Pasadena Magazine

February 2016 - Beauty, Love and Money

Pasadena Magazine is the bi-monthly magazine of Pasadena and its surrounding areas – the diverse, historically rich and culturally vibrant region that includes Glendale, the Eastside of Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley all the way to Claremont.

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Scrub A Dub Dub: My Day At A Korean Spa Though far from the typical "Americanized" spa experience, Wi Spa's facilities prove you don't have to travel across the world to discover the immensely effective bea uty regimen of a Korean bathhouse. STORY BY // SARA SMOLA ∫ KOREAN BATHHOUSES, KNOWN AS JJIMJILBANGS, HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR YEARS, THOUGH IT WAS ONLY UNTIL SOMEWHAT RECENTLY THAT KOREAN SPAS BEGAN POPPING UP AROUND LOS ANGELES. BUT, MAKE NO MISTAKE, THIS IS NOT THE STEREOTYPICAL "AMERICANIZED" SPA EXPERIENCE YOU'LL FIND AT YOUR LOCAL BURKE WILLIAMS. THERE IS NO FLUFFLY ROBE OR CUCUMBER WATER TO SIP in between rounds of pampering and gos- sip. Instead, the Koreans have cultivated a social and ritualistic relaxation technique in a communal style bathhouse with little fuss but complete effi ciency. Wi Spa in particular, located on the outskirts of Koreatown, is open for business 24 hours a day and offers a multitude of beautifying treatments from body wraps and massages, as well as saunas and spas of varying temperatures, all said to have healing and other life-improving properties. Lizzie Garret Mettler of Vogue, proclaimed that, "Wi Spa takes the Korean spa experience to the next level," and hailed Wi as one of the "fi ve best Korean spas around the country" in the magazine's national ranking. Wi is best known for their traditional Korean body buffi ng scrub which according to their website "employs full body exfoliating techniques to lift impurities and dead skin, leaving you with healthier, brighter skin." As someone who spends most of her day in an offi ce, healthier, brighter skin sounded like a dream to me, as did the $30 price point. Wi Spa is open to anyone—men, women and children alike. The co-ed area of the facil- ity—the jimjilbang—is where the socializing and resting takes place. The space includes saunas, a restaurant, nap area where guests can recline on mats on the heated fl oors, a library fi lled with popular Korean novels and comics, and computer room. While children are kept occupied in the jimjilbang, men and women are welcome to retreat to gender exclusive fl oors where the real spa experience takes place. At check in, each guest is given what can only be described as safari-esque attire: bright yellow t-shirts emblazoned with "Wi Spa," baggy khaki shorts (Pro tip: roll them at the hem) and a wristwatch. The watch is also used as a credit card for purchasing treatments and food and saves you the trouble of carrying around cash—just make sure to checkout at the front desk when you leave, in order to settle up. Since Wi Spa recommends soaking your skin in one of the hot baths before the scrub- bing treatment (it's easier for the dead skin to be exfoliated), I was directed to the women's spa area and eagerly anticipated the detoxify- ing powers of the heated bath, lauded for its ability to remedy fatigue and increase blood circulation. Thanks to the sign on the women's spa (" NO CLOTHING ALLOWED" and "MUST SHOWER"), I quickly discovered there is no room for modesty in a Korean spa. After what was the fastest shower of my life since high school, I joined women of all shapes and ages gathered to dip in the spas—naked. To be fair, no one looks twice at stretch marks, A FRESH START. Wi Spa's body scrubs work wonders and provide numerous health benefi ts. FEBRUARY 2016 43 B O D Y, M I N D A N D S P I R I T HEALTH & WELLNESS health_Feb16.indd 43 1/20/16 2:38 PM

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