Massaging Cusco

We are staying in the city of Cusco for a few days. It is pretty touristy because it is the main stopping point if you want to go to Machu Picchu. As with most tourism driven cities, there are "special tourist prices" for many things, one of which is massage. Hundreds of little local gals stalk the streets with fliers for their massage joint and tout "special price for you" as tourists pass by. I know that this is sounding creepy but let me just put your fears to rest and tell you that my story does NOT end with a naughty happy ending! Gross. So, these cheap-o massages are all the rage and after an intense day of bungee jumping Janine and I really wanted one. Janine called several places to get price quotes and we finally settled on one that could accommodate us immediately and cost $20 for an hour and a half massage (with tip included). If you are wondering what $20 gets you in the Peruvian massage world, let me tell you. The massage place, well, let`s call it a "parlor" for fun, was more or less someone`s back storage room - ok that is exactly what it was but they had made some upgrades to make it look sleek and fancy. There were sheets hanging from the ceiling so that they could keep the... well, let`s call them "rooms" separate. And they keep the massage tables on rugs so they can easily move you when someone needs to get in or out of one of the other "rooms." They also made sure to keep it good and dark so the mood would be right... I don`t even think that they realized how well the darkness hid the pealing paint and in some places holes in the flooring... In the end the physical aspect of the massage was fantastic, aside from some odd bum slapping... but we clearly got what we paid for in regards to the ambiance... all in all I believe it was $20 well spent!