My memory is fuzzy regarding many aspects of this trip. One thing I am 100% sure of is Bestie C and I both slept in the Saturday of Day 21. The fact that it was a weekend played a part but we were thoroughly exhausted from the previous day's adventures. All day of walking and blistering heat made for a very good sleep.
We started the day with a vegan meal from the Loving Hut in Sinchon. I think it was one of a few, if not only, vegan/vegetarian restaurant nearby. Bestie C read about it on a blog and wanted to give it a try. We both ordered the fried cutlet from the Loving Hut. It was ₩7,000, which is pricey compared to some other meals we've had in Korea but still on the cheaper side compared to eating out in NYC.
The regular, non-vegan, version is usually a pork cutlet that is breaded, fried, and served with sauce and rice. In Korea it is referred to as donkatsu. In Japan it is usually called tonkatsu. Both refer to a similar kind of dish. If there was a difference, it is probably just in the sauce styles.
Loving Hut's take on the donkatsu is soy based. In fact the English name on the menu was Soy Cuttlet. In Korean it is called 비건 콩까스 or vegan (soy)bean katsu. I would like to know what kind of magically stuff they used to make this faux meat cutlet because I remember it tasted just like a meaty version. If I didn't know before hand and someone just ordered this for me, I would have probably been completely fooled.
Something else that we were both curious enough to do whilst in Korea was tour the streets of Gangnam and Cheongdamdong to see the Korean entertainment companies. Of course it would have been a plus to see some celebrities and idols by chance but neither of us were fangirls enough to sit and wait for anyone.
We were only able to spot JYP, Cube, and SM Entertainments' buildings on our self-guided, internet-aided walking tour. All three had very conveniently located shops or small parks across the street where many fans were idling and hoping to catch a glimpse of their idols.
I saw these in a few parks that we passed by in Korea and I knew it existed via K-dramas but I always wondered if the free exercise equipment in the parks was ever used. I guess that person might prove me wrong. Now I am also curious if such parks would be popular in the U.S. There's supposedly a higher number of overweight population in America than in Asia and who really wants to make that yearly donation to the gym...
A friend met up with Bestie C and I near the main street in the Gangnam district for dinner. I had initially wanted to try a pig intestine KBBQ restaurant that a popular Korean variety member and rapper of Leessang, Kang Gary, ran in Gangnam. Despite being able to locate the restaurant with the help of blogs, the BBQ joint was already shuttered. But my craving for grilled pig intestine only grew bigger during the search. What to do?
Of course we went on to find another KBBQ place that had intestine instead. The three of us ended up at The Mak Chang 막창 in a food alley off the Gangnam main street. We ordered those pig intestines that I had wanted in addition to some pork belly and beef.
It might sound really weird to be eating intestines. Yes it is the organ that houses all the feces of an animal. No it doesn't taste like it, if it's been cleaned well. Intestines taste really good when the outside gets super crispy. The inside of the circular food is still soft and slightly chewy. It is really all about the different textures for this cut of meat. Don't hate it until you try it. I love to eat the Chinese fried version but since it is on the fatty side, I don't get to eat it often.
A new day meant a new night to get shaved ice. This time we went a place in Sinchon called Ho Mil Pat or 호밀팥 since we saw a long line up of people waiting for it. If I remember right, the fruit bingsoos were the popular items. If I don't remember right then, we were just really happy to order something with fresh fruit. These two were the fruit shaved ice (과일빙수) and watermelon shaved ice (수박빙수). Both types come with their own serving of sweet red beans and fresh ddeok and were ₩7,500 each. At this point in time, I can say this wasn't my most favorite spot for bingsoo. But hey! It is still fresh fruit, red beans, and ddeok...good components nonetheless.
As I mentioned in the previous post, our next stop on the itinerary for the day was Dongdaemun Design Plaza or DDP. It is a very interesting place in Seoul that is part shopping complex, part art gallery, part exhibit space, and part park.
Visually it is an outstanding space to look at. There are so many levels that weave from one building to the next yet nothing is straight. Every part of DDP is just curvy and flowy. It is so architecturally different juxtaposed against all the massive erect skyscrapers that are the norm.
The reason why Bestie C wanted to visit DDP was for the My Love From Another Star Exhibit. This was the hit Korean drama of 2014. She found out that it was open whilst our stay in Seoul and had it top on her To-Do list. She was (is still) such big fan of the show during the airing so I wasn't surprised she wanted to see it.
I had started the K-drama prior to the study abroad trip but never got to finishing it. (In fact, almost 2 years later and I think I am still a few episodes away from completing the show.) Despite not being as big of a fan as she was, I couldn't say no to the opportunity to see a television show set. Behind the scenes stuff really fascinates me.
I believe each ticket was ₩15,000 for a full-priced adult entry. Before we got to see any of the sets and costumes, visitors had to take a quick stroll through the celestial lit hallway. Almost as if we're being transporting to another universe in order to see Do Min Joon and his world. Get it? If not, I'll try to give a concise snippet of the show. (I might not do the beloved show justice.)
Do Min Joon was the lead male character in the Korean drama. The premise of the whole show was based on how he has to adapt to life in Earth as an alien who landed in Korea centuries ago. He tries his best not to meddle with humans since it had led to ill consequences before.
Cheon Song Yi was the fabulous celebrity & actress female lead character who happened to find her way into the secluded Do Min Joon's life by suddenly becoming his neighbor.
