to a Jjimjilbang () which is a Korean bathhouse and spa. Yeah, so this Korean sauna () is
really popular - especially on the weekends with families. People of all ages.
So we're going to give you a complete tour
aside from the naked parts. Yeah, because there is more to a bath house
than just scrubbing down and getting naked. Apparently, they also have rooms where you
can nap, watch Korean dramas, eat food. So we're going to show you all of that.
And the place we're taking you is probably
one of the most famous bathhouses in all of Seoul. And it is massive. There is basically five floors. So we're going to give you a really good tour
of that.
Let's go. Girls wear red and boys wear brown. Now I'm going to go change. Bye.
So this is in case you're interested and the
outfit of the day. I have my Princess Leia towel, orange t-shirt,
red shorts and barefoot. That's what you wear at a Jjimjilbang. So before we can explore the Jjimjilbang ()
we need food.
It is lunchtime and I haven't eaten yet. Okay so this is my very first time at a Jjimjilbang
so I don't really know what to expect. But Sam here is an expert and he's been coming
on almost a daily basis. So tell us all about it will you.
So while we wait for our food I'll explain
a little bit. So the Jjimjilbang () portion is
basically a common area from the second floor up until the fifth floor. And you have all of these kinds of different
rooms. You have a PC Bang (PC) where you can go
on the computer, you have all of these different sleeping areas.
You have these different steam rooms that
have different variations of temperature. You have restaurants. A whole bunch of different stuff. But the actual sauna part, the part where
you get naked and you go down into the sauna, is men and women only.
Segregated. Yeah, it is segregated. And so you go into the sauna, the Korean bath
house (), and you have basically all of these different kinds of hot tubs. And some of the hot tubs have special kind
of water.
Like there is one has like mud and then all
of these different other ones. There is a jade one for example. Different minerals. They are supposed to have different kind of
health properties.
So you go into those and you also have within
there you also have the sauna itself. You go into the rooms where you sweat and
then you have steam rooms and then you have, which is one of my favorite things, it is
kind of like I call it the polar plunge pool. And it is ice cold. So after you've been sweating for a long time
you go from the extreme heat into the extreme cold.
So that is my favorite. That is very Canadian of you Sam. The polar plunge. The polar plunge.
Of course. Just like a polar bear from Canada. Hahaha. Nice.
Our food is ready! Eye yigh. Everything is so hot. Ooh. That could have been an accident right there.
My little arms were shaking with the tray. So for our first Jjimjilbang () meal
together we decided to go with a couple of our favorites. Owe! What? The rice is burning hot. Hahaha.
Anyways. So give us a tour. These are our two go-to dishes whenever we
are at a restaurant. These are our favorites.
So first up we have the dolsot bibimbap (
). This is the stone pot rice with all of the
different vegetables and mushrooms and a raw egg on top. And it is really cool because you mix it around
and then it starts cooking in the pot. And then we also got the Sundubu jjigae ()
which is a tofu soup with a spicy tofu stew and that comes with rice.
This is how I burnt my finger just now. Touching that. Don't touch it. And then we have a whole bunch of other side
dishes.
We have kimchi () over here. And this is also something really cool. This is called Miyeokguk ((). And you can actually order that on its own.
I think when you order it on its own it is
cold but this is basically your Korean seaweed soup. And this is very typical to find in a Jjimjilbang
(). Yeah, it is very light broth. One of the characteristic foods you'll find
along with sikhye () which is your Korean rice drink and along with kyeran which is
your Korean style egg.
Hard boiled egg. Actually they are not boiled. They're cooked in the hot rooms. Oh yeah, that is right.
And then the other one that you can find. This one is to cool off is the Patbingsu (()
which is your basically shaved ice along with your beans and other assorted fruits. We'll have some of that later. Yeah, we're going to have that later on in
the day.
Let's dig in. Dig right in. I kind of want to eat yours. Yours looks so good.
So does yours. Just by looking at it I can tell that I think
the quality is going to be really high here. How is that? It's good stuff. Spicy.
Woah! Ready to mix yours? Oh yeah. Come check this out. So I'm just going to give it a really good
stir. Look at those colors.
Yeah. It is beautiful. What a thing of beauty. Oh la lah.
You can see why this is one of our favorite
Korean dishes. Oh and the crispy rice. And the best part guys is when you're having
dolsot bibimbap. Is let the rice burn a little bit on the bottom.
That is so delicious. Yeah. That is my favorite part of the whole bibimbap
(). The burnt rice at the bottom.
