The Russian banya is the bigger, stronger brother of the sauna as we know it, and is certainly not for the faint-hearted.
The Russia banya or steam bath has been around for a long time. In earlier times banyas in private homes were heated once a week to provide the members of the household with a bathing day, but they also played a part in certain rituals, e.g. the night before and after a wedding, bride and groom had to undergo separate ceremonial banyas. Public banyas – still a popular destination in Russia today - might not be to everyone’s taste. Those from more inhibited cultures might regard the prospect of sharing a public bath with multitudes of naked people rather disagreeable. The good news is that women and men no longer share the same baths, and even better news is that Russian banyas can be enjoyed in relative privacy when tourist companies offer the experience to visitors. These days, especially in a mixed-gender group, bathing costumes are worn by all.
Pain, pain, and more pain…
The banya experience involves many steps. Your first destination will be the steam room (parilka). Inside the parilka, a furnace is used to heat rocks onto which water is splashed in small amounts to obtain a light steam. Sometimes a few drops of oil – eucalyptus or pine – are added to the water to create an aroma as steam is released. All modern banyas have different layouts, but in most cases the parilka can accommodate several people at a time and there are benches of varying heights against the walls. The idea is to start the process on the lower benches, either by sitting or lying down, to get used to the heat. Only after a thorough warming should you venture to the higher benches where the real heat will hit you.
The next step involves the most indispensable element of the Russian banya - the venik, a bunch of birch or oak branches used for whipping one another. Banya visitors typically lie down on a bench on their stomachs and a second person beats their bodies with the venik. This is a bizarre thing to experience, but is in fact surprisingly pleasant. Russians firmly believe in the many advantages of receiving a good beating with a venik: from enhancing blood circulation and killing bacteria to inhibiting premature ageing of the skin.
The strangeness of the banya experience doesn’t end there. After your beating, and depending on the particular banya that is used, you are supposed to run outside and dip in the iciest of pools imaginable. In winter you are encouraged to roll in the snow outside. If you thought it’s all finished at this stage, you’d be wrong. After your dip or a roll in the snow, you have to hurry back inside to repeat the whole process again. Some even go through the cycle five to ten times in a couple of hours, but only if they’re seasoned banya users.
New energy and other (doubtful) results
Once you’ve had enough, you are guaranteed to feel re-energized (like a newborn, some locals swear). You might even find that you’re instantly smarter, perhaps more creative, but at the very least your head will spin, especially if your hosts serve you that omnipresent glass of vodka or sweet champagne so favored by Russians…
