a) "Seat belt"
MG: Please put on your seat belt, it's safe that way for you.
Anon: What? Shi-Bal?! (this means F*** you) in Korean.
MG: No no. seat belt.
Anon: Ohh, ha ha
b) "Please sit down"
Okay class, hokey pokey is over. Please sit down. The class repeats, being a beginnner class this is the nature of your relationship: listen and repeat... everything. Sometimes things go wrong and they hear a SH sound and not a SSSS sound. This turns ordinary sentences like "Please sit down" into ... well, you get it.
c) "Open your eyes"
Alright class, please repeat: Close your eyes, Open your eyes... Eye becomes morphed somehow into ahhss and in context sounds funny enough that it is difficult not to laugh.
Friday, 28 March 2008
Tuesday, 4 March 2008
clean, naked and warm
"clean up after you get dirty"
Whether you are in need of a safe haven from the winter weather or an alternative to an expensive hotel at night, a Korean sauna may be the answer to temporary solace. Water has throughout history been a powerful element for rejuvenation. The concept is not a new one, the Romans having enjoyed public baths as early as the sixth century B.C.
Present day Baden Baden, Germany, boasts some of the best facilities where I have soaked, sneaking a peak in the mixed gender levels; a treat for everyone. Ulsan does not fall too far behind. Ulsan many simple saunas or more modern jjimjilbang. Each experience is different, with variety in available facilities, clientele and atmosphere. An average sauna has a locker room, open stall showers, multiple hot and cold baths, sauna and a separate floor where you can sleep or rest.
Expect to undress in an open, gender separated, locker room neighbouring a wet area where you can enjoy the pools and facilities. If you are a little shy about your nakedness, consider this a perfect opportunity to overcome your reluctance! On the women’s side, I have been informed that the women attendants can be very comforting and helpful after an experience at Young Pyong ski resort. Scrubbing sheets, similar to the western and european luffa, are provided along with soap, salt, toothpaste, towels, drinking water, hair dryers, creams and sometimes sleeping clothes for your convenience.
Before entering pools, shower with soap thoroughly. Yes, that’s right, you’re dirty.
Sometimes pools are described in English below the Korean, however this is rare. Generally, people enjoy the warm pools first, moving gradually towards the hotter baths. Ice cold water plunges are often enjoyed as a sharp contrast following the most intensely heated baths or sauna rooms, a hot and dry room designed to help you sweat out toxins in your body. The jump from a very hot and dry room to cold water stimulates blood flow and is very healthy. Should you feel uncomfortable in a dry sauna, some jjimjilbangs have steam rooms. These are both hot and moist which avoid the painful sensation in your nose when you try and breathe and burn your nostrils after attempting to breathe via your scorched throat.
While in the sauna, monitor your heart rate and if you feel at all dizzy, leave immediately. Some saunas have a timer to help you keep your stay to 15 minutes. The most intense heat, both air and water, are not healthy for everyone so please consult your doctor asking about blood pressure, pregnancy and anything other minor health risks. To avoid breaching etiquette, observe how your Korean fellow guests navigate the jungle most notably: entrances, exits and sitting on benches with or without a towel when nude.
The final component of the Sauna is the heated resting floor, generally located on a separate level. This can be mixed gendered. Man or women only sleeping areas vary at each facility. Men need to be familiar with the Korean forms of women as I have encountered signs where mischievous visitors have scratched off the W-O in women creating a potentially terrible situation. Sleeping level attendants may be very explicit about where you can and cannot sleep.
Please yield.
There are usually smaller heated rooms of different climates and one large room. The larger room is often more noisy and seems to be quiet conversation tolerable. Young couples also snuggle under blankets and have been spotted keeping each other satisfied in darker corners; a poor substitute for our family rooms. In the smaller seemingly more quiet rooms, you may encounter cell alarms sounding at 04h30, culprit forgetting to deactivate a snooze alarm. If you have a very important day following your treatment at a jjimjilbang, consider sleeping at home. These small surprises aside, the hydro therapy is powerful and invigorating. You will never see a mixed gender nude area as enjoyed in Baden Baden but with an open mind and a sense of humour, Korea’s re-mix could be exactly what you’ve been missing. Cost can range from six to ten thousand won and my favourite is located close to the Shin Bok rotary towards Mugeo-dong : Tan-san-so Sa-oo-na [Sauna] Jim-jil-bang He-ul-suh [Health] T 052 223 7821 / 10won / “400” series buses.
