A Sole-satisfying Experience

BANGKOK — Occasionally you stumble on an idea so wonderful, so profound, you can only stop in your tracks and say, "Wow."

It happened as I was walking down a busy Bangkok street and came across a pleasant, brightly lit corner shop with big picture windows inviting me to peer within.

There I saw two men reclining comfortably in leatherette chairs. Before each man was a woman massaging his feet. The sign on the door said Siam Sawadee Health Foot Massage.

I gaped. I entered.

The Thais are a people acutely in tune with the pleasure principle. Consider the glorious Thai cuisine or Bangkok's notorious reputation for nightlife. So why not get your feet rubbed in public view?

One problem with Bangkok's foot-massage parlors is bad marketing. Many shops are hidden in back alleys where female attendants sometimes loll in the entrance, propositioning anyone who passes: "Hey! Would you like your feet massaged?" Not exactly the atmosphere in which a conservative suburban dad wishes to take off his socks.

But Siam Sawadee Health Foot Massage is wholesome. The shop is on a busy corner in Bangkok's main shopping district. The masseuses wear aqua golf shirts. Elvis Presley's "The Wonder of You" plays on the radio.

As I settled into the chair closest to the window, I immediately sensed the envy of almost everyone walking past the shop. Some glanced furtively. A few gawked and smiled. When a bus paused within view, a passenger gazed wistfully at me.

Massage is a pleasure many Asians understand. In Japan, when you get your hair cut you also get a head and neck massage. In Indonesia, a shiatsu-style masseur wanders the hallways of government offices looking for customers.

Foot massage is the latest trend. It's billed as "reflexology," a concept that believes the key to rejuvenating the spirit and the body is massaging the feet.

Reflexologists claim there is a link between specific areas of the foot and the rest of the body. Any ailment, they say, can be diagnosed and treated by probing and massaging the feet.

For example, an examination of the heel can be a clue to hip problems. Massage the heel correctly and the hip will feel better. Neck trouble? Work on the pinky toe.

The only drawback is that traditional reflexology is excruciatingly painful and not really suitable for practicing in a storefront window. It would scare potential customers away.

So Siam Sawadee offers a commercialized version that focuses on pampering the tired feet of shoppers and relaxing stressed business executives, not, say, curing kidney stones. Many of the customers are tourists.

I was offered a one-hour massage for $6.50.

The masseuse first soaked my feet. Then, using Nivea oil, she began the delightful process of foot massage. She also wielded a wooden massage stick like traditional reflexologists use, but instead of jabbing me until I screamed, she applied moderate pressure. I didn't cry out in pain, but I surely knew every one of my toes was connected to the central nervous system.

Then came the payoff. With my feet sensitized and slightly tingly, she returned to massaging my feet and legs. Rubbing, squeezing, rolling. She rotated the ankles, tenderized the calves and added a few invigorating slaps to the soles of the feet.

She finished with a brief shoulder and back massage and a cup of tea. I walked to dinner feeling good.