While some of the GWT are on a near-constant travelogue around the world for pleasure, I am the guy most frequently traveling for work, usually for a few months at a time. My latest stint was a contract in Los Angeles that gave me a chance to live the Southern California life for a while, living in fab WeHo during the sunny months of summer.
Now this gig didn't end up keeping me in LA for the entire four months, so I did a bit of flying home to Toronto and back, with a nice furnished apartment rental in California at my disposal for the duration. This week, I flew down to LA for the last time to close up that place and decided to make a quick 3-day holiday out of it, including a relaxing spa day as a reward for a couple of months' hard work. A quick search online revealed that within walking distance (but really, who walks in LA; self parking lot and valet parking are available in the rear) was Voda Spa, right on Santa Monica Boulevard between Fairfax and La Brea. Perfect.
A Yelp review likened this spot to the (criminally ignored) Joss Whedon TV series Dollhouse, with a nondescript exterior and a hidden gem of a lush spa within. I love a good duplicitous façade and a Joss Whedon reference, so this spot had me from the get go. I booked two treatments, a 30-min salt scrub and a 50-min Voda glow facial. With no daytime crowds and plenty of staff and treatment rooms, they accommodated me on 2 hours notice which I enjoyed. As I got my tour of the spa, through pools and saunas of varying temperatures, I was impressed at the vibe of this co-ed spa. Men and women lounged in the pools and on deck chairs, sipping juice concoctions and relaxing in this hidden oasis that looked like any other building on an otherwise unremarkable strip of SMB. On the advice of the front desk clerk, I arrived 30 mins before my first treatment so I could unwind in the pools and saunas and ease into my spa experience.
The salt scrub treatment was great; started in a very hot dry sauna room and finished in a much cooler treatment room after the heat became too much. My attendant was quick and thorough and really got my skin feeling new. It wasn't until the facial appointment, though, that this day went from spa visit to blissful healing experience.
Led up to one of the half dozen large treatment rooms on the second floor by Mirta, a facialist with 46 years experience performing facial services, I embarked on a relaxing hour that erased all the stress from the last four months. At 63 years old, this Argentine beauty pointed to her own lineless face as a testament to the positive effects of regular facial treatments. Immediately I was a convert, but when she told me I could maintain my current appearance until I'm 50 years old, I was sold completely. The hour was soothing, painful, thorough and peppered with insight from a woman who knows skin and faces very well. She read me like a book; from intake of caffeine, spices, alcohol, to exercise habits, skin ailments, and more. If I could take her home to Toronto with me I would - she's the best thing to happen to my face since travel-size moisturizer.
For someone with a complicated relationship with their skin who also enjoys any excuse to take a spa day, the trip to V?da was an ideal day. Between the salty scrubdown and the focused facial work designed to keep my 36 yr old face looking its best for years to come, this little visit to the spa helped me unwind and relax as I said goodbye to another traveling gig.
The appeal of Voda isn't just in my specific experience but rather its focus on European style spa atmosphere and aestheticians with credible experience that make this a destination day spa. The front desk staff chatted at length while I was checking out and it is apparent that V?da prides itself on qualified service providers as it's main selling feature. My Buenos Aires beauty Mirta may be one of a kind, but apparently there are more people just like her waiting to pamper you here. It's not every day in LA that one gets to bliss out and relax, which is all the more reason to look up the spa next time you're in town to experience a little zen.
