(^14) • VOCABLE Du 18 au 31 octobre 2018 facile A2-B1 / moyen B2-C1 / diicile C1-C
Société
such modesty implies an inappropriate level of
sexual consciousness.
- The latest German innovation
is the aufguss (“infusion”) sauna,
in which nude audiences enjoy
Las Vegas-style performances
by muscular, towel-swirling
emcees who infuse the steam
with herbal aromas. The para-
digmatic Dutch sauna might be
Zuiver (“Pure”), a spa complex
outside Amsterdam whose
name subliminally links na-
kedness with the country’s nothing-to-hide
Calvinist morality. Yet in 2011 Zuiver intro-
duced swimwear days, currently three per
week. Most Dutch saunas now have clothing-
optional hours. Fear of unwanted photos is not
a problem: mobile phones must be handed in
made young people more body-conscious, re-
luctant to display anything less than perfect
abs. Smartphones with cameras make risqué
undress riskier. The #MeToo
movement has forced a reas-
sessment of even fully clothed
interactions between the sexes,
let alone naked ones. THE SAUNA CASE
- If any space is more embarrass-
ing for non-European tourists
than a French nude beach, it is a
German or Dutch sauna. They are
unisex and naked by default. All
bodies, thin, fat, young or old, are treated non-
judgmentally. The one thing that will earn a
disapproving stare is wearing clothing, because
at the door. But sauna owners say that with
mores changing, they need to appeal to poten-
tial clients who are more bashful, whether
because they are young or from conservative
immigrant backgrounds. - There are pockets of Europe where social
nudity is getting a second wind. Jesce Walz,
an architecture student researching saunas,
notes a wave of hip new public ones in Finland,
where they were once mainly found in private
homes. In Sweden, more mixed-sex saunas
are opening. French nudists say urban get-
togethers such as nude bowling nights are
packed, though overwhelmingly with men.
But the vision of nakedness as a demonstra-
tion of freedom and equality seems to be
faring less well. l
body-conscious sensitive to and aware of how others
perceive one’s body / reluctant hesitant / to display to
show / abs abdominal muscles / risqué sexy, suggestive /
reassessment revaluation, act of thinking about sth
again / let alone not to mention.- Dutch in the Netherlands / thin very slim / to earn to
gain / stare look.
7. audience spectators at a public event / towel-swirling
who swings a towel round in circles / emcee = MC
(Master of ceremony), entertainer / steam water
vapour / swimwear swimming costume/trunks /
currently at present, at the moment / to hand to give in /
owner proprietor / to appeal to attract / bashful shy,
timid / background origins.- pocket small area / second wind return of strength
and energy, here, revival / to research to study / hip
trendy / get-together social event, gathering /
overwhelmingly for the most part / to fare to do.
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