Somehow, in all the time I have spent in Russia, I have missed out on experiencing a banya. The first time I was sick and other times it would come up at inconvenient times, but finally, last weekend I had my chance.
I expected the banya to be hot, but I didn’t expect how intense it would feel. The entire surface of your body is blasted by the heat. Each time water is poured over the coals, the air becomes hotter and heavier. After being beaten by birch branches we went outside.
There was a lake nearby with a hole cut into the ice. A ladder led down into the water at this point, so I carefully climbed down and once I had stepped deep enough into the water, I grabbed the top rung and dunked myself completely into the icy water, then quickly jumped back out and toweled myself off.
Of course I felt intensely cold at first, but then strangely quite warm. We went through this process two more times. I finally understand why Russians adore the banya so much. :)
