Yesterday, we took a road trip to the Yakutsk Zoo. It turned into a bit of an excursion as we got caught in a thunderstorm downpour. After the rain stopped, the warm humidity returned as did the swarms of mosquitos.
We rushed through the rest of the walk and had a steamy lunch break in the car before getting back on the road home. On the way home we spotted a beautiful double rainbow and had to stop to take some pics.
Upon returning to the drive, we received a phone call invitation from Sensei Gerisamov to join him and some Judo/Sambo coaches at his banya (Russian Sauna). We happily agreed and met up with them later.
The Russian Banya experience is different than just visiting and sitting in a sauna. It is a process that includes eating, drinking toasts, talking politics, sports, history, etc. Then there is the extremely hot sauna (sometimes over 200 degrees Fahrenheit), the beating with eucalyptus branches dipped in hot water, followed by a dip in cold water. You then repeat the cycle, food and drink with discussion, banya, and cold water. It sounds extreme (and it is), but it is quite refreshing.
Gerisamov claims to have the best Russian Banya in Yakutsk, and I have no reason to say otherwise. The friends that joined us were all Judo and Sambo coaches from Mongolia, Serbia, and Yakutia. Through my broken Russian and their broken English, we had conversations about Olympics, the Games of Asia, Judo, Sambo, BJJ, hunting, fishing, and our families. In the end, I was invited to come to Mongolia to teach Jiu-jitsu. We shook hands on it, but didn't set a date.
No comments:
Post a Comment