I did it again, I went back to the Dragon Hill Spa. This time I took my entire family with me!! Also, I snuck my camera in and took a couple of pictures!! :) First picture, the entrance I told you all about last time...
And the fountain just before you enter (boy 2 is standing in front of it, so you can't really see it)....
This time I felt way more comfortable going into the spa, I had no ‘barfy’ feeling at all. I must admit I was a little nervous for my family though; the unknown is always a little frightening, even if it is not for me, but someone close to me.
After arriving I told Hubby as much as I could about what to do once he left me and got on his own elevator. Boy's 1 & 2 went with him; we agreed to meet in 1 hour. I took Girl and Boy 3 with me. Once upstairs it was time to get undressed...Girl was a tad on the nervous side, she still wasn't sure about this naked thing, Boy 3 on the other hand, stripped right down with no hesitation...oh the joy of being 3 years old! While walking over to the shower area, Girl had the little 'hand towel' they give you wrapped around her waist; oh the joy of being 7 years old! ;) Once we arrived at the showering area, all Girls’ hesitation went right out the window. She sat on the bench & started showering, then started spraying her brother, he was spraying her...oh the giggles I heard! What joy. Next it was time for the hot tubs. At this point both Boy 3 and Girl are totally comfortable and are prancing around like they own the place & from the looks they were getting from everyone one else you would think they did own the place. This is where I started to get a *tiny* bit uncomfortable. I didn't think about this angle...I brought 2 small blonde hair, white bodied children with me, in American that would be like walking around with a rock star. I am so thankful there were not any cameras in this area, because if there were, I'm sure we are on the internet somewhere in all our *glory*. I finally realized all this oohing and awing was not about me ;) They could care less about what this old Oma looks like, it was about the kids, and I was comfortable again.
Sunday seems to be a much busier day at the spa than Saturday. I'm sure that has to do with the fact that Koreans go to school every other Saturday. Can you imagine....American kids would have a heart attack if they had to attend school on Saturday! We found a place on the floor in the main common area. This is where most families hang out. The kids loved the little snack bar & had a few too many snacks here. They explored several of the saunas in the common area, including the one pictured below....the ICE SAUNA!
Other things we did in the common area...Hubby and Boy 1 got massages in the massage chairs - 10 minutes = 3,000 won! They said they were great. I should have taken more pictures, but I was afraid of getting thrown out, I'm not sure cameras are allowed, but I did see other people sneaking pictures as well. I brought the DVD player for the kids, they watched a movie, & ate more snacks while I read a book. At this point they were a bit restless, so I took them to the play area, after a little while we headed to the outdoor heated pool. The kids and Hubby had a fantastic time in the pool.
While they were in the pool, I snuck away to get a massage. This time I opted to get a massage in the common area, the more western type of massage. (No wet black table with a lady holding her panties.) I was guided to a big room that had about 8 massage tables, I saw people laying with all their clothes on (remember they give you PJ's), so I plopped down and was ready for my 1 hour sports massage. Now I must tell you, I LOVE a deep tissue massage. 9 out of 10 times I am not happy with the massage I get because the therapist rarely goes deep enough for me. After the first touch, I knew I was going to like this *little* lady. She tore me up and it felt FANTASTIC! I couldn't believe she actually hurt me a couple of times, but I did not complain, as I did not want her to lighten up. She walked on me, shoved her knees in me, twisted my body in ways my husband only dreams of. It was the best massage I have had in YEARS!!
Next I met up with my family, and everyone was hungry. We ate at one of the two sit down restaurants on site. It was good and we would eat there again.
Now, I did not plan on staying all day, as I thought my family would be ready to go after a few hours. Girl had a birthday party to attend at 1:30, we arrived at the spa at 9AM, I thought surely everyone would be ready to go home before lunch. At 1PM, after lunch, none of the boys wanted to leave, and Girl had mixed feelings, but she really didn't want to miss her good friend’s birthday party, plus we had already RSVPed and I would not have let her miss it anyway. So, Girl, Boy 3 and myself headed out leaving the 3 other boys behind.
The boys finally called me at 4:30 asking me to come pick them up.
So, a few things I learned from this day.....
1. If you are afraid of going to the Spa because of the naked issue, it is mute. You can do a day at the spa without being naked.
2. There is so much to do in the common areas – there is a play area for the kids, a heated swimming pool, a hot tub, fitness center, garden on the top floor (I did not go up, but saw the sign for it), massages of all types, manicures, pedicures, relaxation, saunas of every type, hot, wet, cold, dry, brick oven…I’m sure there were even more I didn’t see. Oh, and I cannot forget the bottom floor where you can play video games or use a computer and connect to the internet, 30 minutes for 1,000 won. You can’t beat that.
3. I knew it was a family place, but it is much more family oriented than I thought, Boy 1, the one that was totally freaked out about going (the naked thing…you know, he is only 12) he was the one that did not want to leave.
So, what are you waiting for? Pack a bag and head on out! You will love it, I promise, and if you need someone to go with, just call anyone in my family and we will be game!
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