News & Notes From Wilbur Hot Springs
Late September 2004
Dear Friends of Wilbur:
Last week the weather dropped 20 degrees in 24 hours and suddenly autumn was upon us. This week we are experiencing Wilbur spring again. In any case, the sun is warm, the sky is blue and the water is still hot and soothing!
Nonetheless, fall is on its way - and with it some great activities. Here are some new and recent events at Wilbur, including our Guest Chef Weekend and first-ever Suits-On Weekend. Please read on for details.
Wilbur Guest Chef Weekends
The first Wilbur Guest Chef Weekend on October 15-17, featuring Esalen Head Chefs Charlie and Marion Cascio, has generated a lot of interest and excitement. All our private rooms filled very quickly, although there is still some space in the Bunk House for those of you who don't want to miss this inaugural event.
In light of the favorable response to the guest chef concept, we've scheduled our second Guest Chef Weekend with Charlie and Marion for the weekend of November 5-7. The weekend will include five delectable meals from these talented chefs - Friday dinner; breakfast, lunch and dinner Saturday; and Sunday brunch - priced at just $95 per person. Based on our experience with the first guest chef weekend, I suggest you make your reservations right away. We're expecting another sell-out!
For reservations or more information on this delicious weekend, call us at 530-473-2306, or visit www.wilburhotsprings.com .
MORE ABOUT CHARLIE & MARION CASCIO
Charlie has been the head chef and manager of the Esalen Dining Lodge at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur for the past seven years. A chef, restaurateur, consultant and lecturer on natural and healthy cuisine, Charlie has worked and taught in the U.S. and Europe for 34 years. Marion comes from a family of chefs and has been involved with restaurants since childhood. She studied culinary arts in Germany for five years and has worked in many acclaimed restaurants and spas. She is currently a staff chef at the Esalen Institute. Charlie and Marion live self-sufficiently on land in Big Sur where they keep goats, bees, chickens, and an abundant organic garden.
Suits-On Weekend at Wilbur, January 21-23
Here's a bit of Wilbur history you may not know. When I moved to Wilbur in 1972, the place was in severe disrepair. The cleaning task alone was enormous. Since we were not then open to the public, there was no issue of what attire, if any, to wear in the waters after a day's work. Since Wilbur was our private home, we did what all folks do in their homes -- we wore nothing in our baths.
When we decided to open to the public in 1974, we considered the issue of bathing attire and were influenced by several factors:
1. Other Traditions: My cousin Albee Lefcourte married a wonderful Japanese lady named Atsuko, who was a master of both Ikebana and the Japanese tea ceremony. Atsuko and Albee built a beautiful Japanese-style home near where my folks retired in Florida. The four of them were quite close. Atsuko told me that in Japan families often bathed together without wearing any attire.
2. Personal Experience: I had lived and studied at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, where no one ever wore anything in the baths. People came from all over the world for seminars at Esalen and no one seemed to mind the lack of attire in the bathing areas.
3. Pragmatism: When we wore bathing suits in the waters of Wilbur, they became caked with the minerals we loved to bathe in, but did not like on our suits. Furthermore, when we hung the suits in our rooms to dry, they smelled of sulfur, which, though excellent for the skin, was not excellent for the ambience of the bedroom.
And so we decided upon a clothing-optional policy for the Wilbur baths. But over the years, I've thought of the many people who have not come to Wilbur because of this decision.
My mother, bless her saintly heart, taught underprivileged children in the slums of New York. My father was a dental surgeon and army colonel. Both of them made the pilgrimage from the East Coast to California and lived at Wilbur for about a month every year. Somehow they adjusted to the nudity and bathed in the buff. But none of my parent's friends ever came to Wilbur as much as they might have wanted to: Clothing-optional was not an option for them.
Almost every one of us has friends or family who, like my parents' friends, know about Wilbur and want to experience it, but are not comfortable with the bathhouse's clothing-optional ambience. To honor and respect these folks and to make Wilbur available to them on occasion, I have created the Suits-On Weekend at Wilbur.
The first Suits-On Weekend will be January 21-23, 2005.
Please spread the word and join us to help make this weekend, with respect for differences, a huge success for some new Wilbur friends.
Last Chance Special: Weekday Savings - 50% Discount
Wilbur is extending our great Weekday Savings (Sunday - Thursday), featuring a 50% discount off your second night's stay. This promotion is good through December 16, 2004, excluding holidays.
Senator John Vasconcellos Holds Lunch Meeting at Wilbur
John Vasconcellos is retiring from the California Assembly after 38 years of public service. We are proud that Senator John chose Wilbur as one of the sites of his statewide effort to spread the word of his Legacy Project. We were pleased to host Senator John because of his tireless efforts to bring the importance of human trust and self-esteem before the eyes of government. His presentation at Wilbur on September 9 was heartwarming and many of us shared sweet tears of emotion. Dear John -- May you retire to a life of the love, respect, self-esteem and dignity that you brought to your constituents for 38 years.
I welcome your comments on these emails as well as any other thoughts on the Wilbur we all love. And if there's anyone you think would enjoy receiving our periodic emails with Wilbur's latest news and special offers, please invite them to sign up via email at: info@wilburhotsprings.com .
In good health,
R ichard
Richard Louis Miller, M.A., Ph.D.
Wilbur Caretaker since 1972
www.wilburhotsprings.com