Today I take you to a special place: the hamam! L'hamam is the Turkish bath, an exceptional remedy to eliminate stress, take care of the body and mind. You feel more beautiful, once you have emerged from the sulphurous fumes of the calidarium, after the beneficial vapors of the bath and a good pass with the horsehair glove.
The most intriguing thing is the scent. Enter and feel the laurel (thanks to the exfoliating soap) of essential oils, in such a particular, silent environment, steeped in history. The Turkish baths in Istanbul are truly wonderful. You can't come to Istanbul without visiting at least one! Most famous (but also the most touristic of all) is the historian Cağaloğlu Hamam, in Eminönü.
A Cihangir, the district of free thinkers and artists, creatives and expats, young bohemians and Italo-Levantines, there are two very nice and authentic hamamsabsolutely not touristic, which I would like to recommend. One is the Tarihi Furuzaga Hamami (Furuzaga Mah, Çukurcuma cad. Num. 6: Antikacilar Carsisi Beyoğlu - tel. 0212 245 01 55) and the other is theAğa Hamamı (Turnacıbaşı Sokak, No: 66, Cihangir-Beyoğlu - tel: +90 212 249 50 27).
The environments of these hamams are simple: available every other day for men and women offer massages plus beauty treatments. Male massages are generally more "vigorous" (masseurs are certain thugs!) While the female section offers much more relaxing massages. With 35 TL (about 15 euros) you can treat yourself to the full scrub massage plus the regenerating lemon schampoo-foam: they will put you back in the world, guaranteed! If you don't have a horsehair glove you can buy it directly here (5 TL).
