Vesta Spa & Jjimjilbang

This is a Busan Ex-Pat City Guide post. Check out the rest of my list here.

Who doesn’t love taking a relaxing spell in a hot tub in the dead of winter? The question is rhetorical, but just in case: everyone. Everyone loves a hot tub in the winter. The South Korean variation of this of course, as referenced in previous blogs here and here is the jjimjilbang. Strip off your clothes, dip your naked body into the old sodium chloride bath, and relax, (if the stares of the naked Korean men aren’t too distracting).

Mary and I ventured to Vesta Spa & Jjimjilbang in the dead of winter (which, in Busan is not all that bad) to warm our little bumnaegol souls. We had reached a very “I can’t with anything” point in our weekend, and decided it might be time to switch up our Spaland routine.

Vesta’s location on Dalmaji Hill was the first draw for me. If I were to ever live in Busan long-term, I would invest in property on Dalmaji Hill. It offers stunning coastal views along Haeundae Beach, is lined with cherry blossom trees during the spring, offers dozens of hiking trails, and is a quiet escape from the bustling urban sprawl of Busan.

Vesta Spa is a large, unsuspecting white brick building built into the sloping hill. Upon seeing it for the first time, I was reminded of somewhere in Greece, perhaps Mykonos. The service was friendly, and our fellow patrons were mostly families and couples. Mary and I paid our entrance, impressed with what we were seeing so far, and headed to our respective bath rooms.

I can’t say I totally loved everything about Vesta’s bath facilities. They were slightly most rustic than the other three jjimjilbangs I’ve been to in the past. Many of the baths had tawny, often oxidized pipes in plain sight. The bath water (as I had read in other blog posts before going to Vesta) was not quite as fresh as I was expecting. That said, I did enjoy the atmosphere of Vesta. The room was quite dimly lit and so steamy, offering a little more privacy for those patrons who desired it.

While Vesta’s facilities, comparatively, leave a little something to be desired, patrons are able to exit to an outdoor balcony and enjoy views of Haeundae from a hot tub. This is almost certainly Vesta’s most popular feature. Many foreigners know it as “the jjimjilbang where you can look out to the beach in the nude”.

Overall, I still think Spaland is superior, but I did like the “mom and pop” feel of Vesta. It’s really a Busan institution,integral to the fabric of the city, almost.. Plus, you can’t beat the location on Dalmaji Hill. So, what are you waiting for? Go get some naked views of Haeundae Beach already!

Directions
To get to Vesta Spa & Jjimjilbang, take the Green Line on the Busan Subway (Line 1) to Jungdong Station (stop 202). Take exit 5 and walk straight past the large shopping centre (called Rodeo). Continue straight up the hill and follow it while it curves to the left. Vesta will be on your left.  Alternatively, a taxi costs approximately ₩5,000. Entrance to Vesta is ₩10,000.

Photo by City Awesome

Photo by veganaroundtheworld.wordpress.com

Photo by saunasinkorea.blogspot.com

Dongbaekseom Island

This is a Busan Ex-Pat City Guide post. Check out the rest of my list here.

Like all good things, Dongbaekseom Island has rebranded itself over time. The “sands of time” gradually joined the formerly solitary island to the mainland, if only to allows Koreans and foreigners to promenade along it and admire the dongbaek, pine, and camellia trees that surround it.

Always loving a good rebrand myself, I ventured to Dongbaekseom Island in mid-January with the girls to enjoy a sunlit stroll along the Busan coast, as well as to check out the APEC Nurimaru House.

The Nurimaru APEC House is filled with a lot of information regarding the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit held in Busan; very little of which I actually retained. I know that leaders from two dozen countries came to Busan in 2005 to discuss economic cooperation and that they were required to wear traditional Korean garb. The visual of George Bush in a hanbok sticks out, but not much else. Four years as a history major, memorizing textbook upon textbook of minute details, and this is what I have to show for it. Sorry, but I’m really not that sorry.

After briefly exploring the APEC House, we ventured outside into Dongbaekseom Park which offered gorgeous views of the coast and Haeundae Beach. We chuckled to ourselves about the fact that, while our friends and family were suffering through “Canada’s Polar Vortex Winter 2013/14”, we were leisurely walking in a beautiful outdoor park in cardigans. We caught sight of a towering lighthouse perched upon the jagged coastline, and a monument to the Confucian philosopher Choi Chi-won during our exploration.

