Communal bathing and steam rooms from Japan to Finland, and what each says about rest and company.
Japan sits on volcanic land with thousands of hot springs. Bathers wash thoroughly first and then soak without clothes in a shared bath. Beppu has more springs than any other Japanese city.
A public bath with a warm marble platform, steam rooms and an attendant who scrubs and washes you. Historic hamams in Istanbul are still in use.
A steam bath tradition where visitors sit in a hot room, sometimes tapping their skin with bundles of birch twigs, then cool off and drink tea.
Finland has millions of saunas, roughly one for every two people. Many people go weekly, often followed by a dip in a lake or a roll in the snow. The tradition is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.