless you are quite financially stable. Let’s put someone closer to you, eg. your parents, wife, family, boyfriend, girlfriend or even close friends you had not met up for awhile. When was the last time you really spend time with them to build up closer ties and strengthen the bonds? Even a simple dine out for a few hours is enough as everyone will need at least some companionship in certain time of their lives.

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Finding that new inspiration – Staying at stagnant surroundings will make you a dull person without much creativity to venture into something new. Go out there to new places to find your inspiration. A complete stress free environment filled with lots of good food, good sceneries, great air, great companions, laughter and more will indeed rejuvenate the mind and soul to think more analytically in life.

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Collaborate your brain with your senses – Sight, smell, taste, hearing and touch are often manipulated under stressful environment. We are human after all. We tend to shut our senses out just because we do not like certain sensations behaving not to our own likings. Unless you own a sensory deprivation floatation tank filled with Epsom salt for a total floatation in nothingness so that your brain can have a good rest without sensing anything, there will always be stressful moments in your brain. Instead of shutting down your senses on the surrounding negativity, it’s always great if you could expand your senses more towards positivity. The sight of a beautiful yet tranquil venue, the smell of unpolluted air with a tint of flowery freshness, the natural sweetness of the water from a clean flowing stream, the sound of nature and the touch of nature’s fauna and flora, will eventually set your mind into a state filled with tranquility, peace and happiness. Isn’t that less tedious than trying to drown the natural senses of your body?

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Don’t be a sleep deprived idiot – Do you agree with me that whenever your eyes are opened, you tend to think too much, worry too much and stress yourself endlessly? After a full daylight of putting your brain into all the tedious tasks, it’s about time to give your brain and body the necessary time out during nightfall. Without the minimum 8 hours of proper sleep, your health will be at risk. It had been found in medical researches that a patient deprived of proper sleep tends to fare worst in a blood test. Your cholesterol and blood pressure level will hike up crazily with constant dizziness and headaches. Your movements may become haywire with constant body aches. So, shut down whatever you are doing and have a proper rest now.

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Expand your boundaries for better knowledge and efficiency – There’s the saying, “A picture paints a thousand words.” We indeed need more colors in our life instead of accustoming ourselves with the hues of black in our concrete jungle. Visiting Mother Nature’s wonderful creations away from the populated city will eventually set your mind to look at scenarios differently. A clearer mind will logically boost up your creativity, productivity and analytical thinking. After all, the sky is never always blue. It changes from violet, orange, red and pitch black with occasional some rainbow colors along the horizon. Even the fishes come in different shapes, colors and sizes. With the knowledge from your little exploration in a peaceful state of mind, you tend to be more efficient in doing the best. It’s the best stimulant and it’s free.

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Less regrets in your life – It’s like a bucket list where you will plan out a list of things you will do before you die~ LOL~ The main purpose of creating your list is to maximize every moment of our existence and live our life to the fullest. At least, we have a goal towards what matters most to us. If you do not find the time to do what you love while you are alive, you might regret it at your death bed. It’s a taboo for many to think about it but this is a reality. I’m sure no one will have the last wish as “I wished I had spent more time at work and stop wasting time on vacations.”

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Inner self studies – Regardless of whether you are a female or a male, everyone tends to have their “PMS” days with unpredicted mood swings. Just because you are not in the best of your moods, would you bark on everyone who passes by? Is that how you would like others to treat you when they are in their worst moods? It’s all about “to forgive and to forget” and not like a grapevine protruding its “tales” into an already complicated environment. Sometimes, we need to sit quietly at one corner and study ourselves well with the five “W”s and one “H”. Depending on your personal self studies, questions might include the examples as follow. Why is everyone treating me this way? Who are they? Where have I gone wrong? What did I do wrong to deserve such treatments? Which action have I executed wrongly? How can I rectify myself to be a better person?

