My last weekend was a real treat - visiting my friends, having a good company with nice dinner and some Chardonnay, and then being whisked (well, that the best translation I found from dictionary). Anyways, rest assured neither Estonians or me are into S&M – "whisking" relates to sauna, authentic Estonian sauna.

Every nation has their share of fun activities for leisure. For Estonians, the most appealing is to go to theatre to treat their mind, pub to attend their social needs or sauna to tend their body. All regional centers in Estona boast a theatre, some even two. Every city has plenty of pubs. When it comes to sauna, the most of the private residences have it– in some cases attached to the house, but mostly as a separate building. And popularity of the places is something like that: sauna –always, with any weather; pub – every now and then; theatre – remarkable if once in a decade!

Ignorant world may attribute sauna to Finns, but Estonias beg to differ. You see, for us Finns are nothing more or less than Estonians who went to North over the gulf, by taking sauna tradition along...

In America where everything is great in size I was flabbergasted to see teeny tiny saunas that reminded me outhouses from centuries ago. Ok, the manufacturer got one thing right – it was piping hot inside. Even the most heat tolerant could stay there for as long as a minute. Oy yeah, and they went into these sauna "cabinets" fully dressed. Tule taevas appi! (Heavens forbid!)

First, no one in their clear mind would waste their time even thinking of a place where you go for a minute max. Ei! (No!) Going to sauna is like going to spa. It is not some fast food joint In 'n' Out Burger famous on the U.S. West Coast! It is well thought and carried out practice. And no one in their clear mind could enjoy sauna dressed.

Customarily to old Estonians, the day, actually the evening for sauna is Saturday. That's how they got their bodies clean before cleansing their soul on the next day, pühapäev (holy day). Preparation for sauna could take about 3 to 4 hours, depending on the size of it. Heating element is a stove with two compartments on top of it, one for stone retaining the heat and other to heat up washing water.

Main sauna room is usually big enough to accommodate 3 to 4 people. Besides the heater, sweating bench carries major role. It reminds bleachers from ballgame court. Different levels are to accommodate people of different age, gender and health condition – the top being usually reserved for guys.

As already mentioned, no one goes to sauna for one minute. It is a series of creating steam by throwing good measure of water on the rocks (leil), letting the heat come and claim one's body, perspiring profusely and then jumping in a pond or snow to cool down. Yooohooo! And then back and this way as many times as one could take.

Women usually do it 3 to 4 times, men even more, by having some beer between the sessions - watery lager would work the best, since hard alcohol and sauna don't mix well. Once sweating sessions are completed it is time to bring out whisks made of twigs from leaf trees, usually birch. Yet oak, juniper and even nettles are used for this purpose. While perspiration speeds up the heart and release of toxins, whisking is even more therapeutic. It provides massage, soothes aching muscles and cures from various ailments. Whisking is done carefully, by adhering to age-old customs. The whisk has to be soaked in water, then heated up on hot stones. Whisking starts with light touches, goes over to a serious beating to conclude with light touches again. Well, thanks to soaked leaves it is not painful at all. You could feel how stiffness leaves your body and relaxation takes over. And then its time to wash off all old stuff to have the skin as soft as baby's butt and the feeling as if heaven has been reached already.

Don't think that I translated some text promoting sauna establishment. It is all from my own experience. And for anyone visiting Estonia for the first time and being lucky to have hosts willing to treat them with sauna, my advise is to never decline the offer. Perhaps it doesn't feel as heavenly as for Estonians since some element may feel too strange, but it is surely a way to get a glance to what we cherish.  Hüva leili!  

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