After a fun night of food and (too much) soju with Dhal, we decided to take it easy the next day by recovering at a nearby jjimjilbang called Siloam Sauna.
Jjimjilbangs are Korean bathouses/saunas, which are a important part of Korean culture. People of all ages go there to unwind, socialize, and (apparently) people even go there for work meetings. The place spans several floors and includes a restaurant, conference rooms, and several entertainment areas with TVs, board games, books, ping-pong, arcade games, even Karaoke!
There are also many different types of sauna rooms with varying temperatures and/or stones (ie. jade, salt, loess, etc.), and spa-like facilities where you can pay extra for a massage or to get your nails/hair done. The price is surprisingly affordable at around $10 per person for the full day, and for a couple of extra bucks you can even sleep there overnight, so it'd be a perfect place to visit if you happen to have a long layover/overnight in Seoul!
We also recommend visiting here if you're looking for a pretty unique / culture-shock / humbling type of experience! The bathhouse part of the jjimjilbang consists of several different baths with varying water temperatures, healing herbs/minerals, and even massage jets. The bathhouse area is segregated by gender and all clothes, including swimwear and towels, are prohibited from these areas.
For many of us raised in North America, being nude in front of strangers can bring about feelings of shy, uncomfortable, awkwardness since it's such an uncommon/unfamiliar thing for us to do. The idea of stripping down and spending a long period of time amongst several dozens of other nude strangers in a very open area can be rather intimidating.. the idea that locals come here regularly to strip down, hang out with friends and co-workers and scrub each other's backs clean seems.. I dunno.. weird(?!)
Prior to coming to the Jjimjilbang, we did google to learn about proper manners and etiquette of the bathhouses. We found it entertaining to see many comments from Westerners who absolutely refuse to go to the bathhouse because they're just too shy/embarrassed to be nude in public. It's good to roam outside of your comfort zone once in a while, so we decided to suck up our pride for the experience :).
In the end it was a really fun and memorable experience despite feeling uncertain about what to do, where to go, or how to behave at times. It was an experience that challenged us and our comfort levels, values, beliefs, and preconceptions. It's experiences like this that are exactly why we love to travel!! :)