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Situated to the West of Gyeongbokgung, Seochon, one of the oldest neighborhoods in Seoul, is an obvious treasure. It’s name is simply, “west village,” but that doesn’t embody the liveliness and warmth that you can experience here. Seochon hanoks were under threat of massive redevelopment and destruction up until 2008. The concerned took measures to ensure the preservation of the hanoks in this area, like that of Bukchon, the hanok village on the other side of Gyeongbokgung. And we should thank our lucky stars that this beautiful area has been saved and updated so that generations to come can walk through the streets and buy up all the things. Or just look around, that’s okay too. 🙂 In Robert J. Fouser’s book, Hanok, The Korean House, he explains how this area is an example of the neo-traditional style, or the “mixed hanok.” This new genre allows for experimentation and, perhaps more importantly, the expression of the owner’s personality. Like the city of Seoul itself, they appear similar from afar but sparkle with the color of individuality up close. Not to …
Prepare yourself, folks, there’s a history lesson in here today! 🙂 I think most would agree that the skyline of Seoul in many areas is quite impressive, however, the inside of most apartment buildings, the majority of the skyscrapers in Seoul, look like something this side of a psych ward. The apartments weren’t made to necessarily be creative, interesting or impressive. Barren boxes, designed to house as many families as possible, is what comes to mind when I think about how most of us live in Seoul. So when we are tired of looking at our boring little boxes, it is time to visit areas with traditional architecture and a time when homes were made with a bit more love and care. One such area is a tiny hanok island surrounded by those tall, boring buildings, called Ikseon-dong. It’s just a neighborhood over from Insa-dong. The entire area is experiencing a glowing revival, much the same as the hanok renovations in Samcheong, Bukchon and Seochon. Renovations to these wonderful little places have been met with controversy through the years, however. In the …
A painfully gorgeous day urges this couch potato into vast exploration of new areas. I found myself in sunlight and unknown neighborhoods last Sunday when I hopped on the subway to an area that is being called by people much cooler than myself, I’m sure, as the Brooklyn or Williamsburg of Seoul city living. These areas in Seoul, a generally run down looking, formerly industrialized Korean neighborhood with splashes of youth and transformation, give me a positive outlook on Korea. This country, for all its productivity and creativity, could easily become stagnant because of old fashioned ideals and hierarchical working relationships in large companies. Four years ago, when I first arrived, I was told the Korean career trajectory was: study endlessly in high school miserably, get into the best college, work at LG or Samsung or some other high powered Korean company, work long and tedious hours miserably until you eventually die with loads of vacation time stacked up that you had but weren’t allowed to take. Sounds awesome, yeah? I just couldn’t imagine that this sort of mindset …
Seoul gets some pretty damn adorable art installations. (See Rubber Duck!) Just another reason to love this city. The latest installation that has captured the hearts of girls all over Korea is 1600 Pandas+. The name says it all, really, the exhibit is 1600+ paper mache pandas that have been on a world tour for seven years. The pandas actual number 1800 and there’s a good reason for that. The installation’s main objective when it was created in 2008 was to bring awareness to the fact that there were only 1600 pandas living in the wild and in danger of becoming extinct. But the number has grown because of more eco-awareness. So yeah, it’s the most adorable invasion ever, but the message is working. That’s a pretty amazing thing in and of itself.
If you want a feel of authentic Seoul, I’d argue you need to head to the north side of the Han. As I do much of my day tripping in the southern half, I relish the times I get to go to one of my favorite areas, Jongno. My actual intention was the visit one gallery I had my eye on and ended up in an independent bookstore, three galleries and a museum. That’s the ridiculously cool thing about settling down in a living, breathing city like Seoul. You can always pick a location and find plenty to do in that area which can include, but is not limited to: entertainment, food, coffee and a cocktail. And depending where you go, each of those things can be an experience.
If you’re one of those entrepreneurs with brass, umm, knuckles, and have decided to open up a little cafe in Seoul, the land of seemingly endless and charming cafes, you need a little something sparkly to stand out to keep from going under. Banana Tree Cafe in Sinsa found its sparkling star in a pudding dessert dressed up like a clay pot of flowers and you can happily spoon it up with a mini shovel spoon. In America, it’s something similar to dirt pudding except there are no chocolate flavors. (Honestly, they need a chocolate. No special reason, but I really like chocolate.)
Last week Korea was gripped in an obscene panic due to MERS. I was off from school closings and reading a lot of bad news on the internet. My solution? Ignore it and hop on the subway to the 2015 Rose Garden Festival which is inside Seoul Grand Park. This was my first jaunt out this way save for a few years ago when I visited the MMCA museum in the area. Just on the outskirts of the big city of Seoul, the park is surrounded by mountains and (hopefully) fresh air. The place was surprisingly big. You could easily spend 1/2 a day out there just in the rose garden itself. There is also a lake, trails and a lift that will show you a bird’s eye view of the park. Of course, since it was the middle of the week (and possibly the MERS) the park was not busy and it was easy to get to the themed garden. It’s quite a walk and the summer is heating up, so if you are not …
Une Peach 