Rituels d’ Orient – a journey into One Thousand and One Nights

I always have been fascinated by the Orient. The architecture, the food, the spices, the art work, the clothes, the music and everything related to it.

Who would have guessed that I could take a journey into the Orient right in the centre of Barcelona?

Let me take you into the world of Rituels d’Orient Hammam Spa to give you an insight into the secrets of well-being and beauty, of the millennial tradition of the Hammam treatments.

A little bit of theory before our journey begins:

“Hammam” is the Arabic word for heat and also the name for the Spa which for centuries been a part of the rituals and customs of the Arab world where visitors circulate between zones of progressive temperature and humidity.

Normally there is a “warm room” with a temperature of 37° and 80% humidity which gives your body the chance to adapt to the heat. The “hot room” has a temperature of 46° and an almost 100% humidity. The element of water is always present and is used to refresh the body and help you acclimatise yourself to the varying temperatures.
Typically, beauty treatments like a body scrub, body mask, a massage or a facial treatment complete the experience.

Now let the journey into the oriental fairy tale begin:

My “inner princess” responded immediately when the attendant lead me into the Spa area.
I was “boom”, straight away transported to Morocco. No detail was spared to reproduce the atmosphere, the architecture and lighting of an original Moroccan Hammam.

After a short explanation of what to expect I was let into the Hammam area which I had completely to myself.
As I had never experienced a Hammam before I gave myself some minutes to explore the place. The first room is filled with candles in Arabic lanterns and illuminated window gratings which allow faint light to enter the room. Everything is made from grey stone and I settled down on one of the heated stone benches to let my body adjust to the temperature.

Water is always present in great marble basins or the pool to guarantee the interplay of heat and cold. The sound of flowing water with its great calming effect is a constant and welcome companion, helping you take your mind off things.

After a few minutes I entered the “hot room” also known as the “steam room”. Here the temperature climbs to 46° and hot steam flows constantly into the room. The aroma of eucalyptus eases your breathing immediately as the heat and humidity slowly envelopes your body.

I began to circulate between the rooms always exposing my body to different temperatures and humidity levels. To cool down I used either the pool, the water from the basins or the shower.
The heat and the humidity are great muscle relaxants and open your pores, helping you to detoxify your body and activate your circulation.

After approximately 45 minutes your body will be ready for the Oriental Exfoliation.
Here things get more personal as you will be asked to remove your bikini top. You will be placed on one of the marble beds in a separate room where you first will be cleaned with the original oriental black soap, which is made out of olives and eucalyptus oil.
Afterwards comes a scrub with the “Kessa” (a bristle glove), which is not the most comfortable experience and can even hurt a little at times. This “Crin” glove gets rid of any dead skin and activates the circulation.

After the scrub the attendant covered my body with a special paste made out of a red clay called Rhassoul which gives your body a profound purification.

It is just incredible how your body feels after the treatment. I can not even fully describe it. Your skin feels like silk, the smell of the soap and the paste and your clean and fresh body brings you an inner satisfaction with yourself and the world which you rarely feel in day-to-day life.

Your mind and body is now ready for the last stage of your journey through the Orient: the full body message. You have the choice between 4 oriental oils with different aromas and just when you thought it could not get any better your mind will drift away again completing the feeling of total relaxation.

The last minutes in the Orient you will spend in your fluffy bathrobe on one of the huge sofas, huddled against the big, soft pillows. Enjoy your mint tea and honey pastry in the dim light before you head out to the real world again.

This was an inexplicable experience for me and was a real a journey of the senses. So go and reserve your own little expedition into the world of One Thousand and One Nights. You won’t regret it!

Karina

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