Whether you are in need of a safe haven from the winter weather or an alternative to an expensive hotel at night, a Korean sauna may be the answer to temporary solace. Water has throughout history been a powerful element for rejuvenation. The concept is not a new one, the Romans having enjoyed public baths as early as the sixth century B.C.Present day Baden Baden, Germany, boasts some of the best facilities where I have soaked, sneaking a peak in the mixed gender levels; a treat for everyone. Ulsan does not fall too far behind. Ulsan many simple saunas or more modern jjimjilbang. Each experience is different, with variety in available facilities, clientele and atmosphere. An average sauna has a locker room, open stall showers, multiple hot and cold baths, sauna and a separate floor where you can sleep or rest.
Expect to undress in an open, gender separated, locker room neighbouring a wet area where you can enjoy the pools and facilities. If you are a little shy about your nakedness, consider this a perfect opportunity to overcome your reluctance! On the women’s side, I have been informed that the women attendants can be very comforting and helpful after an experience at Young Pyong ski resort. Scrubbing sheets, similar to the western and european luffa, are provided along with soap, salt, toothpaste, towels, drinking water, hair dryers, creams and sometimes sleeping clothes for your convenience.
Before entering pools, shower with soap thoroughly. Yes, that’s right, you’re dirty.
Sometimes pools are described in English below the Korean, however this is rare. Generally, people enjoy the warm pools first, moving gradually towards the hotter baths. Ice cold water plunges are often enjoyed as a sharp contrast following the most intensely heated baths or sauna rooms, a hot and dry room designed to help you sweat out toxins in your body. The jump from a very hot and dry room to cold water stimulates blood flow and is very healthy. Should you feel uncomfortable in a dry sauna, some jjimjilbangs have steam rooms. These are both hot and moist which avoid the painful sensation in your nose when you try and breathe and burn your nostrils after attempting to breathe via your scorched throat.
While in the sauna, monitor your heart rate and if you feel at all dizzy, leave immediately. Some saunas have a timer to help you keep your stay to 15 minutes. The most intense heat, both air and water, are not healthy for everyone so please consult your doctor asking about blood pressure, pregnancy and anything other minor health risks. To avoid breaching etiquette, observe how your Korean fellow guests navigate the jungle most notably: entrances, exits and sitting on benches with or without a towel when nude.
The final component of the Sauna is the heated resting floor, generally located on a separate level. This can be mixed gendered. Man or women only sleeping areas vary at each facility. Men need to be familiar with the Korean forms of women as I have encountered signs where mischievous visitors have scratched off the W-O in women creating a potentially terrible situation. Sleeping level attendants may be very explicit about where you can and cannot sleep.
Please yield.
There are usually smaller heated rooms of different climates and one large room. The larger room is often more noisy and seems to be quiet conversation tolerable. Young couples also snuggle under blankets and have been spotted keeping each other satisfied in darker corners; a poor substitute for our family rooms. In the smaller seemingly more quiet rooms, you may encounter cell alarms sounding at 04h30, culprit forgetting to deactivate a snooze alarm. If you have a very important day following your treatment at a jjimjilbang, consider sleeping at home. These small surprises aside, the hydro therapy is powerful and invigorating. You will never see a mixed gender nude area as enjoyed in Baden Baden but with an open mind and a sense of humour, Korea’s re-mix could be exactly what you’ve been missing. Cost can range from six to ten thousand won and my favourite is located close to the Shin Bok rotary towards Mugeo-dong : Tan-san-so Sa-oo-na [Sauna] Jim-jil-bang He-ul-suh [Health] T 052 223 7821 / 10won / “400” series buses.
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