The sign at the sauna known locally as Kao Lan reads op samun phrai. The name breaks down as op, to press steam against the body; samun, the sprite; and phrai, the forest — the sprite that helps you when you are in trouble in the forest being, in this way of thinking, the herb itself.

This was the first sauna on the trip with separate men's and women's rooms. Inside, the steam is thick enough that it takes time to make out where the walls are. Four heavy pipes feed strong steam into the two rooms, and the regulars stand at the back to take it. There is no cold bath; a large jar of iced water is used to cool down. Women bring their own scrubs and apply them to one another.

A single large furnace sits between the two rooms, in a method close to the one at Chalong Sauna: water is fed in continuously and a rolled towel seals the vessel to slow evaporation, so steam can be produced over a long stretch. On the wall are the names of 73 VIPs who each donate 500 baht a year — about ¥2,000 — and bathe as often as they like. The atmosphere recalled Kotiharju, the oldest public sauna in Helsinki. Visited by JRHA on 3 November 2024.

This is an English summary. The full article was written in Japanese. Original article in Japanese →