Run This Town

… I was taking a Russian Turkish bath and wondering what the hell I got myself into. 

It wasn’t until I left, feeling like a new woman, clear-minded, energetic and as though I’d enjoyed a full body massage, that I caught on to the benefits and the motivation to step foot inside 268 East 10th Street.

Stepping into this eastern European environment in the East Village, one dons a bathing suit, a robe and some flops and heads downstairs. Sauna rooms, intense steam rooms, showers and a cold (I mean frigid) dipping pool await. 

The temperatures inside the steam rooms and saunas are so hot your jewelry will burn your skin (take it off before heading downstairs) and your contacts will feel like they are melting to your eyes. But never fear, wells of cold water are stationed in the hottest of rooms, allowing one to douse themselves every few minutes to monitor body temperature. 

Bring a liter (at least) of water and plan to drink it all… and sweat it all out, amongst 50 of your closest friends, err, well strangers. It is an experience that is hard to describe compellingly; in fact, it sounds disgusting to sweat amongst strangers. But once you’ve experienced the Russian Turkish baths from beginning to end, you will whistle a different tune. A relaxed, energized and refreshed tune. 

In between stations in the steamers or saunas, dip yourself into the frigid pool for a tingling sensation and sweet bitter cold relief. 

A variety of special treatments are available to add to the experience, including massage, mud treatments, dead sea or seaweed salt scrubs and an exfoliating Platza Oak Leaf beat-down.

The restaurant upstairs offers juices and beverages, appetizers, soups, salads and entrees, should you want to make a day of the experience. And that would not be too hard in the summer time, given the sun deck during the lovely weather months. Complete escape and relaxation.  

Give it a try, open your mind and find a new world of cleanliness.