It's never that easy to nod and smile in agreement when someone tells you how magical jewels can be, when used ‘correctly'. Trying to look understanding in the face of hippy spa talk is not unlike sitting in front of a gypsy as she talks to your dead gran, whilst knowing your gran's actually very much alive, on a rock-climbing holiday somewhere in Hatta. She might mean well, but it's just a load of talk, really. Isn't it?

This new spa treatment at Amara is based on the ‘healing properties' of the most precious "Jewels of Arabia": Diamond (for energy, clarity and revival), Emerald (for detox, cleansing and healing), Ruby (for restoration, anti-ageing and revitalising) and Sapphire (for relaxation, calming and balance). You start with your feet in the tub, as you sit robed up in the private garden. It's best to try and imagine you actually do need healing. If you're not particularly stressed or old, or imbalanced, you might emerge even more cynical than when you went in. Luckily, I was actually quite annoyed about something when I stuck my feet in the tub. Fuming, actually. I needed some inner-healing badly and if the jewels weren't gonna help me, a quick shift in Scarlett's afterwards definitely would.

Trying to relax, my spa therapist scrubbed my feet. Always a nice part. After that I was instructed to lie down and sniff some little pots. Each one contained elements of a different jewel and I was supposed to choose the one that felt best. Strangely, the Sapphire hit my nostrils with a scream of "YOU NEED ME!" I later learned it scores top marks for de-stressing - fancy that!

Once prepped, I was scrubbed. And I mean scrubbed. I think half my skin came off on the exfoliator pad. Don't get me wrong, it was a good thing, although suffice to say the tan I've been building wasn't quite so prevalent once she was done. After that, I was smothered in clay and some sort of herbal poultices, before being wrapped in cloth, like a mummy in a warm tomb. For quite a long time.

Once I'd showered, outside again in the garden, it was back to the table for the full-body massage, for which she used oils infused once again with my chosen jewel - Sapphire. Essentially it was supposed to inspire tranquility. As my legs were rubbed and the knots unwound, and my head was scratched like a puppy dog I realized my rage had considerably subsided. And once I was dressed, sipping my mint tea and munching dates, I saw my skin was gleaming, and felt as soft as a baby's botty. There wasn't any need for Scarlett's after all. Actually, if I go for anything red in future, it'll probably be the ruby-infused oils in another Arabian spa session.

Call me a convert, but maybe this jewel stuff isn't all hippy talk after all.

"Jewels of Arabia" Rituals - 180 mins; AED 1,350
AMARA SPA - Park Hyatt Hotel, Dubai
Tel: (0)4 602 1234