I always liked the idea of bathing in wine or beer. It even fascinated me.
Well, because nothing is accidental, here's what I experienced last week. A really special bath: in carbonated mineral water. Where? At Hotel Caprioara, on the press-trip to Covasna. We spent 4 sensational days in the "Resort of the skunks and the 1000 mineral water springs", at the invitation of #VisitCovasna and Prime Road Media.
I was simply amazed at how many mineral springs there are in Covasna - there is almost no household in the upper part of Covasna in whose backyard mineral water does not spring from the well.
Covasna is the land where there are the most skunks with the highest concentration of mophetamine gas in the world - a real godsend for all those who are dealing with heart problems, but not only. Skunks can be found in the city, but also in the basements of homes.
In this press-trip, we traveled in and around Covasna. In the next 2 weeks I'll tell you about everything we tested and did, but today I'll stick to the experiences we had at the hotel.
We stayed in three hotels, I stayed at the Caprioara Spa & Wellness Resort 4*which is right in the center of the city, right opposite the park where the springs are Elvira and the symbol of the city, "The Devil's Pond".
If I had to make a ranking, I would put the hospitality and kindness of the staff in first place. And I mean from the hotel reception to the lady who prepared the bath tubs in the spa center. They all smiled sincerely, and they all tried to make my stay as pleasant as possible. Including finding solutions when necessary. I'll tell you about it during the article.
I admit that I would not have expected so much kindness from the employees of a hotel that is not a family business. It's a 9-story hotel that is part of a hotel complex totaling over 15,000 square meters, reopened in 2016 after 8 years of work, and partially redecorated in 2020 during the pandemic. And now, in 2021, they've also done a complete makeover and logo change so they can more clearly convey the idea that they emphasize the soul, not just the body and relaxing the mind.
It is the only spa center in Covasna that has 3 mofettes. It is even located directly on the source of mophetic gas. For comparison, in Hungary there is only one mophea and there are only a few in France, Italy, and the USA - but with a much lower concentration of mopheatic gas than in Romania.
The hotel is also surrounded by mineral springs, and one of these mineral springs is right in the treatment center, the water with which I took a bath.
Hotel Caprioara has the largest treatment center in Covasna. In over 4000 square meters they have both a related Spa Center Căprioara SPA & Wellness Resort, as well as an indoor swimming pool, indoor jacuzzi, 2 outdoor jacuzzis, dry saunas, wet sauna, fitness room, massage room and room for other relaxing spa treatments. And now they are in the process of setting up a gaming room for teenagers.
When I checked in, I found out that the day starts at 7:30 with a stretching session with Maria Burlaca. Then breakfast is served from 8:00. Being a morning person, I thought I'd be bored by 7:30, but the strongly ionized air - with over 19,000 negative ions, the walks and the moffets - made me sleep much longer and deeper than I would have expected.
After Mrs. Narcisa Diaconu, the General Manager, told us about the 3 hotels, the spa centers and their campsite in Zanelor Valley, we were invited to the medical consultation.
We had filled out a chart beforehand, but Mrs. Doctor Yulia Manolaki took our blood pressure and pulse and told a little bit about each of us. Even though I had drunk three shots of espresso for breakfast, my blood pressure was 9 over 6. Which didn't surprise me because I know I have low blood pressure, which is why even during my two pregnancies my gynecologist told me that I had to drink coffee to avoid the risk of falling in the street.
But Yulia was unimpressed and the initial verdict was that I was not allowed in the bathroom or in the skunk. I explained to her that I had come for them. With difficulty I convinced her and she allowed me to go in the skunk for 5 minutes maximum and 10 minutes maximum in the mineral water bath, but only on the condition that I drink 500 ml of spring water "from our spring, not bottled" before the skunk. After the mofeta, a break of one hour and only then, the bath.
He also explained why it's not good for me: CO2 gas has a dilating effect on the peripheral blood vessels and thus increases blood circulation in the muscles and connective tissues, improves heart activity, increases peripheral and systemic circulation, improves the ability to exercise, increases the ability to concentrate, but lowers blood pressure which in my case was very low anyway.
I followed the doctor's instructions, drank spring water and went into the skunk. During the presentation, Narcisa told us that she was looking forward to the results of the research because it seems that their 4* spa center has the highest concentration of mophetic gas. So far, the one from the Benedek Geza Cardiovascular Rehabilitation Hospital is believed to be the strongest.
I had gotten into skunks in the past and noticed that I immediately started to feel tingling in the soles of my feet. This time, I felt nothing. I thought maybe I hadn't stayed long enough. Later I found out that the tingling was a sign that I had circulation problems. It seems that in the meantime I solved them 🙂
The pictures are taken by the skunk nurse. She was excited when I asked her and she did me from several angles that "at least one of them is good".
