Aloha From Hawai'i!

I'm Betty Jane Yap Lau.  I was born and raised in Hawai'i and educated at the prestigious Kamehameha Schools in Honolulu.  I started learning about lomilomi (Hawaiian massage) at the early age of seven from my tutu (grandmother) and my anake (auntie).  In Hawaiian culture, the keiki (children) are observed and screened to see who will be worthy of passing on ancient knowledge and who has "special gifts" that could be cultivated.  It was the children's job to lomi the adults after all the work was done usually at family luaus.

I was also trained by other women in my family, my mother and mother-in-law taught me infant massage and  “opu huli” (turned stomach believed caused by falls, especially in small children, resulting in a kink or turning of the stomach with attendant vomiting) and also, to lomi and care for my own keiki. 

After attending the Big Island School of Body Therapies, I trained with the world renown Aunty Margaret Machado for her style of lomilomi; Papa Henry Auwae  for la’au lapa’au (Hawaiian herbal healing) and lomilomi.  I also trained in Upledgers Cranial Sacral techniques, Barnes Myofascial Release, St. John’s Neuromuscular, Reflexology, Thai, Shiatsu, Sports, Balinese, Bamboo, Hot Stones and I'm also a Reiki Master.

Professionally, I've been on the opening teams for major spas such as Maui’s Spa Grande at Grand Wailea; on Hawaii Island – Four Seasons, Hualalai Sports Club and Spa, Mauna Lani Spa and recently at the Mauna Kea Spa by Mandara. I also traveled to Carmel Valley to The Bernardas Lodge to inspire and teach the therapists their signature massage of Hawaiian Lomilomi and bring the Aloha spirit.  In 2006, I was voted one of the top thirteen massage therapists in the world by Luxury Spa Finder magazine.

I've created and taught all the traditional Hawaiian treatments and choreographed the famous Lomilomi Hula performed exclusively at Mauna Lani Spa.  It’s like doing the hula on the body!