Often featured in older Turkish films, hammam scenes are highly entertaining, with women not only bathing but enjoying these historical bathhouses as a place to socialise, eat, drink and even dance.

“Our experience begins with a warm greeting in the cold room, where guests are offered water and a refreshing sip of sherbet ...

of Istanbul's Zeyrek Çinili Hamam. Around us, women are stretched out on marble hotbeds and curled up beside brass basins. The echoes of communal bathing ring around the room; chattering friends ...

The final three years involved designing museum and event spaces, he added. Hammam bathing rituals are a part of Turkish culture. Modernity and home plumbing may have diminished their importance ...

We are standing in the sıcaklık, or hot room, of Istanbul's Zeyrek Çinili Hamam. Around us, women are stretched out on marble hotbeds and curled up beside brass basins. The echoes of communal bathing ...