On being devoured by fish

[fivemack]

I'm writing this from the Kismet Therapy Rooms (at the Burleigh Street entrance to the Grafton Centre) with my feet dangling in a tank of voracious garra rufa fish.

It is basically an experience from some Star Trek pleasure planet, as one sits with ones feet in the fluid and a horde of nanobots (thanks, iOS, for autocorrecting that to manicure) remove your dead skin one cell at a time. The fish are dark brown and have downwards-opening mouths: they come in a wide variety of sizes, from teeny ones that nibble under your toenails to ones the size of small goldfish which prefer the base of the feet. The feeling is basically pins and needles: I am very ticklish and giggled uncontrollably for the first thirty seconds. With the largest ones you can nearly convince yourself that there is anatomy in their mouths. They eat dead skin but not hair; they leave no marks.

I strongly recommend this service: the place isn't terribly busy (indeed, one might call it desperate for custom) and fifteen minutes (or you might prefer to think of it as fifty fish-hours) for fifteen pounds. The advertising for Kismet is more full of woo than the Number Five Happy Military Centipede Factory in Wuxi province, but the fish are honestly toe-nibbling rather than karma-balancing or qi-enhancing or aromatherapeutic.

Comments

[annafdd.livejournal.com]

I'd heard about this. It makes me very curious, I have to say. I mostly heard about eczema patients being treated, but my heels would be very glad of being devoured by fish.

[rmc28]

I think I must try this. Thank you for the review!

[pavanne.livejournal.com]

I liked it too, and it made my feet feel soft and pretty for a while (makes me wonder if I could get them to eat my face...). I will drop in on the Grafton centre if in town. It is kind of steep price-wise for most people though.

By the way you can buy garra rufa fish for about GBP 8 apiece. I wonder if you can breed them in captivity...

[sphyg.livejournal.com]

I'll keep it in mind for a silly girly outing.