Other news - yesterday I was beaten by birch branches. In the sauna. It was interesting. Margaret and I were joined by her friend Tanya who routinely subjects herself to this traditional Russian sauna ritual - it was Margaret's first time doing this and, of course, mine too. So, this is what went down. This time the sauna was about halfway full - there were maybe eight of us in total? And everyone just hangs out in there naked - in the main room bathing and scrubbing, in the sauna sitting or lying or... being beaten by a bundle of hot leaves and twigs. Yup. As soon as we got in there, Tanya soaked the birch in a tub of hot water... and off we went for round one of sauna, shower and tea. Round two - the abuse begins. Into the sauna we go, and I was first; we were under full instructions from Tanya (she instructed me to go first.) I lay down on the top bench of the sauna where it was soooooo hot, so so so hot. She shook the branches over the rocks to heat them up a bit and then, she whacked me with them, all over - everywhere except (thank goodness) the face. And it was hard. Not so hard that I was in pain, but it was definitely uncomfortable - both the heat and the branch-whacks. Roll-over. Yes ma'am. More whacking. Burning legs. Leaves everywhere. I wasn't sure who was supposed to say stop/enough! - if she would tell me when she was done or if I called an end to the beating... but that's what I had to do, because I couldn't take the heat anymore. I was instructed to immediately take a cold shower. I had leaves all over me and I was red as beat beets... but no welts. So that was it. After the beating, one takes a cold shower, has a rest, maybe some tea, and then does the whole thing over again. That's the traditional way - no soap is used, and the branches are hot-hot-hot... and one is to endure the beating and the heat until he/she can take it no more... and then the cold shower offers the much needed relief. Margaret and I both went through the ringer once and once only - it was enough for both of us. And what exactly is this beating supposed to achieve? It exfoliates the skin, cleans and clears the pores and, if done correctly, will "leave you as clean as a baby," according to Tanya. I did feel clean, but soap does the trick too... I'll stick with the soap and not with the sticks.
Banya equipment - birch branch bundle, bucket, scrubber mit and felt hat - some older women were wearing these (to protect the hair and scalp from the heat - and to sweat more?)So after that interesting experience, the three of us made our way over to Margaret's place for lunch. I thought that our apartment building was well-secured... but hers was like Fort Knox. There were no less than four doors to unlock before we found ourselves in her apartment - the number of doors increased in the 80s with the increase in crime which increased as a result of decreasing salaries. There you go. Her apartment was small, but very functional. We had a yummy lime-honey vodka drink, which is apparently good for after the sauna (I thought water maybe? But the vodka was yummy), and then a delicious little meal - vegetable soup, salad (non-lettuce), and traditional Russian pancakes... it was so good! Her husband came home after we had finished eating... but the drinking had only just begun. The after-work vodka drinking tradition here is much like the after-work wine drinking routine at home - Yuri sat down at the table, poured himself a healthy shot of vodka (a double at least) and down it goes. It's a little different... but same idea. And since he needed someone to drink with - I sort of volunteered. By not refusing to volunteer. I was invited to stick to the sipping of the lime-honey stuff which tasted good. If it had been warm vodka... I'm not too sure how I would have fared. Well, yes - I would have gotten drunk and felt sick. My time in Russia has not helped me develop an appreciation for warm vodka. Yuri asked me a few questions about life in Canada: What are salaries like? and, How much corruption is there? These are the two most common questions I've been asked here. He talked about corruption ("one of Russia's biggest problems") and politics... and then the vodka was put away and it was time to go. It was a great afternoon. This is one of my favourite things about living in a new country - getting to know a family and getting an idea of what life for the average person is like. It's clear that even if Russia's economy is getting stronger, the benefits are slow to trickle down to the people, and even if living standards are improving, there is still a long way to go.
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