Sundays are traditionally banya day. I talked about banyas when I was in training near Almaty, but I thought I'd go over it again since it is once again part of my life. I live in an apartment block, but ever since April I haven't had hot water. Hot water is tied to the heating so when one is turned off, the other is too. I've sort of floundered since then- I bucket bathed in my bathroom (like a birdbath), went two weeks without bathing, and imposed at Gambrill's family banya once. I visited the two public banyas in town to see what it was like, but didn't like the idea of washing with 20 other dudes, so I passed on those.
Then I found the banya pictured above. It is owned by a family and they rent it out when people want it- I just have to give them time to heat up the banya. I've been the last couple of weeks and I've decided this will be my banya until the hot water comes back in October or November. The picture is terrible- its because a banya is a steam room (like a sauna). I snapped it real fast (no worries- camera is good!).
So as I stated, a banya is a steam room where you also wash. You sit on the wooden benches on the left and use the red buckets to wash yourself. The large barrel in the center is the cold water and the large pot on the right is the hot water on the stove. The point is to sweat out toxins and clean your pours while you bathe. The other banyas I've been in have been hot- too hot. The one I was in, in training, took your breathe away. This one is perfect- like standing under a hot shower; hot enough to do the trick but you also stay comfortable. You pay for an hour, so you can take your time or you can get in and out- depending on your mood.
Banyas are standard throughout Kazakhstan and unless your in a big city, this is your way of bathing. And its also standard to banya only once a week. I really wasn't sold on the banya before I found this one. It was always too hot and I felt rushed each time. But this one....its 250 tenge well spent.
And that is how you bathe in KZ. :)
