First Experience With Turkish Bath

I went to a Hamam yesterday! In English, it’s a Turkish bath. Let me tell you, it was the biggest culture shock I’ve experienced so far, but it was so much fun! Huma and I met at the ferry station, and took a taxi to the Hamam. There was a white sheet instead of a door, and when we pushed it open I was convinced I had entered the wrong way. There were women it towels, bathing suits, and just bottoms! Now, anyone that knows me, knows I always think “it’s just [insert any body part here].” But when you are not prepared for it, it’s a whole different story.

No one spoke English, but with hand motions and such we were led to a room to change and when we came out, we were led to another room. It was immediately hard to breathe because it felt like a sauna, but not as intense. It was completely marbled except for the ceiling, which was a cement dome and had little stained glass to let light in. The room was a large square that had seats along the walls, with large marbled bowls that water flowed into to pour on the body before laying on the middle area, which was also a square. It took up a good portion of the room, and when we walked in there were two women getting scrubbed on the middle area. Huma and I sat at the far end, and I observed them to understand what was going on. One woman had particles on her, and I assumed they used a scrub with (I don’t know what they’re called) little balls in the mixture, like in the US. But 20 seconds later I realized it was the skin. I was terrified! I was imagining what I would be like, this being my first time. To make it worse, I was severely overdressed in my bikini. I thought, “Well, it’s time to bite the bullet.” I had to blend in with everyone else.

They guided me to the marble center, and a woman told me to do something. Not knowing what she was saying, she had to guide me to turn around and lie on my back, as she took a scrubber (it looks like an oven mitt) and flipped me, section by section. I was scared to look down because I didn’t want to know what she was getting off my body! After finishing and pouring water over me (all of this is communicated through pointing and just doing, might I remind you), she did it again with soap. Then she washed my hair, and scrubbed like it was the first time I had ever washed my head. When she got the soap out, I was sent back to the original bowl to pour water again, and Huma was there as well. All the movement and scrubbing made the skin very hot, so we stayed in the room for a while, enjoying the cold water. When we walked out, they were asking if we would like a massage. We wanted to go all in, so we agreed. They took us upstairs to some massage beds, and we got the whole kit. It was so relaxing, and we didn’t want to leave! We ended up staying past their closing time a little bit, but it was too much fun.

The women were really nice, and were trying their best to understand us. It was quite funny, trying to listen and watch their movements to get some hints of what they wanted. If I had gone by myself that part would have been stressful, so I was very glad I had someone with me. I would definitely go again, it was very traditional and I felt like it was the most ethnic experience I’ve had so far in Turkey.

This is a traditional Turkish bath, but not the one I was at.