Daejeon, South Korea
Spa and arrival
After being in the central city full of splendor, we took the fast train to a smaller city where David had studied. It was a university city, still complete with students from KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology).
The first thing we did after arriving was to try out the Jjim Jil Bang. This is the Korean spa. It is absolutely the best spa experience I have ever had! The spa is constructed of female/male areas where everyone is naked, so lovely not to mingle. Here you have different water tubs, jacuzzies, saunas, steam baths, and water massages. You can also have a full body scrub and massage from one of the ladies that work there. Then there is a common area where a restaurant serves local food and saunas built in different architectures with different heats.
Furthermore, other resting areas sometimes include TVs and futons. Rapidly we ran out of time; you can easily spend a whole day there. But lastly, we arrived late, and the spa closed for the day after only a couple of hours.
Student life
The next day was spent visiting KAIST; it was a vast university, much like what I imagined MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) to be like. We walked around for hours, visiting their food court with many options; we had fried rice with pork. Mine was wrapped in an omelet thin as paper, very delicious. After going down memory lane, we went out to the smaller city district. Up against here, you could find many bars and restaurants full of life and vibe with joyful tunes. We went for their famous chicken and beer, and after for Makgeolli (raw rice wine) at a bar up on the 3rd floor, so you could sit and enjoy the life of the street below.
Central city
Around the central city, we found smaller parks and tried their convenience store food. If you are in South Korea, it is an absolute must; it is like a small restaurant with many different dishes; you can even heat it right there and then in their microwave or find boiling water for your noodles. We ended up having their rice triangles with a middle of tuna or pork, soft-boiled eggs, and some of their many different milk variations. We went to eat at the park just outside. After having a nourishing, convenient meal, we strolled further down the garden, where they had hot springs. They had made an area with benches across each other; you had your feet in the warm water. They had even made a path with rocks to stimulate your feet.
All in all, it was a wonderful visit.
Next to Busan, we took the train dreading the zombies but don’t worry, we were safe (Movie Reference, Train to Busan)
For more photos, click on the gallery below.