Tours and Vacations for Women

Turkish Baths

Hammam is the Turkish variant of a steam bath, which can be categorized as wet sauna. Hammam played an important role in cultures of the Balkans and Middle-East, serving as places of social gatherings and ritual cleansing. In Western Europe, the Turkish bath as a way to cleanse the body and to relax was particularly popular during the Victorian era. The process involved in taking a Turkish bath is similar to that of a sauna, but is more closely related to the bathing practices of the Romans.

Hammam combines the functionality and the structural elements of its predecessors in Anatolia, the Roman thermae and Byzantine baths, with the Central Asian traditions of steam bathing, ritual cleansing and respect for water. Unlike the ancient Roman baths, the Turkish hammam has improved style and functionality. The hammams in the Ottoman culture started out as structures attached to mosques, however they quickly evolved into separate institutions and eventually, with the works of the Ottoman architect Sinan, into monumental structural complexes.

Architecturally, a typical hammam consists of three interconnected basic rooms similar to its Roman ancestors: the sýcaklýk (or hararet -caldarium) which is the hot room, the warm room (tepidarium) which is the intermediate room and the soðukluk which is the cool room. The sýcaklýk usually has a large dome decorated with small glass windows that create a half-light; it also contains a large marble stone at the center to lie on, and niches with fountains in the corners. This room is for soaking up steam and getting scrub massages. The warm room is used for washing up with soap and water and the soðukluk is to relax, dress up, have a refreshing drink or tea, and nap in private cubicles after the massage. Some of the hammams in Istanbul also have mikvehs, ritual cleansing baths for Jewish women.

The hammam is not exclusive to men only - hammam complexes usually contain separate quarters for men and women. Being social centers in the Ottoman Empire, hammams were built in almost every Ottoman city. Integrated into daily life, they were places for social gatherings, on many occasions busyn with traditional entertainment (e.g. dancing and food, especially in the women's quarters) and ceremonies, such as before weddings, high-holidays, celebrating newborns, beauty trips etc.
Some of the traditional hammam accessories are still being used at modern hammams: peºtemal is a special cloth of silk or cotton for covering the body, nalýn are wooden clogs, often decorated with silver or mother-of-pearl, that prevent from slipping on the wet floor, kese is a rough mitt for massage. There are also hamam jewel boxes, gilded soap boxes, mirrors, henna bowls and perfume bottles.

The Historical Suleymaniye Hamam

The Magnificent Sultan Süleyman had this Hamam built by the famous Architect Sinan in 1550. The Süleymaniye Complex represented the most important stage in an architectural tradition which began with the Fatih Complex: a symmetrical grouping and use of geometric shapes in the layout of complex buildings. Of unprecedented size and architectural design, the Süleymaniye Complex includes a mosque, medresse, hospital, lunatic asylum, infirmary tombs, a hamam, a market and a primary school.

The Süleymaniye Mosque dates from the time when the Ottoman Empire was at its height. The period is symbolized by grandeur. The mosques, which were the most important buildings of Ystanbul, were not just places of worship. The neighborhoods which surrounded them made them into the focus of social and cultural life, an institution which reflected the city life.

During the construction of the mosque, supplies were brought from all corners of the Empire. The columns found in some ancient ruins were detached, brought to Istanbul and used in the interior of the mosque.The mosque is surrounded by an outer courtyard with the kiblah, or direction to Mecca on one side along with an enclosed cemetery containing graves and a mausoleum; the opposite side of the kiblah contains an inner courtyard.The marble inner courtyard contains a pool and water-jet fountain. Four minarets stand in the four corners of the courtyard. The mosque's main dome is supported by two half-domes. Because of the design of the domes, the acoustics and the air circulation within the mosque are exceptional. The space above the entrance is illuminated by 4000 candles. Soot obtained from the candles is one of the raw materials in the making of ink used for calligraphy. The marble pulpit and mosque niche are true works of art. The carved lectern of the preacher, window and doors are made of wood inlaid with mother-of-pearl. Stained glass windows have a low profile; the emphasis in the interior of the mosque is on decorative calligraphy. The soup kitchen of the complex the Darüzziyafe, functions today as an exclusive restaurant serving classical Turkish cuisine. The kiblah side of the mosque has a covered cemetery with many graves, the tombs of Süleyman, the Magnificent and his wife Hürrem Sultan and a room for the keeper of the tombs.