June 22, 2008

Hammam...
I decided to try a Moroccan bath while I was in Chefchaouen because it was right next to the hotel. Of course I got charged at least three times as much because I'm a tourist (30Dh compared to 8Dh). Hammams are open at different times (and rarely alternate days) for men and women.
There were three rooms at different temperatures and humidity levels, starting with the coolest and working to the warmest (but not hot) and most humid. Everyone gets one or two buckets, which can be filled from a main source (boiling hot and freezing cold water is mixed to the temperature you want) as many times as you want. There's a smaller scoop that you use to pour the water from the big buckets onto your body. I decided to try the gommage, which is basically a man who works at the hammam with a scratchy mitt who scrubs multiple layers of skin off you as hard as he can. The soap traditionally used in a hammam is made of olive and other products, and is great after having your skin peeled off. It's nice to feel clean at the end of a hot and sweaty day.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The brillo pad rubdown? Sounds interesting if somewhat extreme. Did your skin feel a bit raw the next day? How often do the locals go for this type of "relaxation" treatment?

Stephen said...

It didn't feel raw actually. Probably from all the travelling I've been doing, I think it needed a good scrub!