Insightful Curiousity

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One of the highlights of my unplanned experiences happened this week, but before you go on if you are not open to learning some of the details of what is involved in a Medicinal Herbal Hip Bath in Seoul you may want to consider skipping the Dragonhill Spa section. If you are curious please join me in my journal of explanation.

I will begin with the joy of finishing my best yet Hanji Painting. This one took me two class sessions and at least 6 hours of homework to finish. I am very pleased with the end result. Please note without the guidance of my teacher this would not have turned out to be what it is today. Thanks Sungsil.

Dragonhill Spa- On Tuesday I decided to take on the challenge alone of Dragonhill Spa. This spa is a famous tour spot that I can easily walk to. The amenities include a fire sweating bathroom with pinetree firewood, a crystal salt room, an ice room, a Hinoki Forest room (this is a room where you can take a siesta), an outdoor swimming pool, a variety of jacuzzi baths and different types of shower facilites. As I enter I found someone on staff who could understand my questions and take me on a brief tour. When you check in you pay up front for any type of massage services. The primary entry fee for use of the amenities that do not require staff services is 10,000 won on weekdays and 12,000 on weekends (which is appx. $10-$12). Great bargain. The massage services are sold singely or sold as a pkg. I choose to take the deluxe pkg for women (100 mins). This included my admission fee, full body sports massage, aroma oil accupressure (back & foot), body balance correction and a facial pack. I have never experienced accupressure, it hurt so good! My range of motion after this was so much better, I did feel sore though as they get deep into the tissue trying to work out my many knots.
After this I decided to shower off and try the Herbal Medicinal bath out of curiousity. The bath is said to be great for female organs as they use mugwort as one of the main herbs of choice. Not to mention this is also good for the kidneys, intestines and many other organs. When you go in you are asked to be naked and cover up with a tent of sorts. This tent is made out of a piece of vinyl that is sown like a floor length cape with an elastic neckline. Okay Imsut admit after putting on this covering of sorts I am really becoming curious and a tad nervous as the single staff on duty does not speak any English whatsoever. My mind is running through a vast number of questions that are now cropping up. Do I back out or be brave and move forward with this new challenge before me. How hard can this be??? I am thinking this Herbal Bath would occur in a small bath area in the back of the room, wrong. I see there are what appear to be seats with a black hole, the best way to descibe this so you can relate is to envision the portable potties you take on road trips with you. This one that I sat on was about 3 feet off the ground. The staff points me to the fixture and is motioning for me to sit down. Okay, so I sit down with my buns over the opening (similar to the toilet). She then takes a serious tone speaking Korean (sounding like a mother scoulding her child) and begins to motion me to scoot my bottom back. Of course I am now not quit sure of what she is wanting for me to do. So she gets on one across from me and pushes her spine next to the wall and then pulls her feet up on the outside top edges over the opening grabbing her ankles. Oh my I am not birthing a child for heavens sake. Now I get it as the steam rising is getting very hot. So imagine me sitting in this position for 40 minutes. After about 15 minutes she came over and took the vinyl elastic neckline and buries my head inside. Now my head and entire naked body is enveloped within the herbal steam. Sweat pours off me like I was taking a shower (it takes alot of heat for me to be drenched). After the 15 minutes she comes back and replaces the neckline to the original position, massages my face with a cool cloth and provides some herbal ice tea. What a memory maker. It was not easy to say the least, but I cannot say I will not do this again. I will keep you posted on the health benefits. After this I rinsed off again, put on my shorts and t-shirt and then journeyed to the heated 80 degree Sauna cave. I was not yet brave enough to try the 120 degree one. It was so nice to lay on the hot floor and relax. When I finished resting I then headed outside to enjoy sitting by the pool in the warm sunshinel. It truly was an amazing time alone. I enjoyed myself.
Dragonhill is open 12 hours on weekdays and 24 hours on the weekends. It will be fun to take Matt there to relax.

Spoke with the WA ladies on Skype, we had so much fun. The girls and mom looked beautiful in their dresses. It was great to hear that they were planning to work together on a flower garden. I am excited to see their flowers.

On Wed. I began feeling heavy hearted. Not sure why. I thought I might be missing the dogs, family or something. I recall times in the past when I felt others pain. So to my dear family or friends if you are dealing with something really difficult, please email me. I read the Bible and prayed over the kids. I am still not sure why tears keep coming to my eyes. Everything here is great.

Thurs-today it rained all day so I stayed inside. Matt had a client business dinner so I enjoyed my evening solo. Blessed to Skype with Jeff, Kaycie and Roc. I had a really nice visit. Roc was so cute as he demonstated his athletic talents. I asked him to show me how he kicks the soccer ball with his feet. The right foot had amazing form, his demonstration of the left foot leading was so hilarious. He really is going to be talented at sports once he begins practicing.

Friday- Visited the Croc store just down the way and found some more awesome comfy shoes for walking. Not sure how many of you can relate to this incident. After purchasing my shoes I decided to wear a pair as I intended to go back to my favorite place in Insa-dong. I asked the clerk for scissors to cut the tag so I could trade my shoes. Other Koreans came into the shop as well. She politely offered me the scissors, after cutting the tag I placed my feet into the shoes. The sweet clerk said, "pedicure". I laughed and said, "yes I do need one" and we then both chuckled and bowed upon my exit. I so enjoy the blunt honesty from the Koreans. On my journey to and from Insa-dong I searched for a place to get a pedi and mani, no luck. This just means I will keep searching and when the time is right I will find the perfect place. During my visit to Insa-dong I did find an amazing place that has a small outdoor tea room. I so enjoyed my tea with a dessert that was out of the world. This was my lunch and breakfast. The video provides more insight into the distinct beauty of this dessert (well, I guess that was before I had already eaten half of it). The herbal tea and the warm rays of the sun added the perfect touch to my magical moment. Ended the evening with a wonderful dinner with good friends. We actually stayed out after 10 pm, these times are so rare.

Sat- Matt and I visited Itaewon and found him an excellent suit taylor. Excited to see his new suits next week. He will look amazing. We also visited an area we were not familiar with called Myeongdong. This is a great place to shop and hang out for hours just taking in all the culture and hustle and bustle of Seoul. I found a wonderful place called, Redwood. They have my unique styles of clothing. Just had to get a couple of fun outfits and hats! This is a wonderful place to take visitors. Chandler and Carolyne will love this area. It was a fun journey that was unplanned. I so love these kinds of days.

Hope you enjoyed this weeks highlights and learned something new. Hugs and love to all who enjoy my postings.

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Photos

Myeongdong
April 8, 2011

Comments

[Carolyne]

Dragonhill Spa
Wow, Karen! The medicinal bath sounds like something else! I hope it turns out to be really effective - sounds very intense! Bizarre, I just read about Dragonhill Spal in another blog yesterday - they agreed with you that it was great! Hope you are feeling a little better than you did on Wednesday. I hope all is well with everyone and it was just a 'down' day. I know adjusting to a new place for me is always a 'two steps forward, one step back' kind of proposition....I was glad to read that you had dinner out with friends. Sounds like you are making Seoul your own. Chandler arrives next week and I know he's looking forward to seeing all of the neat things you've been describing on your blog - I know I am! See you soon, Carolyne