Staying on topic, I too like the bath house concept; it’s great way to spend the afternoon. Historically they grew out of necessity for cleanliness but also had many social benefits.
Today many cultures see bathing as a very private activity conducted in the home, but in the 19th and 20th centuries, public baths were constructed in the United States. Public baths were created to improve health and sanitary conditions of the public before personal baths in our homes became commonplace.
During this time many people lived in cold water flats, an apartment that has no running hot water. Typically, cold water flats did not have built-in showers installed; tenants who wished to bathe would heat pots of water by stove and add the heated water to a basin or bathtub.
Public baths became incorporated into the social system as meeting places. As the title suggests public bathing does not refer only to bathing. In ancient times public bathing included saunas, massages and relaxation therapies. Members of the society considered it as a place to meet and socialize.
Bath houses have been replaced by spas and gyms but they serve a different purpose. There’s nothing social unless you’re texting and grabbing your crotch or pulling on your dick. And when it’s time to shower and take a steam or sauna there’s the towel dance.
There are few older guys at my gym; they are in their 70s and 80s. They don’t have a problem with public nudity and walk around un-phased as to who’s looking at their junk. They are part of a different generation who don’t have body image issues, can talk and socialize without embarrassment.
It’s a very interesting subject because as we became more modernized the less social we’ve become.
