Well, ride horses if you wish... and try some Lomilomi to relieve stress!

It looks that my comments about the horse riding activity really hurt some people's feelings -- sorry about that. I like horses, and I agree with those comments that argue that horses can actually provide a good health therapy. That's a good point; anyway, I don't feel like riding them. Nevertheless, I believe that everybody has their own free will. If you do like to ride horses, that's pretty good. I don't.

Now, I can tell you guys that I've had a week full of pressure. I was wondering about what methods are effective to combat stress, and it came to my mind a Hawaiian technique from which I heard but never had the chance to know in depth: the Lomilomi.

This technique, called sometimes only "Lomi", consists in applying massage with palms, fingers, fingertips, hands, and forearms. Sometimes, the masseur or masseuse can also utilize other instruments such as sticks or stones to perform the massage.

Lomilomi has a very long history in Hawaii. It is recorded that some of the old ruling chiefs enjoyed of these massages some centuries ago.

Today, Lomilomi has gained popularity in many other regions of the world, particularly Japan and the United States. There exist some parlors that offer this service, however, in certain places (such as, ironically, Hawaii), a Lomilomi masseur has to be certified by law. If you wish to receive this kind of service, please check for local regulations so you can make sure that you go to a genuine Lomilomi massage parlor.

This doesn't look like a bad idea for stressed people, does it? An interesting contribution of Hawaii to the world indeed!