It’s easy to overlook that in the year 600, Istanbul—with half a million people—was the largest city in all of Europe.

One good way to fathom that is to descend into one of its massive cisterns—as the ancient city had an impressive water system. This cistern was built 1,500 years ago by Emperor Justinian, who built many of the city’s grandest buildings. Some of these columns were scavenged from ancient temples…giving the cistern a few artistic surprises.

It was a huge underground reservoir, one of many that brought water to the city’s residents. This one was the biggest, as it served the emperor’s palace.

For nearly a thousand years, fresh water from 10 miles away was channeled here through pipes and across aqueducts.

And part of the legacy of that original water system are the city’s venerable public baths.

Receptionist: Hi, welcome, sir.

Rick: Merhaba.

Receptionist: Merhaba.

In this city of experiences, one of the most memorable is enjoying a Turkish bath—a ritual that goes back 2,000 years. And today, these baths welcome tourists. You leave absolutely everything in the changing room. Slip into your slippers, and shuffle into the steamy caldarium.

It’s all about relaxation. Turks brought the steam bath with them from Central Asia, blended it with the Roman bath culture they found here, and created this: the Turkish bath.

Moving on, you continue relaxing and softening up under cascades of hot water. Savor the experience…achieving maximum sweating and pampering.

Then it’s on to the big marble slab, where your masseuse works you over—scrubbing vigorously with rough Brillo pad–type mitts. Under Ottoman skylights, blanketed in bubbles, then more scrubbing, as I imagine this ancient luxury working its magic over so many centuries. More bubbles, more massaging, and finally…rinsing.

Refreshed and cleaner than you can remember ever being, you venture back into the clammer of the city ready for more Turkish history, art…and life.