Young couples at saunas

Here’s this week’s tip on Korean language and customs:

Q:
A group of Korean friends recently took me to a place called a jjimjilbang, a kind of sauna found everywhere in Seoul. It was past midnight, and what surprised me was that a place of relaxation, perhaps thought of as a place for inactive people, was bustling with young Koreans who seemed to be in perfectly good health.

For workout buffs like me, it was nice for a trial, but I didn’t think I would go back, especially at night. What’s the deal for Koreans?

A:
For generations, Koreans generally have believed that heat therapy, or jjimjil in Korean, can help cure minor ailments, boost metabolism and regenerate their bodies’ lost energy. This explains why dry saunas, or jjimjilbang, are popular among people of all ages nationwide.

Jjimjilbangs, equipped with clean rooms, rest areas, a snack bar and showers or bathtubs, are often co-ed, as visitors are fully dressed in tracksuits or robes. And admission is affordable. Daytime use costs less than 10,000 won ($10), and an overnight stay about twice as much, although prices vary from place to place.

For all these reasons, young Koreans find jjimjilbang a very convenient place to rest and/or kill time between or after parties at any time of day.