Dragon Hill Jimjilbang: Body Blitz on Steroids

The other night we made a trip over to Dragon Hill jimjilbang at Yongsan Station. It was my second time visiting, and Furry Bear’s first. He had brought along support in the form of friend Greg. Understandable. A first time visit to a Korean jimjilbang is not for the faint of heart…and particularly difficult for foreigners I imagine. In fact, one of Furry’s students, a businessman, had informed him that when he saw a whegook (foreigner) enter, he immediately left because it made him so uncomfortable.

A jimjilbang is a Korean sauna or bathhouse. Sauna culture is a pretty big thing in Korea, with a jimjilbang or not quite as fancy mogyoktang in almost every neighbourhood. Many people go daily or weekly, and after experiencing it for myself, it’s pretty easy to understand why. For a $5 – $10 entrance fee, you get access to multiple pools and saunas. On the women’s floors, there were at least 10 pools and 3 sauna, all of varying degrees and benefits. There were ginseng pools, Hinoki jacuzzis, a Himalyan salt sauna, aromatherapy steam rooms, saltwater pools, and baths ranging from 18 degrees celsius to 45 degrees celsius.

Mind you, all of this is enjoyed in the buff. Yes, completely nude. No bathing suits allowed.

When you enter the jimjilbang, you pay your entrance fee, then receive a key, fob, change of clothes and a few towels. You take off your shoes, and place them in a small locker at the entrance of the spa. From there, it’s up separate elevators to either the women’s or men’s floors. Upon reaching the change room, you strip down, place your clothes and personal belongings in your locker, and then head to the spa, which are of course, gender segregated. At Dragon Hill, the women’s sauna is one floor below the locker room, so you have the strange feeling of walking up and down the stairs naked in public. Once in the sauna, a good wash and cleaning is required before entering any of the pools.

I hit 3 or 4 warm/hot pools and the 88 degree Himalayan sauna before subjecting myself to the 18 degree cold plunge. Man, does that ever feel fabulous. Shocking, but fabulous. When you are done with the pools and saunas, you can treat yourself a little. The fob and key that you receive at the entrance are attached to a bracelet that you wear on your wrist. The fob is used to purchase extras at the jimjilbang. And boy, are there a lot of extras. The famous Korean bodyscrubbing, massages, cupping, manicures, pedicures, accupressure, meridian alignments, eyelash perming and extensions etc…etc…it’s a veritable buffet.

I treated myself to the bodyscrubber, which in Korean is deh-bekyo. The literal translation of this is remove dirt/grime…and that is essentially what happens. You cannot be shy to partake in this process because you basically flop around on a massage table in the nude, while an ajuma in her bra and panties scrubs you from head to toe with a rough Korean scrubbing cloth. The amount of dirt and grime that comes off your skin is nothing short of fascinating. It’s almost like those Biore strips that pull the blackheads out of your nose. Blech! If you’re brave enough to try it, it’s so worth it. I always feel about 2 pounds lighter, and have THE softest skin imaginable afterwards. (And yes, Furry Bear tried the scrub in the men’s sauna).

After you’re done with the sauna, you get into the shorts and t-shirt provided to you at the entrance, and head down to the main healing zone. This area is co-ed, and includes a pine-needle sauna (which felt like a sweatlodge), and traditional charcoal and infrared saunas. You can also watch a movie, eat in a restaurant or take a nap in one of the aromatherapy sleeping rooms, since Dragon Hill is open 24 hours.

After 3 hours of soaking and baking, we were in danger of turning into prunes/pizzas, so we reluctantly left. 

Next adventure – I think the coffee shop with pools of fish that eat the dead skin off your feet!!