My First Sauna Experience Part 2

If you haven't read the first part of this story I suggest you scroll down first to catch yourself up.
We left off at the part where I was becoming more comfortable in my public nakedness and was wandering around with D'Arcy checking out the large spa area. We crossed an overhead bridge, much like a stage for all those below in my opinion, and arrived in the massage services area. Here there were four beds lined up in a row with four naked women lying on them receiving either an exfoliation treatment or a massage. Working on them were four older women, also naked. I had heard about this exfoliation process where you get scrubbed down until all your dead skin is peeled right off; skin you didn't even realize was dead. This is what I had been waiting for, though I wasn't at all sure I would ever actually come to do it.

D'Arcy 'let' me go first so when a bed became free I was told to lie down on my back. There I was, lying totally naked on this public bed, and my 'scrubber' woman said she'd be back in five minutes. Where'd she go, for a smoke? Honestly! When she finally returned she doused with with a bucket or two of warm water, put on some gloves reminiscent of sandpaper, and began her work. She left no patch of skin untouched, and I mean no patch. I wonder if anyone's ever touched me quite so thoroughly.

What was truly amazing was the amount of dead skin that was coming off me. I couldn't believe it. It was remarkably easy to relax in this highly foreign environment, despite her chuckle over my rear end. Frankly it's been getting a lot of compliments these days so I don't know what was so funny. My mother will not appreciate this post. Another fascinating thing was the woman receiving a massage on the table beside me. Her (naked, of course) masseuse was straddling her, standing on her, kneeling on her; the works. Like nothing I've ever seen before.

I came out of the spa feeling exhilerated, liberated, accomplished even. It felt wonderful to go in with a racing heart and a mind full of insecurities and to come out clean and more confident about my self and my body than I have been in a long time. I was loving Busan.

Here we are leaving the spa. There's my new green tshirt with Hangeul on it, too.



We had more fun that night, if more fun was even possible, but I'll save that for tomorrow. Next up this week: A field trip to the fire station!