After the mofeta, I followed the instructions and in an hour or so I went to the mineral water bath. Honestly, I had initially thought nothing of it and had no expectations. I thought of it as a spa therapy, and I wouldn't have imagined it could be so interesting.
When the nurse at the therapeutic baths saw that the doctor had written on my medical chart only ten minutes in the mineral water bath, she asked me if there was a health problem or if she could set the timer to do the whole treatment "because it is a sin not to do it completely".
When he invited me to get in the tub, he asked me if it was okay to bathe in cold water. Their recommendation is to leave the water at ground temperature. I told him that I can't really stand cold water, that at home my bathroom turns into a hammam every time I go in, so he added some hot water.
I looked suspiciously at the tub. I doubted that so little hot water would be enough, but I finally put a foot in. I can't say that it was hot, but it certainly didn't feel cold to me, and it certainly didn't feel cold at all.
As soon as I entered, I felt a multitude of gas balls settling on my body. It was a very pleasant sensation, a little ticklish but incredibly relaxing. The kind of sensation that I hoped to take with me, to store away, to be able to remember it when I was stressed. I felt I didn't need anything more than what I had at that moment.
Then I realized I was told to stay still. If you move, by agitating the water, the gases evaporate. In their tubs, it's easy to stay still because you sit with your knees slightly raised on a support. I gave myself over again to the sensation of tiny bubbles that seemed to pop in all directions.
When I heard the doorbell from my room, I regretfully stepped out of the magic water: ferruginous, bicarbonated, chlorinated, sodium, carbonated, hypotonic, with a mineralization up to 1745,9 mg/l and CO2 2244 mg/l.
The benefits of this bath? Deep relaxation between all the bubbles. The chemical effect of minerals, the mechanical effect, which is due to water pressure on the soft parts of the body: abdomen, peripheral veins. By adding the thermal, mechanical and chemical effects on the skin, metabolism and blood circulation are stimulated.
We also found out that carbonated baths are slightly hypotensive - they lower blood pressure through vasodilatation, and the coldest ones are tonicardiac - they stimulate circulation, balance blood pressure and have the effect of a good functioning of the cardiovascular system.
In general, a bath lasts between 15-30 minutes. As with the moisturizer, it is recommended to rest for at least half an hour after the bath. In my case, as the ten minutes flew by immediately, I didn't feel the need to rest at all. I was really fresh until late in the evening.
In the afternoon we had a full program of activities that I will tell you about in the next article.
The next morning at 7:20, I went to the reception to ask where the fitness room was, because stretching class was about to start. A gentleman in overalls - he worked in a technical department - happened to be in the reception and when he saw my lost look, he immediately offered to take me.
Starting the morning with Maria is a real joy. In addition to the warm-up and stretching exercises that stretched and relaxed me, I even did breathing exercises with Maria. Then, after 30 minutes, I stayed for a massage, also with her.
But totally different from what I would have thought. First, I lay on my stomach. She rubbed me down with some essential oils and then sprayed me with a 100% natural lavender water. She had received it as a gift from a client who grew lavender. She told me that whatever she gets, she shares with other customers.
She uses Farmec Equilibrium products. She started with a short massage on the soles, then continued with a very gentle massage on the legs and back. As I found out later, the aim was to identify the contractures in the body. As he couldn't find any on the body, not even on the back, in the cervical area, he moved on to the head.
She identified some tension in the little brain. She covered my body with purple towels that matched the decor in the room and put the hot stones where she felt. She told me that every client, she does a different puzzle.
Then, she suggested we do a mediation together to release tensions. I went into meditation, although I wasn't so sure that I would succeed, but with her guidance, everything went very smoothly. After the meditation, there was a short stone massage on my back and legs.
I asked her if she mediates with all clients and she said it depends on how she feels about checking contracts. If I had, she would take care of them. But with me it was just small brain tension so she chose meditation to ease it.
I left there as light as a butterfly, incredibly relaxed and at the same time full of energy. I headed for breakfast, admittedly still surprised by the massage. I would have expected such a combination in a day spa or a wellness center with regular customers who come back regularly, but not in a small spa in a spa center. But as I was saying, the people at Caprioara Spa & Wellness Resort are absolutely special. They loaded me with their kindness, they made me feel spoiled in every moment spent with them.
In the next article I will tell you about the activities I did in Covasna and its surroundings, the places I visited and the legends that helped me to better understand this resort and its riches.
Ioana Marian, founder of despreSpa.ro
Founder despreSpa.ro
