Day Six - August 4, 2010

Wow, wow, wow...what a day. Today has been absolutely amazing. Want to hear about it? Settle in - it's a bit of a doozy!

So of course today started with another great breakfast at the Korean Cultural Center. I've eaten more figs than a person has a right to (outside of the always stellar Fig Newtons, of course...a person can never have too many Fig Newtons). They really need to stop serving that apple cinnamon bear claw though as I am sure to have withdrawals when I get home.

Our first act of the day was to watch a performance by the New York Philharmonic in Pyongyang. In case you are not up to speed on your Korean geography, Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea. It is a bit of a showcase city, not just for us - the casual observer of North Korea - but for those who live in Pyongyang themselves! They are not allowed to leave the city (I swear - learned it today) so that they do not see the devastation that runs rampant throughout the Korean countryside. As far as they are concerned, the rest of the country is just as brilliant as Pyongyang. A bit sad, right? Anyway, this was the first performance given by the NY Philharmonic, or any American orchestra for that matter, in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (that's North Korea to you and me). If you know anything about professional orchestras, you know that the NY Philharmonic is just spectacular, so that was treat #1. In addition to that, the orchestra performed the popular Korean tune of Ariang which some of us know better as the Korean Folk Song. For those of us who have been in concert band, you may have played Variations on a Korean Folk Song which is based on this tune. Anyway, gorgeous. I had very nice musical flashbacks to high school and one of my favorite pieces to perform, as well as good old Ben Hayes, who made my experience today so much richer because of the many musical selections that he introduced me to throughout the years. Thanks, Ben! Miss you!

We were next welcomed by Jae-Soo Kim, who is the Consul General for South Korea in the Los Angeles area. It isn't everyday that you have the chance to be face to face with a foreign government official, so that was cool!

Our next lecture tickled my Government funny bone - it was a lecture on the political situations that have shaped Korea's past, present, and its future. What I found particularly interesting was the sections on North Korea. North Korea intrigues much in the same way that the former Soviet Union did - it's a country that we know so little about. Oh to be a fly on the wall there! I still, without hesitation, recommend that you watch the National Geographic special Inside North Korea which gives a fascinating account of what life is like in Kim Jong-Il's secret state. I would LOVE to go there, but it just isn't safe, and I am sure that my loving parents would draw the line on that one. But, a girl can dream!

Lunch today was on the road - or at least not in the KCC. Oddly enough, we went to the same restaurant that Tim and I visited last night, the excellent Tahoe Galbi. Yum! Once again, I ate way too much. After lunch, we visited a Korean Buddhist temple where we sat down and meditated. Part of my body really got into it, as my left leg decided to reach its own state of nirvana and go to sleep. Of course, it hurt like crazy, and I kicked my leg out, knocking over my camera right during the meditation. Seriously. I was that loud person who disrupted everyone's cool state. Stupid leg.

Next stop was a Korean shopping mall, which essentially is like any other mall in the country with the exception that this one has a lot of signage in Korean and an amazing Korean grocery store. I bought some tea as that seems to be what I do know when I go places as well as some Korean drinks. Woo hoo!

The best part of the day came after the seminar. Months ago, upon finding out that I had been selected for this program, I decided to make a reservation at a Korean spa. Korean spas are just like any other kind of Asian spa, and if you read my Japan blog back in the day, you may remember that the most notable thing about Asian spas is that your are buck nekkid the entire time. Yep. But I am getting ahead of myself. Let's start with the basics.

So, I am in Koreatown, right? I am in the hotbed of all things Korean. There are spas everywhere! Helie Lee, one of the founders, put together a list of places to see in Koreatown, and one was the Olympic Spa. She recommended a treatment called the Goddess Treatment. I knew that this summer was going to be insane as far as things going on, and combined with the fact that this is the end of summer vacation, I felt that I needed a good treatment. But, there are a lot of caveats with Korean spas. Let me discuss.

