Well here’s another “first” for the books! Check out my date…

Since both of the guys I’ve been dating most recently were having guy’s night outs with their friends to watch some big boxing fight (boring, dumb, too violent but do your thing, boyz!), today was some more “me-time.”  (In case you’re just joining the blog, I’m dating myself, too.)

Not sure what I was going to do, so I was SO excited to have been invited somewhere new by one of my girls and her girlfriend.  Miss “E”, Miss “K” and I got up early Saturday morning to head to their favorite….Korean Spa! Yes, that’s right! Where you’re REQUIRED to strip down to your birthday suit to enjoy the facilities.  Let the nakedness with people you know (as well as complete strangers) begin!

Side note: For those of you who were expecting something a little more raunchy based on my blog post title, sorry for the letdown.  That story is on my OTHER blog.  Kidding.  Maybe.

For those of you who are still interested in reading, hello.  Allow me to explain my first Korean Spa experience. 🙂

First of all, they don’t have these back in IL where I’m from (or if they do, I never saw one tucked away in a cornfield somewhere).  In general terms, it’s a day of heaven on earth without breaking the bank.  It’s a place to come relax in several different saunas, steam rooms, hot tubs, even HOTTER tubs, cold baths and more.  You can indulge in extra services such as a massage, body scrub, manicure/pedicure or even get your hair did.

There’s a restaurant, a floor for just women, one for just men, and one for co-ed.  This particular Spa also had a nice rooftop deck, with views of downtown Los Angeles.

You can find a comfy mat to lay on in the dark, quiet “nap” room and then actually fall asleep.  Like kids do.  Except you’re an adult.  It’s totally cool and nobody looks at you weird.   I actually tried it, but couldn’t relax enough so I just laid there and Facebooked with friends on my phone.  (I was a bit jealous that Miss “E” went in and just knocked out, as we say.  She’s a pro, though, and has been here several times.  Remember, I was a Korean Spa virgin!)

I’m constantly being told that I work too much and don’t relax enough.  My mind is always working, and with a career based on the Internet, I never truly stop, so it was nice to try and detach for several hours.  I even left my cell phone in my locker during parts of the visit!

So here was our day:

After we first arrived, we all changed.  They got naked, but I got into my robe.  Remember – it’s my first time.  It felt weird and I had to ease into it.  I’m a pretty confident chick, no matter what my size is, but this was a tad uncomfortable at first.

We kind of went separate directions because we each had set up appointments for services.  But then it came time.

STRIP!

I hit the hot tub with other naked ladies, then had some nice Korean lady in a black bra and panty “outfit” come get me for my body scrub and massage.

She spoke little English, but she managed to understand my sheepish smile and the “It’s my first time” sentence.   She smiled back and pointed to the table where I was to lay face down.  The next 90 minutes were amazing.

Scrub, scrub, scrub, rinse, “turn ova”, “turn on side”, scrub, scrub, scrub, “go showa…wash face…come back”, more scrubbing, then….CUCUMBERS! She applied this mushy stuff on my face.  I couldn’t see b/c of the towel she’d place on my eyes but I will always recognize cucumber! (My parents have a farm with a huge garden.  They grow a ton of these.)

A nice facial, too? DEAL.  It felt amazing, and then she even washed my hair.

So after she removed a good 19 layers of my epidermus along with my facial, she gave me a massage.

I’m a pretty big wuss when it comes to massages, and this wasn’t even a Thai or Deep Tissue massage, but I cringed through most of it while I kept telling my muscles to ‘take it like a man!’ Or, woman, in this case.

At one point, she smacked the back of my calf gently and said, “Relax!”

Dude, I’m trying here.

Guess I should get massages more often?

Anyhow, after the treatment was over, I felt brand new.   Amazing!

Then it was time for my manicure appointment.  She did such a good job that my girls thought my nails were fake.  They’re totally real!

It was then time for lunch.  We got dressed in the shorts and tshirt (sans bra…again, weird) they give you and walked up to the restaurant.  I ordered things I don’t usually order.  I had something Korean that was delicious.  And BOBA.  Google it, if you don’t know. Yum.

After lunch, we ventured into the different co-ed saunas.  My favorites were laying on clay pebbles in a heated room, the “ice box” sauna at 41 degrees and strangely enough – 2 minutes of sitting inside a 211-degree hut.  OMG.  Intensely hot.

By this time we had been there for several hours, so they took showers and then got all dressed and cute.   We hugged, and then they headed home.  I had driven separately and had brought my laptop and some work stuff to do, so I was planning to set up shop somewhere after they left.  But I wasn’t quite done with all the spa shenanigans! I was kinda digging it.

Since I was back downstairs in the women’s spa, I stripped down again.

At this point, I’m super comfortable.  There are many different size, shapes, ages and nationalities here.  It was nice to see and not at all like what you’d think an “LA experience” would give you.

My curves and I rinsed down, then jumped back into the hot tub with more naked ladies.  It was super relaxing and afterwards, I think I took the longest shower of my life.  Next to other naked ladies.  (get the picture yet?)

After that, it was time to work.  I got dressed and journeyed up to the roof to read a script for work.  SO relaxing!

Came back down and then headed out to enjoy the rest of my evening.

So there ya have it! My first Korean Spa experience.  Huge thanks to Miss “E” who invited me to join in.

I’ll definitely be back.  With my birthday suit and all. 🙂