While driving around a bit after the meeting ended that day, I came across a modest looking community swimming pool in Laugarvatn. But it turned out to be a luxury sauna - thermal bath facility, the Fontana. And it was on the beach of a lake where the warnings say the lake water is boiling at some places. Care for a swim?
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May 2019, Laugarvatn Fontana, Laugarvatn, Iceland; Hot Pot, Laugarvatn, Iceland
Swimming (Indoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool, Thermal-Bath); Swimming (Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Lake, Thermal-Bath); Sauna (Normal, Steam)
During the Ylläs 24h race in 2019, around 2am I was heading down the Worldcup run at, I guess, at a bit over hundred kilometres an hour. And then something happened. I lost my skis, I tumbled, and hit myself to the icy slope pretty hard.
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April 2019, Ylläs, Finland
Skiing (Outdoor, Snow, Lifts); Sauna (Normal)
After the Ylläs competition, I first had a quick shower and sauna at the Pöllö next to the slopes. But since I had a long wait for my flight, I wanted to visit a proper spa. I had not been in the Levi Hotel Spa near the airport in a long time, so time for that today!
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April 2019, Levi Hotel, Kittilä, Finland
Swimming (Indoor, Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool); Sauna (Normal)
For afterski, I felt like I needed a shower. But maybe not just that... perhaps a sauna, or a dip into a pool. How about the divine thermal bath waters of Zámecké Lázně in the nearby Karlovy Vary?
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March 2019, Zámecké Lázně, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic
Sauna (Normal); Swimming (Indoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool, Thermal-Bath)
I was inspired by this recipe for sauna scents, and wanted to try my own variants, one with juniper and another one with tar. But the experiments failed...
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March 2019, House Arkko, Kauniainen, Finland
Sauna (Normal)
While at Gudauri, we stayed at the Marco Polo hotel. The hotel has a spa, with a small sauna, pool, and a jacuzzi. The sauna is small but fiery. It was also fun to meet Russians who wanted to talk about the infamous (and sadly, deadly) Finnish-Russian sauna world championships...
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February 2019, Hotel Marco Polo, Gudauri, Georgia
Swimming (Indoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool); Sauna (Normal)
I was in Kista once again, and this time tried out the new hotel, Comfort Hotel Kista. A new hotel building, and very, very nice. Modern rooms but still with a warm feeling. But WTF, how can one have a new hotel without a sauna???
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February 2019, Comfort Hotel Kista, Kista, Stockholm, Sweden
Sauna (None)
After two weeks with stiches, finally got the OK to go back to the sauna again. Bliss!
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February 2019, House Arkko, Kauniainen, Finland
Sauna (Normal)
Amazing! The Laugaskard swimming pool is a community-run, swimming pool, gym, and sauna facility. What a wonderful, hot swim outside in the cold weather.
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February 2019, Laugaskard swimming pool, Laugaskard, Iceland
Swimming (Outdoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool); Sauna (Steam)
No sauna for me for the next ten days. I had a small operation on my hand... and the wound has to heal
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February 2019, House Arkko, Kauniainen, Finland
Sauna (Normal)
I had an opportunity to swim twice this week. At a spa in the Tokyo evening, the water was so hot that my skin was hurting. And having come back home, I joined my colleagues for a visit at the Löyly in Helsinki. The water in the sea was ... also hurting my skin. But, on the average is was pretty nice temperatures. And in both places the views were great.
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January 2019, Hilton Tokyo Odaiba, Tokyo, Japan; Löyly, Helsinki, Finland
Swimming (Indoor); Swimming (Outdoor); Sauna (Normal); Sauna (Normal, Smoke)
What a wonderful sauna. So Finnish... or so Belarussian... or, really, Russian. The Russian sauna culture is similar to Finland's, except only more so. More hot, close to 110 degrees Celsius in my case. More snowplay. More cold water. More funny hats. Maybe also more vodka.
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(TGR version)
January 2019, Silichy, Belarus
Sauna (Normal); Swimming (Indoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool)
The Hotel Milano in Madonna di Campiglio, Italy, was our home for couple of days after the new year. I used their sauna every day... a typical small hotel basement sauna.
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January 2019, Hotel Milano, Madonna di Campiglio, Finland
Sauna (Normal)
Over the years, I've stayed many times at the Hilton in Slusseln, Stockholm. Usually it is priced too expensive for me to be able to book it for business trips, but this time it was on offer at the same price as my other alternatives, so I took it. I had a visit in the sauna early in the morning before heading to my meetings.
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January 2019, Stockholm Hilton, Stockholm, Sweden
Sauna (Normal)
The Löyly sauna & restaurant in Helsinki has been the most notable architecture and experience thing of recent years in Helsinki. I've been there, but not yet in the sauna side. Today it changed because my co-workers organized a very nice event there for our surfing club...
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January 2019, Löyly, Helsinki, Finland
Sauna (Normal, Smoke); Swimming (Outdoor, Water, Ice, Waterbody-Sea)
Huh, pretty hot weather. And hot sauna. Burning in both, almost. And thick carpets in the sauna! But what a view over the sea, Tokyo downtown, and the rainbow bridge.
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January 2019, Hilton Tokyo Odaiba, Tokyo, Japan
Sauna (Normal); Swimming (Outdoor, Indoor, Water, Waterbody-Pool)