Delving into Turkish culture, I decided to visit a hammam, a bathhouse, in Istanbul, and chose  one of the more upmarket establishments. I’m always up for adventure, but when nudity is involved, I prefer to play it safe. Off I went to ‘Cemberlitas Hamami’, near the Grand Bazaar in Sultanahmet,  to experience a Turkish bath.

After choosing a body wash and scrub from the menu of services, I bid my boyfriend goodbye and set off into the female only section, armed with a scrubbing mitt, a small rectangular bar of soap, and a locker key. Once inside the locker room, I self-consciously undressed, leaving on my bikini bottoms.

The bathhouse is located near the Grand Bazaar in Sultanahmet.

The attendant gave me a “peptemal,” similar to an oversized tea towel. I wrapped myself in it, and proceeded nervously into the mysterious realm of the hammam, unsure of what I would encounter behind the heavy wooden doors.

I was greeted by a moist waft of steam, and when the door closed behind me, I was immediately struck by the beauty of the appropriately named “hot room.” Light streamed in from numerous tiny round skylights in the high domed ceiling, bathing the marble interior in a warm glow.

In the middle of the room lay an enormous round, flat stone, around the perimeter of which visitors were being washed and scrubbed within an inch of their lives. Women appeared to be “baking” on the stone’s center. Around the outer edge of the round room, bathing areas featured  marble basins containing warm, clear water.

Having absolutely no understanding of hammam protocol and suddenly feeling very self-conscious, I headed to one of the marble basins to wash myself. To my amused embarrassment, as I tried to lather up, I realized my little yellow bar of soap wasn’t soap at all, but a plastic token!

Looking around, most of the women held the same token, only in different colors. Later I realized yellow was for a body scrub, and red for a scrub and massage.