Just sharing something cool
I had the privilege of visiting Finland and staying with friends at a family's 130 year old cabin and sauna by a lake. I learned a ton about Finland and sauna culture. The biggest thing that stood out to me was how Fins (at least the younger guys I was hanging out with) looked at Sauna as primarily an exercise of community. They looked forward to doing it as an activity together.
The Sauna pictured was fired with seasoned birch lumber cut from the land the cabin was on. The tank above the heater held water that would boil and be used for the löyly. It got HOT hot in there; I have some sauna experience and I like it hot but man there was a minute in there where I was trying not to freak out. 😂 There was a point where we fit 11 dudes on that upper bench and a few more standing. As the American visitor, I earned trust by engaging in Sauna the Finnish way and genuinely had a more authentic and memorable experience.
The lake was steps away and icy cold still, so we did multiple rounds in and out and it was just the best. Talking to the Fins in there, it became clear that this sauna had been in use since before Finland was an independent country. It was crazy to think about who all had enjoyed the warmth of that small room and how many conversations had been had underneath that smoke-stained ceiling.
When I came home, I found my new Sweat Kingdom kit sauna waiting for me in a crate, so I'm really excited to have one of my own to share with my family and build some community in and around. It won't be like it was in Finland, but I'm grateful nonetheless.
Just wanted to share; figured some of y'all would get a kick out of this.