Korea: Nostalgic Views in Hwajeong

One of the best parts of living in the little make-shift office turned bedroom I had in Korea was the largely unobscured view offered by the large windows within, offering me a glimpse out onto the city of Hwajeong as the sun rose or faded into the horizon and all the various shades in between. Hwajeong, while not really Seoul proper, is still quite a bustling little suburb and full of life, so I'd often overhear whooping shouts and excited calls from people celebrating below, at all hours of the night. It was fascinating, and often quite beautiful. The trade-off was that occasionally I'd be awoken early on my day off and told that the office was needed for the home owner's work purposes and to, more or less, make myself scarce. These things. In theory, I could have found a small apartment somewhere in Seoul and rented it for cheaper than what I paid for my sometimes less-than-private space, as many of my friends and their cohorts in a different field emphasized, but my living arrangement was already predetermined in a contract that outlined my work requirements and obligations prior to my even arriving to Korea. I'm not bitter about it, though there were times during my stay where I'd get frustrated by feeling trapped in a situation that wasn't always to my benefit. The other rooms in the apartment were rented out on AirBnB for a higher rate than what I was paying, so I was getting a deal, but there were often strangers coming and going outside my bedroom, or an awkward wait for the shared restroom in the morning when several of us had obligations to tend to. Some of the AirBnB guests stayed on for a longer term, and we got to know eachother a little better in the brief encounters in the kitchen or hallways, but some nights I'd find myself answering the door to an exhausted stranger I hadn't been told to expect, a potentially spooky situation depending on the circumstances. I digress. In the end, I'm immensely grateful for having had the opportunity to live and work in such an incredible place as South Korea, and while I certainly wish I'd had more information going in, I'm still very much glad I went. 

Korea: Morning Commute from Hwajeong-shi

A necessary ritual in many modern lifestyles is the morning commute, the pilgrimage from a suburban respite into the bustling business centers of the city. My time in Korea was certainly marked with this ceremonial passage, morning and evening, as I made my way from the northern residential burb of Hwajeong down to Seoul proper to set up for the day. Every so often, I would get to work and begin setting up only for a coworker to awkwardly approach and ask if perhaps I'd misread the schedule, or maybe they had. Typically it was my fault that I'd misinterpreted my shift, and I'd end up having to find a way to fill the handful of hours at my destination until the shift began. Given how far out of the way Hwajeong was from, say, Lotte world, it didn't make much sense for me to go all the way home only to turn right back around and return, so I'd explore the nearby shopping centers or parks. As annoyed as I might have been in the moment for missing out on some additional sleep I might have garnered by staying home, it was generally a good thing that I explore these areas. The various Fun Caricature locations operating throughout Seoul are placed strategically in high-traffic touristy areas, after all, so the neighborhoods I'd coincidentally find myself arriving at too early in the day would have ample ways for me to entertain myself. 

The commute itself, though, had its own merits. While many mornings I'd take the time to catch up on podcasts, e-mails, or various threads on Reddit, the scenery wasn't unpleasant to look at by any stretch of the term. As the seasons evolved from one into the next, the scenery, too, would shift in shades and texture, providing an aesthetic affirmation of nature's workings. Depending on the time of day, I might pass a food stall with billowing plumes of dense and delicious steam flooding out onto the path, or vendors with freshly procured produce offering their wares.

The short walk to the train station, in and of itself, became a precious sort of journey. That green sign to the right in the photo above? That was my go-to market after returning home from work, as I could pop in and find most of the groceries I could possibly want at a reasonable price. E-mart, too, was just a bit further down the street on the trek home. There were several other groceries, department stores and markets all scattered about nearby, and there was a rather large one tucked into the basement level of the train station, too. No shortage of options available, that's for sure. Never underestimate the sheer convenience and walkability of the city of Seoul and it's suburban branches! It will truly spoil you to live in the area... I miss being able to walk to a store at any given time of day or night and find a hot meal or cold bottle of soju/beer/wine, or fried chicken, sweet and chewy egg bread... but I digress! I could write tomes about how tasty and bountiful the food is in Seoul...

