It is difficult to write a reliable story if you have not seen something with your own eyes. My very good friend Andrey helped me write this article about the German bath. There is no doubt about the reliability of the information; the person has been living in Germany for a very, very long time.
Fans and connoisseurs of baths and saunas speak enthusiastically about the Finnish bath. Someone says that there is nothing better than a Russian steam room. And only sophisticated connoisseurs know about the features of the German bath.
If you are going to Germany, read this article to be fully prepared and be sure to go to the bathhouse! The Germans also know a thing or two about steam rooms!
Of course, a German bathhouse is completely different from our Russian steam bath with a massive stove. This is more of a sauna, rather than a bathhouse in the full sense of the word. Although, there are some similarities, but more on that later.
Special German sauna
The Germans do not have such a reverent attitude towards the bathhouse as the Finns or Russians. I asked my friend: “When you go into the sauna, it smells like a bathhouse. Do you feel like you’re definitely in a bathhouse?”
The sauna smells pleasant and, of course, there is a feeling that you are in a sauna. But compared to a Russian bathhouse, these are not the same feelings.
- Andrey
The bath complex itself is divided into two sectors. In one sector there is a shower, a swimming pool, and in the other the steam room itself.
The arrangement of the sauna is quite ordinary: shelves and the stove itself. The German sauna does not hold tanks, basins, ladles and brooms.
You are not allowed to wear swimming trunks or swimsuits in the German steam room. You can steam completely naked.
This is due to the Germans’ belief that synthetic fabric is not environmentally friendly; for the same reason, it is forbidden to wear flip-flops or rubber slippers in a German bathhouse. These are the rules of the pedantic Germans...
Another important rule for visiting a bathhouse is maintaining silence. You should not distract visitors from the process. Only silence, enjoyment of warm air and pleasant aromas! If one of the ignorant visitors violates this prohibition, he may even be reprimanded.
Yes, you won’t hear here: “Give it to the park,” no one grunts or groans at the shelf. Our peoples have completely different mentalities.
But they still know how to give a parka in a German bathhouse. They just do it their own way...
Rules
There are also certain unspoken rules in place on the territory of the bathhouse complexes. For example, photography and video recording are not carried out in these premises. It is also not customary to look at visitors and comment on their appearance.
In general, German bathing traditions differ quite significantly from similar traditions in other countries. Therefore, many foreigners are shocked when encountering them for the first time. However, for brave people, visiting such an establishment can be an interesting experience of getting to know another culture.
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Aufguss ceremony
Translated from German, Aufguss means infusion, pouring. I asked Andrey to explain, clearly in Russian, what the meaning of this procedure was. And this is the answer I received:
Water or ice mixed with aromatic oils is poured onto the stones or stove in the sauna... It is for this reason that the sauna has an amazing aroma.
The meaning of the procedure is that the stones in the oven are partially doused with cold or hot water. When poured, the water evaporates and increases the humidity in the sauna. The evaporation of sweat on the skin is complicated and the body heats up even more.
In Aufguss, a special wooden basin is used from which the stove is watered.
- Andrey
The Aufgus ceremony is nothing more than our Russian bathhouse fun of giving in to the park! Only each nation has its own park. We can have it with kvass, beer, birch infusion. But the Germans have aromatic oils.
Come to Baden-Baden
A German bath - "therma" or "baden" - is very often set up in places where thermal waters come to the surface. Remember the famous resort town of Baden-Baden, so popular, along with Karlovy Vary, among the advanced Russian intelligentsia of the century before last. What a place it is. In Germany there is even the entire federal state of Baden-Württemberg, the same one in whose capital, the city of Stuttgart, the headquarters of the Daimler company is located, which produces the legendary Mercedes, so beloved by our officials of different flight altitudes.
What primarily distinguishes a German bath is its comprehensive approach to business. Very rarely, mainly in the south and extreme east, the bathhouse functions as a conservative purebred sauna, providing a very narrow list of services. The classic German bath complex is a whole industry. There are many different steam rooms for every taste: low-temperature Turkish, medium-temperature with abundant thick and viscous steam, high-temperature dry saunas with a wide gradation of temperature conditions, even extreme ones, salt grottoes, relaxation areas with access to a garden or an area with a magnificent landscape, swimming pools - thermal, open, closed, fonts with ice water. Moreover, the quality of finishing, designs, and the services provided in general is the highest. Impressive, isn't it?
The cost is very strictly tied and regulated by time and, in most cases, ranges from 6 - 19 euros per hour and 22 - 45 euros per day.
How does Aufgus pass?
The park is supplied by a special person “Saunameister” who is assigned to this. The door is opened in front of Aufgus and a large amount of fresh air is let in.
Air from the street is forced into the sauna with a towel. This saunameister then uses a towel to disperse the steam from Aufgus throughout the sauna.
