Nudity And Sauna Usage

If you are on the autobahn anywhere near Frankfurt, chances are the BMWs overtaking you contain men and women intent on only one thing: the moment when they can get to the Taunus Therme at Bad Homburg, remove all their clothes, and immerse themselves in a thoroughly physical world.

The cult of naturism, bursting out of the corseted 19th century, received lukewarm interest elsewhere. But in Germany it became integral to ideas of health and well- being. Nudity is something the Germans take seriously indeed, and if ever you find yourself surrounded by a crowd of naked Germans you have better keep a straight face.

Not that you can concentrate on anything other than how to draw your next breath when you are being ushered into a hot steam bath swiftly followed by a toning up plunge into a pool of almost sadistically cold water. The theory is that after subjecting yourself to the facilities on offer, after splashing around in the whirlpools and surrendering your most ticklish zones to importunate Jacuzzi bubbles, you are regenerated and ready to face the world - at least for another week.

The Taunus prices make regular visits feasible and come complete with yoga, aerobics and massage. At the Taunus Therme, the brochure claims, you can discover an alternative to our one-sided technical and scientifically oriented world. This inevitably means the Far East. Everything is intended to induce a contemplative frame of mind, even if the result is a rather nebulous theme park of pagodas, willow pattern bridges, Japanese rock arrangements and Scandinavian pine. And you can even discover yourself, meditate - either in the Rodin pose, or Buddha-style - and open yourself to new experiences, of which there are a number.

The Germans respond to the invitation with gusto. As the heat in the sauna workout suit reaches its excruciating climax, an attendant wheels an aromatically scented towel in the air above the glistening bodies. There is spontaneous applause, and blood-curdling yells as patrons stand under an icy water-jet. On the sun beds and under the infra- red light, naked body sprawls indiscriminately beside naked body, each insulated in their own well- cooked physical nirvana.

There is an etiquette for the sauna, however, set by the regulars and followed by wise newcomers. As you enter you should utter some manner of friendly greeting to the assembled patrons, and bring in a towel (if only to place your feet on it). You then select a place on a shelf, bearing in mind that the higher the shelf the more intense the heat. Leaving the sauna before its cycle is finished is a prime no-no. No matter how threatening the heat becomes, no matter how violent your attack of claustrophobia, exiting before the appointed time risks a chorus of hisses and boos for disobeying the rules.

Everything in the sauna may be focused on the physical, but eye- contact is guarded and conversation kept to a minimum. Things get a little bizarre when you reach the Scandinavian fireplace where naked men sit on bar stools drinking lager and crunching pretzels, striving to look for the entire world as if there is nothing anomalous in the situation.

This is where the credibility becomes somewhat strained - when everyone is trying so hard to appear natural, naturism becomes a contradiction in terms. In the changing rooms, bodies become individuals again as the clothes go on. Peering in the mirror, you notice your skin looks cleaner than you can recall. Your body feels as though it is glowing, as well it may.