Nothing like a good schvitz

One Russian (although I’m sure there are a number of others who would claim it as their own) tradition that I’ve been privileged to take part in is the sauna. The saunas (we’ve done this twice) are pretty much like any sauna we have in the US, with the exception of a dunking pool of cold, slightly murky water next to the steam room for those who enjoy a quick shift from steaming hot to icy cold.

Something novel in second sauna we went to (both of them have been attached to factories and are primarily designed to serve the workers there) was karaoke. Now, for those of you who think karaoke makes everything better, I won’t disappoint; it did make the sauna a bit more diverting. One of the other sauna-goers, a Greek-Russian named Pasha, put on his best impression of Okhudzhava, who sounds kind of like the Russian Bob Dylan, or even better, a male Patty or Selma from The Simpsons, when he sang.

Another interesting point is that the Russians have special sauna hats. They’re cone-shaped, with a dangly bit on top. I haven’t really figured out what they’re for; perhaps to keep the brain from sweating, or to remain fashionable despite sitting in the buff trying to exfoliate through scratching. I did ask. Valeriy said something along the lines of ‘to keep the sweat out of your eyes’. If that is the case, it didn’t really work. Here's a picture of a sauna hat: http://mha-net.org/graphics/wild07/DSC_4125.JPG (that's not me in the photo)