- Andrey
The master’s movements are more reminiscent of a kind of mesmerizing dance with a towel in his hands. It's like a real show: moral, physical and aesthetic satisfaction is guaranteed!
The ceremony schedule is usually posted in each steam room. You can easily navigate by the start time of Aufgus.
It is quite difficult to say exactly how long Aufgus takes. The duration may only last 6-8 minutes, but there are also record steam outputs!
Aufgus can last more than 20 minutes. Regardless of the time, you cannot leave the sauna until the end of the ritual.
After the end of the fragrant steaming, another ceremony begins - visitors drink beer!
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The secret highlight of a German bath
If you are a shy person, then the following fact may simply shock you.
The main secret highlight of the German bathhouse is that they do not have a division into male and female halves.
German sauna - shared. People here like to visit the steam room with the whole family and consider it inappropriate to separate the visit by gender.
Steaming naked is the rule!
Men and women warm themselves, splash in the pool, and wash in the shower together. And no embarrassment! No swimsuits!
But there are still saunas that are open only to women on days. For some, this is a very pleasant departure from the rules. For example, it would be difficult for me to feel comfortable in a sauna, completely naked next to men.
A joke immediately comes to mind:
“If a naked man accidentally ends up in a women’s bathhouse, the women squeal and try to throw boiling water on him... And if, by chance, a naked girl ends up in a men’s bathhouse, on the contrary, all the men are very happy and friendly. This once again proves the kindness of a man’s heart.”
Most visited complexes
The Berlin Liquidrome complex is the leader in attendance among all establishments in the country. Its popularity is partly due to the presence of healing springs directly below it. Here you can also swim in a pool filled with sea water and undergo a full course of procedures completely free of charge.
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The benefits of the Turkish steam room
Hammam and sauna differ in the amount of wet vapor. While Finnish steam rooms are filled with dry air, Turkish baths maintain a humid microclimate. Due to the bath conditions, sweating is minimal, and the body gets wet due to the formation of condensation. The skin and hair do not dry out, so the hammam is a good alternative to the steam room for people suffering from allergies and increased sensitivity of the body. Despite the slight heating of the room, under the influence of moisture the pores expand faster.
It is advisable to arrange steam sessions in Turkish steam rooms:
- For people who prefer to accompany steam treatments with aromatherapy. The hammam provides the opportunity to visit the solarium.
- In order to strengthen the functioning of the heart and blood vessels.
- For complete warming up of muscles and joints.
- In order to relieve stress, conduct relaxation sessions.
- To combat the symptoms of bronchitis and runny nose at an early stage.
- For girls who want to thoroughly cleanse their skin pores of dirt.
- In order to normalize metabolism and rejuvenate the body. Weight loss occurs faster if you combine training and a balanced diet with a visit to the hammam.
Essential oils for aromatherapy
How to choose and find a good sauna in Germany - choose cities with Bad
All German cities that begin with Bad are very interesting and almost every city has thermal complexes and spa centers.
We were choosing a place to stay in one of our “EuroAutoTrips” and accidentally stumbled upon the town of Bad Windsheim. Later we learned that Bad is a resort town with thermal waters, recreational facilities, museums and attractions. Cities with the beginning of Bad are the real Germany, these cities are valued not only by the Germans, there are plenty of tourists there, now you know that when traveling around Germany you can and should stop in small towns with Bad. Make yourself a Bad Tour! The prices for hotels here are pleasantly surprising, as is the service!
A little dry theory
In Germany (and also in Austria, keep in mind if you are going to ski resorts) there are very unique bath traditions. Locals consider it unhygienic, wrong and even possibly disgusting to bathe in synthetic swimsuits. It seems like these newfangled materials are harmful and unsafe. But at the same time, all German baths are shared - and traditionally men, women, children and old people go to the “therms” completely naked. This doesn’t bother anyone except the numerous Russian tourists who end up there either by accident or out of curiosity. In the first case, the reaction of our people is mainly negative, and in the second, it is not entirely adequate.
Construction stages - step-by-step instructions
The phased construction of the hammam consists of:
- Connection of hot and cold water supply pipes.
- Installation of sewer system.
- Installation of ventilation system. It must have a condensate collector. This will prevent steam from the hammam from entering the general ventilation of the home.
- Lighting installation.
- Installation of a steam generator, steam nozzles and steam lines.
- Implementation of a system for air aromatization (optional).
- Plastering the floor and walls with concrete mortar. Waterproofing additives are added to the solution. In this way, the surface is leveled and primary waterproofing is performed, which will prevent the destruction of walls and floors by steam.
- Door installation. The best option is a door made of tempered glass.
- Wall covering with expanded polystyrene panels.
- Installation of sun loungers.