We continued along the coastal trail, until we happened across a fun little rope bridge. Just beyond the bridge, below the rock wall, sits a statue of Princess Topaz, of the Naranda Kingdom. The melancholic princess stares dejectedly down into the water, in an almost Mulan, “when will my reflection show” type of way. According to lore, she was married off to King of Mungungnara, and now sits for all eternity in the coast, weeping for her homeland. [Note: I was going through my “2014 Korea Breakdown” around this time, and could totally sympathize with the poor girl and her longing for the “old country”.] 

Dongbaekseom Island was off my radar with regard to “things to do and see in Busan”, but is a perfect spot for a quiet walk (or talk, with Princess Topaz) if you’re in the Haeundae area.

Directions
To get to Dongbaekseom Island, take the Green Line on the Busan Subway (Line 2) to Dongbaek Station (stop 204). Take exit 1, and walk straight for approximately 10 minutes until you reach Dongbaekseom Island.

~ObSeSsEd~: March Edition

March: you came in like a lion and are going out like a lamb.

On a personal level, this month was one filled with change and facing the future. A new semester at school meant a new curriculum, new classes, and new students. Applying to school in Canada from a distance meant Skype interviews, written assessments, and contingency plans for the future. A near-death experience for a family member meant extreme uncertainty, helplessness, and a reevaluation of the things I hold dearest.

Through all of these changes, there have been so many amazing moments in March: two of my closest friends embarking on an around-the-world adventure; the arrival of my friend Steph in Busan; receiving acceptance to school for the Fall; continued exploration of Busan’s beautiful coasts, beaches, and temples; planning for upcoming trips around Korea, including Jinhae, Seoul, and Jeju Island; booking an impromptu trip to Tokyo; new and improved electronic devices improving my quality of life; adorable new kindergarten and elementary school students, and a shift in my thinking, toward the positive. March 2014 was not without its adversity or its beauty, and for that, I’m grateful.

This month’s obsessions include a return to yoga, some more delicious Korean nomz, and an long overdue education about Queen Bey.

Handstands
Or, if you’re fancy, “Adho Mukha Vrksasana”.

Over the last two weeks, I’ve re-launched my daily yoga practice (and along with it, the Instagram tag #yogaboyinloafers). Every weekday night, I head over to Steph’s apartment for a relaxed flow and some “yoga play”. Our personal mantra is all about being #limberandfree. In essence, our practice is a nonjudgmental space to vent and prattle about our lives, all while restoring ourselves physically and redefining our perspectives about the things out of our control.

My personal goals have centered around first, improving my flexibility and strength for arm balances, and second, perfecting the handstand. While I’ve seen a lot of improvement in both of these areas, there is still a long way to go. I frequently lose my balance during crow pose, my arms are often too weak to hold my 8-angle pose for extended periods of time, and I still need to use a wall for the majority of my handstand practice. Thankfully, I’m super motivated to see even more improvement, and am much more conscious these days that it’s about the journey, not the destination. As they say on Instagram, #iwillhandstandin2014!

Shabu-shabu
If you want a hearty meal that lets nothing go to waste, Google search for shabu-shabu restaurants in your area. The concept is simple: boiling hot water combined with thin slices of meat and vegetables. Once finished cooking, patrons place the goods on a thin rice paper, top it of with other non-boiled vegetables and sauces, and roll it up until it resembles a spring roll. Afterwards, it is customary to add noodles to the broth, as well as egg and rice to make a sort of fried rice dish. It’s an absurdly efficient way to put everything to use, and you end up with an empty hot pot.

Steph, Kendall and I went earlier today to Coco Shabu in Jangsan (Subway exit 7) and it was an ordeal.  A delicious ordeal, but an ordeal, nonetheless. I’m still feeling sluggish from my food coma, but I regret nothing.

For more information, there’s a fantastic video on the popular YouTube channel, Eat Your Kimchi, devoted to their personal experiences with Korean shabu-shabu.

Beyoncé
Many of you are likely to cry foul that I’m only now including Bey’s eponymous fifth studio album on my list of obsessions. In all honestly, the album has been completely off my radar since its December release. Thanks to persistent badgering from a few close friends at home in Canada, and Steph’s inclusion of the album in our recent yoga flows, I’ve received quite “an education”. Just call me Carey Mulligan.

