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Three
Promptly at 7 AM, there
was a knock at the door. A thin young man, dressed all in white,
and looking no older than a teenager, came into the room. He told
me that his name was Pakua and asked if I was ready.
As John walked out the
door, he whispered to me, "I'll be back in an hour. Remember
this is no time for inhibitions. In India anything goes, so don't
be shy."
He walked out, handing
the man 300 rupees, which included a rather generous tip.
I was left alone with
the young man. I had no idea what the protocol was, and I was confused
about John's "warning" on his way out. I realized that
it must have had something to do with the upcoming massage.
"Where is the massage
table?" I asked.
"I no bring table.
Lie on bed," he informed me.
"Do you do Shiatsu?"
I asked, remembering that the Shiatsu massages I've had in the past
allowed for clothing to be left on.
"I do Shiatsu, and
oils. You want I use you cream or my?"
"Mine," I said,
realizing that my clothes would certainly have to come off if cream
was to be applied.
I walked over to the
bed, hoping that he would turn around so that I could take off my
shirt. There was no chance of that. He was not about to miss the
fun of watching his client undress. So, with his eyes burning into
me, I turned around, took off my shirt, and quickly lay face down
on the bed.
I left on my shorts and
underwear knowing that underpants were definitely part of the massage
protocol in America.
"No pants,"
he declared as he pulled off my shorts and underwear with one quick,
well-rehearsed tug. John's words of warning rang in my ears.
So there I was, lying
naked in my hotel room in India, with a strange man hovering over
me, and my protector somewhere downstairs working on his biceps
and push-ups.
"Okay!" I decided.
"I am not going to be a prude. When in Rome..." and I
relaxed ever so slightly, waiting to see what would follow.
Pakua started to smear
the lotion on my body, rubbing my skin in a circular motion as he
went. After a while, my cream ran out. Pakua pulled a bottle of
some cheap pink cream from his pocket. It looked like it was several
years past the expiration date. As he poured the cream onto the
palms of his hands, the heavily perfumed smell wafted down towards
me. I knew then why I had suggested the use of my non-scented, environmentally
- friendly cream in the first place.
That became the least
of my concerns as Pakua's hands started becoming a little more adventurous,
making their way to the top my thighs. He pretended to focus on
acupressure points on my legs, but I felt his eyes fixed on my body.
I began to see the humour
in the situation. I pictured Pakua going home to his high-rise apartment
at the end of the day and telling his drooling, envious friends
that he had earned his rupees that day by rubbing cream into the
naked body of an American tourist. I wondered if perhaps it wasn't
back to front, and that actually I should be the one getting paid
for this.
"Maybe you could
put a blanket over me," I said, trying to sound nonchalant.
"Lying here so relaxed, I'm starting to feel quite cold."
Reluctantly, he picked
up a blanket from the floor, and, getting one last look, he draped
it over me. I felt a lot better, and actually a lot warmer too.
"Okay. Now I can
relax and enjoy this," I thought.
Little did I know that
the real massage was just beginning.
"Turn over,"
came the order.
I did a quick flip without
disturbing the blanket. Pakua moved his hands up beneath the blanket
and continued to work my thighs from the front, all the while regaling
me with a story of how he had fallen in love with a woman from a
caste below him. Their families had prohibited them from having
any contact.
"I Brahmin,"
he said proudly. "That is highest caste, but her family no
happy because not allowed to marry our of caste. I hate this. I
hate this caste system even though I have highest caste. I love
India but I hate caste. Now I no more girlfriends. I no marry."
"Pakua, how about
you do my neck and shoulders instead? That area is bothering me
the most." I said, moving my attention away from his love life
and back to the moment.
Pakua obediently moved
around the bed to my neck , and placed his hand lightly on my shoulder
muscles. He rubbed them for a few minutes.
"No tightness here,
Madame," he exclaimed. "I go back to legs. Skin dry by
pelvis - you need more cream."
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