- Installation of a heating system on the floor, walls and sunbeds.
- Installation of moisture-resistant and heat-resistant speakers of the acoustic system (optional).
- Interior decoration of the bathhouse.
- Installation of a bowl for ablution (qurna).
A few words about the design of the drainage system
The design option for the system depends on the type of soil on which the bathhouse is being built. For example, sandy soil absorbs water easily, so a hole size of 0.6x0.6 m (depth - 0.5 m) will be sufficient. Crushed stone, gravel, broken brick are poured into it. The ground near the foundation is usually covered with clay, and then compacted strongly.
Clay soil absorbs water poorly, in this case, when arranging drainage, they do not make a hole for water; the system here is different: from the pit inside the bathhouse, washing water is diverted through a drain pipe to a drain outside the building.
https://www.pogreemsya.ru/youtu.be/ddOAIPQLuP8
About bath ventilation
provides the necessary thermal conditions, drying of the building and the flow of fresh air. It is carried out through the intake of oxygen for the firebox, through doors, vents, and vents through special channels. Ventilation ducts are inserted above the top shelf in the form of a round or rectangular hole (diameter - 20 cm) in the wall.
The hole plug (it is upholstered in soft material and has a wooden handle) is sliding.
It is important to know! For additional air exchange, also make a ventilation hole near the stove. Height from the floor – 0.5 m
Don’t forget to ventilate the attic through the window (by the way, close it before heating in winter)
The height from the floor is 0.5 m. Do not forget to ventilate the attic through the window (by the way, close it before heating in winter).
https://www.pogreemsya.ru/youtu.be/Kh1Uk3dccrk
These are the basic requirements for the design of the various compartments of the bath. Using these simple rules, you will build a truly strong bathhouse that will serve you and your family for decades. Building a steam room yourself is a complex but fascinating process, and it’s quite possible to master it.
Accessories for Turkish hammam
Despite the rich oriental decoration, there is nothing superfluous in the hammam: every object and architectural element is functional.
Qurna
Steam comes from under benches equipped with special dispersing nozzles. Since being in the hammam causes increased sweating, a water source is provided directly inside the steam room - a kurna, a wall-mounted bowl for ablution that does not have a drain.
Kurna is not only a traditional decorative element; incense and a special soap solution for massage are prepared in it. Usually qurnas are made of marble. The kurna has beautiful copper taps with hot and cold water, made in the ancient oriental style. Sometimes a “tropical shower” shower is installed in the steam area, creating a plentiful, uniform flow of water and then you can wash without leaving the steam room.
A door made of heat-resistant tempered glass with a magnetic door seal is installed in the doorway
An important condition for the door structure is the presence of a gap under the glass
Massage table and beds
After installing the kurna, benches and a massage table are arranged in accordance with the dimensions specified in the project. The massage table and benches are usually made of brick. They must be heated. The surface area of the table can be different: from classic, allowing you to accommodate several people, to narrow, designed for one person.
Table height 80 cm for comfortable work of the massage therapist. The last stage is facing with mosaic, marble or ceramic tiles. For the decoration of sun loungers, seats and massage tables, bath experts recommend choosing natural marble. Marble heats up quickly and is more durable.
About the culture of behavior
The women's bathhouse in Germany, a religious institution, is more likely for newcomers who are unaccustomed to the generally accepted practice than for the natives, and even a delight for the female part of the country's Muslim diaspora. The traditional public bathhouse in Germany, on the contrary, has its own rules of cultural behavior, because the Germans are a cultural nation, no matter what evil tongues may say. So, the main theses of the unwritten code of the real German bath wolf:
- No clothing except a natural towel and no rubber slippers.
- A real German bath towel should have the following dimensions. The length is the height of its owner, plus two more palms. Width - the distance from the fingertips of an outstretched arm to the middle of the chest. These parameters are not taken out of thin air. In the steam room you can sit only on your own towel, with your hands resting on it. If you occupy the second and third shelves, then your feet rest on the lowered edge of the towel. The dripping sweat ends up on the towel and stays there. No greasy shelves and no burns. Although the Germans were the first who began to massively use the African maple - abash for arranging paired rooms.
- There is no talking or loud expression of emotions in the steam room or thermal pool. If you can’t relax yourself, don’t bother others.
- There is no need to eat through the eyes of visitors, and especially female visitors. A wild look and lack of reaction to the environment is the first sign of an unusual and complex guest of the federal republic. If the reaction, on the contrary, is gushing and excessive, such a client will also be carefully taken out by the staff of the establishment and also, according to the good German tradition, shot. When visiting public baths in Germany, one can have a different attitude towards the manifestation of shame, considering it the boundary separating man and animal, or vice versa - an extreme degree of hypocrisy. In any case, the culture and customs of the host country must be respected.
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