Flew directly from New York to Turks and Caicos on Friday - 3 1/2 hours. Nice to have this direct flight. Since I have lived most of my adult life on the West Coast, where we vacation in Hawaii, the Caribbean is still somewhat new to me. The chance to experience Parrot Cay while training eight Virtuoso Travel Specialists who want to become experts in selling spa vacations was a welcome opportunity.

I talked Peter into coming along, and we went a day early to experience Parrot Cay as a couple. I can see why so many honeymooners come here. I learned from my massage therapist yesterday that lots of babymooners come here as well, usually in their second trimester.

Yesterday we had some thalassotherapy in the ocean (no charge when you just soak and swim in the turquoise blue water on your own) and then enjoyed a Como Shambhala Massage in the late afternoon. Excellent therapist, nice setting, relaxing. More and more I see places offering a 75 or 90 minute massage as their "standard." Good idea....the best way to relax quickly and totally.

My Thermes Marins facial was very good - and it is obvious that the estheticians here are well trained. I asked mine about her schooling, and she explained to me that she had to complete three years of training to become an esthetician. Compared to the short training programs in many parts of the world (including the U.S., where one can become an esthetician within months), the standards here are definitely higher. No wonder the reputation for skin care in France and other parts of Europe is so much greater. It makes me think of how many skin care products come out of France…more than from any other country in the world by far.

My esthetician was able to answer my question about a stubborn bump on my skin that has been there for months, explaining that it was a lipid and would need my dermatologist's attention. No esthetician or product would be able to relieve it. And even though I haven't checked with my dermatologist yet, the esthetician's "I've seen this many times before" attitude certainly gave me confidence that she knew what she was doing.

The spa uses Lancaster and La Prairie products, and used to offer Kanebo but dropped them after they became easily available in areas outside of the spa. Post-facial, I was shown downstairs to the water therapy area for my seawater bath and a massage.

Checked into my hotel - the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort - around noon. After a quick shower and change, I head over to Therme Marins for the two spa appointments that had been arranged for me. Ever since Lee Katzoff, owner of the Greenhouse destination spa in Texas, told me that the best facial she had received anywhere in the world was at Therme Marins, I have looked forward to experiencing one myself. You would have to know Lee to realize what that recommendation means. I have never met anyone with such high standards and exquisite taste.

I spent the first hour of my visit to Therme Marins - which is a three-story spa right on the Mediterranean Sea with spectacular 180-degree views from almost every room - in the company of the PR director, who gave me a tour and filled me in on the spa's history. The property has always been a place for thalassotherapy but was destroyed during World War Two. In 1995, the modern Therme Marins was created - directly accessible from the Hotel de Paris and L'Hermitage and a short walk from the center of Monte-Carlo.

Many of the spa's facilities have an ocean view, including the thalassotherapy pool, the café, the fitness center, and the hair salon. Everywhere you look, there is seawater.

More about that facial tomorrow…

Qua Baths & Spa Brings the Social Experience to Caesars Palace in Vegas
Encino's Baby Spa Offers Wellness and Relaxation Services for Pregnant Women, New Mothers, and Infants
New Four Seasons Hotel Spa in Westlake Village, California, Offers Health and Wellness Services alongside Luxury
Home Spa Treatments for Winter
January's Monaco Spa Event Will Facilitate Dialogue within the Global Spa Community (I will be speaking at this event)
Hotel in Skegness, England, Will Reopen Historic Victorian Baths

We spent our morning at the special Kaiser-Friedrich-Therme here in Wiesbaden. It is a marvelous, refurbished ancient bathing establishment. This one has an outstanding circuit of water and heat treatments. I think the Germans are probably the best in the world in understanding the physiology of contrast therapy (hot and cold) and its health benefits. The circuit begins with a shower and then a session in the first sauna, which is moderately hot. After that, guests proceed from one heat experience to another. In all, there are 13 baths and rooms of various temperatures.

By the way, in Germany they would laugh at you if you wore a swimsuit into the sauna. Everyone is totally naked, and, yes, it is mixed company, which means all men and women are going through the saunas, steams, and pools with no clothes on. It takes a few minutes to get used to, but soon it feels quite natural. (I was glad, however, that we didn't run into anyone we knew.)

From a sauna to a cold shower, then a hotter sauna, followed by a cold pool, on to inhalation rooms, resting areas, steams, more saunas, more rest...You get the idea. The average amount of time a person spends here is four hours. We only spent three but felt great after.

To view all the different rooms in Kaiser-Friedrich-Therme's circuit, click "Sauna Landscape" on the property's website. You will see authentic names such as frigidarium, lumenarium, Russian steam, tepidarium, etc. It's a good lesson in spa history.

I would love to hear feedback from those who read my blog! Please post a comment by clicking on the link below that reads "Comments."