I am writing this with a bit of trepidation since it is definitely a "guy" thing (although women also use the baths, I am sure the female experience is far different). I should start by saying that Russia is not as PC as the States or NZ as evidenced by this photo from the мужкая раздевалка (mujkaya razdevalka) or mens' locker room of the gym I joined herе in St. Petersburg. Also, men are far more relaxed with one another here. There is a general acceptance just on the basis of gender. In the baths, everyone is literally stripped to their souls. We are all the same underneath.
An invitation by my friend, Roman, to go to a traditional public bath house could not be passed up. Four years ago, I visited a bath house when on a guided tour of the city. Four of us guys from Australia and NZ were deposited in the mens' dressing room by our female guide. We stood around naked for a few minutes, not knowing what to do, feeling, to say the least, not a little bit self-conscious (especially since the attendant in the dressing area was a woman), and left within about 10 minutes. I bought an unusual looking felt hat as a souvenir which I could not find before this trip (Arleigh denies tossing it out) and pushed memories of the experience out of my head.
The Russian bath is an institution and this blog entry can also serve as a guide to a most wonderful experience.
My friend, Roman, sent me instructions to get to the baths. It is called Круглые Бани (Krupneeye Bani) literally "Round Baths" and was located in the Northeast part of the city. It took me about an hour, taking the metro, to get there from my hotel near Nevski Prospect.
The reason for the name was obvious when I arrived. The building was old, round, and deceptively uninviting. The entrance was an unmarked steel door. The only sign anywhere on the outside of the building was "Парикмахерская" (Parikmacherskaya) or barbershop.
The lobby was brighter, but sparse, with a coffee machine and signs directing men and women to their respective areas. It was here that I met Roman and one of his two friends, both named Alexandr. We went to the left and down the stairs.
Roman and Alexandr
We entered the dressing area. We checked in with the woman attendant, I bought another felt hat (see reason for this below) and we were given sheets to wrap ourselves with (which served me well when it was photo time).
We walked into a large room where there were private stalls, each with a table and two benches for groups of friends. This was to be our base for eating, drinking, and, most importantly, talking, between our four trips to the baths.
Sitting areas
It was here where we unabashedly removed our clothes and other worldly possessions without giving it a second thought. On the table the staples of the evening were layed out: Пиво и Рыба (Pivo and riba) or beer and fish (herring and mackerel). Vodka, of course, is also a favoured delicacy. We also ordered шашлык, shashlik, which are like kebabs.
I was a bit reluctant to post the photos below, but I think they are needed to get an appreciation of the experience.
Dinner
Fish
I and Roman, along with his two friends, both named Alexandr, started the evening with dinner, before our first trip to the baths.
Eating shashlik
A word on the felt hat. Even though it looks a bit strange, it is necessary to wear this in the "парильне" (pareelnya) since temperatures can reach 90 C and the head heats up faster than the rest of the body.
Hence, it is important to insulate your head (against the heat in this case) so you can withstand the high heat.
Here is a closeup of me, Alexandr and Roman. I show this so you can see a close-up of my hat. It reads "пьян, счаслив, и влюблен" or "drunk, happy, and in love" (with you, Arleigh). I have a feeling this hat will have an unfortunate accident when I get home.
After our first round of beer and fish, we made our way to baths. I hesitate to call it a sauna since it was much hotter than any sauna I have ever been in (or even a Native American Sweat Lodge). The first of our four sessions was especially hot since one of the men inside spooned 5 ladles of water on the stones.
There is a definite protocol to using the baths. First is a shower. There is a large shower room (sorry, no photos), then we went into the steam area. Inside it looked much like a large sauna room. The difference is that men were hitting themselves with Веники (Veniki) or bundles of twigs with leaves, usually made of birch or oak. It looked quite strange and I was very relieved my three friends did not come so equipped. However, on my third trip through, there was a guy who did the procedure on others, a venik masseuse (I am not sure what the Russian word for this is). My friends asked him to give me the true experience and he obliged. I am not sure if they charge for this, but he did it for free. I had to lay on a bench and, for about five minutes, I received the treatment. He gently hit me with the venik and then rubbed the (very hot) leaves over my body. Here is a stock image, but this was what it was like:
I was then asked to get off the bench and get more treatment while standing. My friends cautioned me to protect "sensitive areas" with my hands. I have to admit that, while it wasn't better than sex, which some people attest to, it felt great! At the conclusion the masseuse said something about sharing the soul.
After leaving the sauna area, the next steps are to be dowsed with a giant bucket of ice water (yes, I did this and screamed the first time), take another shower, and then go swimming is an outdoor pool under the stars. The building is built around the pool.
Buckets of ice cold water upper right
Following the pool we sat in a traditional sauna.
You might notice how red I am.
