When in Seoul, beware of Large Snowfalls

I just finished my trip to Seoul, South Korea, and even though I was in the city for less than a week, I was able to see most of downtown, which was abnormally thick with snow. It is hard to sum up all that I did, so I will try to categorize my top moments and then my funny/what? moments. I liked South Korea so much I think I will extend my layover on my way to Bangkok, Thailand, in April to do some hiking and to see some green tea farms. I put lots of pictures up and thanks to Amy, I am trying the large picture size. It looked so nice on her blog, so I thought I would do likewise. Happy reading ☺

Top Seoul Moments

Suwon Fortress: This fortress was built at the end of the 18th century and is fully intact. I walked around the whole wall, which covers a distance of 5.7 km. Its exquisite guard towers and watch posts kept me intrigued the whole walk.

Street food: Just point at what looks good ☺ I love the teokbokki (pronounced duck-bo-key), which is a mixture of soft rice cakes and pressed fish that is smothered in red chili paste. The small pancakes with green flecks in them are super delicious because there is a mixture of honey and brown sugar inside. Then there are little donut-like things that are fried in molds and served warm and doughy as well as the fabulous bean buns, which have soft white dough on the outside and red bean paste inside. Amazing!! Next, we have the mandu, which is a steamed dumpling that is filled kimchi (chili paste-covered cabbage) and egg or beef or noodles. I also loved the tempura-battered vegetables and noodle roll ups (sound gross? Well, they were fantastic with Korean noodles wrapped in seaweed then fried in tempura.) Finally, I enjoyed the soup that was freely given to any patron. It was the broth used to cook these pressed fish skewers, so it had a little fishy smell but was perfect when I couldn’t feel my fingers and was beginning to forget I had feet. I did not try the ubiquitous corn dogs or various kebabs that covered the sides of streets.

Small restaurants run by quick-moving Korean women: These were great because the food was cheap and good. You will find these all over the city and each will have a box for the metal chopsticks you are obligated to use to eat or look like a rude oaf eating with your fingers. Be ready to drop your food a few times before you get adequate skills. (Tip: Sometimes you can spear the food, which can be a more effective method if you get frustrated. You can try to use the spoon they keep next to the chopsticks if that would work better.) One of the most traditional dishes, called bipimbap or pimimpap, depending on where you went and how they decided to translate the sounds, which to the Koreans sound exactly the same, comes as a meat or vegetarian dish, the meat having ground beef and the vegetarian having a freshly crack egg on top of the steaming vegetables and rice that you mix in. Delicious!! You get little side dishes whether you want them or not, but don’t eat them too fast unless you want a double helping of kimchi or pickled radish, which is an unnaturally bright yellow color. I have never eaten anything so yellow! You might also get pressed fish, which reminded me of the fish sticks I devoured as a little kid when my parents weren’t into cooking real food. You will also get a broth soup with a couple of floating green onions that is wonderful on a cold day.

The Palaces: I went to Gyeogbokgung, Changdeokgung, and Deoksugung. (Gung means palace so as my tour guide for Changdeokgung reminded me, you shouldn’t say Changdeokgung Palace because you are being repetitive. Oops!) They fascinated me with the juxtaposition of the ancient world and modernity at its prime. These palaces litter the city. At every turn there is the recognizable Korean pagoda design, but I thoroughly enjoyed seeing them at every turn. When I travel I love to appreciate the things that are most different from home. I went to the biggest and most historically significant palace on the day it snowed heavily in Seoul. I finally made it there after getting lost because I exited at the wrong station, walked around, asking people where to find “Gyeobokgung” only to discover I had been directed and had found “Changdeokgung,” which was closed on Monday. (The names had probably sounded similar in my Western way of pronouncing the words. In fact, I might have even mixed them up in my mind. I have no idea, but regardless, I fell in the snow so many times and was a little discouraged. I told myself, “Kelsey, you never get discouraged when you travel. It is always a story to tell, so buck up and get moving!” I followed my own pep talk and took the subway line I was initially supposed to take and arrived conveniently at “Gyeogbokgung.”)

