Right before I left for Rancho La Puerta last week, it was Harry Potter mania around here. The Barnes & Noble near my office had a line around the block with people (many in costume) waiting to get the first copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. As I generally do, I wondered if the headlines would relate to spa in any way and wondered if there would be people at “the Ranch” reading the Harry Potter book.  Well, indeed there was a smattering of folks around the pool with their noses in the Potter book. My favorite encounter was with Marty and his daughter Isabel pictured here who each had a copy of the book. He was reading the British version and she was reading the American version. They had enjoyed all of the previous books together beginning with the ones he read to her when she was a child. But it was Meredith Viera's interview on the Today Show with the book’s author J.K Rowling and their discussion about the final three words at the end of the book which I found most fascinating and really tied the Harry Potter series and spa together for me. Indeed, those precious three words were the same ones that moved me so during my visit to the Farm at San Benito in the Philippines. Every spa treatment begins with the three words that ended Harry Potter: “All is well.” Labels: Farm at San Benito, Harry Potter, JK Rowling, literature, Meredith Viera, Rancho La Puerta, Today Show
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 On Sunday afternoon, I attended Dr. Mark Liponis' lecture here at Canyon Ranch entitled " UltraLongevity". Dr. Liponis is the Corporate Medical Director of Canyon Ranch and was one of the authors of " UltraPrevention", which was published in 2003. He was among the pioneers who preached prevention and the clever book title helped catapult the idea throughout the spa world. In September, he is coming out with his new book " UltraLongevity" and this afternoon's lecture was kind of a sneak peak into its contents. The bottom line is that he believes we have overactive immune systems and they are causing us a whole lot of medical problems. The barometer of how active our immune systems are can be measured by what is called the C-Reactive Protein ( CRP) test. You want the number to be as low as possible so that your rate of aging is slowed dramatically. A level of three is considered normal but he argues that you are better off having a number less than .7. Then he shared seven ways to lower your CRP. Labels: C-Reactive Protein, Dr. Mark Liponis, literature, preventative medicine, wellness
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 I learned something remarkable the other day. I learned that Botox is being used to get rid of the strong vertical lines which appear on our necks as we age and that the procedure really works! These muscles in our neck are called platysma muscles and as we get older a downward pull creates vertical fibrous bands. I know what these bands look like because I see them in the mirror every day. I didn't even know these were muscles or that anything could be done about the way they age us. Apparently neither did Nora Ephron who wrote the book (which is still on the NY Times Bestseller list) "I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman." But thanks to the artistry of Dr. Richard Foxx at the Medical and Skin Spa at the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort and Spa (and his willingness to point out fixable flaws) Nora and I don't need to feel bad about our necks any longer. Presto...with a series of very small injections along the lines of these cords, they become totally relaxed the next day. Amazing. Labels: Anti-Aging, Beauty, botox, Dr. Richard Foxx, Hyatt Grand Champions Resort and Spa, literature
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I see this mostly when I am visiting a spa outside of the U.S., but I saw it today in a spa in New York: a spa trade magazine lying in the lounge area of a spa, for consumers to read. Ugh. When I am in Bali and I see one of our North American spa trade publications in the waiting area I kind of cringe, figuring that a non-English speaking staff member might have inadvertently placed it there. In fact, we have several very good spa trade magazines in our industry. (I read most of them and find them very useful.) These magazines are often sent to spa managers either because they subscribe, or are given as complimentary issues, and more importantly they are intended for spa staff to help them improve their business. But I wonder, what a client must think if they happen to pick one up while relaxing in the spa lounge and read articles like "How to Improve Your Retail Closing Ratio" or "How to Deal with Difficult Clients". It really bugs me. Just doesn't seem professional. Am I overreacting? Labels: consumer magazines, literature, media, trade magazines
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 Today I received a gift from Deborah Szekely in the mail. It was a 1977 copy of the book Secrets of the Golden Door. (You can buy a used copy on Amazon.com for a penny now!) Deborah knew that my copy was buried in storage somewhere in California. The newly opened gift sat on my kitchen counter when my husband came home from work. He thumbed through it with a modest amount of interest. Suddenly, he noticed that I was the model who had demonstrated the exercises in the book. And that there was a silhouette of me on the cover. Yikes, that was 30 years ago!! In true “smart husband" form, he said I looked better today than in the book. Oh, the advantages of aging eyes. ** If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much! Labels: Deborah Szekely, Golden Door, literature, Peter Ellis
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 Most people know Peter Greenberg from NBC, where he has been the Today Show’s travel editor for many years. He is also a best selling author – Travel Detective is one of my favorites. I was introduced to Peter several years ago by my friend Kim Marshall, who is involved in the spa PR world and is also a friend of Peter’s. I must say, I believe we got off to a bad start and it was really my fault. We met at an industry trade show, and after Kim introduced us we spoke briefly about travel and spa. Noting that Peter was somewhat overweight, I couldn’t help but suggest that a full-week stay at a weight loss spa such as the Golden Door or Cal-a-Vie might be a good idea. Well, that turned out to be a big blunder, as the look on his face--and the fact that our conversation came to an abrupt halt--told me that I had hit a nerve. There went any hope of his mentioning Spa Finder on the Today Show! Well, I am happy to report that I ran into Peter again--this time at the Virtuoso Travel event in Cambodia--with much better results. I almost didn't recognize him as he has lost a great deal of weight and looked very fit! He enthusiastically shared with me that he has lost 35 lbs (while still traveling extensively) and is coming out with a new book in May called The Traveler’s Diet. What a great idea for a book! I can't wait to see what weight loss tips he has for travelers. I wonder if they will include forgiving rude people who bring up someone's need to lose weight? :) ** If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much! Labels: Cal-a-Vie, Golden Door, Kim Marshall, literature, NBC, Peter Greenberg, Today Show, Virtuoso, weight loss
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France
Germany
Japan
United Kingdom
Italy
Spain
Just arrived in Palm Desert, California, where my husband and I will spend Christmas and New Year's. On the long flight I had a chance to get into the book my sister recommended recently, 
