The Experience

« This afternoon, I went to the hammam with Mariem and her mother. The hammam is a traditional Arab public bath and everyone here goes there once a week. We have to go with our soap, shampoo and exfoliating glove. There are hammams for women and others for men. Obviously, it’s not mixed, you’ll understand why. I was really happy to be the guest of Mariem and her mother, because I did not know the rites and I needed to be guided. Once naked, I entered the warm room where I started to wash myself with black soap from olive oil. After this first step, I rinsed with buckets of hot water. Then you have to rub your body vigorously with an exfoliating glove and at that moment, all the women help each other naturally, without any embarrassment! The mother rubbed my whole body. I felt that she was doing it with kindness. Then she applied clay on my hair and then my whole body. It was fabulous to live this experience, without talking to each other too much, but being part of them, of all those women who were there. After two hours of soaping, rinsing, rubbing, I came out cleaner than clean! I felt like I had lost weight. »

Who´s telling the story

Gen (from Canada) is an adult education teacher and academic advisor in the Laurentian region of Quebec. She shares her greatest passion, the taste of travel, with her partner Jeff and her daughter. Their world tour, undertaken in 2011, took them to four continents where they visited 12 countries. From Vietnam to Nicaragua, from France to Morocco, they wandered camera and pencil in hand to tell their adventures. As part of their travel adventures, they founded the non-profit organization « The Adventures of Gen and Jeff » that you can find here: www.aventuresgenjeff.com and contact them here: info@aventuresgenjeff.com. Find the full story of their trip to Morocco in 2011: http: //www.cultureaventure.ca/? P = 4477 # more-4477.

What do you think?

Mariama, 40, from Casablanca, beautician in Paris suburbs: « Taking a guest to the hammam is part of Moroccan hospitality, as you French people would serve wine and cheese to your guests. Moroccan teenagers feel the same reserve as the French … Either they avoid going to the hammam with their mother at the time of puberty (but they go anyway …), or they turn to their grandmother. In fact, it’s often with her that the first epilation of puberty hair takes place!  »