Bubble Baths

I have always loved a good soak in the tub. Nothing beats being nestled into a bath, surrounded by warm porcelain , candles and a terrycloth pillow. Enveloped in layers of aromatic foam, steam and hot water. Soaking your limbs to the sounds of soft background music. Completely alone.

After two months of wrestling with my daily shower routine in my small 4x4 box-of-a- bathroom the thought of soaking my body in a bath was overwhelming.

Here in Korea bathrooms are not usually equipped with any type of fancy claw-foot tubs but they do have what's called public baths. You can find one of these bath houses just about everywhere within a 2 mile radius.

Being a newbie to Korea; we first heard of these establishments within days of our arrival. With no idea what to expect- my girlfriend and I decided to try one a couple of weeks ago. Walking around downtown one day- we spotted the sign and went in on whim. (enter record scratching here).

For about 4,000 won (that's roughly 3.50$) you are handed two very teeny towels, enough to say .... dry your hands and were quickly ushered towards the entrance.

With quizzical brows, we fumbled around the wall of small lockers. As a Korean woman brushed past us, we noted she carefully placed her shoes in the locker, and then went on to another desk. She gave us what we thought was a side glanced semi head nod- and so we followed pursuit.

With our shoes neatly tucked away, we knew that the next step would be to strip. As we entered the lounge, we were immediately blinded by buck- nakedness. A few women gaped as the two foreigners walked briskly towards their assigned locker numbers. They continued to stare even as we began to peel back layers of clothing. There was a slight awkwardness in knowing that in less than 30 seconds the two us would be in our birthday suits in front of not only each other but amongst 35 Korean women of all shapes and sizes.

We stared each other in the eye and both shrugged slightly. "This is Korea", we chimed in unison. As we took the iddy bitty towelette to cover whatever we could we bee lined it for the bath.

I scanned this new universe quickly- trying to avoid eyeballing the thirty or so bathing women who were all goggling back at us. Most stopped dead in mid-rinse to get a good look at the fresh white bodies. Horrified at their lack of privacy- we found our way into the closest nook- the steam room. With stifled giggles- we were safe. The hard part was trying to keep our conversation going all the while sitting their totally in the nude. We peered through the steamed glass to get a good look at our surroundings.

The public bath is laid out on one floor- it contains a sauna, a steam room, and a cold pool. There is a hot tub, and two other rectangular hot baths. This one even included a warm bath equipped with powerful jet sprays that send intense pressure to your muscles. And then there are about 25 shower stations lined against the back walls. Everything is out in the open, including the women.

The experience was interesting to say the least. With no knowledge of Korean and what the heck we were doing- we just did our best. Hopping from one pool to the next, taking it all in. The obvious staring was quite aggravating after awhile- but then again I think they were more concerned with our lack of hair down there than anything else. As shocking as it was for them- trust me it was a real shocker to be bombarded with bush. In case you were never informed- Korean women go at it "au naturelle" .

This concept of publicly bathing is a hard one to get around- as North American's we usually cover up as much as possible when in the gym locker room or any public place where undressing is required. We are used to shower curtains and privacy- but here in Korea if you want to get a soak on- you need to brave the masses.

I've been twice now on my own- I've held my head high and done my own thing. I still struggle with walking from the locker to the bath (which is about 8 meters away) with only a face cloth to cover my heiny- but I hope one day to just prance right on through without even a care in the world. Until that day arrives, I'm still resorting to leaving the contacts at home so that I don't see a thing.

Tip #1: Better to go at it in two's your first time. Language barriers and nudity may pose a problem to some.
Tip #2: Go prepared. Bring a large size bath towel and toiletries!