So right now we're on the entertainment floor
and this is the movie room. The movie starts at three PM so we still have
a few hours but aside from that we've also noticed there is a table tennis rooms, there
is a reading room, computer rooms. What else? I feel like there is so much to do here. And it is just only on one floor.
Yeah, so let's keep exploring. So if chilling out wasn't enough you can come
to the workout room and try to get buff. Is that how you work out? No? Show us the proper technique. So we're heading inside the charcoal room.
It is only twenty two degrees and that is
the coldest room we've been able to find. Aside from the ice room. The others are like fifty or sixty degrees
which is just unbearable for me. Yeah, that would be bad for the camera.
So let's go in. Quietly, because people are sleeping. Okay, so right now we're heading up to the
fifth floor. This is the sleeping rooms.
So we'll have to be very quiet. Come. I'm going to sleep in a cave. Okay, so Sam it about to head to the sauna
slash bath house part of the Jjimjilbang.
So I'm just going to stay here in the entertainment
room, watch tv, read my kindle. I'm going to get naked and sweat for a while. You go ahead and do that. And then when I come back up I think we'll
have a patbingsu.
So that is the plan as of now. Bye Sam. So the cutest thing ever happened today. I was in the sauna for like forty five or
fifty minutes and I come back up to the forth floor and you were sound asleep.
I was asleep. On the hard mat. With all of the other people. I don't know how I fell asleep.
It was just so relaxing even though the floor
is hard. So I've just woken up and now we're going
to have some dessert. We have ordered Patbinsu, which is a really
nice summer dessert. It is made with shaved ice and red bean paste.
And we also have shikye. A rice drink. Sweet rice drink. Yeah it is really good.
Check this out guys. I don't know if you can see this but there
is actually chunks of rice in the sikhye (). So let's try that. You can actually buy this in a can at GS 25
but it is so much better when it is fresh.
Look at those chunks of rice in there. So refreshing. So sweet. And like that it is cold because it is a little
bit warm in the Jjimjilbang.
Yeah, you're actually sweating right now. Yeah. We can see those beads. Actually it is probably just I'm a bit wet
from the shower.
Oh okay. Excuses excuses. And the patbingsu () has arrived. Yeah, so let's mix this.
It is basically shaved ice. We have the red bean paste. We have some corn flakes, chunks of fruit. What else is in here? It is a bit of a surprise so we're just going
to mix it together.
Little bit of everything. I think there is some other kinds of jellies
and some sauce. And some kind of nut powder as well. Try a bite of that.
So this should be refreshing. Brain freeze? Trying not to get one. So how is that? It is good. It is refreshing.
It is ice-y. So another thing we've noticed here at the
Jjimjilbang is that people wear towels on their head. They kind of look like the Princess Leia buns
so I'm going to show you how to fold your towel that way. So you basically take this and fold it into
thirds.
So like that. Like so. Like so. This is how it is done.
And then you take the ends and you roll it
out like a doughnut several times. So let's do that. First donut. Second doughnut.
This is my first time doing so, so it may
not be perfect. Now the other end. So you've got basically donuts on both sides. That is pretty cool.
And I think they wear the towels on their
heads because they are going in to a lot of the hot rooms. The steam rooms. So I don't know maybe they are just trying
to retain heat or something. And that is where the head goes.
Tada. Do I look like Princess Leia? Yeah, you kind of do. Ha, now okay your turn. The completed look.
Princess and Prince Leia. Hi! So we've been in the Jjimjilbang for a few
hours and I think we're ready to wrap up the experience. This was my first time here and it was pretty
cool. Even though I didn't go in the showers or
the sauna.
Maybe next time. Maybe next time. Well, I got the full experience here and I
have to say for the price you pay it is only 10,000. Ten thousand Korean Won.
Which is about roughly say about nine US dollars. Just a bit over that. It is incredible value. Like I think something like this maybe in
North America or Europe might be fifty or one hundred dollars.
So to be able to come here for such a cheap
price and experience all of these cool rooms and get full access for the sauna and Jjimjilbang. It kind of feels like you're going to a hotel
for the weekend. Or like a spa. It really does Yeah, so you're just very relaxed
and lounging around.
It is a pretty cool experience. You can see why it is so popular here in Korea
and if you find yourself traveling in Seoul or anywhere in Korea, because you can find
these all over Korea, definitely check out a Korean sauna, Korean bathhouse and Korean
Jjimjilbang. There you go. Ta ta!.
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