My current obsessions from the album include “Drunk in Love” (along with every other Beyoncé fan out there), “Partition”, “Jealous”, and “Pretty Hurts”.

Apart from Bey’s own flawless work, the interwebz has greatly assisted in fostering my obsession. A Tumblr devoted to graphics of Beyoncé slicing and dicing the undead? Fantastic. A second Tumblr featuring screenshots of Downton Abbey paired with famous Bey lyrics? Amazing. My favourite YouTube vloggers covering excerpts of songs from Beyoncé? 6 minute of perfection.

~ObSeSsEd~: February Edition

While teaching about the Gregorian calendar to my level 3 kindy students earlier this week, I utilized a cute poem from their textbook to aid them in remembering what months contained 30, 31, or 28/9 days.

“February has 28 days – that’s great!
But sometimes it has 29 and that’s fine.”

For some reason this poem, intended for seven year old ESL students, gave my 23 year old self some perspective about how truly fleeting February is (especially as a postgraduate, living without the amplified stress of midterms inevitably followed by the lazy lull of reading break).

Since I missed out on those solid two to three days of obsessing that other months offer, my list of obsessions for February is short and sweet, highlighting the best that Korean culture can offer, as well as an old and a new school television series.

Survivor
Icebreaker: During my formative years, I was positively crazed about competition-based reality television shows, particularly Survivor. I used to prepare full-on, colour-coded round robin circuits in my notepad, pitting my toys (who portrayed some of my favourite competitors from the show) against one another. I used to prepare fantasy seasons in that same notepad, where my favourites would return to battle it out in a tropical setting for a second time. I used to assign members of my class to survivors competing in a new season, and reward the ultimate winner with a pack of Skittles (if I recall, Stephanie Raison was the winner in this particular instance during Survivor: Pearl Islands). I even had a Survivor themed party for my 13th birthday, where my guests were forced to eat baby food in timed trials, and were quizzed on trivia that only I could have possibly known. I’m sure this just provides even more evidence to the fact that I am and always have been, a crazy, obsessive human being.

I’ve recently gotten back into the beloved series after discovering multiple full seasons on YouTube. In the past four weeks, I’ve zipped through five seasons of the show, truly rekindling an old love affair. I’m also not ashamed to announce that I’ll be following the newest (and 28th!) installment of the show, Survivor: Cagayan, which premieres today (!!!). The twist this season is Brains vs. Beauty vs. Brawn, and will take place in the Philippines for the fourth season in a row.

Sundubu jigae
A spicy stew made from tofu, assorted vegetables, and chili powder that tastes delicious, includes rice, AND only costs W4,000? As we say in Korea, “NAY!”

Looking
I know with certainty that I’m not the first person to describe Looking as “Girls for gay boys”, but I truly can’t think of a more apt comparison. Looking follows three male friends, Patrick, Agustin, and Dom, who all happen to be gay(!), living in San Francisco, and “looking” for something (it’s not always love, y’all). Sure, the characters of Looking are a little older than “the girls”, and perhaps possess slightly more life experience, but in the end they’re as self-involved, filterless, and cringe-worthy as Hannah, Marnie, Jessa, and Shosh.

Truthfully, I found the Pilot episode painfully slow and uneventful, but the subsequent five episodes have been relatable, funny, and honest, without skimping on the awkward and outlandish. I was a huge fan of the fifth episode (“Looking for the Future”) in particular, if only because it made reference to Friends and posited that Rachel was the top in the Rachel-Ross dynamic; truly #dead. I’m crossing my fingers that Looking doesn’t go the way of Girls and becomes totally unrelatable in its second season. Also, if any of you are curious, I’m a total Patrick.

“Let It Go”
It seems that I moved to the right country, because Koreans on the whole are just as obsessive as I am. Disney’s latest offering, Frozen, stars Idina Menzel (otherwise known as Maureen from Rent) as frigid Princess Elsa, who harbours great powers and evem greater intimacy issues (the character was loosely modelled after me).

While I haven’t heard much about the merits of the actual film, I have heard the lead song, “Let It Go“, literally everywhere I go. Walking by a phone store? Why not just blare it on repeat? Choosing to eat lunch with my youngest students in Star Class? Why not burst out into song with a group of five year olds? With regard to once hating the song and now being obsessed with it, I borrow a line from the song itself to justify my actions: “Couldn’t keep it in / heaven knows I tried”.