24 Around Korea
How to Rescue a Wet Weekend in Busan By Adam Nash
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hey say the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. Well, it turns out last-minute, half-baked plans can collapse just as quickly. Last month, after a sudden urge for sun, sea, and adventure, I booked a weekend away in Busan, including a sunset paddleboarding experience at Gwangalli Beach. There was just one small problem. If I had only bothered to do the most basic bit of research, I would have known that the forecast for that weekend was non-stop rain.
Gwangju News, August 2022
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So, there I was, on Saturday morning, looking out of my hotel window at the sodden streets below, with no backup plan, no umbrella, and no clue what I was going to do for the next 24 hours. After a quick regroup and Google search over breakfast and a strong coffee, I discovered my hotel was only a short walk away from Spa Land, one of Busan’s largest premier spas. This massive spa complex, located in Shinsegae Department Store, has 23 different types of luxury baths, all using 100% hot spring water pumped from 1,000 meters underground, as well as steam rooms, an outdoor foot spa, barbers, nail salon, restaurant, game room, and pretty much anything else you could possibly want. It is quite reasonably priced, too, at 20,000 won for four hours and an additional 3,000 per hour after that. Plus, your locker key has an electronic tag that keeps track of all your purchases, so you can settle up after you leave rather than carry your wallet around the spa with you. It was my first time at a Korean spa or jjimjilbang (찜질방), so I arrived a bit overprepared. My backpack was crammed with towels and toiletries, but all this is provided. You also definitely do not need to bring
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a bathing suit. Believe me, once you turn the corner and enter the dressing room, you are left under no illusion that swim shorts will not be necessary. Like in all Korean jjimjilbang, everyone in the segregated bathing areas was naked. For an English prude like me, it was a bit daunting at first; parading around in the buff while trying to find the showers. It was a bit daunting at first, but after a while it became quite liberating, and eventually, I just forgot about it. I spent the first hour or so in the men’s bathing area; working up a good sweat in the sauna before plunging into a cold bath, then finally settling down in the warm jacuzzi. After that, it was time to hit the shared communal area (luckily you are provided with robes for this part) to try out some of the 13 different themed steam baths. It is like a world tour of pampering experiences. You can enjoy a Finnish Sauna, then hop on over to the Pyramid Room, before reclining back in the Himalayan Salt Room. I will not describe them all here, mostly because
2022-07-26 �� 3:50:21
