One of the most unique (because unique sounds more positive than bizarre) experiences I had during this past year’s travels came about because I desperately needed a trip to the hair salon.  For my readers who are women of color, you know that you can’t just pop into any corner salon and get a quick cut or color. You need to plan things out a bit. Whether you wear your hair natural, straightened or wear a weave, the hunt for a good, reliable stylist is similar to a hunt for the holy grail. Now imagine doing that when you’re new to a country, have no recommendations and don’t speak the language. Its tough!

The first two stops on my trip were in Japan and S. Korea and while I’m sure they have competent black hairstylist there, I decided I’d wait until my third country, Australia, where at least I spoke the language fluently. Plus, I had a friend in Sydney who I knew would help me find a good place.

After arriving in Sydney, my friend offered to drive me over to a salon she’d heard about that advertised having experience with black hair. Great!  We jumped in the car, drove about 15 minutes and ended up in a nice part of town that had streets lined with cafes and boutique shops.  My friend pulled up in front of the salon and we both peered curiously at the storefront.  Um – can you check the address again?  Yep! This was the spot. But instead of seeing a salon with stations for each beautician, hooded hairdryers and shelves of beauty products, we found what appeared to be a mystical healing store filled with all shapes and sized of crystals, statues of fairies, wind chimes and fantasy type artwork.  Where were we??

Even though it was obvious to my friend and I that the hair salon that should have been there had clearly packed up and moved and was replaced by this other worldly shop, we still decided to peak our head in to see what was going on.  Turns out, the shop was still there…this store that looked like it was straight off the set of the Hobbit actually was a functioning salon.  Behind the cases of crystals and figurines I saw women sitting under hair dryers and having their hair washed.

Not what I expected from a hair salon. Photo Credit: Headhunters Hair Designs

My next surprise was the woman who came out to greet me. There is no rule that says you have to be black to do black hair well, but still I did expect to see someone who looked a little more like me running the shop. Instead a short, ruddy-faced woman with cascades of thick curly blonde hair greeted me with a hand shake and asked if she could help me.  This was Elizabeth, the salon owner.

I explained that I was just visiting Sydney for a few days and that I was hoping to get a condition and color done before I left for my next destination. Elizabeth told me that she had an appointment open a little later in the week if I was interested. I thanked her, but said I’d have to think about it. I was skeptical as to what exactly went on in that shop plus the prices she quoted me were Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive salon prices. Not exactly what I had budgeted for.

Still after a night to think it over and not coming up with any better options for a place to go, I decided to call back and book the appointment. I figured at least I’d get a good story out of the experience and with any luck my hair will look better than it did when I walked in.

I wish I had had my camera with me so I could have taken pictures of the shop. Sadly, I didn’t, but you can see photos and videos of the shop on the Head Hunters website.

Beyond the hair salon area, you can find you way into brightly colored healing rooms, passageways lit by candles and a room filled top to bottom with wigs and human hair.  Just wandering through the place was a bit of an odyssey.

But back to the main reason I came, the hair. I have to say I was feeling very skeptical about turning my hair over to this woman and her business partner/husband Robbie, but by the time I left I was very happy and swore that next time I was in Sydney, I’d make my way back over there. For one, I received the best, most relaxing hair wash I’ve ever had from Robbie.  Amazing!  And while I didn’t have enough time to sit through an hour or so under a steamer contraption as Elizabeth recommended, even just 30 minutes made a difference in the quality of my hair. As a holistic healer, she advised me on how to best maintain the health of my hair even while I was bouncing from country to country.

And as a definite bonus, Elizabeth gave me a brief spiritual reading while I was in her salon chair. She asked permission to place her hand over my heart, she closed her eyes and began speaking to me about what my travels had in store for me and what I needed to do in order to heal myself mentally.  I won’t go into what she said specifically as it really only pertains to me, but I’ll just say I did leave the shop feeling lifted and in better spirits…and not just because my hair looked so much better.

The only problem?…Directly after my appointment, I went to a Capoeira roda and sweated the style right out of my hair. Oh well… at least the color held. Thank you Elizabeth and Robbie for a truly amazing experience!  I will be sure to come back next time I’m in Sydney.