Turquoise Offers Travelers Protection and Relaxation
Sometimes quiet isn’t nice. It’s a necessity. This can be especially true in the nation’s fifth-largest city and the fast-growing communities surrounding it. Fortunately, even though Maricopa County is the most densely populated county in Arizona, quiet isn’t hard to find although it is easy to overlook.
Revive! Spa is one of the first things encountered along the sweeping entry to the Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa in Phoenix. It is not, however, the first thing most people see when they arrive. Tucked into the southeast corner of the property, it is easy to miss despite the avenue of royal palms leading from the conference center to the spa’s front door.
The Desert Ridge Resort and Spa, like the landscape around it, holds wonderful gems. Because the desert landscape is unfamiliar, it is possible for these gems to hide in plain sight. For example, behind the hotel’s Starbucks, visitors will find a patio on the edge of what might be a scene from a science fiction movie where all the plants have sharp angles and points. Walking paths and placards describing the native vegetation encourage the curious to take a stroll and enjoy the unique desert environment along with their beverage. The adventurous will also discover a pocket canyon between the hotel itself and the spa building that opens up to reveal an herb garden overflowing with native plants often used in meals, medicines and ceremonies. Many of the herbs growing in the garden can also be found in the treatments offered at Revive! Spa.
The Turquoise Package, recently introduced at the Spa, also makes use of one of Arizona’s true gemstones – turquoise. Today, turquoise is the state gem of both Arizona and Nevada. In fact, no other gemstone is held in higher esteem in the American Southwest than the turquoise, and may be the most valuable non-transparent gemstone used in the jewelry trade today.
Did you know?Turquoise is copper aluminum phosphate ranging in hues from grey-green to sky blue. It is a hydrous hydrate, according to Rock & Gem magazine, indicating water is present in the turquoise molecule's lattice structure. "Spider Turquoise", popular in the Southwest, has patterns of weblike tracings ranging in color from red to black. Turquoise mined in the southwest U.S. possess white or brown matrices and blue hues from the copper that is also found in large deposits in the region. Softer than quartz, it is almost always treated with wax and hardeners before being made into jewelry. Some traditions believe that if a turquoise cracks while it is being worn, the stone has done its job as a protector and taken a blow meant for the wearer. Turquoise should never be worn while sunbathing and should be protected from cosmetics, heat and bright light.
According to Native American tradition, the native peoples of the arid Southwest danced and cried with joy when the life-sustaining seasonal rains came. Their tears mixed with the rain and were absorbed by Mother Earth to become turquoise, or skystone. Turquoise is also associated with Xiuhcoatl, the Turquoise Serpent of the Aztecs. Beyond the New World, turquoise, sometimes called the people’s gemstone, has been valued throughout the world for much of human history.
Placing turquoise stones on the body, is part of each of the treatments, body wrap, massage and facial, making up the Turquoise Package. The $345 price tag includes all three treatments, gratuities and a day enjoying Revive! Spa’s other amenities. Additional food and beverages may be purchased at the Spa Bistro or poolside.
The body wrap, called a Turquoise Cocoon, begins with a dry exfoliating scrub to remove the external debris picked up in airplanes, trains, buses and cars, as their attendant stations and terminals. This is followed by a warm shower and, if desired, a cold drenching. With all the travel garbage washed away, rich oils are applied to the individual who is then wrapped in warm, heavy, moist towels to encourage the body’s absorption of the oils. When the hot turquoise stones were placed in the hollow of my throat and along my collarbone, some energy block I didn't even know was there exploded like a cork out of a champagne bottle. I tingled all the way to my toes! Fortunately, the neck and scalp massage helped keep me on the table while still floating in relaxation. Some 50-minutes later, the individual is unwrapped and the excess oil is removed with damp towels, leaving the body feeling relaxed and fully hydrated but thirsty. The little cup of water the massage therapist brought me after I re-donned my robe was very welcome!
The hydration continues with a full body massage using oils containing mint and sage. Once a certain level of relaxation has been achieved, the masseuse places warmed stones along the spine. After allowing the stones to cool somewhat, the massage is continued using the stones to work out the knots caused by hauling heavy luggage and uncomfortable seating. The process is repeated along the front of the body. By the time the individual emerges from the treatment room wreathed in sage incense, they are totally relaxed and moving with greater ease.
Concluding the Turquoise Package is a facial which utilizes pure essential oils and botanicals made from indigenous ingredients like those growing in the herb garden. During this treatment, the turquoise stones are placed on both eyes and the third eye chakra at the center of the forehead. The effects of this facial are cooling and anti-inflammatory which combats sun burn and calms the skin. Amazingly, it doesn't seem to result in a breakout or leave you feeling raw the way many harsher, more chemically-based facials do.
Just because the treatments are complete doesn’t mean the spa day is. Revive! Spa offers customers a pool area separate from the more popular main pool. There is also a café where light means, salads, sandwiches and beverages including wine and champagne are served. For me, the Crab Timbale ($12) and a glass of sparkling “M” Mumm Cuvee ($9) were the perfect conclusions to a nearly perfect spa day.
The only sour note I experienced was forgetting my bathing suit. Both pool and café are co-ed, so bathing suits or other pool/spa attire is required. Clothing is optional in the whirlpool, sauna and steam room which are part of the single sex locker room complex. A quiet lounge and private balcony equipped with water and juice dispensers, bowls of dried and fresh fruits and nuts as well as plenty of magazines are also single sex but bridge the gap between the locker room area downstairs and the upstairs treatment rooms.
Revive! Spa’s Turquoise Package is an ideal indulgence for travelers. Ideal because turquoise is commonly worn for good luck and protection by pilots and air-crews, as well as reportedly possessing healing abilities. Business travelers attending conferences or meeting might be interested in learning that among Native Americans, turquoise is used to aid mental function and communication. As part of a romantic getaway, gifts of turquoise support faithfulness and constancy in relationships of all kinds.Potentially of interest to both leisure and business travelers is the Persian tradition which makes turquoise responsible for the material success and well-being of the wearer.
