In the Nordic countries public saunas are pretty much everywhere. Gym, spas, public swimming pools, sport centers etc. Usually both women and men have separate saunas. But what do women think men talk about in there? Risublog decided to tackle most common myths. Shall they be busted or confirmed.
1. Women.
This would seem obvious. Men would talk about their spouses, girlfriends, lovers, the hot receptionist and comment the physical attributes of such.
No - this subject is very rarely heard in public saunas. This is of course not true if you are in sauna with your friends - then no subject is out of limits. But in when people do not know each other, talking about women would just seem weird. You would never know if that honeypot from reception is someones daughter or bae, so why risk it.
2. Sports.
Men do talk about sports. But in public saunas this would seem to happen only if there is big sports event, lets say olympics, happening. Then it’s rather safe to except everyone to have something to say about the matter.
3. Cars.
Really? No. Unless it’s 4th grade field trip.
4. Politics.
This goes along with sports events. If there is safe way to talk about politics without offending any political view or mentioning a touchy opinion. The US presidential campaign was pretty safe subject. Complaining about the recent events in Finland, for example silly legislation issues considering the speeding cameras in highways, is also a safe bet.
5. Weather.
Complaining about the weather is not very manly. So if it’s not -35 C outside, best keep it to yourself. There is one exception to this. If you are ice swimming, it would seem reasonable to mention how nice it was. But complaining in general is also very typical for Finns, but only if you think it’s commonly agreeable.
Well what do men talk about then?
The most typical subject is of course the sauna itself. The power of the sauna stove and the quality of the löyly (the warm breath you get from throwing water to the stove). If the sauna is new, it’s very common thing to comment how it’s been build and what materials have been used. Also about the stones in the stove, if there is too much of the or too few, is heard often. Among the men it’s usually the most senior that break the silence first. And of course there are those monologue-types that keep on the conversation about pretty much anything by themselves. The most random things can be heard this way and none of the rules above apply in this case.
But 85 % of the times, it’s just complete silence or some random single grunts from the heat. If nothing else, its customary to refill the water bucket after you leave, even if you are the only one there. If there is someone else, single KIITOS (thank you) might be the only word you hear.
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