Now, I love the snow when I am not required to find streets and to navigate urban settings. There is nothing like the sight of snow on evergreens to make you praise the Lord for the beauty he has created. I was afforded a most wonderful respite from the unplowed streets of Seoul and dropped into the winter wonderland of one of the most ancient sights in the Seoul area. I had so much fun tromping around in the snow, but I could not help feeling sad that I had left my mukluks behind in WI. I would have been fearless had I brought those boots with me. Oh, well! I contented myself by taking numerous pictures of the snow-covered wooden eaves on the ancient buildings, beautifully painted in a traditional Korean manner with blue, green, pink, black, red, orange, and purple. I could forget for some moments that I was living in the 21st century, visiting one of the largest and most modern cities in the world; my surroundings took me away to another time, where I was engrossed in the possibilities of a different life. It was glorious!

The subway: The Seoul subway is probably one of the best subways I have ever seen. It is better than the Paris metro because it has escalators and handicapped facilities. It is cleaner than the New York subway and does not take much time to understand. (God bless my sister for understanding the New York subway because I cannot seem to understand the whole uptown and downtown principle. Since I have the directional sense of a toad—the first animal that came to mind that probably has a better directional sense than me at any rate—I never know where I am going on the New York subway. This subway had clearly marked destinations and directions. I could appreciate it. I did encounter quite a few troubles because of the snow, but I cannot very well blame them for the inclement weather, so I will disregard my unique misfortune. If you ever go to Seoul and do not know Korean as was my case, you might end up boarding a train that terminates earlier than you expected, but I am sure you will find someone who will take pity on your confusion and attempt to help you. (Koreans are not the best at speaking English. I will write about this “Engrish” phenomenon later.)

Despite the superiority of the subway, Amy and I suffered quite a bit on two of the mornings we went downtown. On one occasion, it took us an hour to actually start on our journey. First, we waited on the platform about 40 minutes, stamping our feet to keep warm. Then, we entered the train, which was much warmer but drafty because the doors kept opening and closing like there was some serious malfunction. Of course we could not understand what the conductor was announcing but no one seemed too anxious, except that some people exited the train and we had no idea if we should follow or stay put. We opted for the stay-put option, as the cold weather was anything but welcoming. We discovered that the reason why those people had exited was that our train terminated at the next station. We exited at the next station and began stamping our feet again. The cold was biting and cut through my borrowed coat and permeated the hat Amy lent me. (I failed to check the weather before I left home. I did not realize that I would be leaving Chicago only to land in a Chicago-like place in Korea. Thankfully Amy had an extra jacket that she gave me to use for the week. I would have literally frozen to death. I do not think that even my iron will would have been enough to give me the courage to tour the city in a freeze wave that would make the Midwest proud.) About 10 minutes later, the train we needed arrived, so we all packed in like sardines and went to town ☺

Cheonnggye stream: This stream used to be a road, but they dug up the road and put in this pretty stream that intersects central Seoul. There is nothing like a pretty stream to brighten up everyone’s day. Since there was so much snow, I was not able to avail myself of this lovely part of Seoul to the extent I would have wished, but it is still a highlight.

Insadong: This is one of the districts in Seoul. The whole city is divided into quarters like New York or Paris and they all have a distinct feel and cultural milieu. Insadong was my favorite for its antique flavor and little streets where you could easily get lost. (I suppose I should not use the conditional here in my case since every time I went to Insadong I got lost.) There are little boutiques, restaurants of every price range, teashops, street vendors and artisan outposts. On one such occasion, Amy and I decided to go to a traditional teashop, which are still fairly popular in Seoul, although I am convinced you need a guidebook to tell you they are popular. I asked Amy if there were any traditional teashops, and she replied, no, because she had not seen any. I laughed at her when my guidebook said there were plenty to be found, particularly in the Insadong district. Well, come to find out, there are most definitely teashops in Seoul, but they are veritably impossible to find.

