Ah, the hammam. An unmissable experience for travelers in the Middle East. Although termed a Turkish bath ("hamMAM TurKEY"), they are prevalent throughout Arabic countries.
The hammam includes steam, scrub down, soap bath, and a massage. Every hammam operates under different definition of these terms. After two hammams in Syria and one in Jordan, I came to this conclusion: you get what you pay for.

Hammam al-Qaimariyya, Damascus: 200SYP ($4)
There is a highly recommended renovated hammam in Damascus which is only open for women on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Unfortunately I forgot the name but if you ask for it that way (even if you are a man) I think most people will know. It is located in the old city, but not in the area of the souk. I was unable to visit the hammam on those days, so I visited al-Qaimariyya, which has daily women's hours until 5pm. It is also in the old city, past the souk; it's best to have the name written in Arabic for asking directions.

Qaimariyya is a no-nonsense affair. No tourists, no English. I had to ask for directions multiple times, and typical to Syrian hospitality, the last man simply walked me to the bath—while inviting me to visit his family—rather than confuse me with Arabic directions. I got to the curtain in the small side street, walked down the slippery stairs, and saw naked women.

Okay—half-naked. But still, I couldn't help wondering, when does this change over to men's hours, and how do they prevent men from simply walking in? It's a curtain on the street! When do they tell the women to get dressed and force them out? It was a little abrupt.

Even weirder to me, I was instructed to simply throw my clothes on the floor. I was not given a towel or the pestamel, the cotton cloth to wrap my body in, and simply stripped to my underwear (should have brought a second pair!) in the dank, dim room. After putting on some shower slippers, I was gestured toward the back.

There were only a few women and children in the whole bath. The steam room was not particularly hot, and I found myself wondering if I was in the right place.

After I was led to the bathing area, an extremely large, extremely jolly, extremely naked woman invited me to join her on the floor by the water basin. I became putty in her hands. She threw me down on the floor, scrubbed me hard, whipped bowls of water in my face at alternating temperatures, pounded my back harshly and gave me a human mammogram, all the while singing loudly off-key and yelling "MAAssageMAAAssageMAAAAssage!" When she started washing my hair—thoughtfully using her nails to scratch welts on my scalp—I felt like a child being punished by mean, crazy mommy. The whole process was over in about 20 minutes.

Dazed, I walked to the outside area, where I was finally given a pestamel and proceeded to dress in full view of the staff. Yes, it was weird. I was not offered a drink. When I was ready to pay, the women assumed I could not read Arabic numbers and tried to overcharge me by 100SYP.

Hammam Yalbougha an-Nasry, Aleppo: 415SYP ($8)
This hammam was beautiful. Women's hours are Saturday, Monday, Thursday, and Wednesday in the winter from 10am-5pm. Men have the opposite days—from 10AM to 1:30AM! The hammam is conveniently located across from the citadel, about 100m from the entrance.

The full package is listed in English: entry (you can pay 200SYP just to go in and look), massage, rubbing, soap, loofah, drinks for 415SYP. Buy your ticket at the door and give the ticket to the women inside. The women tried to push extra services like facials, which I didn't buy. They speak a little English here, as they are used to tourists, although there were only locals when I visited.

You are given a small locker for valuables, then instructed to disrobe completely behind a curtained area. Here you are given a traditional pestamel and wooden clogs.

The bath was full of families. Children played in the water and the women ate picnic lunches. They shared with me—I was a bit surprised they chose to bring chocolate into a steam bath but enjoyed it anyway.

Yalbougha an-Nasry has several different steam rooms that take a while to get going. The hottest room has steam so thick, you can't see other people in the room.

I had to signal the chatting attendants to continue the bath. The attendant brought a fresh piece of olive oil soap on a round loofah. She wore a slip, and was not nearly as rough as the attendant in Damascus, and in fact kissed me several times. I don't know why. She also sang loudly and combined rubbing, soaping, and massage into one confusing process, but her massage was definitely better than the woman in Damascus. After about 15 minutes, she was finished.

I chose to play in the steam a little longer—you are allowed to stay as long as you choose. When I emerged into the sitting area, I put on a dry pestamel (no one instructed me otherwise) and was offered a drink.

Hammam Al-Pasha, Amman: 15JD ($21)
Here is where price becomes a factor. When I first visited this hammam, I worried it was overpriced. Now that I have the Syrian hammams for comparison, I know I got a good deal. In most other cities, there were several hammams to choose from—at least for the men. Amman only has one, which is beautiful. Some taxi drivers don't know the place, but there is a popular bar/restaurant called Books@Cafe nearby. Ask the driver for Books@Cafe, and it's in walking distance, about 2 or 3 blocks west then a right turn up a steep street. Women's hours are until 6pm, men can enter until midnight.

A kind attendant leads you into the locker area, with normal-sized lockers, benches, and toilets. Because I was unprepared with a bikini, I was given a bright, grandma-style swimsuit complete with ruffled skirt. Sexy! I put on the provided shower sandals and walked into a world of naked women.

The steam room here is hot beyond belief. There are two sections to the small room, and the hottest section is actually painful. The attendant brings you a karkaday (hibiscus) drink so cold there are ice chips still floating in it. It's a great feeling.

After some time, the attendant instructs you to shower off, then sit in the Jacuzzi. It's a nice place to chat with the local women (if you speak the same language). You may be sitting there for a while, waiting for your turn to be scrubbed, but it's lovely.

Here there are different uniformed attendents for scrubbing and massage, who are very good at their jobs. As my first scrubbing experience, it had seemed rough—later I realized this was the best and most professional. You can opt for a brand-new Brillo pad (well, that's how they feel!), but it costs extra. She was very gentle when washing off the soap with bowls of water, which I realized after the other hammams in Syria. I was then directed toward the massage tables.

The tables for both scrubbing and massage were marble, beautiful but slippery and hard. I felt like my nose was being crushed into the table when the masseuse rubbed my neck. But it was an amazing massage, a full hour long and done so professionally.

Afterwards, you can continue using the facilities if you wish. You should set aside 2 hours for the whole experience. They provide giant fluffy towels rather than pestamels and new plastic bags for depositing the borrowed suit after changing. It was a very clean operation. Everyone here speaks English, and you pay at the end.

OVERALL EXPERIENCE:
As I said at the start of this entry, you get what you pay for. For about $21, I got essentially a Western spa-quality experience with a Middle Eastern flair, so it was quite a bargain. The other hammams were not bad by any means, just different than I expected. I would still recommend trying out the more "local" establishments just to get a feel for it.

As a woman, it was wonderful seeing local women who are so comfortable in their skin. These women spend their days fully covered from head to toe—including one sweet girl who had married an American and was just home visiting—but in the bath, they walk around naked and are proud of their bodies. It's also a rare opportunity just to meet women—it's hard to approach women on the street, and few speak English. In the bath, language is not an issue. I regret not trying the hammams in Turkey and Egypt for the full report, but I will be back!

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