THE BATHROOM EXPERIENCE
ON RAINSHOWERS AND MORNING FOG
The rapid pace of modern life brings with it a strong need for physical and mental recovery. Who doesn't sometimes wish they were in a hotel with a spa and dream beach or at least idling in the nearest thermal baths? Even just an hour in the bath at home can provide super relaxation - if we make use of the exciting inventions of modern bathroom designers.
Whether we jump into the sea, sink into a hot bath, take a cool, refreshing shower or simply enjoy the feeling of warm summer rain on our skin, water rouses and enlivens our senses and can warm us up or cool us down in a matter of seconds. It has an influence on human wellbeing as no other substance does and has rightly played a special role in virtually all the cultures of the world as a symbol of mental and physical purification procedures since time immemorial. And that which was a fixed component millennia ago in Ancient Rome and Greece, in India and throughout all of the Orient, is again moving into the private homes of the global citizens of the 21st century, thanks to innovative bathroom designers. It is reflection on beneficial bathing rites as balancing components for the challenges of daily life, true to the Roman motto "sanus per aquam", health through water. Alongside stylish bathroom design, what is new are convenient technical developments which can spoil us at the push of a button with sensory experiences of nature, for example, in the form of raindrops.
Wonderful water dispensers
Gone are the days when so-called water dispensers, better known as fittings, were treated as a pure necessity in bathroom design. Where more than modest functionality is called for, they distinguish themselves not only through aesthetically pleasing design, but far more through ease of use and above all special features in terms of the discharge of the precious liquid. The form and strength of the water streams and the temperature can be easily adjusted, and hands-free electronic models are even coming out which also reduce water consumption by way of an intelligent "stop and go" operating system using infrared interfaces.
It is in our personal bathing area that fittings represent the decisive mediators between man and water. They make the precious liquid flow and bubble on request, they fill sinks and baths with clear water and finally make our chosen bath essences foam up nicely. Moreover, they decide, according to the individual setting, whether the streams of water land on our skin as a cool waterfall, as a gentle rain or even as a powerful, massaging deluge.
Is it raining in here?
Insiders know them by the promising name of "rain showers" and after trying them out will presumably never go for a "normal" shower head again. Its tingling secret is the frequency of a massaging water jet of 20 to 40 Hertz, which is the most pleasant frequency for humans, on our largest sense organ, namely, the skin. And thus the delightful rain shower, with its large variety of water jet settings, is creating a stir in the shower temples of all nations. Individual setting options on the hand and head shower turn a previously simple shower action into a delight for the senses. Thus it is not hard to find our way around in the misty spray of possibilities, for meaningful names such as "Pure", "Rain", "Massage" and even "Champagne" give us a clear indication as to how the water will soon be shooting from the shower. It is left to the imagination to decide whether the effects of the last version were borrowed from the sophisticated drink or maybe from a tropical waterfall. Irrespective of this, the user is enveloped in the gentle drops of a pleasant shower, which have a long-lasting, revitalising effect on the body and soul.
It is clear that the rain shower is enjoying increasing global popularity. And rightly so, for even in the smallest of bathrooms, the large models in particular, which can fit two people comfortably, provide a pampering and energising experience which, on top of everything else, brings with it fitness and health benefits too.
The illustrious poetry of nature
If you want a very special kind of shower experience in your home, bathrooms can be effectively redesigned within the architectural possibilities. With the help of modern technology, today it is possible to authentically reconstruct natural experiences. Thus, for example, rain modules integrated directly into the ceiling give the impression of a natural rain shower, which can be set to a powerful downfall or gentle drizzle as desired. Where various scents and light sources are also brought into play, the shower becomes a real treat for all the senses. The shower spectacles run according to pre-set and harmonious, choreographed programs - at the push of a button.
Designers do indeed use poetic inspiration for extraordinary bathroom water games, for example, verses on mood and ambience in the morning and the evening from the pen of poet and painter Beate Rygiert. Afterward, they succeeded in linking the special lyric atmosphere of the beginning and the end of the day with the energetic power of the natural element of water and - in careful compositions with scents and colours - in realising it as the perfect shower experience. In this way, after getting up, a powerful, stimulating downpour provides energy for the day, while in the evening a relaxing shower grants the gentle transition into the night. At a temperature of 32 to 36 degrees and with cool blasts of mist of only 18 degrees, the morning rain is based on the sunrise. All the while the light changes colour from dark blue via red to orange. In contrast, the evening rain is warmer. The water temperature of 36 to 38 degrees is accompanied by the picturesque impression of sunset.
With so much luxurious technology, it is easy to truly immerse yourself in deep relaxation and quickly leave your daily stress behind you, even in your own four walls. For with the right equipment, even a plain bathroom can become a private spa and relaxation room, a distant cry from traditional functionality.
_the morning
Awaken.
The last threads of my dreams scatter.
My soul rises up
above the haze of sleep.
Freshness. glistening dew.
The first steps of my feet
in the soft, damp grass.
The soles of my feet tingle.
gently stroked by cushions of scented flowers.
Like the sap in the awakening trees
my blood begins to flow around my body.
A curtain of drops envelopes me,
protects me,
a curtain of pearls of light,
of perfume.
Birdsong dispels the veil of night,
announces a clear becoming,
sings the song of my coming day.
I lift my hands.
Dew glistens on my fingers,
soft and refreshing.
The palms of my hands awaken,
they grasp the new day.
And then the rain falls.
It is the rain of consciousness,
it washes away sleep,
the vestiges of tiredness,
wakes me
and turns my gaze onto that,
which lies before me.
The day lies before me
with its jobs and wonders,
with its mysteries and surprises,
the day of my possible success.
The rain cleanses me
of all the worries of the previous day,
of all night time thoughts,
of all burdens.
I lift my head:
I am awake: The feeling surrounds me
like a fresh cloud,
I feel every pore,
that opens,
I feel every fibre
of my strength.
In it, I am renewed,
gleaming like the sun,
which every day like the last
rises above the edge of the sky
and brings light
and life.
I greet the sun,
The source of life,
rainbows dance around it
I am reborn:
from water
into the light.
I am the day.
I am the sun,
am every drop of water
every ray of light.
The magic of the beginning lies before me
spread out.
I am ready.
Beate Rygiert