Korea: Blind Alley Raccoon Cafe

Is there any animal that you feel a particular kinship with? Like, do you see an eagle soaring high above it all majestically silhouetted against the bright blue sky and feel like there's a special significance, a certain similarity shared between your personal essence and the animal? I used to think that I had that sort of quasi-spiritual-groove with dolphins, who seem to appear near me when in bodies of water they frequent, but these days I find I chalk that up more to the mind seeking to connect the dots and form a meaningful pattern to make it special rather than actually being something special. Dolphins, in all their majestic flippering and gratitude for all the fish, are also a bit rapey and scary, too. Did you know that Flipper and his friends will isolate a female from the pod and then take turns on her, gang-raping her for weeks on end and using aggressive posturing and behaviors to intimidate her into acquiescence? Like, DAMN, dolphin-dudes, chill! Any moderately attractive woman of post-pubescent age has probably, at some time or another, had to deal with the unfortunate human equivalent of those gang-rapist-creeps of dolphins, though hopefully in less full-out-forceful and trauma-inducing situations. I know I hate me some over-the-top jabronies, so my love for dolphins is dampened knowing they're those guys at the party. As if that wasn't bad enough, dolphins also have a habit of killing babies, whether it's another bottlenosed nosed dolphin or another species, and they're riddled with STDs! Yuck. Over it. 

But you know what animal is totally cute, has a super-fluffy tail, toe-beans, fancy-facial-attire, and a vaguely triangular-faced-monkey-like appearance? Raccoons, AKA trash-pandas! These little guys are vastly underappreciated! Look how adorable that sleepy little baby is up there on that railing! Don't you just want to rub his little feeties and boop that snoot?! Trash-Pandas, much like myself, are almost always up for a good snack and a nap, which I think are two traits almost any decent human can get behind. So when my friend Carmen informed me that there was actually this magical place tucked away in Seoul where you could grab some warm beverages with caffeine AND cozy up to some raccoons, you know I was on-board! 

Unfortunately, by the time we arrived most of the fluffy little cuties were quite sleepy and settled in for a nap, high above the reach of most visitors. There was one very happy, very friendly little corgie romping around who was more than eager to step in for pets and appreciation, so I found myself spending more time with that little sweetie. As much as I love the raccoons, I also understand how anyone can wind up cranky when woken from their nap prematurely, so better to let them get their Zs. 

Korea: 부대찌개 Budaejigae and snacks in Insadong

In the magical and mysterious, far-flung land of Seoul, South Korea, there are a seemingly insurmountable variety of selections available for your culinary delight. You can grab a steaming hot cup of Americano from your local train station or Starbucks, then mow through some fresh-off-the-griddle gyerrangpang, these addictive little sweet breads with a fresh egg on top, then stop for sushi for lunch and Italian for dinner...or switch out the different variables for whatever combinations of foods you personally enjoy, whether it's thai, slow-cooked American-South style barbeque, tacos... This was not always the case, though- the Korean peninsula has gone through a lot over its many centuries of civilization, and a hearty resiliency and ingenuity have become a point of pride in the people. After the Americans began to occupy the country during the height of the Korean war, then lingered after the tentative ceasefire took hold, their culinary presence spread, from dishes to canned goods ready to use, and were adopted by the locals. The continued presence and popularity of American fast food chains, like McDonald's and Taco Bell, demonstrate this fact to this day, but subtler influences remain, like the almost perverse love of Spam that can be found from Seoul to Okinawa, Manila to Hawaii... all places where a strong American army presence has lead to the introduction, and then infiltration and acceptance of processed tinned meats and other Americanized foodstuffs into the local cuisines. 

Budaejigae, or Army Base Stew, is a self-aware epitome of this phenomena, utilizing ubiquitous Korean foods like kimchi, gochujang, and local vegetables tossed into the pot with hot dogs, baked beans, spam, ramen, and maybe a slice (or three) of good old American processed sliced cheese for good measure. There are a billion different ways to make budaejigae and nearly as many different restaurants to choose from when trying to find a place to try it. You can also buy it in premade instant ramen form, heavily leaning into the popular role instant ramen noodles typically serve in soaking up the flavorful broth left in the pot at the end of the meal. It's a satisfying hodgepodge of sweet, savory, spicy and creamy, and this particular vat of goodness was enjoyed with a coworker during our lunch break, not far from Ssamziegil in Insadong area of Seoul. It was a delicious and filling lunch, and budaejigae combines comfortingly familiar flavors with Korean seasonings in a way that I think most any American could enjoy, were they brave enough to try it. 

Be brave, my friends. Try all the things!

