etiquette

On sauna and sauna etiquette

/ antonioyrocinante / 2 Comments

I discovered the sauna in college in the early 80s. My dear friend Theo and I would go to the gym a few times a week, enjoy a sauna and the steam room, where we would chit chat with professors, hoping (in vain) to improve our grades, then we would go to the pool for a little swim.

A library book on proper sauna protocols and etiquette soon had me really enjoying my sauna time. Since then, I have been a fan and enjoyed them wherever I find one.

One of the few benefits of the building where I live in Florida is… the sauna and the steam room. I no longer have the time to go a few times a week like I did in university, but I try to go at least once a week.

The sauna is a relaxing time of silence, almost a meditation. Unfortunately, in the United States, there is little sauna culture, so I occasionally have to deal with folks who have no idea what they are doing. Here are a few pointers, which are mostly based on respect:

Dry sauna, as the name implies, is dry. Do not waltz in soaking from the swimming pool; your sauna will be counterproductive. The same applies to those who continue to pour water onto the hot stones. The water is to be used at the end of your sauna for a humidity shock called löyly (a Finnish word since that is where sauna originates).

Sauna in Europe is generally naked. In the US, we must adjust to the Puritan DNA and wear a towel or a bathing suit, but not your gym clothes, and certainly not your sneakers. Also, the sauna is a place to sit and sweat, not to do your post-workout stretching!

Keep the door closed, please. No need to heat the locker room!

As I mentioned before, the sauna is somewhat of a sacred space for relaxation. Keep conversations quiet, and please, no phones or tablets, we have enough of them already —I have seen this and find it most disrespectful.

In conclusion, a sauna is a wonderful experience: rejuvenating and relaxing. Keeping other users in mind will improve everybody’s time there. You are welcome.

Camino Etiquette, Dos and Don’ts

/ antonioyrocinante / 2 Comments

The Camino is a totally individual experience whatever your purpose might be (sport, religious, spiritual, cultural, culinary, etc. or any combination of those), but it is also a shared experience. More importantly, the Camino is a physical space and a shared physical space. This means that it helps if certain social considerations are kept. Here are some of my observations and recommendations:

Dos

Be polite to all pilgrims and acknowledge them with a “Buen camino”. If they are sitting by the Camino, you might want to ask if they are ok or if they need a snack or some water.

Even on the “Donativo” albergues, please be generous with your donation, ie: never leave less than €5.

If you use the albergue’s kitchen, please leave it as you found it, or cleaner.

Banana peels and apple cores are totally biodegradable, so they are ok in nature, just not in the most visible part of nature. Put them out of sight.

Be polite about asking for a credencial stamp. It is quite rude to ask for a stamp at a bar / coffee shop if you do not purchase anything, regardless of how cool the place is, so go ahead, get a café con leche, or a bottle of water – you are going to need it! And don’t be pushy, the business gets nothing from stamping your credencial, so be patient.

Tipping in Spain. Hospitality workers in Spain have, by law, full contracts, which means (unlike in the US) that they make a full salary, they do not live from tips. Having said that, it is customary and always nice to leave some change on the table/counter. Those coins are weighing you down on the Camino anyway!

Hospitaliarios – the people who run the albergues are volunteers (except at the private ones, which are normally family run). So treat them nicely, they are there for you, not for a paycheck.

Pay attention to your shoes when you walk into the albergue. You might have to leave them outside – never wear them into the dorm area.

 

I would obey the sign…
Leave a tip, don’t be cheap
Hospitalarios are volunteers, treat them with respect.
Follow the signs
Be corteous and patient when getting your stamp!
Good backpack positioning (That is not my backpack) Photo Cred: Delia.
A more liberal albergue is no excuse to run around in your underwear (Casa Austria, Los Arcos)

Don’ts

Do not ask pilgrims why they are doing the Camino. It sounds like a good ice-breaker, but while we all have our reasons, some might be more personal than others, and you really might not want to know. It is one thing for American college kids that are “finding themselves”, but not everybody is necessarily so open. If they want to, they will tell you.

Do not walk around the albergue in your underwear. No matter how sexy you or your underwear might be, nor how hippie the albergue is. Think about it, it is a downhill experience if we all went that way. (If in doubt read Immanuel Kant’s Universal Law).

Beds at the albergue are for people not backpacks. Your sweaty, dusty, muddy, wet, backpack belongs on the floor, a chair at best, but never on the bed.

If you cannot wait for the next village or the next bar to go to the bathroom, please find the most secluded spot and try to be as discreet as possible with your poop and the paper you use. A bush next to the Camino is not a good idea. And the paper flying around isn’t either. Don’t contribute to the eyesore.

Try not to make noise if you are going to bed later than most people or getting up before most people. Try to have whatever you need handy so you can access it quietly. I was deeply embarrassed one night when I had to rummage in my backpack for my earplugs.

Feel free to add or comment below!