After thinking about it a few times, I finally plunged my feet inside the pool.

The moment I dipped my feet in, my first thought was ‘Why the hell did I have to try this!’ I mean, I did squeal embarrassingly loud when the fish attacked my feet. These fish are not shy – they get straight in there! In a way, I felt like I was a part of Khatron ke Khiladi, except there was no Akshay Kumar there to cheer me on.

At first, I kept shrugging the fish of my feet, which by the way, totally defeats the purpose of having a fish pedicure. I had heard that in the beginning you feel a little uncomfortable, but later its very relaxing. I kept waiting for that moment where I would feel relaxed, but it never came. That is the reason the people at the spa charge you first and then allow you inside the fish spa, they know that people like me can change their minds.

The nibbling doesn’t hurt much… I would describe it as a bit of a “pins and needles” feeling. Kind of tickly and tingling. I was wondering if it was supposed to be relaxing for us or the fish! When I look at the photos now, I really wonder how I went through the whole process.. the idea of tiny creatures nibbling at my feet… brrrr!!

After a while, the fish started to get full and lost their appetite on me, with only a handful nibbling away rather than the entire lot. My feet DID look a lot smoother. When my treatment was up, my feet were washed and massaged, leaving me with soft, light-feeling feet. I felt refreshed and my feet looked squeaky clean. I could still see the moderately dry skin on my heels, but the entire surface area of my feet (including the topsides and soles) felt smoothed over.

The therapist there was telling me that these fish (Doctor Fish) are commonly used for treatment of skin problems such as psoriasis and eczema. As the fish nibble away at your dead skin it releases an enzyme secretion and Dithranol which helps skin regenerate faster. So basically it’s like a natural exfoliate. Meaning, it was probably not all that bad, after all.

When I finally left the spa, I felt nice and happy. I am glad I did this. It was one of those spur of the moment decisions which I took. Getting my feet exfoliated by those tiny fishies was quite something! Now I am all set to try out the next new thing. And I did see quite a lot of guys trying it out too, so its not just a girl thing. The Fish Spa was quite an experience and is definitely worth trying.

So, would I be going for a fish pedicure again anytime soon?

Naaaah.