I began working at Vabali Spa Berlin in December 2014. Prior to that, I had been working at a pizza shop and had just started my university studies in geography. However, after meeting someone who informed me of a job opening at Vabali Spa Berlin, I realized that I preferred physical work and decided to drop out of university to pursue this opportunity.
Currently, I am in charge of the sauna department, which involves managing employees and structuring their programs. We have a team of 240 employees, with 68 of them working in the sauna. Our spa features three steam rooms, smaller warm water pools, a plunge pool, 10 saunas, and two large pools (one indoor, one outdoor). The temperatures range from 55 to 95 degrees Celsius.
We take guest privacy seriously and have rules in place regarding the use of phones and inappropriately intimate behavior. While guests are allowed to be nude in certain areas, such as the pools and saunas, they are required to wear robes in other areas of the spa.
Nudity is not a big deal in Germany, particularly in the former East Germany where nude beaches were common. It took me two weeks to get used to the nudity around my colleagues, but it is now completely normal to me.
Although we regularly remind guests to refrain from inappropriate behavior, such as attempting to engage in sexual activity, it does still occasionally happen. We make it clear to them that they are in a public place and that their behavior could make others uncomfortable. If they do not comply, we ask them to leave the spa.
Starting slowly is key to an enjoyable sauna experience. For newbies, it's best, to begin with, a temperature of 70 degrees and gradually increase it to allow your cardiovascular system to adjust. It's crucial to listen to your body's reactions and discomfort and exit the sauna if needed. Additionally, it's important to stay hydrated by drinking water before, during, and after the treatment to avoid collapsing, which can occur from not drinking enough. The sauna offers a range of ceremonies every 30 minutes, including scrub treatments, sound meditations, special music pieces played with Indonesian scents, or birch treatments. These ceremonies can ignite creative thinking, offer relaxation, and relieve stress. The "aufguss" or infusion is another popular activity, where participants are provided with pleasant scents and are encouraged to sweat. Usually lasting between 10 to 12 minutes, the ceremony master uses essential oils, ice, and water in the oven to fan participants with branches, towels, and fans. Male staff wear colored hammam cloths wrapped around their hips, and the humidity is increased with a lower temperature. Despite the intense experience, the ceremony master has done over 6,000 infusions and is accustomed to the process.
It's a very physical and exhausting job, but I have so much fun with it that I still do sauna infusions. It's where I started. It's my passion, not just a job, and I try to pass it on to new employees.
What I like most is the team around me. It feels like coming home when you get to work. We laugh a lot and have fun. There's a very strong connection; we meet outside of Vabali to hang out.
I just hope I can do this job for as long as possible — be hospitable to people, give them a good time, invent my own treatments, educate my colleagues, and ignite that spark in them that lit in me almost nine years ago.
And if guests have a soft faces and smile at you when they check out, you know you've done everything right.