We had our two maps, one from the book, which was about four years old, and one from the city. Both of which were not spectacular. I’m telling you, Seoul may be a modern city, but it cannot seem to produce a map that accurately portrays the city. I mean, even Rome, with all its random little and winding streets, has an accurate map. I got lost so many times because I could not seem to decipher the map. I even gave up on the map one day and just got out my compass. (Thanks, Mom, this is the second time it has come in handy ☺) Anyway, so Amy and I had our maps and our very sketchy knowledge of the area to go by. Finally, I suggested we asked someone, and you know what, she was able to point us in the right direction by looking at the map. Maybe the maps are made for Koreans and not for “foreigners.” We found the little place we were looking for and it was so worth it. It was the cutest place I have ever seen and the tea was exquisite, so fruity and fresh. (I had quince tea, which is a pear-shaped fruit used as a flavoring or in preserves, according to Webster, and native to Western Asia, and Amy had plum tea. Both were served in these lovely clay mugs with clay spoons and accompanied with savory, soft rice cakes.) I am so glad that Amy persisted in our search with me. Few people are willing to go along with my hair-brained plans until they come to fruition.

Namdaemun Market: This is one of the central markets, close to city hall and Namsan Park, where the N Seoul Tower is located. It is a fairly large outdoor market that covers many streets where people are all selling the same thing, well, there is limited variety, so everyone is selling one of these categories: ginseng and tea products along with other traditional Korean foodstuffs, fake purses and bags, clothes, accessories, shoes, pottery, and blankets and pillows and other home goods. There are stalls after stalls of all these items. I used the subway that took me directly to this market, and as I exited, I was convinced I was going in the right direction, which I wasn’t, but anyway, I exited and found one city block of small stalls selling the aforementioned products. I had a blast going around this block a couple times, stopping at a little enclosed food stand for a meal of kimchi mandu. I made my way down into an underground shopping center and another huge “department” store selling anything from eyes glasses to shampoo to imported coffee and pearls all arrayed in haphazard small and compact stalls. I had no idea that what I was seeing was only the tip of the iceberg. It wasn’t until I got lost trying to find the subway again that I realized that what I thought was the market was really only a small corner of the entire production. My silliness reminded me of the importance of being content with the smallest aspects of life and of traveling. It was a blessing to experience the whole market, to be exposed to that number of people and to that array of items, but I would have been just as happy with the smaller version. Sometimes traveling is not about the grandeur of the moment but about the simple pleasures found in immersing oneself in the dissimilarities.

Korean English: I told you I would talk about “Engrish,” which is the English language spoken out of a Korean’s mouth. “Engrish” is what comes out instead of “English.” Now, I am generalizing a bit, but only a bit. I would say this mutation “Engrish” occurs with 9 out of 10 Koreans. I don’t fault them; I only get a kick out of them. Even the tour guides that I had for Changdeokgung and the DMZ spoke excellent “Engrish”—so excellent I could not understand a third of it ☺ The nice thing about Korea is that English is pretty widespread. All of the subway signs are in Korean and English as well as most of the announcements. Most restaurants have either English translations, pictures on their menus of the food they serve, or actual representations of the food they serve. The point-and-order method is ideal for all interactions with Korean restaurateurs. Then again, let’s posit that you get lost and need to ask directions. Here’s where “Engrish” and/or finger gesticulations will come in handy. Do not expect people to know English and when they do, try to extrapolate what they are actually saying. This takes a trained and patient ear. I wish I had written down the myriad examples I saw during my week in Seoul. Here are a few: “Have a feeling fine day!” (Translation: Have a nice day!) “Approach your hands to the faucet.” (Translation: Place your hands under the faucet.) “Falling!” (Translation: Watch out, steep slopes!)

