Korean Sauna- An Adventure

Last Saturday, my Mandarin teacher, AM and I, went to the far reaches of Shanghai to a Korean sauna. This was an adventure for me in more than one way. First, since we were both coming from different directions, she provided me with bus directions. I faithfully followed them, and although I arrived a little later than her, I managed to make it. I'm am now a convert to bus riding in Shanghai. The service is pretty quick,
cheap (2 RMB or 30 cents per ride) and it allows you to see different parts of the city.

As exciting as the bus ride was, the real thrill was the sauna itself. Called a Jiljimbak, they are apparently super common in Korea, and can often be found in parts of the world where there is a concentration of Korean immigrants. Just down the street from the where bus stopped, stood a pretty large non-descript building on the corner. We entered (you would never know from the outside that there was a sauna on the inside) and took off our shoes before approaching the desk; it momentarily made me think of Japan. We were given a bracelet to open an assigned locker and proceeded to the ladies' change room. We changed out of out clothes and showered and then dressed ourselves in the outfits provided for us. These were not, by any stretch of the imagination, attractive outfits. It consisted of a pair of greyish baggy shorts and loose top. We then marched out to the common area.

In the main area of the sauna was a large open room. On the right hand side there was several large mats with people playing chess or watching television. On our right, were a number of what seemed like huts. Each one of them had a digital temperature gage on the outside that listed the heat value of the hut. Through the wooden doors, you could spot mats and people lying quietly (or not) sweating. Here is a description that I found online, that describes the huts quite well:

Korea is famous for the kiln sauna known as the han jeung mak. It`s a dark cave-like stone structure with a small low opening. This traditional perspiration room dates back asfar as the 15 century. Burning pine tree wood heats up the inside of the sauna. The staff will give you jute blankets that look like potato sacks for you to sit on and cover yourself with. These sacks protect you from the intense heat. Within minutes of entering, it feels like you are baking yourself in a pottery kiln or in the broiler of an oven.

So, we entered the hottest room and prepared to sweat. A.M. came prepared with a magazine and some facial masks. I think that we spent about 20 minutes in there. We then proceeded to the coldest room, where the frost was evident on the coils on the wall of the room. It reminded me a bit of the walk-in coolers that we used to go into with my father at the federal government agricultural research station- minus the lack of fruit and sack of soil, of course. After a cooling off period, we entered another hut and "stewed" for another period of time (oh yeah- this room actually had a t.v. in it!). We also spent some time socializing with others in the main room. Restored by a bottle of water from the bar, we eventually returned to the shower area.

Off to one side of the shower area is a room with a number of tubs; these are of varying temperatures and size- they range from ice cold to really hot. Next to that is the giant room that is filled with massage tables and Asian ladies in black lace bras and undies attending to patrons. Apparently this is the uniform for these ladies world over. I wonder who decided that? While the lingerie is pre-determined, their footware is not; the winner of the extraordinary "outfit" that day goes to the ajima (auntie) who was wearing a knee high pair of burgundy patent leather boots with her lingerie. The sauna offers a number of services for really cheap prices (salt scrub is 28RMB- 4.00CDN!). The list of services is quite long, and the women are reputedly quite thorough. There are also nail and hair salons as you exit the shower area. I have no idea, of course, what is available in the men's area. Perhaps next time, we will take a gentleman with us and get the scoop from him- and then, of course, I will post about it!

This place, and like most other korean saunas is open 24 hours per day and is a cheap and clean place to sleep if ever you are unable to find a room. There were chess games on loan, and some of the teenage girls were playing cards at one of the tables. There were also some lounge chairs on a patio outside where the smokers congregated. There was even a bar area that was selling soft drinks, water and other beverages.

After the sweat inducing two hours, some scrubbing and washing, we emerged from the sauna facility, clean and soft, and totally hungry. Luckily for me, AM knew of great Korean restaurant nearby. We sat down to a beef barbeque with the sauces and lettuces, a great fresh salad and a seafood stew. An hour later or so, we got back on the same bus envigorated from the sauna, and full from the delicious food.

I will definitely be going there again. Next time, I'm going to ask those black bra'ed ladies to give me that salt scrub.