So it doesn't feel like holiday time, but here in South Korea the biggest holiday of the year just passed. I've had a lovely 4-day weekend for Chuseok (Korean version of Thanksgiving.) Some friends invited me on a little trip up to the mountains and I had nothing else to do so tagged along. Here was my experience.
Traffic is really, ridiculously crazy when 14 million people are all trying to travel at the same time so in effort to avoid a bit of Friday morning traffic I treked up closer to the bus terminal the night before. The destination that night...a Korean sauna. Now, this was quite the experience!!! Saunas are super cheap...I think I left there paying less than $10. You can also spend the night in the saunas...so that is what we did.
As you walk in, guys and gals split off into their respective areas...which is good because once you enter your half you are face to face with nakedness. Korean women, ages ranging from 2 to 90 are all over the place wearing nothing but their birthday suits. When we entered I accidentally let an "Ohh!" slip out, thankfully not too loud. Next, we stop by the supplies desk and pick up any array of scrubs or cleansers you want, plus various grooming tools and your orange prison uniforms, I mean sauna attire. Knowing what was next made me cringe a bit, but what can you do...you're already in and paid up? So the dreaded strip down begins as I stow all my stuff into a locker and try for a few seconds to cover up a bit with the hand-towel sized towels they use here. After a few seconds I thought...what the heck?! Go for the gusto!!! I mean, every Korean stares at you the foreigner anyways, this time they just get to see all of you...ha! So onward I trudge with another foreign friend and our new Korean friend...into the bath room. I get many awkward stares especially since I have a piercing and a tattoo (not common at all here)...and two little children watching my every move. You select a stool and a water basin and sit in front of a sink/shower head with a mirror...do a light cleaning, then head for the tubs. Each tub is a different temperature...ice cold to scolding hot...along with several saunas of various temperatures of hellish heat...one litterally felt like what I picture hell being. We tried them all except the one the kids flocked to for fear of pee. Then you come back to your stool and begin the scrubbing. With a tough mit on one hand you begin to scrub your whole body hard to peel all the dead skin off. (You can opt for someone to scrub for you but it seemed a bit too personal for me.) After washing off, you actually feel like a new woman! Then you go out to the common areas with your uniform on...you can eat, watch Korean tv/movies, go to the library, the gym, massage chairs/tables, more saunas/rooms of different temps (I personally loved the ice room)...or you can sleep! At 1 a.m. I opted for the women's sleeping room....equipped with "beds" (bunk beds with a stoneish feel and a stone pillow to match). Not great sleep, but it worked for one night.
Next day we caught a bus to the mountains...headed North...little did we know about a mile from the North Korean border. Once arriving we grabbed a Korean-style lunch and headed for our home for the evening! Wood floors to sleep on...yes!!! Another great night of sleep! (We did have softer pillows and blankets this time, and the floors were heated.) Once settled we geared up for paintball...seriously, we were decked out! Full camo, chest and back plates, gloves, neck protectors and helmets with goggles. This was the worst part of the trip for me. I currently look like an abuse victim with massive bruses on my arms and back. But, next we got to go 4-wheelin in the mountains...beautiful and so much fun!!! We each got our own which was awesome! Plus we saw some spectacular views. Sadly, I didn't have my camera. On the final day of the trip we took a driving tour...got to view a beautiful river (on which was the chance to bungee jump), saw the North/South border complete with barb-wire fence that had signs saying "mine" on them, several old military bunkers, and a lot of beautiful country-side.
So...Happy Chuseok to me!!! It was a fun-filled adventure weekend!!!
Love from Korea! :o)
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WOW...sounds like a very interesting, exposed (baaahaaa), fun trip! So did you bungee jump or not? I would love to do that!
ReplyDeleteLove it Shauna! You are such an excellent writer!
ReplyDeleteNo bungee jumping for me...that is not my thing...think I'd hurl on the way down. Plus, you were diving over a very shallow river there...ha!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks Cianti...one of my goals in life is to put together a collection of works and get published...one day!
Sounds like a great experience. I hope you have many more to come. We miss you around here, but trust me you're not missing much. Take care and keep us up to date on you.
ReplyDeleteXOXO