disconnecting the dots
The signs are there for all to see: you don’t see anything wrong with checking on mobile texts during family meals. The first thing you do upon waking up is to check for social media updates, closely followed by emails. You get antsy without your phone – in fact, some might say you’re permanently tethered to it. It’s time for an intervention courtesy of Mandarin Oriental, Kuala Lumpur, which offers a cleverly constructed half-day Digital Wellness programme (RM780 per person) which encourages you to disconnect and unplug yourself from today’s technological matrix.
Just after dawn, you’ll check your phone in at The Spa as part of the hotel’s complimentary Digital Silence service – before you head to the poolside for a one-hour sunrise yoga class. Your instructor, the charming Claudia Gallo, will put you through your paces at the pool deck, stretching tired wrist muscles and giving you plenty of exercises to soothe the inevitable lower back pain that seems to accompany every desk job.
Afterwards, you’ll spend an hour or so in The Spa’s relaxation room, rediscovering ways to occupy yourself without your phone – through colouring, origami, sketching, and other mindfulness activities suggested by the Digital Wellness goodie basket at your side. Should you still find yourself uncomfortable in a tech-free environment, distraction comes in the form of a soothing Digital Wellness Escape treatment, where your massage therapist eases the stress of ‘text-neck’ and repetitive movements with firm, targeted strokes.
Complete the programme with a healthy spa cuisine lunch at AQUA Restaurant & Bar to nourish your body and bolster it against the stresses of modern-day life, and then – once you’re ready to reconnect – retrieve your phone. We wager you’ll emerge wondering why you ever needed it at all.
