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Turkish Baths used to be the primary means of bathing, but now are a luxury. Here's the low-down...

Most are in ancient buildings. The best we've visited was the Cemberlitas hamam in Istanbul, which was built in 1584. The only apparent modernization is that they now accept Visa.

The photos below are from the Cemberlitas bath. The photo above is of the smaller but no less hospitable hamam in Selcuk.

The cost can be anywhere from $3-$15 and the experience lasts a minimum of one hour or as long as you like.

You begin by entering a changing area, where you change into a towel and leave your possessions to the attendant or in a locked room.

Next comes bathing and lounging in the main room which has a large domed roof with many small round (and usually colored) skylights. All lighting is natural in the daytime and it's beautiful.

The room is round and is entirely marble. In the center is a round marble platform about 3 feet high with a slight peak at the center.

The room is steamy because there's a wood burning furnace underneath the platform and an adjoining steam room that keeps things hot.

Around the platform and in small side rooms are water faucets and basins. You turn on the hot and cold faucets to create the correct water temperature in the basin. You then use the provided bowl to vigorously splash water on yourself and your mate (if it's a coed place - most are not).

If you didn't pay for soap, this is when you would clean yourself (while never exposing any private parts - somehow) with your own soap. If you paid for the full treatment, you alternately splash yourself with water, lay on the hot marble platform and lounge in the steam room until someone calls you for bathing.

Relax now, relax...

When called via hand gestures and head motions, you are instructed to lay on the hot platform while the attendant soaps and cleans you.

During the bathing process, you make several trips to the nearby basins where you get a shampoo (with hand soap) and a little rub-down.

The attendant will also rub you with a super-abrasive hand mitt that takes off one or more layers of skin. To Westerners, the results are quite visible and you'll later learn that you just lost several shades from your Mediterranean tan.

At some point, the attendant fills a towel with soap suds and empties it on you. Finally, you are rinsed and left to lounge further. You will know this moment because no one is either pointing and motioning to you nor rubbing you at this time.

If you also paid for a massage, next comes the masseur who gives you a very rough massage. It doesn't seem to matter what you tell him - you're going to get a very rough massage. He knows best. And he's usually big.

When you are ready, you go to a room for cooling down and toweling off. If you don't speak Turkish, you will get more experience nodding, smiling and pretending you understand the local customs.

You can towel off a few times in between heat sessions or you can head back to the changing room where you'll get some help with drying yourself and some lemon cologne splashed on you.

When you leave, you will head straight for the nearest over-priced cafe for a drink because you will be dehydrated. This is your opportunity to compare bruises with others who have been massaged.

It's worth it.