Turkish bath anyone?

HI dear readers!!

i'm kinda high on teh tarik right now..

 i chose this topic because....i came across turkish bath in thailand but its a whole new diff concept from the original one..lets start with our history lesson.

Oooo...fine arts of turkish bath. The original one does not promote nudity n such..u wish! haha

A Turkish bath (Turkish: Hamam) is the Turkish variant of a steam bath, sauna or Russian Bath, distinguished by a focus on water, as opposed to ambient steam.

In Western Europe, the Turkish bath as a method of cleansing the body and relaxation was particularly popular during the Victorian era. The process involved in taking a Turkish bath is similar to that of a sauna, but is more closely related to ancient Greek and ancient Roman bathing practices.

A person taking a Turkish bath first relaxes in a room (known as the warm room) that is heated by a continuous flow of hot, dry air allowing the bather to perspire freely. Bathers may then move to an even hotter room (known as the hot room) before splashing themselves with cold water. After performing a full body wash and receiving a massage, bathers finally retire to the cooling-room for a period of relaxation.

Traditionally, the masseurs in the baths, tellak in Turkish, were young men who helped wash clients by soaping and scrubbing their bodies.

They were recruited from among the ranks of the non-Muslim subject nations of the Turkish empire, such as Greeks, Armenians, Jews, Roma and others.

After the defeat and dismemberment of the Ottoman army in the early 20th century, the role of tellak boys was filled by adult attendants that scrub and give massages.

Oooo, splashing fun time!

oh it looks so fun! like being in a bubble wrap!

its like adult version of healthy bathroom bubble time!!

Moving on... 

What caught my interest was the last time i went to Hatyai i also saw a "turkish bath" shop n took a photo of it..

the silly difference is in Thai, massage comes with an exciting view n extra-curricular activities after bubble session. haha

I dont know how true it is but according to my *sources* (cannot be revealed) Thai version of "Turkish Bath" is simple.

Rule no.1# - only guys are allowed to go in.

When they go in, they are positioned on the massage tables that face a mini swimming pool filled with......what else?

sexy petite exotic young things (in Thai we dont know which ones are really females) clad in bikinis!

u get ur massage session while watching them swim like little mermaids..u choose the girl of ur choice n she will lead u to a nice dark room and "teach" u extra "tuition" classes ...what type of "lesson" depends on the $$$ fee ur willing to pay the "tutor".

u get a limited 30 minutes of "lesson" time n then a knock comes on ur door. if ur a "slow learner" and dont start closing ur books n packing ur bag, the "headmaster" will come barging in and leave u in an awkward position! haha!

I find it disgusting and pitiful to have such practices n exploiting women for their flesh but apparently its a way of life to get out of poverty/ a matter of choice in their culture. (some are as young as 14!) . so what to do? nothing much apparently! (i will not go into the matter of corruption n lack of law enforcement...its boring n we are not much better off anyways.)

so the next time u stop by Thai..remember that Turkish Baths are NOT what they seem to be..dont be blur blur and tell the counter "hello! i want a bubble bath n massage!" =) hahahaha