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As for me, I will always storm the 5 “W”s and 1 “H” questions in my head, especially when I don’t have any personal time for a healthier lifestyle. Why am I not having the required rest I deserved for all the hard work I had put in? Who are stopping me from going for a vacation? Where have I gone wrong that I don’t have time off? What did I do wrong to deplete myself from having some rest and relaxation? Which are the best solutions so that I can have more time for myself? How can I find ways to make the existing system become self dependent without my presence? Well, it’s a never ending process anyway and the questions will be double folds or triple folds within each question you have in your mind. Those are stresses too right?

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In fact, you can always control your own life by being in the present and temporary put on hold any future projects. Just pack your bag, clear your mind and go for your personal relaxation now. Towards the end of the day, you will find that you had become a rejuvenated person filled with more energy and brain juice to pursue on any oncoming projects. Moreover, you will become a better person with more conscience to move towards a rightful and fruitful journey in life.

I'm thirsty for a drink now. Would you be kind enough to treat me?


SAVE MORE WITH MYSUPERVIP CARD

Written by crizlai on Sep 4th, 2013 | Filed under: announcement, lifestyle, living, product

With the current Malaysian economy resulting in price pump up on most of our consumer goods, it’s time for us to think of ways to save more cost on our daily expenditure. MySuperVIP came in just the right time as not only would consumers be compensated for their spending in participating outlets by means of various rewards and bonuses, they would also get to earn up to 15% extra reward points for recruiting their friends and families.

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MySuperVIP cards are now free for registration while stocks last at all participating outlets around Penang. So grab them fast before it’s too late. Who could resist such an offer when you can shop and at the same time earn some reward points to redeem cash vouchers to lower your household expenditure?

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Here’s a guide on how to fill up your form to make sure everyone gets the best benefit out of MySuperVIP card. For more enquiries, please email info@mysupervip.com or check through their facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/mysupervip for further information. You may also call up their customer hotline at 016-4283204 for further details.

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I'm thirsty for a drink now. Would you be kind enough to treat me?


MOVING ABOUT IN STYLE

Written by crizlai on Aug 29th, 2013 | Filed under: accessories, lifestyle, product, rant

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With the advancement of technology, more and more consumers have acquired more gadgets into their daily life. What used to be just a simple paper notebook, a pen and a mobile phone had now turned into an electronic notebook, a stylus pen and smart phones. On top of that, digital cameras have evolved into something smaller than its predecessor with features almost similar to a bulky DSLR camera. Thus, most people would have at least one with them at all times to capture those perfect memories in higher resolutions.

With all the gadgets in hand, you’ll need to get something presentable to hold them in. What would be greater than having a designer bag which is stylish, classy and yet affordable within anyone’s budget. It’s always great to stay fashionable at all times.

I'm thirsty for a drink now. Would you be kind enough to treat me?


ARE YOUR DOCUMENTS SYSTEMATICALLY FILED UP?

Written by crizlai on May 13th, 2011 | Filed under: accessories, internet, life, lifestyle, rant

FILECABINET

After working for so long in the blue collar sectors, you tend to go through the many different processes of filing your documents. Some companies have very organized and systematic ways of filing the documents whereas some could be so chaotic that it would take hours just to retrieve a past document. Whether it is a physical filing or a paperless filing, each minute saved hunting for so called lost documents could save up hours of your valuable time.

No matter what mode of filing system you have, improving your set up would be a good investment as it would bring about great effectiveness and efficiencies in your organization. With the advancement in information technology and go green ideology, more and more companies are going into the trend of paperless systems. Not only would this help to save the trees, it indeed saved more storage space and messes you would have if you were still on paper based systems.

Majority of these companies are now on a document management software where an electronic document can be shared with clients, colleagues, friends and family with certain restricted access. All these accesses such as deleting, printing, emailing, and many more could easily be set up based on the personalized authorization accessible only to the admin, may it be client or web versions. Isn’t it great to have all your documents secured and as the same easily retrieve even when you have decided to work remotely?

I'm thirsty for a drink now. Would you be kind enough to treat me?

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