Korea: 추어탕 Chuoetang (aka Pond Loach soup)

Ever so often, I'll find myself in the awkward position of having restaurant staff asking me to reconsider my order, eyeing me warily to gauge if my spoken pronouncement were a bad joke of some kind. Sometimes this scenario plays out with the chef himself blustering out from behind the doors leading to the kitchen, encouraging (neigh, pleading) with me to reconsider the heat level I ordered and opt for something less radioactive. Then there are those times when I specifically seek out a dish that is, perhaps, a little less popular or well-received by those who've never sampled it before...Chuoetang is one of the dishes that falls into the latter category, a soup that's renowned for its beauty and healthy benefits but not much else. I was able to source the dish in Insadong, near Anguk station, which makes sense. Many of the restaurants that proliferate through the winding, cobble-stone streets and alleys of the area cater to traditional Korean cuisine in all its forms, from the elaborate spreads of Royal court cuisine all the way to humble street foods and mudfish (aka pond loach) soup. 

If the name mudfish doesn't immediately dredge up sensory conceptualizations of the taste, rest assured that the fish's flavor doesn't veer far from the name. Not only does the fish have a distinctly earthen flavor, but it's also not exactly the easiest or prettiest thing to eat. Inventive Koreans of yonder year solved this dilemma by opting to grind up the poor little butterfaces, which lends the soup a distinctive texture. This also takes care of most, though not all, of those microscopic little fish bones that can make eating fish meat such a chore. And guess what? Because you're devouring the fishes in all their entirety, you're getting a super-boost of different minerals, vitamins and other beauty-boosting goodness that you might otherwise miss out on. Like I said before, this soup is considered a super-food for your health and well-being, and all the collagen is especially good for your skin. There's something of an obsession abounding around functional foods in Japan and Korea, and if the condition of the typical woman's skin in those countries is any indicator they've figured something out, alright. The soup was alright, too- nothing to get terribly excited about flavorwise, perhaps, but totally edible and absolutely delectable if it means waking up to softer, healthier skin! 

Korea: Ssamji Filming, mascots and snacks, oh my!

While working as a caricature artist for the Fun Caricature company in Korea, I was able to rotate shifts between different locations which meant that I never got too bored or stuck at an underperforming location for too long. One of my favorite locations to work was the Insadong location, tucked into the Ssamziegil shopping center. The building itself is a unique concept, with minimal stairs and the floors laid out at a gentle incline so that you can comfortably wind your way around and up the building until you arrive at the uppermost deck. There was a palpable energy to the area that I really enjoyed, and the surrounding Insadong is a neighborhood robust with arts and crafts and old-school winding cobblestone streets surrounded by charming restaurants, hostels and museums tucked into classical style buildings. You can easily walk over to the Bukchon Hanok village to take in the history and shopping, and there's tons of other sights to take in nearby too! For me, though, I thoroughly enjoyed working in the Insadong area and taking in the ever-changing craft fairs and flow. Some days we'd get parades of people marching down the main central walkway, banging on drums and singing in traditional garb as they make their way through a historic loop, others flocks of youth protestors campaigning against the dog-meat industry and raising awareness. Naturally, there are so many options for food throughout the area that you'd have no reason to go hungry- whatever your budget. If you're feeling a little spend-thrifty, there's ample convenience stores and street food to fill your belly with something warm and quick, whether it's chicken skewers or instant ramyun. For those with a little more won to their name, you can wander the seemingly endless alleys of Insadong and find everything from fermented skate fish meals to fancy Royal court cuisine, which was once prepared exclusively for the Joseon Dynasty, considered one of the peaks of historic Korean royalty culture. I must admit, I never got around to trying the royal cuisine, due partially to the cost and partly due to the sheer volume of food presented. It's definitely a meal meant for sharing with friends! It's on my bucket list, though, so next time Antho and I happen to be in Seoul it's definitely going down. On this particular day, though, I kept it simple with some cheap convenience store snacks and enjoyed the entertainment. Not every day a mascot shows up to your job, right?

Korea: Ewha university district

 Along with being nearly impossible for me to spell correctly, Ewha university district is an excellent destination for anyone looking to soak up some of Seoul's prodigious youth culture. Ewha Women's University happened to be the private educational institution where my good friend Carmen happened to be teaching English at the time of my stay in Korea, so her apartment was in the area, naturally. We had met up in different neighborhoods throughout my stay, but given her familiarity with the area we decided to explore it together on a chilly early-winter evening. The energy of the area is palpable, though, almost immediately after departing the train or bus station. Rich, densely scented plumes of steam billow from multiple street food vendor's carts, a heady mix of odors perfuming the air and young students and residents bustle buy in their quest for cheap sustenance and a safe, quiet place to study. Luckily, Seoul was pretty safe in my experience of it, but that doesn't mean it's an entirely idyllic location free of troubles...

