Nikki Manzie

Nikki began a meditation practice at 17 years old, and studying yoga and other healing arts in her early twenties. She has been teaching classes, workshops and retreats and facilitating individual healing sessions since 1994.

In 1998, she founded Yanumoja Yoga, a practice of self-exploration through movement, breath, meditation and community. She has been practising and studying Thai massage for 8 years. Nikki is currently deepening her practice through studies in yoga and meditation, energy healing, and marmatherapy.

Nikki's credentials include a B.Sc. Honours in Integrated Sciences, Certified Yoga Teacher (500 hrs), Traditional (Northern) Thai Massage Teacher Training (300hrs), Traditional (Northern) Thai Massage advanced practitioner training, Lotus Palm Thai Yoga Massage Levels 1 & 2, Ayurvedic Medical Practitioner and Educator (300hrs), Advanced Ayurvedic Marmatherapy (120hrs), Reiki Levels 1 & 2, Crystal Healing, courses in Sexuality Issues for Bodywork Therapists and a commitment to her own continuing healing and spiritual journey. She is a member of the Yoga Alliance, and the Academy of Naturopaths and Naturotherapists (ANN).

(photo courtesy Richard Martin, www.richardmartinphoto.com)

Pierce Salguero

Pierce graduated from the University of Virginia in 1996 as an anthropologist with a focus on Asia, and traveled to this part of the world shortly afterward. He soon fell in love with Thailand’s unique culture and rich history, and what started as a short trip turned into a lengthy stay. He lived and studied there from 1997 to 2001, researching Thai medical traditions and exploring an interest in Buddhism through extended stays at Thai meditation centers and monasteries. During this time he received training as a practitioner of massage and herbal medicine in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and apprenticed with individual folk healers. (He apprenticed with individual healers such as Lek Chaiya and Mama Nit, and completed a basic course, internship, and teacher certification at the Shivagakomarpaj Traditional Medicine Hospital’s school of Thai medicine, known affectionately as the "Old Medicine Hospital.")

He returned to the U.S. in 2001 to pursue graduate studies, and received his M.A. Degree in 2005 from the University of Virginia's East Asian Studies Department. He wrote my Master’s Thesis on the cultural history of Thai medicine, particularly focusing on the interplay between Ayurvedic and folk medicine in Thailand.

Pierce is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the History of Medicine Department at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, concentrating on the connections between Buddhism and medicine in China in late antiquity and the early medieval period. He is most interested in the formative period of 100 to 600 AD, the period of time which saw the introduction of new medical concepts to China through Buddhism. He is also interested in Buddhism's role as a vehicle for medical knowledge and cultural exchange throughout Asia as a whole. He describes his interests as "world history from a history of medicine perspective."

Publications

A Thai Herbal. Forres, Scotland: Findhorn Press, 2003.
The Encyclopedia of Thai Massage. Forres, Scotland: Findhorn Press, 2004.
The Spiritual Healing of Traditional Thailand. Forres, Scotland: Findhorn Press, 2006.
Traditional Thai Medicine: Buddhism, Animism, Ayurveda. Prescott: Hohm Press, 2007 (forthcoming)
These books are available through Amazon or other retailers, and there is more information about these titles at TaoMountain.org. More publications are in my CV.

Professional Affiliations
Pierce is a member of several academic associations, including the International Association for the Study of Traditional Asian Medicine (IASTAM), the Association of Asian Studies (AAS), and the American Association for the History of Medicine (AAHM). He is also a member of the Association of Traditional Northern Thai Medicine. Some of his courses are accredited by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB).

For contact information for Pierce, click here...

Alexandre Rouhani

Having begun his study of martial arts at the age of ten, Alexandre ventured towards various energetic approaches (Qi Gong, Reiki) to finally become fascinated by Thai Massage, which combines many techniques into one.

His travels to Thailand led him to study at the most reputable schools (Wat Po, Old Medicine Hospital, Nerve Touch Institute), and meet the great masters of Thai Massage.

His university studies in leadership and group animation, in addition to his training in other approaches (Lomi-Lomi and Swedish massage, physical kinesitherapy, lymphatic drainage and reflexology) make the course interesting and lively, as well as practical and adapted to each participant's expectations.

At Espace Thaï, students will benefit from Alexandre's experience and especially his generosity at each training session.

For Alex's website, click here...