My first hamam

The Moroccan bathhouse. Ahhh, what an experience. I took lonely planet's advice and went out to the Gauthier Bain Turc. It's nestled in a quiet, posh part of Casablanca and priced very reasonably. For the nice facility and 2 hours of treatments- including a 30 min massage, I spent about $30.

I literally had no idea what to expect, so they had to explain everything to me. After paying, I changed into my bikini bottom and locked my things in a closet.

I felt weird about walking around topless, but it is totally normal. The woman rinsed me before entering the sauna where I coated myself with the "black soap" they give me and sat there for as long as I could. Then I rinsed off, and laid on a marble table where I got scrubbed clean, with a whole new meaning of clean. The mix of that black (magic) soap and the sauna, plus the woman's personal ambition to scrub you until you're red as a lobster, make for an interesting combination. I've heard this would happen so many times, but couldn't believe it when I saw layers of my own skin just peel right off of my body. She was going at it, and between the heat inside the hamam and the energy she was putting into this, she was dripping sweat. It felt like she was cleaning with a piece of sandpaper (it's just one of those body scrub gloves) and the skin came off like leftover eraser bits. So easily. It just peeled right off... I was having so much fun watching this, that I didn't pay attention to the pain. I wanted to see how much skin she could remove. She got every inch of my body- the only place she doesn't scrub is private.

Once she finished scrubbing, I got massaged with soap and oil. My breasts got more lovin today from a woman, than they have in like a year, from a man.

I have naturally dry skin, so I'll have to do this several more times while I'm here. It feels goooodddd!!