Tuesday night was a bit of a solo adventure.

Plans to meet up with a friend didn’t work out. I found myself in an unfamiliar neighborhood, on the phone with my boyfriend, who is explaining to me via google maps where the closest spa is.

It felt like an adventure. Arriving at this tall building, taking the elevator to the 15th floor. I was instructed to put on the spa slippers and take the stairs. From that point I followed the signs. This spa was extremely small. Before I describe it to you, let me tell you more about the Korean spa culture.

In Korea it is part of the weekly routine to go to the public bath [spa]. They are segregated by gender, and after a long soak in the mineral hot bath you do a scrub, exfoliate, soak, repeat until your skin glows. There are also saunas, and in larger spas there are rooms that you can meet up with friends in some comfy pajamas and hang out in.

This costs anywhere from 5,000-10,000 won. There are some that are 24-7, and you can stay the night in theses.

Items you will find inside to snack on.

1. hardboiled eggs

2. Pomengrante, and berry vingear drinks

3. Sikhye

This is something I have done on the regular since moving here. It will be one of the things I greatly miss when I leave Korea.

On Tuesday, I arrived at this tiny neighborhood bath. One large hot bath. One medium, one cold. A small sauna, showers, and scrubbing areas. There was also a machine with a large disc on it, and once it is turned on, you rub like a cat against a tree to get some scrubbing action in the hard to reach places.

Here are some photos of local Korean spas.