Do you hamam? Yes, yes I do.

After my experience with public baths in Japan, I was very excited to try the Turkish variation. Turns out I would have two opportunities.

The first was in Istanbul, as run-up to the wedding festivities. Our group of 30 segregated by gender and the ten of so of us guys headed in. It was a gorgeous place and really old to boot. The lobby / locker room had three floors of windowed rooms where you change and leave your valuables. These were outfitted with lovely stained glass windows. There, we put on the hamam attire, which is nothing more than a thin piece of fabric wrapped around the waist.

Upon entering, the first stop is the very hot and very humid sauna. Nothing beats a good sweat! After 20 or so minutes of that, it turns a little more free form. This bath had one main marble platform and then about 15 marble basins with spigots. Water of a temperature of your choosing (mine was pretty cold) comes out, and you can hydrate your skin with it. We just sort of milled about for a little while.

Step three was the truly Turkish part. Here, a rather large man escorts you to a small marble stall to be washed. Sitting on the ground, he dumped buckets, alternatively, of incredibly hot and freezing water on me, then proceeded to soap me up and loofa me down. The loofa was like a mitt made out of sandpaper. It is supposed to have redeeming qualities. Then he passed me off to another guy who is the massage king. There, lying on a marble slab, he proceeded to use his knuckles to try to get my flesh to separate. It was more of the deep tissue type massage than a leisurely stroll in the park.

After that, a quick rinse and we were done. Upon exit, we were toweled down professionally and then served copious amounts of tea and Turkish delight. Quite an experience!

Then, in Urgup in Cappodocia, my dad and I decided to do it again, as a parting gift from Turkey to us.

This hamam looked very similar. It was also similarly deserted until we arrived, and we had our run of the place. The inside of the bath was outfitted with a large octagonal marble slab for resting, and this sauna was made out of wood. After a while to sweat out the toxins, we underwent the scrub and massage treatment. One of us would be scrubbed and soaped while the other got the massage, and then we switched. The guy with the loofa really did his job, so much so that I lost a fair bit of skin and had to recuperate a little while the next day. But, still, it was a great experience.