Across the world, people have come up with a variety of ways to keep clean, from the humble bucket bath familiar to Peace Corps Volunteers across Africa to fancy shower rooms and face masks of South Korea. In Kyrgyzstan, many are surprised to learn that most locals have adopted the Russian banya, a type of sauna, as the bathing solution of choice. But what exactly is a banya? Continue reading “The Russian Banya in Central Asia”
