Are you wondering what to expect you when cross the threshold of this temple of steam? Today’s Zaman will take you along for a visit and explain everything you need to know about the great tradition of Turkish baths, or “hamams.”
Indeed, right up to the end of the Ottoman era, hamams were deeply integrated into Turkish daily life and were much more than just places to cleanse the skin. They were centers for communication and gathering, as well as for ceremonies, such as before weddings, circumcisions or religious holidays, or to celebrate newborns. And still, the hamam is the place where both men and women can relax best and enjoy the freedom of a day exclusively devoted to themselves.
Sometimes you may come across typical Turkish sayings related to bathing, such as “Hamama giren terler!” which translates as “Whoever goes into a hamam sweats!” and means something like if you give yourself a task, you also have to take the rap for it. Another saying you might hear if it is very loud somewhere or many conversations are happening at once around a table is, “Kadınlar hamamına dönüçmek!” meaning, “This place has turned into a women’s hamam,” i.e., it has become a hotbed for gossip. Well then, let’s go in and have a look behind the façade. You will find yourself first in a dressing room (camekan) that is surrounded by a row of private cubicles. An attendant will welcome and equip you with a key, along with a cotton towel (peştemal) and a pair of slippers (terlik). You may also be asked whether you want to buy soap, sponges or other items. Due to the fact that these can be very expensive offers, it may be better to bring your own things. Don’t worry, you are allowed to bring everything with you.
Once you have undressed, locked away your belongings and wrapped the towel around you, you are ready to go in. Hamam complexes always contain separate quarters for men and women or, alternatively, allocate different times or days of the week to them. If you just follow the right arrows, there is absolutely nothing to fear. Exclusively in some tourist resorts, it is not uncommon to have mixed bathing, but this will be obvious, and it would never happen in a traditional bath.
With only a towel around the body, you will then enter the hot room (sıcaklık), filled with steam. Some historical hamams have large domes with small glass windows that create a half-light and give the whole experience an even more atmospheric touch. The hot room will further contain a large and usually very hot marble stone (göbek taşı) at the center. In the corners you will find niches with fountains and small marble basins (kurna).
Led by your attendant to one of these basins, you can just sit down and get used to the heat and steam. You will be handed a small metal bowl (taş), which you can fill with water from the hot and cold taps and spill over yourself. According to what you have paid for at the entrance, with or without service, you will be left alone now or else, after some time, will be asked to lie down on the central marble slab. “Time to wash,” that means. And be sure, during the next hour you will be washed cleaner than you have ever been!
Time for the scrub down of your life
So, what is the procedure? First, you will be scrubbed thoroughly with a rough cloth (keşe). This serves to remove all the layers of dead skin -- you will wonder how much of it you were actually carrying around with you. Then comes the soap. Applied with a soft sponge, which creates loads of bubbles, this process goes on until you are covered from ear to toe by a huge, white mountain. Then you will be led again to your basin, where you wash your private parts yourself. Next it’s back to the stone platform for the massage. You will be pressed and squeezed until you feel like you have been reborn.
By the way, although the attendants may not speak much English, there is nothing to worry about in terms of communication. Be sure that they will find a way to make you understand how to lie down or when to turn and how. Just relax and leave everything to their skilled hands.
Generally a scrub and massage takes about an hour, sometimes one-and-a-half, which is when the service itself finishes. But, of course, you can stay inside the bath as long as you want and take as much time as you need to hang out and relax. You may also want to make use of the sauna, if there is one. Here you can sweat out until every last muscle in your body is entirely relaxed. In some hamams, you may also find an additional cold pool to refresh you straight after.
If you want to leave the bath, you will be handed a fresh towel again and taken to the cold room (soğukluk). Here you can cool down, take a rest or even a nap in your cubicle and drink a tea before you get dressed again. So that’s the procedure -- definitely worth a try! Are you curious? Well, let’s find a hamam for you. Of course, compared to the Ottoman days, Turkish baths are not that popular today. While in the 17th century a good 168 bathhouses were open to public in İstanbul alone, only 10 percent of the city’s hamams are still in operation today. One of the finest and oldest examples among these is surely the well preserved Çemberlitaş Hamam in Sultanahmet. It was built in 1584 by famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan and is surely a great example of monumental Ottoman architecture. Also popular in İstanbul are the historic Galatasaray Hamam in Beyoğlu, the Cağaloğlu Hamam near Sultanahmet Mosque and the Gedikpaşa Hamam in Beyazıt. The equipment and service is basically similar in these hamams, but the Çemberlitaş Hamam is said to be famous for its strong massage, the Galatasaray Hamam scores with its great heat and the Gedikpaşa Hamam includes a pool. You have the choice.
Prices vary between 25 and 35 euros with service and are a bit cheaper, between 15 and 25 euros, without. There are many less popular, local hamams which are often just as good and much cheaper. You can find an extensive list of hamams in Turkey, along with their addresses and phone numbers, at www.mymerhaba.com.
Dos and don’ts in the Turkish bath
For women, total nudity can occasionally be observed, though you may want to wear a slip or swimwear, if you want. Men don’t usually undress completely and instead keep their towel wrapped around the hips all the time. In terms of cleanliness, it is recommended to keep your slippers on throughout the whole visit -- you never know with microbes -- although generally, there is really no need to worry about the hygienic conditions in a Turkish bath. They are checked regularly by the authorities, and their certification should hang visibly in the entrance hall. Regarding health issues, you should never have a proper scrub when already suffering from sunburn, and keep away from the bath if you have the flu. People with very high blood pressure or heart problems should probably consult with a doctor before visiting a hamam.
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