The My Love From Another Star Exhibit showed the two main apartments featured in the show. One being Do Min Joon's and the other, of course, Cheon Song Yi's.
An embarrassing photo of me on the set of the drama. I was really there! This was Do Min Joon's bedroom.
Note to self: be less awkward in front of cameras.
I've never seen film or television sets outside of what Universal Studios California shows it's visitors. I was surprised by how detailed and finished both houses were. I would have imagined ceilings and lights, especially high ones, to be pretty bare bone since they probably won't show up on camera. Both apartments felt like it could be moved in to immediately.
If anyone is interested in how it looked like on the "outside" like I was. Sets continue to amaze me.
We found ourselves in Myeongdong for dinner that night since Bestie C had a dessert spot in mind. I forgot how we ended up choosing this particular Japanese restaurant. The gyudon, or beef rice bowl, was alright. It wasn't my favorite of everything we had in Korea but it wasn't terrible either.
The dessert we were on the hunt for was this soft service ice cream that was topped with actual honeycomb. It is called the Honey Chips Ice Cream at Softree for ₩4,800. I think this was one of those trendy foods that was super popular the summer we were in Korea. Bestie C read about it or saw it somewhere on the interwebs and wanted to try too. (As you can tell, I was usually not the informed one about what was cool in Seoul at the time.)
Such a pairing is something I hadn't seen before. In fact, honeycombs were completely unfamiliar to me. Other than knowing bees made honeycombs and honey is put there by the buzzers, my knowledge of it as food ended there. Who knew it could be eaten?
Having soft served ice cream with honey is so simple but very refreshing and light. I know that sounds counterintuitive since ice cream is supposed to be heavy and creamy but it just tasted light. Since it was a lighter honey, the flavor wasn't overpowering either.
The honeycomb part of it was interesting to say the least. Biting into it led to a burst of honey oozing into all corners of my mouth. But since honeycomb is a type of wax, I was continuously chewing on it until all the honey melted away. I believe the honeycomb wax was edible but after all the honey dissolved, I chose to spit the waxy remnants out.
Another Friday meant another full day of adventures in Seoul!
Hiking was one of the top items on my To-Do checklist. It was only fitting since mountains and hills are everywhere in Korea.
Being the hiking newbie that Bestie C and I were, I ended up choosing a paved path and supposedly easier portion of the Seoul Fortress Wall Trial for Day 20's activity. The wall is from the remnants of the Seoul city wall that was built centuries ago. It circled around most of present-day Seoul that is north of the Han River.
We couldn't possibly have lasted a hike on an empty stomach! What better way to fill up than with carbs and rice? The two of us ended up having bibimbap at a restaurant called Onedang on the way to the Sinchon Subway station.
The most foreign-friendly way to get around in Seoul is definitely via their subway system. There was Korean, English, Chinese, and (I think) Japanese on most signs and automated announcements.
To make it even easier, there is a mobile app called Subway and/or 지하철 that shows the whole subway map. (For anyone who prefers an online version, Cyber Station by SMRT Kr is pretty similar to the app.) If you enter your starting station and the alighting station, it will spit out very precise directions for the most optimal metro ride. If you need to transfer at a particular station, you will know the name and even the specific subway car AND door number to be at in order to be closest to the transfer exit.
One of the things I miss most about Seoul's metro system was having a numbered exits at every station. It made getting to a new place that much easier. Getting lost in unfamiliar streets is one thing with alleyways, crosswalks, and all. But knowing what number each staircase which leads to the street helps me that much more to calibrate my directions.
(NYC MTA get your stuff together! I'd rather see that first than cell service underground. Just saying.)
I opted to walk the part of the Fortress Trail leading towards Dongdaemun and Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP). It ultimately worked out for the best since Bestie C had actually wanted to visit DDP. The Korean Tourism sites had detailed information about the Seoul Fortress hiking trails. Our path was the #4 Naksan Mountain Trail from Hyehwamun Gate to Heunginjimun Gate (i.e. Dongdaemun).
Somehow we still ended up walking right past the trail entrance by accident after getting out of the right station and exit number. Perhaps the curved staircase was just easy to miss?
At some points of the trail, there were some forks in the road which lead into the nearby residential neighborhoods. Luckily there were many signs to ensure that you're going the right way.
The view during the hike was impeccable. Despite the hot sun shining down on us during the whole hike, I thought it was really worth the climb. The hike was easy in the sense that roads were practically all paved. There were wooden fences for safety and assistance to tired folk like myself. It wasn't crowded with people which let us go at a very leisurely rate.
Visit Korea said this trail was an easy one because of the mountain's relatively low height when compared to other mountains the other fortress sections sit on. If that's the case, I would be very intimidated to see the other routes. I thought the Naksan Trail was already pretty high and steep!
We walked for what felt like hours in the heat. It was exciting to see the big Korean letterings because it meant our hike was halfway done! Reaching Naksan Park gave us an opportunity to relax our increasingly sore muscles.
We chose not to dilly dally around for too long by the time we reached the top of the mountain. The view was great and we were definitely tired, but the both of us were ready to get out of the heat ASAP. The only thing that stopped us for a moment was finding free exercise equipment. As you can clearly see, I worked out quite a sweat on the elliptical-esque machine.
We reached our destination once we saw the next fortress gate, high rises, and all the traffic. If we wanted to continue onto the next part of the trail it would have been on the other side of the DDP. Perhaps another time?
Since our final destination was Dongdaemun Design Plaza, it was HIKE COMPLETED!