We did this routine four times over the course of two hours.
I have to say that I would not hesitate to do this again at any time. It was a true male bonding experience, something men in the States and NZ rarely experience. Even though I never met two Roman's two friends before, when we left, I felt that I had made two new close friends.
An invitation by my friend, Roman, to go to a traditional public bath house could not be passed up. Four years ago, I visited a bath house when on a guided tour of the city. Four of us guys from Australia and NZ were deposited in the mens' dressing room by our female guide. We stood around naked for a few minutes, not knowing what to do, feeling, to say the least, not a little bit self-conscious (especially since the attendant in the dressing area was a woman), and left within about 10 minutes. I bought an unusual looking felt hat as a souvenir which I could not find before this trip (Arleigh denies tossing it out) and pushed memories of the experience out of my head.
The Russian bath is an institution and this blog entry can also serve as a guide to a most wonderful experience.
My friend, Roman, sent me instructions to get to the baths. It is called Круглые Бани (Krupneeye Bani) literally "Round Baths" and was located in the Northeast part of the city. It took me about an hour, taking the metro, to get there from my hotel near Nevski Prospect.
The reason for the name was obvious when I arrived. The building was old, round, and deceptively uninviting. The entrance was an unmarked steel door. The only sign anywhere on the outside of the building was "Парикмахерская" (Parikmacherskaya) or barbershop.
The lobby was brighter, but sparse, with a coffee machine and signs directing men and women to their respective areas. It was here that I met Roman and one of his two friends, both named Alexandr. We went to the left and down the stairs.
Roman and Alexandr
We entered the dressing area. We checked in with the woman attendant, I bought another felt hat (see reason for this below) and we were given sheets to wrap ourselves with (which served me well when it was photo time).
We walked into a large room where there were private stalls, each with a table and two benches for groups of friends. This was to be our base for eating, drinking, and, most importantly, talking, between our four trips to the baths.
Sitting areas
It was here where we unabashedly removed our clothes and other worldly possessions without giving it a second thought. On the table the staples of the evening were layed out: Пиво и Рыба (Pivo and riba) or beer and fish (herring and mackerel). Vodka, of course, is also a favoured delicacy. We also ordered шашлык, shashlik, which are like kebabs.
I was a bit reluctant to post the photos below, but I think they are needed to get an appreciation of the experience.
Dinner
Fish
I and Roman, along with his two friends, both named Alexandr, started the evening with dinner, before our first trip to the baths.
Eating shashlik
A word on the felt hat. Even though it looks a bit strange, it is necessary to wear this in the "парильне" (pareelnya) since temperatures can reach 90 C and the head heats up faster than the rest of the body.
Hence, it is important to insulate your head (against the heat in this case) so you can withstand the high heat.
Here is a closeup of me, Alexandr and Roman. I show this so you can see a close-up of my hat. It reads "пьян, счаслив, и влюблен" or "drunk, happy, and in love" (with you, Arleigh). I have a feeling this hat will have an unfortunate accident when I get home.
After our first round of beer and fish, we made our way to baths. I hesitate to call it a sauna since it was much hotter than any sauna I have ever been in (or even a Native American Sweat Lodge). The first of our four sessions was especially hot since one of the men inside spooned 5 ladles of water on the stones.
There is a definite protocol to using the baths. First is a shower. There is a large shower room (sorry, no photos), then we went into the steam area. Inside it looked much like a large sauna room. The difference is that men were hitting themselves with Веники (Veniki) or bundles of twigs with leaves, usually made of birch or oak. It looked quite strange and I was very relieved my three friends did not come so equipped. However, on my third trip through, there was a guy who did the procedure on others, a venik masseuse (I am not sure what the Russian word for this is). My friends asked him to give me the true experience and he obliged. I am not sure if they charge for this, but he did it for free. I had to lay on a bench and, for about five minutes, I received the treatment. He gently hit me with the venik and then rubbed the (very hot) leaves over my body. Here is a stock image, but this was what it was like:
I was then asked to get off the bench and get more treatment while standing. My friends cautioned me to protect "sensitive areas" with my hands. I have to admit that, while it wasn't better than sex, which some people attest to, it felt great! At the conclusion the masseuse said something about sharing the soul.
After leaving the sauna area, the next steps are to be dowsed with a giant bucket of ice water (yes, I did this and screamed the first time), take another shower, and then go swimming is an outdoor pool under the stars. The building is built around the pool.
Buckets of ice cold water upper right
Following the pool we sat in a traditional sauna.
You might notice how red I am.
We did this routine four times over the course of two hours.
I have to say that I would not hesitate to do this again at any time. It was a true male bonding experience, something men in the States and NZ rarely experience. Even though I never met two Roman's two friends before, when we left, I felt that I had made two new close friends.
