It sounds like a dance move, but for those who don’t know, hamam is a traditional Turkish steam bath, and although now a term used by many spas, the authentic experience was like nothing I had ever experienced.
After a lengthy bus ride, I arrived on the west coast of Turkey, in a small town called Selcuk. With its palm trees and dusty streets, Selcuk is the closest town to the archeological site of Ephesus, as well as has many Roman ruins in its main centre between boutiques and cafes.
After checking into accommodation, my group was soon walking down hill to experience a Turkish hamam. Before we had arrived, our friend and guide Julie had explained the process and advised us to consider being nude and just use a towel for modesty during the hamam. She said if that made us feel uncomfortable, we could wear a swimsuit. I decided to go traditional, and when we arrived, I saw that my group had decided to experience the steam bath like locals.
As we entered the simple building, we were welcomed by the owner, divided by gender, given a towel and ushered into change rooms. I stripped off all my clothes and jewellery, wrapped the Turkish towel around myself and entered the hot steam room. The gentleman in the steam room instructed me to lay down on the large circular marble bench, which easily accommodated six adults.
The marble felt very warm and slowly started to relax my muscles. The steam made everything in the room seem quiet and dreamy, as if I had transported to a cloud far above instead of being aware of the early evening movements of the town outside the doors. I lay there, gazing up at the decorative ceiling, watching the steam escape and the cool air rush in. After about 15 minutes, one by one, my friends were ushered to the side of the bench to start the next step of their hamam ritual.
The first step – I was brought to the side of the marble bench and scrubbed from head to toe, back to front in a circular pattern. He first scrubbed my front and then my back, not leaving any spot untouched, except from my hips to the top of my thighs. I felt like a small kid being bathed by a favourite uncle, especially when the gentleman slowly poured warm water all over me to rinse off the dirt and soap. After he was done, I moved along the bench to await my next step.
The second step – The second gentleman took me by the hand and led me to another marble bench, where I lay down once again on a heated marble surface. I was covered in a blanket of lemon-scented foamy soap with a brush. He washed me again, spreading the soft bubbles along each of my limbs, across my chest and then indicated for me to turn so he could my soap my back. He sat me up and gently scrubbed my scalp and shoulders, lulling me into a very mellow state. A couple of buckets of warm water rinsed away all the bubbles, leaving me more relaxed and squeaky clean.
The third step – I was given a dry towel to wrap around myself, and when I slowly exited the steam room, another gentleman wrapped my head in a towel, wrapped a thicker towel around me and gestured me towards a courtyard. I was given Turkish tea and sat on a bench, feeling boneless from my steam and cleansing. I gazed out at the blue sky, smiling at the birds I could see sitting on the tree in the courtyard, my mind clear of any thoughts of work or travel.
The fourth step – I was shown upstairs, where another gentleman asked me to lie down on a padded table. He coated his hands in olive oil and slowly massaged my legs and feet, working his away up my body. He rubbed my arms and shoulders and then asked me to turn over and once again started at my feet and worked his away up my body. At the end, he made me sit up and slowly massaged my shoulders and the back of my neck. When he was done, he wished me well and told me to walk slowly because of the oil that coated me from head to toe.
I descended downstairs, walking slowly because of my oily feet and because I didn’t need or want to move any faster. My mind was calm and my body was relieved of any aches or stiffness from the long day of travel. After changing, I noticed my friends were gathering in the entrance, all moving slowly and each sporting a dopey smile of satisfaction like myself.
We left the hamam, vowing to return the next day, as we ambled off to enjoy dinner, conversation and backgammon in downtown Selcuk.
note: my thanks to Intrepid Travel for providing me with this unique experience of visiting the Selcuk Hamam during my trip in Turkey.