Another thing to add to the list

So as our time to go home nears, Gilad and I have been trying to do the things that we think are important before we leave Korea. Really, going to North Korea and a Jimjilbang were the most important for us as we feel we have done most of what we have wanted already. As of June 14th we will be able to cross North Korea off our list, and as of yesterday we were able to experience the jimjilbang.

It is unfortunate the we did not try this out sooner, because really, the public spa (jimjilbang) is one of the coolest things that Asia has to offer.

In Korea, going to the spa is a weekly (sometimes daily!) routine that revolves around socializing and relaxation. Koreans, as many know, are work-a-holics and so the jimjilbang is the perfect way to unwind and let the stress leave your body. So here is how it works:

Girls and guys have separate change rooms. So you go in, you pay the small fee of five dollars (this lasts for as long as you want as they are open 24 hours) and you get a towel and a uniform. Then you go into the change room. This isn't just any average change room however. These change rooms are equipped with not only lockers, and hair dryers and all that normal stuff but with showers, hot tubs, saunas, whirlpools, women who can give you a full body scrub, and so much more. It's pretty incredible. The part that often throws foreigners off is that you are completely naked. Everybody from young to old are in the buff. At first I thought it might be a little weird but to be honest it wasn't weird at all, besides the normal stares I got for being foreign, and the little girl who followed me EVERYWHERE. It shouldn't be weird for you because it is not weird for anyone else. You see people sitting, talking, washing themselves, and washing each other. This is the way for Koreans, and I thought it was pretty cool.

Once you have relaxed and cleaned off in your separate rooms you are able to put on a uniform and meet up with the opposite sex in the co-ed room. This is the actual jimjilbang. Here you can sit in a chair and get an incredible 10 minute massage for 1 dollar. You can sweat until your clothes are soaking wet in the hot rooms, then you can cool off in the ice covered pipe rooms. There are a bunch of other rooms that we just haven't explored yet as well. If you get hungry or thirsty you can buy something at the snack booth, if you get tired you can take a blanket and lie down, you can watch tv, and you can use the internet. This is a place where whole families can go and just relax and spend time together.

Gilad and I are really happy that we FINALLY were able to experience this and I am a little disappointed that we didn't go sooner, although in our last 11 weeks we will for sure be going back.

Dawna