A traditional Finnish Sauna is not only a place to visit and unwind,relax and purify the body.It is an entirely safe place for all the family to visit when built to standards.When done so it is a very pleasing environment to be in.Some people may complain that it is too hot or uncomfortable and prefer to take a hot bath.Those people are losing the great health benefits of a sauna
I aim to show why some of those alternatives except Finnish Saunas give a bad first impression and leave some never wanting to go back.I have even heard remarks as to why people would put themselves through a form of punishment in a hot room where you can not even breathe,for the heat or leaves one gasping for air.
There are alternative forms of the sauna that exist in a few cultures around the world,for examples the native American sweat lodge or inipi,the Russian banja,the Turkish haman and the Japanese onsen are a few similar suck bathing rituals and places.Since the early ice age Finnish People have been using the sauna in one form or another,as seen by the occasional find of an ancient sites.Though the sites are a rare find they do get found occasionally.
According to 2oo9 statistics there close to 2 million saunas in private homes and theses are added to by about a further 1.3 million in Finnish Peoples Country Cottages,public swimming pools,gyms and the many public saunas available to anyone around the country and in cities.My local bar has a sauna in the backroom.We first take a sauna then eat a great meal,then go dancing all in the sane Restaurant.
So a country that boasts of having close to 3.3 million saunas and a population of 5.5 million,leads one to think what kind of country is Finland?”A clean,happy and relaxed one” would be my answer,after living here as a British Expatriate for 21 years
A beer Barrel Sauna
The Finnish People are Resourceful
The Finns are known to be resourceful when it comes to constructing a sauna anywhere,in what ever place they are in the world and with whatever is at hand.The photo above may be taken lightly,however there is an actual design for a sauna based upon a beer barrel or wine vat
If you know or are a soldier yourself,you will be aware that the first thing the Finnish soldiers do when on peace keeping missions,is to erect a tent and build a sauna.This shows the importance of the sauna to the Finns
Finnish Smoke Saunas
The original Finnish Saunas were in fact smoke saunas.A wood fire would be lit under the stones in the sauna room.The smoke would escape through a hole placed in the wall.The fire would rage until the room was hot enough and the fire had died out.The hole would then be covered and the room would be filled with fresh air.After an hour or so you could then enter the sauna This is now a truly bacteria free enviroment.Being such a clean environment it became the centre for all things to do with cleanliness.Women used to give birth in the sauna,deceased family members bodies were placed in the sauna until buried as there was an abundance of hot water.I thank my Finnish wife and family for this information.
A typical Finnish Smoke Sauna
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