As mentioned, you're naked. The entire time. This is no place for people who have any hang ups about their body. Let me be perfectly frank - I have all kinds of hang ups about my body. But I am never going to see these people again. The therapists at the spa are not naked. To make things even weirder, they are clothed in the standard Korean spa uniform of black bra and panties. Luckily Olympic Spa is a women-only facility, so I didn't have that to worry about. I checked in, and was given my keys on a stretchy coil bracelet. Because, remember, I am not going to have any pockets as I am going to be naked. For the rest of my time in Olympic Spa, I will now be known as 55, the number on my bracelet that corresponds with my lockers. That's right, lockers. One for my shoes at the door, and then the other for my clothes. After stashing the shoes, I went to the second locker and began to disrobe (there's no other way to put it other than, well, you know, getting naked). I opened the door, and there was a towel and a robe, which struck me as weird. What was this for? Aren't we all naked? Well, from the lockers to the bath room (note the space there), you can wear your robe. Like it mattered.

Inside the bath room, you take off the robe and stash it and your towel in a cubbyhole - mine was 55! Then you go off to shower. Getting into one of the baths without showering is a major faux pas. Besides, who wants to sit in other people's filth? Heck, I don't like taking a bath in my own home because sitting in my own dirt is just not appealing. So here you shower, wash all your bits and pieces, and then head out to soak. Just like in Japan! Olympic Spa had many choices and I went for the hot one first. Really hot. Like 104 degrees hot, or the air temperature of Southern Indiana this week. This particular bath was a "mugwort" tea bath. It was dark brown. I essentially was a tea bag floating in a big vat of tea. Let me tell you, it was awesome. I became friends with an elderly Korean lady here (it is easier to make friends when you're naked than you might think - please keep all inappropriate comments to yourself please). I don't like meeting new people to begin with, but for some reason, it is easier when you are both naked. I digress. She told me to soak for about 7-8 minutes in this pool, then go get in the cold bath and soak for 3-4 minutes, then back to the mugwort bath, and so on and so forth. So I did! The cold bath was FREEZING, but it felt so good to alternate between the two extremes. I did this for about an hour or so when my new best friend Moon showed up in her spa uniform and shouted "55!" That's my cue! Goddess time, y'all!

Let me tell you about the treatment. Or, let me let Olympic Spa tell you about it. I lifted this off of their website:

The ultimate moisturizing experience. We start with a full body Korean Scrub to exfoliate the skin, followed by an aromatic seaweed body shampoo. Now relax and enjoy a wonderful Darphin Aromatherapy Massage to melt all those knots away. A rejuvenating essential oil scalp massage will instantly lift your spirits. It doesn't end here, your face is then massaged with toxin releasing strokes and a purifying facial mask is applied to refresh and tighten the pores. After an aromatherapy hair shampoo and rinse, a luxurious body emulsion is soothingly applied to hydrate and moisturize. This treatment is exclusive to us and not available anywhere else.

The Korean scrub means business, kids. Moon scrubbed me everywhere. My dead skin littered the massage table like volcano ash litterd over Pompeii right after Vesuvius decided to blow its stack. It was sick and wrong. I kept telling myself this was going to be worth it. Moon meant business with her scrubbing mitts. This took a good 40 minutes or so. Then it was massage time! Lots of oil and lotion. Pure indulgence. Moon was little, but she was powerful. The backs of my shoulders carry a lot of stress, and she worked on those for a while. It was absolute torture, but I bore it. Besides, it didn't make sense to ask her to stop because her English was very limited. The best part of the massage session was the scalp massage with some peppermint aromatherapy oil. AMAZING. After Moon finished beating me up and making sure that I was all lotioned up and happy, she sent me to the jade floor room. It was nap time! I curled up on the heated jade floor and took a quick nap.

Three hours later I was done. Yep, three hours. It was totally worth every minute. I want to go back. I want to live there. I want to take Moon to my house and let her change the guest room into my own personal massage parlor. I got a taxi back to the hotel as it was dark, and let's face it, I'm staying right in the middle of where the L.A. riots took place. Watts is right down the street. I don't need to ba walking in the dark. I ran over to McDonald's for a sweet tea to finish off this Night of a Thousand Indulgences, and am currently ready to pass out in the hotel room.

If you EVER go to Los Angeles and you are a woman, do yourself a favor and go to Olympic Spa. Let go of the American hang ups about nudity that we have and go the way the good Lord made you. Ask for Moon and tell her that I said hi. You won't regret one single solitary minute of it.

Song of the Day: I don't have one. I am way too Zen right now to have music in my head. Sheesh.