This is a promotional
photo from 1967 for (Finnish Textile and Home Design mainstay) Marimekko's launch
of branded manufactured homes in Finland. To me this photo of the sauna really
shows the image I had of Scandinavian Spa Culture before I moved to Sweden. In
America, because of the popularity of the "Swedish Massage" and
because of the fact that Swedes have more paid vacation time (and
benefits) we see Sweden, as well as the rest of Scandinavia as being an
authority on Spa/wellness ritual and culture.
When I came to visit
family members in the little village I now call home, this Scandinavian Spa
Culture ideal was reinforced for me by the fact that there is a floating sauna
on the lake in the village. I thought I had arrived in life balance/wellness/spa
heaven. It was this impression that prompted many fantasies and day dreams
about what my life in Sweden could be like after I arrived back in San
Francisco.
Now that I am here as a resident of my Swedish village of
wellness and tranquility I have had to deal with some realities that are not in
line with the first impression that I had about Swedish Spa Culture. Number one
being, besides the existence of the floating sauna (which is simply fantastic
and pictured above) there are not any spas in the area that really live up to
my expectation of what Scandinavian Spa Culture would be like. Perhaps the fact
that I am a spa junky and have been to some of the most exclusive spa resorts
in America could be my problem. I admit I have been spoiled. I had a day pass
to the Burke Williams Spa in the Westfield Shopping Center right up the stairs
from where I worked (pictured below).
My standards could also be what they are because of my life
changing experience from the massage ,full body exfoliation and day pass to the
spa faculties at the Spa Grande At the Grand Wailea Hotel on Maui, Hawaii
(pictured below).
With all those fantastic spa experiences I have had, my impression of Scandinavian Spa culture offered something totally different than any first class luxury spa of any kind. The element that Scandinavian Spa Culture has that you can find nowhere else in the world is this: the simplistic beauty of its natural surroundings. To me the forest, the lake and stillness of rural Sweden does more for me than any American man made spa experience could ever do.
I found out recently from a neighbor who grew up vacationing here as a child in the 20's and 30's that our little village used to have a train station and people would come from Malmo and other neighboring cities for rest and relaxation. It has been 30 years since they have closed that train station and the villages’ charming hotels, resorts and spas have gone out of business and fallen into disrepair. Next year there will be a new train station in town and I see an unmistakable opportunity to revitalize the spa/wellness culture of our village. Perhaps it's me that will have to make my impression of Scandinavian Spa culture come true for my village......
