But bathing as a collective act is rare in the modern world. In Australia, as in most Western countries, we wash alone, at home. To bathe is purely functional and often done in the most efficient way possible. We might live in one of the warmest climates on earth, but public nudity is still viewed as somewhat transgressive.<\/p>\n
The bathhouse, a sanctum of intimacy and inertia, is the antithesis to our frantic, often-isolated lives, where the only time we come into contact with the body of a stranger is on a crowded rush-hour bus. To attend a bathhouse is to be in direct contact with the naked bodies of strangers, to breathe the same thick air \u2014 a seemingly bizarre concept as we sit amid a global pandemic. But as we emerge from 2020\u2019s bodily vigilance, hungry again for care and touch, the bathhouse provides the perfect setting to release and reconnect.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/da28rauy2a860.cloudfront.net\/wbwild\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/15154214\/Sense-of-Self-65-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are very hopeful spaces,\u201d says Mary Minas, one half of the duo behind Collingwood\u2019s newly opened bathhouse and day spa Sense of Self. Mary and her co-founder Freya Berwick dreamt up their wellness destination while travelling through Greece, Morocco, Japan and Scandinavia, destinations where public bathing is a commonplace ritual. \u201cWe both experienced the mental, emotional and physical benefits that communal bathing can deliver and wanted to offer Australians a taste of the experience,\u201d says Mary. \u201cIn the last 10 years or so, we could see that people had become increasingly overwhelmed. Our digital engagement is allowing work to encroach upon our rest and downtime, and our bodies and minds are feeling the grind.\u201d<\/p>\n
A place to reset<\/h2>\n
It is difficult to imagine a more restorative ritual for body and soul<\/a> than a good sweat in a bath, followed by exfoliation and the exhilaration of a cold plunge pool. The brute physicality of the baths, with their steamy mists and icy pools, is the perfect salve for modern disconnection, a way to reset your emotional thermometer.<\/p>\n But communal bathing is not just about washing or unwinding; it\u2019s a highly social activity that brings people together from all walks of life. In the baths you are stripped of material signifiers and that collective exposure is a great leveller, as it was in ancient Rome, where people of different social classes would wash side by side.<\/p>\n The baths invite you to inhabit your body fully, to be present in pleasure and share a moment of unguarded enjoyment with the bodies around you.<\/p>\n \u201cEven before the pandemic, we knew that technology and the demands of a constantly \u2018on\u2019 social culture meant that many of us felt disconnected from ourselves and from others,\u201d says Mary. \u201cWhen you bathe, whether it\u2019s done while chatting with a friend or in silence in the company of a few strangers, there is no option other than to be present in the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n The egalitarian nature of the bathhouse encourages self-acceptance, something Sense of Self is committed to nurturing. \u201cOur goal was always to take the B-S out of self-care and offer a safe space that was truly restorative, inclusive and even playful,\u201d says Mary. The baths are spaces of exposure, where all kinds of bodies \u2013 not just those portrayed in the media \u2014 are on view. Mary notes that in cultures where bathing is more embedded, \u201cpeople\u2019s relationships with their bodies [are] more accepting and neutral\u201d.<\/p>\n At the bathhouse, the body is something to be taken care of. It is not to be ridiculed or compared to others, but allowed to take part in an unselfconscious brand of pleasure. \u201cLeisure and relaxation shouldn\u2019t feel like performative activities,\u201d says Mary, \u201cand yet so often in our experiences, engaging with the world of wellness, we felt this pressure to compete, even in our downtime.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite being a social hub, the bathhouse also cultivates inwardness. For centuries, communal baths have offered a liminal space for people to sweat out the anxieties of life. Among anonymous company, you become more aware of yourself, as if the proximity of strangers demands a certain self-awareness. Against the backdrop of sociability, the baths allow you to withdraw and simply be \u2014 be part of something together.<\/p>\n Mary and Freya designed Sense of Self to be what they call a \u201cchoose-your-own-adventure experience\u201d; \u201cwe feel strongly that self-care should be an autonomous, empowering act,\u201d shares Mary. The Collingwood bathhouse rotates around four traditional elements: a large mineral bath, a Finnish-style sauna, a cold plunge pool and a Turkish-style Hammam. Guests can spend time alternating between the light-filled bath, sauna and plunge pool. When one\u2019s skin is sufficiently pruned, there is always a visit to the massage studio upstairs or to simply hang out in the curtained-off mindfulness zone. \u201cWe want all our guests to leave feeling more connected to themselves and their bodies,\u201d says Mary.<\/p>\n Unlike the underground Turkish-style baths of New York City or London\u2019s dark and moody Russian banyas, Sense of Self is housed in a soaring, light-filled warehouse. Designed by an all-female team led by SetSquare Studio, the space is an exercise in what Mary refers to as \u201cMediterranean Brutalism\u201d.<\/p>\n Layers of terracotta, travertine and sandstone are brought to life through monolithic forms and soft edges. The design cultivates a unique synergy between old and new, public and private, with plenty of open space and room for retreat.<\/p>\n \u201cWe lucked out with a space imbued with lots of natural light, which filters in softly through large-format window,\u201d reveals Mary. \u201cMornings are glorious!\u201d Bathhouses have deep roots in holy traditions and Sense of Self, with its wavering shafts of sunlight, feels akin to a place of worship. It\u2019s a space that gets to the crux of old bathing traditions, an intimate yet shared setting in which to relax publicly.<\/p>\n Comma<\/strong> Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa<\/strong> Japanese Bathhouse, Blue Mountains<\/strong> Mataranka Thermal Pool and Rainbow Springs<\/strong> Nature\u2019s Energy<\/strong> Onsen Retreat + Spa<\/strong> Ottoman Turkish Bath & Day Spa<\/strong>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/da28rauy2a860.cloudfront.net\/wbwild\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/15154215\/Sense-of-Self-121-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWhere to find communal baths<\/h2>\n
\n10-12 Hill Street, Cremorne Vic 3121
\ncommaspaces.com<\/a><\/p>\n
\nMineral Springs Reserve Road, Hepburn Springs Vic 3461
\nhepburnbathhouse.com<\/a><\/p>\n
\n259 Sir Thomas Mitchell Drive, South Bowenfels NSW 2790
\nJapanesebathhouse.com.au<\/a><\/p>\n
\n642 Homestead Road, Mataranka NT 0852
\nElsey National Park, NT
\nnorthernterritory.com\/katherine-and-surrounds\/destinations\/mataranka-thermal-pool<\/a><\/p>\n
\nBalmain: 312 Darling Street, Balmain NSW 2041
\nGlebe: 105 Glebe Point Road, Glebe NSW 2037
\nNewtown: 173 King Street, Newtown NSW 2042
\nnaturesenergy.com.au<\/a><\/p>\n
\nBig Muster Drive, Dinner Plain Vic 3898
\nhepburnataltitude.com.au\/onsen-spa<\/a><\/p>\n
\nLevel 2, 46 Wellington Road, South Granville NSW 2142
\nottomanturkshibath.com.au<\/a><\/p>\n