Jjimjilbang 찜질방 (Korean Spa)

Yongsan Dragon Hill Spa (compliments of Official Site of Korea Tourism Org) "is a charcoal sauna permeated with an oak fragrance created by traditional heating techniques. The jjimjilbang and spa facilities offer sweating rooms/sauna, an open-air bath, a seawater bath, a salt room, a swimming pool and a health center."

Sounds lovely. It is lovely. You are also completely naked. 

A jjimjilbang is a public bath house and they are common in Korea. The Spa is a combination of the bath house with various hot and cold spas, hot saunas, cold rooms, salt rooms, full body scrubs, massages, facials, pedicures, and general just relaxing with friends. The naked part is gender specific, so rest assured there is no lounging with naked dudes (unless you are one.) You can also choose to just sit in the saunas or have a facial fully clothed. However if you want a body scrub or want to enjoy any of the indoor or outdoor hot tubs you are not allowed to wear clothes. I know, sounds crazy, but as the saying goes "when in Rome."

So here's the break down.

Shoe locker room with fancy chandeliers

First you pay the 10,000 W entrance fee. You are given a set of spa clothes consisting of a pair of long shorts and a tee shirt. You also get a key/scanner wrist bracelet that opens your locker and allows you to purchase massages or food without having to carry a wallet around.

Next you move into the first set of lockers and remove your shoes.

You then proceed to your gender specific elevator. You head downstairs where you change into your spa outfit if you aren't up for the nakedness or you just take it all off. I forgot to mention they give you 2 towels, i.e. hand towels. Even for Koreans these are small towels. They don't do much but honestly when you are first naked they cover up the important bits and give you some sort of modesty. 

Very clearly marked "WOMEN"

Anyway you now move into the shower room. Proper jjimjilbang etiquette dictates you shower completely and really give yourself a good scrub. You have 2 options, you can sit on a stool while you scrub or stand. I chose standing for obvious reasons plus you look better standing. Ha! By now I was actually feeling a little more comfortable in my skin. There were a lot of other ladies and honestly no one is really looking at you anyway.

Once you are good and clean, you head for the hot tub area. There are a lot to choose from, ranging from scalding hot to icy cold, some jetted and some outside. I chose the semi-hot and finally started to relax. I was with some friends so we were talking and time just started to ease by. I followed up this pool with a lounging jetted tub and then headed to the outdoor ginseng heated pool. That was my favorite and by now I was really relaxed and not wanting to leave. We only had 2 hours and they flew by. 

Sexy spa clothes!

When you have to leave (sad face), you rinse off and head back to the locker room. I brought a bigger towel to dry off with and once dressed in my civilian clothes headed back into the world. 

Final verdict? Worth every last Won and I will be going back. I didn't even scratch the surface of things to do here. I want to get a body scrub and I want to sit in the saunas and I want to get dressed and lounge in the various "healing rooms" on the other floors. It was so enjoyable and quite honestly not as awkward as I thought it would be. 

Riding the Train

Well I am back again. I know it has been awhile and I have no real excuse except that it is cold and snowy and I just don't want to go outside. Pretty sure no one wants to read my blog about going to the gym. 

Anyway, one question I do get asked is riding the train. Seoul has a great subway system that goes pretty much anywhere within Seoul and connects to the other big cities in South Korea. It is cheap, 1100 Won one way or roughly $1 will get you almost anywhere in Seoul. Parking is difficult in the city and it is so much easier to just ride the train to your destination.  In answer to other questions, yes the train can be crowded, it is both above and below ground, all the signs and announcements are in Korean, Chinese and English and it is safe. It is, in my opinion, the only way to travel in Seoul.

Waiting...

Looking thru to other direction - Blue #4 line

Handy app to help with stops & transfers

Everyone is on their phones!