The primal act of bathing organizes the building. Entrance is through an underground tunnel where the iron richness of the Valser water first shows as it pours from wall-mounted copper pipes and stains the stone.

Therme Vals, Switzerland

I used to take hold of it when I went into my aunt’s garden. That door handle still seems to me like a special sign of entry into a world of different moods and smells. I remember the sound of gravel under my feet, the soft gleam of waxed oak staircase. I can hear the heavy front door closing behind me as I walk along the dark corridor and enter the kitchen[...].(P Zumthor 1998:9)