Once upon a time, a long time ago, not too far from the sea, northwest of Rome, a Taurus (a God in the form of a bull) strolled in the hills. One day he scratched his hooves on the field. This caused the ground to open and hot, sulphurous water to flow up to the surface. This is how the bathing adventure at Civitavecchia began, according to Rutilio Namaziano.
Purification with water before performing religious acts finds its roots all the way back to ancient Egypt. Health baths in mineral rich water were recognized in ancient Greece, so the Roman ‘thermae’ (baths) are based on very old traditions. The first Termes were based on geothermal energy. The baths were accessible to both rich and poor, and were important meeting places.
Over time, advanced facilities were built with good sanitary conditions, and separate pools for hot and cold baths. And they were beautiful! The walls and ceiling were covered in marble and mosaic, there were wonderful archways and lots of height under the roof.
The construction of Terme Taurine started around 80 BC, under the dictator Sulla. It was extended and rebuilt several times, and had a library as well as warm, intermediate and cold pools.
Gradually, the Romans developed more and more advanced heating techniques, and during the Imperial period, baths were also built inside the cities, independent of hot springs. They even had saunas!
After a visit to Terme Taurine, it is just perfect to try out Terme anno 2022. Our taxi driver could tell us that in his childhood (he was in his fifties), there was still hot water in Terme Taurine. It was a fun activity in the winter to go up the hill and have a hot bath in the old, mosaic decorated pools. Today, the geology has changed, but hot water is still to be found in the new bathing facility ‘La Ficoncella’, 3 km away. We just had to go there and try it!
La Ficoncella is named after a large fig tree that no longer exists. The facility is not large, but there are several smaller pools and also separate pools for those who cannot swim. There are no (!) changing rooms here, but four showers without doors. The water temperature is around fifty degrees Celsius, dripping directly into the shower rooms through 3-4 holes in the supply pipe. Showering is required (fortunately) before entering the pools, but in contrast to Icelandic tradition, your shower in La Ficoncella is supposed to be done without (!) the use of soap.
Then it was just a matter of jumping into it. Right? No, this simply wasn’t that easy. We were in La Ficoncella in July. It was 30°C in the air. And then you are supposed to voluntarily enter a pool, 42°C? That’s crazy! Like some say it is to take a bath in a norwegian fjord when the air temperature is below freezing.
Every centimeter you sink into the water, you feel your body shouting: ‘Don’t do it! It’s too hot!‘ But then you do it anyway, and it’s just fine. And then? Believe it or not, afterwards you cool off and feel absolutely great. Try it!
La Ficoncella is an unpretentious place. When we were there, we felt like being a part of the younger generation, but there were a few exceptions, and our daughters were not the only youths. This is a very nice place! People make contact as soon as they see newcomers. You will get a lot of advice and support including pleasant chatting. A bath in La Ficoncella in the middle of summer is absolutely something!
