So…after a hard day of skiing (falling) it was time for the banya. A banya is a traditional Russian steam bath.  The banya comprised of three rooms…the first which was the main/entrance room in which we had snacks, beer, water, and OJ. The second is a change room/entrance to the actual sauna which also held several buckets of cold water (more on that later), and finally the sauna itself.

In the steam room,  there is a wood stove, where the heat comes from. Beside the stove stands a bucket of water that is poured over the heated stones of the stove. Usually across the stove are wooden benches.

Along with our hosts, I stripped down and entered the main sauna room…HOLY  SHIT! Heat permeated every pore on my body and felt as if it were trickling down my throat. I’ve never felt heat like that before. After a few moments, as my body adjusted, it began to feel good.  Just when I was beginning to relax, our friends yelled, “To the SNOW” and out we ran into the -20C weather and dove into snow drifts. Yes…you read that correctly.

Apparently it is the Russian belief that this is much like forging steel. You heat the core temperature of your body up super high, go dive in the snow to cool it down, and then head back into the banya. Then the beating starts.

It is traditional for circulation and medicinal purposes to beat each other with bunches of dried leaves and branches from white birch. If you had ever told me that I would enjoy being beaten by another man with a handful of branches, I would have asked what medication you were off. I’ll be damned…it feels pretty freaking good after running out of a bazillion degree sauna, into the icy cold of a Siberian Winter, and back in again.

I’ll tell you what…it was an experience! And truth be told, the next morning I had no sore muscles from skiing…the banya did its job in relaxing and healing all of the muscles I had used (and fallen on).

Later that night we went to a club at t e ski resort. I ended up being kind of bored and the smoke was absolutely killing me. However it was good time spent in bonding with our new friends.