My First Subway Ride, Dongdaemun, and Sticker Photos

AUGUST 22: I had the BEST time ever today! Around noon, I met up with my Korean friend Christina (we lived on the same floor of the dormitory back in first year). Her parents picked me up from my hostel in their car, and were so kind and generous as to treat me to lunch at a traditional Korean restaurant. For some reason I had this stupid prejudiced opinion that all Korean parents were strict and formal, but Christina's were anything but. They were very modern and friendly--I even had a very enlightening conversation about Korean politics with her dad. Anyways, this was my first real Korean meal since my arrival and I was starving. I ordered naengmyeon, which I had been dying to try. Naengmyeon is a healthy cold noodle dish that is eaten during the summer. It consists of buckwheat noodles in a cold beef broth with slices of beef, Korean pear, cucumber, and a hardboiled egg. Christina's mom showed me how it must be eaten seasoned with vinegar and mustard. It was light and refreshing, and tasted delicious! There was also a variety of panchan (side dishes), such as the ubiquitous kimchi. At the end of our meal, her dad bought us this special type of Korean-style coffee you get from vending machines. It is sweetened with palm oil, which isn't too healthy but tastes so good!


Naengmyeon. I forgot to take a picture so this one's from the internet.

Afterwards her parents left us and we went by subway to Dongdaemun. Christina taught me how to use the Seoul Metro, which isn't hard at all once you get the hang of it. It is so modern and clean, and everything is operated by machine. There is a huge glass wall separating the platform from the tracks, presumably to discourage people from committing suicide. It is literally packed inside--the Seoul Metro is one of the most heavily used public transportation systems in the world. I'll take pictures and describe the ticket process better in a later post.

Dongdaemun (Great East Gate) is a huge shopping complex which houses over 30,000 stores. It is mostly frequented by the young crowd as the clothes are very trendy. Dongdaemun consists of huge buildings where individual vendors compete to attract customers (there are no walls or doors separating them, so they're technically not stores). Most of the goods sold here are inexpensive (between 10,000-40,000 won). There are also plenty of street food stands, cafes, and restaurants around. One interesting experience I had was trying on a denim miniskirt. As shops here are open and there are no fitting rooms, I had to put on a huge baggy skirt overtop, then try on the miniskirt underneath (trying to be as discreet as I possibly could!). I was embarrassed at first, but it was fun.

After our shopping expedition, we saw these fortune teller stands set up on the street outside. For 10,000 won, I got my fortune told using the traditional Korean method, with Christina translating for me. All the man needs to know is the date and time of your birth. Here are some of his predictions:

• My lucky colours are green and black
• I am good with words (eloquent)
• I have powerful dreams which often come true
• I am disposed to have kidney and bladder problems, and should counteract this by drinking lots of water
• I will have friendship troubles this November
• I must watch out for cars next April
• I will get a boyfriend next year
• I am soil, so I must marry a man who is either water or tree (either born in spring or winter)
• I must take care not to gain weight as I get older

Getting our fortunes told.

Later we went to the Korean frozen yogurt chain Red Mango, which competes with the popular Pinkberry, and ordered a medium patbingsoo to share. Patbingsoo is a Korean dessert eaten in the summer months. It consists of sweetened adzuki beans, fresh fruit (usually berries, bananas, and kiwi), and frozen yogurt over shaved ice. It is similar to the Philippine halo halo.

Patbingsoo! Ours was delicious. We chose green tea flavour for the shaved ice.

These toilets warm and massage your ass!

Back in Hyehwa, Christina spotted a sticker photo shop and convinced me to go in. I was hesitant at first (I think these are too fobby), but it turned out to be quite fun! Unlike the plain old boring photo booths found in North American malls, these booths were elaborate and spacious. It costs 6,000 won for 8 photos, of which you get to choose and print four. There are two options for backgrounds, "sexy" and "cute", and you're supposed to match your poses with whatever background you've chosen. Once you're done, you go out to the side of the booth, where a large screen displays the photos you've taken so you can personalize them. Using a special pen attached to the side of the machine, you can decorate the photos with hand-drawn doodles, or pick pre-made cartoon flowers, animals, food, etc. to dot the background with. You can get really creative with these!

The inside of the sticker photo shop.


The screen by the side of the booth where your pictures show up for you to decorate.



My first Korean-style photo stickers!


We didn't notice these wigs until after we had taken the photos.



My dinner from Family Mart: banana uyu (banana milk) and chamchi kimbap (tuna kimbap) recommended by Christina. I didn't care for the banana milk since it tasted a bit like cough medicine, but the kimbap was delicious and so cheap--just 1,000 won ($1) for 10 pieces! In Toronto kimbap is typically sold for $3.50 for 8 pieces.

All in all, I had an amazing time and it made me realize how lonely I had been in Seoul before today. Plus, I learned so much and got to do and eat some of the things I've always been wanting to try in Korea. Thanks, Christina!