Once your stomach is sufficiently satiated, you have a plethora of options to choose from when it comes to entertainment. Maybe you feel like dipping into a noraebang for Korean-style karaoke, or maybe you want to drop a few thousand won at the flagship Line Friends store and get your photo with the giant teddybear that resides inside. I mean, I didn't get my photo with the bear, because I'm a cynical bastard., but don't let me stop you from living your best life. There are endless shops throughout the area catering to the needs of all the students (and their professors) living near the campus, whether you need some cheap fresh fruit straight from the farmer or some fast fashion to keep up with the endlessly evolving fashion parading through the streets. One thing South Koreans seem quite good at is staying on top of the trends, as you'll quickly notice a very strong color palette present on most train rides through the city, or simply by walking through the crowded alleys of Hongdae and Ewha, where the color du jour will dominate the scene.  

Whether you're looking for a primo-photo opportunity or want to stock up on the latest skincare and fashion trends, Ewha is worth checking out on any visit to Seoul!

Korea: Lotte World lines and fusion food

Briefly on this blog in the past have I discussed my time working at Lotte World, in South Korea's bustling capital city of Seoul. It was, for better or worse, the furthest location from my living arrangements and required the longest commute to get to and from, clocking in at roughly three hours of transit time a day and four separate train rides. Heaven forbid I oversleep, or time out my transfers wrong- though, to be fair, the morning commute is pretty well covered by the city's subway system with frequent running trains helping ferry people to their various jobs in all the different corners of the city on time. The transportation system of, say, the city of Las Vegas, could certainly take a few pointers from how well organized and run the system in this massive catacomb of subterranean tunnels is. While I doubt any country could effectively try to compete with how unbelievably well-choreographed the Japanese train system is, Seoul's is pretty damn fantastic. Only a handful of times in six months was I ever late, and that was due mostly to user error on my part like not understanding the menus which, presumably, would warn against the trains that were stopping and going offline at the next station, or missing my train outright. Like I said, these things were squarely my fault for failing to properly utilize the system or grasping the language, so I can't fault the city or the system there. 

Once I finally did make my way to Lotte world, there was no assurance of escape from the crowds clustered together in the trains- if anything, there was a pretty solid chance it'd be even more crowded! Lotte World is a popular theme park, after all, and towards the end of my time working inside of the facility there were some new and exciting attractions introduced, which led to a huge upswing in traffic. As someone who's decidedly not super-keen on big crowds, this wasn't hugely favorable, though in reality it mainly translated to a very long line of people actively ignoring me. Fun stuff. Since I wasn't being paid hourly, and I wasn't making a huge amount of money with most of the visitors more interested in checking out the new attractions, I ended up going downstairs and grabbing a meal at a Korean-Mexican fusion restaurant inside the Jamsil station complex. It wasn't bad! 

More photos below~

Korea - Lotte world lights

Many months in a row, I found myself making the long commute to Lotte World. From Hwajeong to Jamsil station it would take roughly an hour and 20 minutes, sometimes longer if the weather was bad, trains were being decommissioned (as I often found to be the case as I was running late to work already) or other issues arose. Often times the train would be packed, a steamy airtight tube full of grouchy people rubbing elbows, day or night. The commute was, perhaps understandably enough, not my favorite aspect to working at the Lotte World location- getting to and from work took up a significant portion of my day, and often hampered me from wanting to go out and explore because of the amount of time it would still take for me to get home afterward. This, of course, was a shame because there is so much good food and so many beautiful places to find throughout the city of Seoul! Take these beautiful illuminations, for example.   

Lotte World is incorporated into Jamsil station and a shopping mall, often mingling beyond their own divided borders throughout the space. It was exceptionally confusing on my first day, and my coworker provided a very detailed photographic guide for me to find him that first run, and even so, it was fraught with issues. For one thing, telling me to meet him at Lotte Burger sounded good in theory, until I found a secondary location hidden in a corridor where my coworker had little reason to explore (and therefore no prior knowledge of). You can grab a quick bite at any number of restaurants, from the multiplicity of Lotte Burgers to sit-down cold noodles and sushi, bibimbap or kimbap a-plenty (from small stalls or major fast food chains). There are SO many different places selling clothes- from the mall proper at one end of the complex, to the underground market on the other end full of affordable tweenage styles and fast fashion, so you can get your newest styles after a day of fun at Lotte World- and if that's not enough you could even grab your groceries in the large subterranean market! The main point I'm getting at, albeit slowly and a bit convolutedly, is that you could get most of your needs taken care of or tended to while safely inside in the confines of the Jamsil station/Lotte World shopping mega-complex. There's little to no need for any visitor to step outdoors... unless, of course, you really wanted to explore the area and maybe take in the Olympic Park after a scenic walk. I would step out to vape when I could find a quiet, isolated area, or I'd enjoy my lunch out in the grassy area near a micro-convenience store hidden inside the building's outer periphery. It was on one of these outings that I discovered these illuminations, seeking a brief solace from the crowds inside before braving the long (and often crowded) commute back home. 

