One of the best experiences I had in Russia was on the island of Mandrogy. This small island used to have a community on it, but it was ruined during WWII and disappeared for many years. In the mid 90s, a wealthy man decided it would be fun to bring the village back, and created it as a tourist attraction, and almost outdoor museum for historic buildings and handcrafts. Many artisans will live on the tiny island for the summer months while river cruises bring a steady stream of tourists with their pockets full of money and a need for souvenirs.
One of the optional excursions offered by the boat was the chance to experience the Russian Banya, or sauna experience. Russians believe this helps with purification, and will often have standing weekly appointments. While I've been in saunas before (I'm a lizard person, and I would love to warm up in a sauna after swimming in a cold pool) I'd never experienced anything quite like this.
I thought the process sounded interesting, and I convinced my cousin to come along with me, because adventures are always more fun when you have a friend. We met the rest of the group (about 20 people total from a ship of near 200) and walked down the path along the river. Once we got to two small buildings tucked into the trees, they split us into two groups-- men, and women. Given that most of the people on the cruise were traveling with their husbands, this meant that most people were instantly separated from their travel buddy, inciting panic and much more of an adventure than they had planned on.
We walked down the path, were shown into a changing room, and told to don our bathing suits, or wrap ourselves in large bed sheets (for those that didn't bring a suit). Then, we were given small, woolen hats, and I still have yet to figure out why, but it was part of the experience (maybe it's to keep us warmer? Maybe it's to protect our brains? Jury is still out). Our "host" for the experience, Dmitri, was in charge of pouring the water on the hot stones, letting steam roll over the room. He instructed us to breathe deeply, and get the steam in our lungs to help with the cleansing. He encouraged people to sit up as high on the benches as they could to get the most steam possible. He told us that we should all be sweaty because it was good for us.
And then he brought out the tree branches.
Part of the Russian Banya is a "birch broom massage" which means getting beaten with a bundle of leafy sticks. It doesn't hurt, and the theory behind it is that it gets the blood flowing to help your body release all of the toxins that have built up, but I wouldn't describe it as comfortable either. I'm not sure how much "science" goes into this, but it was definitely an experience! Ultimately, I think I prefer my massage therapist back in the states because I don't end up covered in pieces of leaves (which is also supposed to be good for the skin).
At the end of this beating, we all walked out to the dock on the river, and either jumped in, or had buckets of river water dumped over us to cool us back down. I figured jumping into a Russian river is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing, so I might as well take a chance. I'm not usually a fan of cold plunges, but what the heck.
It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be! Refreshing, yes, but not uncomfortable. Possibly even enjoyable! After plunging, we came back into the building, and drank hot tea, and ate spoonfuls of a tart berry jam, to get our blood sugar up. Following this, it was back into the steam room for a second round of sweating, beating, and jumping into the river.
I think the best part of the experience was the camaraderie we built as a group of women. It was such fun to see us start the experience slightly nervous and uncomfortable, but end with endless giggles and a shared experience. We spent a fair amount of time taking photos inside the banya, figuring out how to take a group photo, and then taking pictures with Dmitri too (I'm sure he thought we were all crazy).
Back on the boat, many people were very curious about our experience. The rumors about being beaten by birch brooms had scared many people away from the banya, but they all wanted to know what it was like. There are no words to fully describe the experience, but it makes me think of why I love traveling so much. It offers the chance to really step outside of our own comfort zones, and fully experience another culture. To embrace what others see as commonplace, or "normal" allows us to grow as humans, and start to understand that no matter where we're from, we all just want to be happy.
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