I’m face down on a hot wooden bench, in a dimly lit steam room. To my side, a large, hairy man dressed in swimming trunks opens the door of a deep stove that resembles a pizza oven. Inside, red-hot metal glows at 700ºC. He throws in a ladle of cold water, which explodes into steam. […]
If you were to find yourself, as I did, prostrate and naked on a bench in an infernal steam sauna, your face mashed into a pile of birch leaves as a hulking Russian banschik beats you with bundles of oak branches, you might question your life choices — which is precisely the point of the […]
I do love a good spa experience. A few days ago, I tried something new and exciting which I have never tried before. We visited Banya No. 1, a traditional Russian bath and wellness spa located in a quiet residential area, very close to Old Street. They opened in London in 2012 and have branches […]
I am not one for spa’s and massages but when I heard about Banya No.1 Russian traditional bathhouse who gives guests a treatment like no other of slapping you with leaves I just had to go along and check out their signature treatment parenie. I attended on a complimentary experience along with some other community […]
When life gets tough, a spa is where I go to relax and forget about life for a few hours. Whether it’s having a swim in one of the pools, detoxifying in a steam room, or destressing with a full body massage, nothing beats a good spa day. When I think of a spa, rarely […]