Diving into the Montreal bathhouse Bain Colonial

This story originally appeared in URBANIA, an online magazine based in Quebec focused on pop culture and society.

“You know Bain Colonial? A friend was telling me about it last night. It’s kind of a sauna/social club in the Plateau for queer intellectuals to chat and meet up with people of all ages, but it’s also more than that…”

My boss has a knack for teasing. That one line was enough to pique my interest. There was just one catch: I’m not a gay man, so I couldn’t set foot in the oldest gay bathhouse in the city. Too bad. 

Fortunately, I knew someone who could get wet and undressed on my behalf—and his boyfriend would join too.