Certainly not the worst of surprises, huh? 

So let this be a reminder to you to stop and enjoy the little things, deviate from the norm, at least every once in awhile. 

Korea: Dongdaemun Grilled Fish Alley 동대문생선구이골목

One of my favorite things in all of this great big, beautiful, strange, horrifying, ecclectic world is certain to be the immense and borderline incomprehensible variety of things we can dredge out of the depths of our oceans and waterways. From cute little crustaceans and mollusks filtering particulates out of the water for sustenance, to the big burly beasts lumbering in the deeper reaches of the unknown. Most seafood is something I'm quite resolutely content to devour, whether its completely raw and potentially squirming or cooked until crisp and crackling over charcoal. Luckily, being a peninsula, South Korea has no shortage of delicious options to satiate any seafood fan! 

An especially apt location to find your fix is Noryangjin market, of course, where you can pick out and point out your unwilling dinner while it swims hopelessly in a tank, but if you prefer your food already dead and long detached from consciousness before you interact with it, 동대문생선구이골목, or Dongdaemun grilled fish alley, is going to be your destination of choice. You'll probably catch a whiff of the signature charcoal and fish smell as the fresh catch is thrown atop the grill, one after the next, to fill the aching bellies of the various visitors who filter through the many restaurants lining the small alleyway. If you'd rather have chicken soup, or dog meat stew, those were both available in their own restaurants during my visit, though the dog meat (보신탕 or "Boshintang") may be growing harder to find these days. Obviously, it's a bit of a controversial food, just saying that as of late 2016 it was still very much available and visibly advertised. While this alley might not be at the top of many tourism to-do plans, it's really not a bad option for a delicious and affordable meal with a real taste of South Korean hospitality. My grillmaster was exceptionally friendly and accommodated my foolish over-ordering of fish with patience and a smile. Cheers, my friend. Thanks for an excellent meal! 

And, I mean, what's not to enjoy about piping hot fish fresh off the grill, the grease still sizzling and sputtering from the crispy skin? While I'm not one to be upset by the scent of any fish, I can understand that some people don't necessarily want their house to be perfumed with the pungent scent of fresh mackerel. To each their own. Another benefit to eating here, though, is the smell only lingers on your clothes for a short while. It felt almost like dining in a private home, with the small restaurant I dipped into being empty during the majority of my meal. It was a bit early in the evening yet, though, and the flocks of hungry visitors had yet to really descend upon the area. As was always the case, there were plenty of banchan side dishes to nibble on alongside the main course, and some even danced for me! Dinner and a show, how can you beat that?

Korea: Gwangjang lights

It's been some time since I dedicated an actual post in and of itself to my time in South Korea, and after unearthing a treasure trove of photos I hadn't even gotten to processing yet, I dove in deep and found lots of material worthy of sharing on this here blog, so if you've been missing the Korea posts you're in luck. I seem to have a propensity towards taking few photos early in my time abroad, whether it was my move to Japan (where I also made a conscious decision to go without a cell phone for the first 6 months, which contributed to that lack of photos) or during the move to Korea... towards the end of my stays, though, the finality of it starts to seep in and I find myself growing more frenetic in my efforts to snap visual reminders of the experience for conservation, like the mad dash to check off the bucket-list when an impending sense of mortality settles in sometime around middle age. Memory is a tricky and fickle thing, so I always find it far preferable to try to capture things in a very literal photographic sense, trying to seal a singular moment in time in pixel form for eternal preservation. 

And I have to admit, there's something surreal about Seoul at night, especially looking back through the haze of nostalgia. Maybe it's all the glittering neon and LED lights fiercely defying the creeping darkness, or the billowing plumes of steam tumbling from the nearest damp place, whether it's a steaming pan of tteokbokkie at a street side food stand or a manhole cover concealing subterranean secrets. I hope these photos can convey a bit of that sense to you, the reader. Whether it's the perplexing button configuration on the elevator I rode, day in, day out, or the color-changing tunnels at Gwangjang market. It's all a bit sci-fi, isn't it? Or maybe that's just me, getting lost in the uncanny valley. Neon, after all, reminds me a bit of home, the bedazzled Las Vegas strip beaming away at night like an angler fish trying to lure in prey. Maybe Seoul has more in common with home than I thought...