Sento（せんと,銭湯) in Japan and daejungmokyoktang(대중목욕탕, 大衆沐浴湯) in Korea

A Sento Entrance(銭湯の入口）

A Daejungmokoktang Entrance(대중목욕탕 입구)

　One of the attractive things that Osaka has for travelers is that things are much cheaper from dishes to accommodations than Tokyo and many of the major cities in Japan. For example, I spent around $130 staying in a small hotel located near Dobutsuenmae Station (動物園前駅) for 9 days. The hotel was nice. I had my own tatami floored room with a small TV and fridge. Everything was clean and clerks were kind. One problem was that it has only one shower room just on the first floor. At first, I was let down because I wanted to warm my body with hot water shower after a long walk of the day. But, fortunately, it was offering a coupon for a sento near the hotel each day for free to make up for lack of shower facility. I was happy to hear that I was able to soak my frozen body into the hot bath in the sento. Moreover, I hadn't been to an onsen(hot spring) or sento ever in Japan.

　The sento was quite similar to the daejungmokyoktang(대중목욕탕) that I used to go in Korea except for a few things like the noren(a kind of short curtains at the gate of the shop that shows its identity) at the gate and the vending machine that sells entrance tickets. Getting into the locker hall, the atmosphere was a bit like the one in the daejungmokyoktang that I used to go to with my dad  30 years ago. There was a small old refrigerator that had some beverages and milks for sale, which is also typical even in daejungmokyoktangs in Korea. Enjoying the sento every night after tour, I felt nostalgic, thinking it was weird to see a bit of the past of Korea. But night after night, I could see a few different things. Here are the differences that I recognized between the sento I went to in Japan and general daejungmokyoktangs in Korea.

　First, it was quite calm in the sento compared to a daejungmokyoktang. Even though there were some people talking quietly in the bath, generally people were silent. It seemed that people were even careful not to make any kind of noise when getting out of the bath. Koreans are not as careful as the people in the sento not to make noise. That kind of carefulness of the Japanese in the sento might be common in almost all public places. I could even take a short nap in the long subway trip in Japan, partly thanks to the calmness of the passengers.

　Second, the temperatures of the baths in the sento were quite higher than the ones in daejungmokyoktangs. I couldn't stay in the bath long. Getting out of the bath, I found my skin reddened.

　Third, the wall separating the men's room and women's room were open on the upper side that I could hear the noises over the women's side. In Korea, they are completely separated that it is impossible to hear anything from the other side. The first night I went there, I was quite nervous and uncomfortable even seeing the opened side of the wall.

　Fourth, it might represent how Koreans and Japanese have different points of views for their own bodies in public places and it is that many Japanese in the sento came into the bathroom hiding their important part with a towel or sometimes their hand. But the proportion of the people doing so was less than 50%, I guess. Young people tended to hide their important part while middle aged or elderly people came in like typical Koreans. Watching it, I could understand why the people in the public bath talking in Japanese drama scenes are wearing a towel on their head. The towel was for hiding their important part in getting out of the bath.

　The last thing was the most surprising experience, which might show the biggest difference between Korean culture and Japanese one. The second night I went to the sento, after taking a shower briefly, I jumped to the bath because I had been frozen with the cold and windy weather that day. Looking around the sento, I happened to see an old clerk who was cleaning the locker hall over the window. Because of the misty window, I barely could see the clerk. After cleaning the locker hall, the person came in to sort out baskets and other things. The person was an old grandma. She even said hello to a few customers who were scrubbing their stomach while cleaning the bathroom. I couldn't help staying in the bath until she went out. I had heard that kind of episode, but it was the most exotic experience ever I've had in Japan. In Korea, as men's rooms and women's rooms are separated completely, it is absolutely not allowed for a woman over 4 years old to get to the men's room and vice versa.

  I was asked whether I could figure out whether a passerby was Korean, Japanese, or Chinese without listening to him or her talking by an American friend who lives in Osaka while walking down a market. I said, " Yes, generally." I think I can discern them because each group has different styles, gestures, preferences and so on. The first day in the sento, I could feel slightly that people were watching me figuring out that I am a foreigner. I was doing things as I do in  daejungmokyoktangs in Korea. I was making more noise. I walked around exposing my important part. But the last night I went there, I felt I was assimilating myself to the rules of the sento seeing myself being calmer and not embarrassed with the old lady walking around me. It was a great chance to feel how different and similar Korean and Japanese culture are.