Lasema



Speaking of favorites, my Spa of the Moment is the Lasema Jjim Jil Bang Spa and Sauna in Makati City. I absolutely indulged in my first time there and found it most unique of all the spas I went to.

Jjim jil bang is the Korean word for “bath house.” In the Land of the Morning Calm, it is commonly used to refer to a sauna facility with different types of room temperatures to give varied health benefits to the body. Thanks to the invasion of Korean culture here, kids and adults alike can now enjoy an authentic jjim jil bang experience in Manila . Take out all the toxins in your body at the 75 degree Celsius Dome Clay Sauna or get the feeling of being enveloped by snow at the two degrees Ice Room.

A visit to Lasema can cost as little as P250 if you only use the “wormwood” sauna plus the three types of jacuzzi , namely cold, “ginger hot” and “green tea.” Male and female areas are segregated from each other - naturally.Taking a light shower is a must before dipping in the pools in your birthday suit ( because this is not a beach, you cannot go in your swimsuit :P ). I reckon it takes quite a while for shy Pinays to go with the idea, and even with an Indian lady I talked to. But you get used to it!! On our visit, I saw a couple of Korean children frolicking with their mothers and yaya in the warm tubs without a care in the world.

Oh well, thank God for the jet bubbles!!! :P The jacuzzis are quite high-tech with the temperatures written in digital meter. I could stay here for hours and I don’t have to drive all the way to Pansol. Green tea and ginseng in water is said to reduce stress and give one youthful vitality…

After relaxing in the pools, guests can then change into their robes and go to the jjim jil bang proper (P450 on weekdays, with the jacuzzis). This consists of different saunas shaped like caves - the 75-degree Dome Clay Sauna, 50-degree Salt and Charcoal Sauna, the 60-degree oak and clay sauna and the two-degree ice room. Here’s me in the Ice Room…. now I know how it feels like to be in the refrigerator!

Am not really a sauna person but there’s some literature posted on Lasema’s walls about the advantages of this type of treatment. Apparently, the natural properties of salt, charcoal, oak and clay are good for the skin, the body’s metabolism and treating ailments like asthma. Most importantly, a session relaxes and rejuvenates as well as takes out deadly toxins in the body.

The ceilings of the sauna in Lasema are also fitted with gemstones like jade, amethyst, sapphire and topaz which are known for their “healing and therapeutic effects.”

After enclosing yourself at the jjim jil bang -

you can go for a formal massage …

have refreshments at the bar …

eat at the Jewel in the Palace Korean Restaurant…

surf in the internet cafe…

get fit in the gym….

play with the kids at the Kiddie Room….

rest to your heart’s content in the sleeping caves.
(stay as much as 12 hours)

Lasema Jjim Jil Bang Spa
at the MGC Lasema Plaza
7232 Malugay St.,
Bel-Air, Makati City
Telephone No. 830-2222

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Posted in My Manila |