Amy is much better at “Engrish” than I am because she deals with it daily at school. I just nodded and made it look as if I understood. I had so many people, though, approach me as I wandered aimlessly about with my map in front of me or as I nonplussed by the sudden termination of a train. On one such occasion, this nice old woman saw that I had no idea why the train was stopping where it stopped or how to get to my destination. We used simple phrases and names to figure out what was happening and she remained faithfully by my side until she saw that I was set, even looking back at me and nodding her head before exiting the train at a stop before me. Another time, I was trying to find the subway, and I asked this young man to help me. Since he was too shy or too limited in his English skills, he motioned for me to follow him. I asked him if he was going to the subway too and he responded “No.” I felt so blessed that he would take his time to guide me in the right direction before doing an about face and continuing on his original pathway. These people truly meant well, using their English skills, limited though they may be, to help out a fellow man. I definitely do not hold their limited and incorrect English against them as Korean is extremely different than English. I do not know their language and never expect people to know mine. I am simply identifying this “Engrish” phenomenon because many Koreans want to know English, but the people and the translators are just a little off. It takes a long time to master a language, so in the process of really learning English, I was privy to the hilarious “Engrish” limbo.

Credit card friendly: Seoul is amazingly credit card friendly. I exchanged a small amount of cash because I was unsure of what I would be spending and I hate to have left over currency since you lose money that way. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I could use my credit card for almost anything—museums, convenience stores, small restaurants, and even at the market at a medium-sized ceramics dealer. I was really lucky because you get the best exchange rate when you use your credit card and it’s not a hassle in terms of dealing with the native currency. The Philippines is not like that at all. If you don’t have pesos, you can’t buy anything, so I enjoyed that aspect of the modern city.

Subway toilets and drinking water: My worst fear in a city is that there will not be any toilets and that I will be uncomfortable or dehydrated the whole day. Well, Seoul has some of the best toilets I have ever encountered in a city. There is a nice bathroom in almost every subway station, and it is accessible often without needing to pay for your subway fare. I was so happy when I discovered this. I was never in fear of drinking water. Not only were there plenty of toilets, there was also lots of drinking water. All restaurants had drinking water machines and even some of the subways had fountains with potable water. This was also a relief because in the Philippines, one cannot drink the water and unless you are at a nice restaurant, it is always a little bit of a gamble as to whether the water is potable or not.

Funny and/or What? moments

Lack of snow removal: First of all, I would not advise anyone to visit Seoul in the winter, just like I would not tell anyone to visit Chicago in the winter. Cities are not as enjoyable when you’re walking down the street and it’s so cold you feel like crying. I was constantly tucking my chin into my scarf and hugging my body so the remaining vestiges of warmth would not flee my already cold body. So, not only was it cold, but on Monday of my trip, it snowed about a foot. It was the most snow anyone in Korea had seen in about 20 or more years. Unbelievable! The first day I explored the city, I had to use my umbrella to protect myself from the falling snow. Despite the snow, I still managed to see some sights although I still can’t help but thinking that I would have enjoyed everything more had the snow been absent.

Not only did it snow, but also Koreans have no modern system for snow removal. I saw the army out on the streets hand plowing because there are no snowplows. Shop owners used dustpans to remove the snow when they didn’t have shovels and some people used these shovels that were constructed from a rectangular plank of wood and a stick, which were effective enough in moving the snow out of pedestrian pathways. However, these were the exception, as most of the sidewalks remained unplowed and slippery. This translated into slippery subway floors as well and the plowed sidewalks even remained slippery, as they do not have much salt. I saw a few places that were salted, but I was confused as to where those places got the salt and why no one else was using the salt. Needless to say, all this snow made for quite the adventure in Seoul. My body is so out of whack right now from all the slipping and sliding that I will be remembering my adventure for quite some time ☺ Oh, well! It’s all about producing memories and I surely have some great ones.

Subway rudeness: On three occasions I experienced pretty rude behavior in the subway. For all three incidences, men were the perpetrators and were either middle aged or elderly. In general, I can classify these men as grouches. The first time, Amy and I were shushed because a middle-aged man thought we were talking too loud, which was not the case. The second time, the man sitting next too me poked me because he thought my music was too loud. