Moroccan Hammam
A trip to Morocco is not complete without a visit to a local Moroccan hammam. Forget your hotel hammam, it’s just not the same as getting Moroccan naked with the locals. It’s more like a spa day with all the extras and while I’m sure they have their place there’s nothing like a traditional local hammam.
Of course, separate sides for men and women or different times of the day depending on the hammam.
Moroccan hammam take their inspiration from the original bath houses created by the Romans more than 2000 years ago.
There are examples of Roman hammam in places such as Volubilis, a site dating back to the 3rd century.
It’s very popular in Morocco and have become a traditional weekly event for many as it was not common in Morocco to have a bathroom in your home.
Another reason for its popularity here is that water is a strong symbol of cleansing in Islam with washing practices before prayer and a lot of hammam are built close to mosques.
All you need is a good supply of water and plenty of wood to keep everything hot.
A trip to the hammam is like entering another world where time stands still, and hours can pass very quickly.
It’s often made with friends or family and as well as an opportunity for a deep clean it’s also a social event to catch up on local comings and goings.
Many brides take to the hammam with friends just before their wedding.
You buy your ticket and black soap from a nearby shop and if you choose you can pay extra to be scrubbed by ladies (kessala) whose job it is to take off your dead skin!
Be prepared to be scrubbed everywhere by this lady who almost certainly doesn’t speak any English and so will point at you which way to face, where to lie, when to turn over and if you don’t understand she will just push you in the right direction. It’s all part of the fun and worth the few dirhams that it will cost you.
If you’d rather not you can do it yourself, as most Moroccans do. Why pay someone when you can do a perfectly good job yourself and remember this is something that they’ve been doing since they were small children.
You will see people of all shapes, sizes, colors and ages. From the very young sitting in the hammam buckets sucking lollipops to the very old who need help to scrub their backs.
Perhaps you’ll be asked to do this for someone, it’s traditional …… and of course they will return the Favour.
For a trip to the hammam you will need buckets and small stools, a mat and some form of plastic sandal, towel and toiletries as well as clean clothes to come home in. You may hear people saying “basaha” this is referring to the fact that you are clean and have clean clothes.
t’s also a common expression if you buy anything new, do a goIod job of something or eat a good meal. Literally it means health or cheers (without the alcohol) and the polite response is ila iyatek saha.
Strip down to your underwear (or swim wear if you prefer), hand your bag to one of the waiting ladies or place it in the rack provided and head with your buckets etc. into the hammam.
It’s hot and steamy and most hammam have 3 rooms.
getting hotter as you go through. Each room has taps with hot (can be very hot so be careful) and cold water and most hammam have extra buckets if you need them.
You’ll have to find your way around all the women pushing along buckets filled with hot water. Find yourself a spot among all the women already sitting on their stools in various stages of the “hammam experience” and fill a bucket with hot water to clean your place.
Throw the very hot water onto the walls and floor before laying down your mat and sitting on your stool. Fill the rest of your buckets with water, wet yourself and then wash with black soap. Careful not to get it in your eyes, but some in your hair will leave it soft and shiny. Once you’re clean rinse yourself off. Your skin should…
UNESCO World Heritage Site Volubilis
