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The search for Well-Being needn't go via
Nice Airport. Nancy Wilson begins a new series looking at some local
options
I first discovered Four Seasons Provence quite
by accident a few years back in my hunt for Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.
Playing detective for a celebrity magazine, I had driven out to Seillans and
Fayence where the couple had been spotted house-hunting. Eventually I ended up
on the grounds of the luxury resort where "Brangelina" - as dubbed by the
tabloids - had rented the €9,900-a-night Villa Terre Blanche: a 300m2
self-standing, three bedroom villa with private pool.
For those who've not ventured west of Cannes,
you're missing out, especially considering it's an easy half-hour ride to Four
Seasons Provence. The scenic drive along Lac St Cassien takes you to the
impressive Domaine de Terre Blanche: at 266 hectares, the resort's property is
larger than the principality of Monaco (195 hectares) and has all the
ingredients for a retreat in Provence (more on this next issue). "Now we are
complete," resort manager Mauro Governato, told me. "Before, Four Seasons
Provence had just golf but in April we opened the Spa. Something for him and
something for her."
An elegant, two-storey 3200m2 villa, La Spa is the Cadillac of Well-Being. Holistic back, face and scalp facials
with hot stones, life-enhancing body wraps, ultimate four-hands synchronized
massages ... all aiming to eliminate and rejuvenate. Spa director Clive McNish, a very affable and approachable man, is no stranger to the
world of luxury spas. Clive studied sports science and physiology, as well as
sports massage treatments and headed many of the UK's top hotel spas prior to
joining the Four Seasons. After an appointment in Bali he arrived in France a
year ago to oversee the launch of the spa at Four Seasons Provence. "During the
summer season, eighty percent of spa clients are hotel guests - mostly American,
English and Scandinavian. We are trying to let people know that they can come
here for whatever they want, the luxury or the service, but that the Four
Seasons is open to everyone. We have fourteen treatment rooms, including two
'couple suites' equipped with jacuzzi, private terrace and side-by-side massage
tables." As romantic as this may sound, if your man is prone to fall asleep and
snore, you may not find this an ideal setting for your personal moment of zen.
Four signature spa packages like The Provençal Escape and The Essential
Provençal Experience have been exclusively designed for Domaine de Terre
Blanche. Ranging in price from €60 to €240, they combine techniques from around
the globe with local ingredients such as lavender and honey. A full menu of
massages, body treatments, facials and salon services are also
available.
Finding my
Ozone
My Tranquility Spa Day Program (165 minutes, €295) was planned for me and my only decisions of the day were what and when to
eat. Perfect. After changing into a plush white silk-lined robe and spa shoes, I
waited in the Salle de relaxation. If I'd never made it further than this
room, with its opiate decor, hypnotic music, adjustable beds, and endless supply
of dried apricots and figs, I would have left a happier person.
But pinch me, this was just the beginning.
Cecile, my new best friend, guided me to my massage room where an earthy bowl of
almond-scented water infused with oils and sea salt kicked off my day of
pampering with a welcoming foot ritual. From the chair I drifted to the massage
table for a sugar and white heather honey body brush exfoliation, followed by a
quick rinse-off in the room's private shower before flopping back on the table
for the ESPA stress-soothing massage. My last treatment, a 55-minute intensive
facial, operated between warmth and cool, grainy and smooth, and with the heated
blanket and the background music, even my thoughts were made pure
again.
With a few free hours between lunch and my last
treatment, I enquired at reception about a haircut and pedicure (includes a foot
massage in crushed apricots). Even though this was a Sunday, no problem - the
team was absolutely accommodating and pointed out all services are available
seven days a week. I still had time for a swim in the colossal one-of-a-kind
Ozone pool, (like swimming in liquid silk) and the outdoor 38° Vitality
pool.
Philippe Jourdin, formerly of the Moulins de
Mougins, oversees Infusion, the spa's café, as well as the other four
restaurants at Four Seasons Provence. His four healthy menus are stimulating and
calming ... and explosive in taste. Set in the wooded serenity of the Domaine,
lunch (included with my spa day package) was served on the terrace: cooked and
raw carrots with orange juice and coriander (unbelievable!), tandoori gambas,
sea bass and fromage blanc with crystallised violets. You may choose to
wash it all down with a remarkable selection of mineral waters: Finé, more than
1000 years old, from Japan (€12/30ml) or maybe the Argentinean Lauquen, one of
the lightest and purest waters in the world (€8/25ml).
As I was leaving, I asked Clive for some advice.
For those of us who spend ridiculous amounts of time plugged into our electronic
worlds, what can we do about that stiff neck until the next spa appointment?
"Movement is the key." Clive assured me. "When people have a problem area - not
just a sore neck - they tend to keep still. You need to sway your hips, lift
your arms or do something simple like roll your shoulders ten times forwards and
then ten times back. Just keep moving constantly."
From Riviera Reporter 124 - Dec 2007/Jan 2008
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Health, Welfare and Fitness 
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