Budapest, Hungary
July 15th, 2014
The light was dim, there was a quiet splash of water, and from somewhere, hard to identify because of the way the dome overhead filtered sound, there was a low murmur of voices. But overall, it was so silent and still, that the atmosphere reminded me of a church. We settled in up to our necks in warm water in the octagonal pool and looked around. The building we were in had been built in the 14th century by the Turks, who occupied Hungary at that time. Light filtered through the cupola of the dome and a window set high in the wall looking out towards the street. Smaller rectangular pools were set around the walls outside of the circular pool. We ventured into the hot one next, relaxing after 3 full days of sightseeing and walking for miles. As it got too hot to stand, we decided to try the “cold” pool. At almost 80 degrees (27 c), we didn’t think it would feel cold, but compared to the pool we’d been soaking in, it gave us a shock. I sat along the edge, dipping my feet in, until I finally worked up the nerve to dip underwater. It didn’t take long until I started shivering, and we decided to check out the mysterious door that several people had opened next to the cold pool. When we opened it, a wall of steam almost blinded us, and a scent of eucalyptus filled the air. I was simultaneously delighted and overwhelmed. From the wooden benches along the wall, I could barely glimpse the door through the steam and soon the heat drove me out. After cooling down in the cool bath again, I was ready to try the normal saunas. My Finnish sauna experience stood me in good stead here, and bypassing the 100-120 degree F (40-50 c) sauna where most people were choosing to sit, I headed to the hotter sauna in the back, still a cool 120-140 degrees F (50-60 c). We spent several hours, rotating through the different pools and saunas, immersed in history, until all the tension had left our bodies. I left completely relaxed, and determined to take better advantage of opportunities to use the sauna in Finland.
July 15th, 2014
The light was dim, there was a quiet splash of water, and from somewhere, hard to identify because of the way the dome overhead filtered sound, there was a low murmur of voices. But overall, it was so silent and still, that the atmosphere reminded me of a church. We settled in up to our necks in warm water in the octagonal pool and looked around. The building we were in had been built in the 14th century by the Turks, who occupied Hungary at that time. Light filtered through the cupola of the dome and a window set high in the wall looking out towards the street. Smaller rectangular pools were set around the walls outside of the circular pool. We ventured into the hot one next, relaxing after 3 full days of sightseeing and walking for miles. As it got too hot to stand, we decided to try the “cold” pool. At almost 80 degrees (27 c), we didn’t think it would feel cold, but compared to the pool we’d been soaking in, it gave us a shock. I sat along the edge, dipping my feet in, until I finally worked up the nerve to dip underwater. It didn’t take long until I started shivering, and we decided to check out the mysterious door that several people had opened next to the cold pool. When we opened it, a wall of steam almost blinded us, and a scent of eucalyptus filled the air. I was simultaneously delighted and overwhelmed. From the wooden benches along the wall, I could barely glimpse the door through the steam and soon the heat drove me out. After cooling down in the cool bath again, I was ready to try the normal saunas. My Finnish sauna experience stood me in good stead here, and bypassing the 100-120 degree F (40-50 c) sauna where most people were choosing to sit, I headed to the hotter sauna in the back, still a cool 120-140 degrees F (50-60 c). We spent several hours, rotating through the different pools and saunas, immersed in history, until all the tension had left our bodies. I left completely relaxed, and determined to take better advantage of opportunities to use the sauna in Finland.
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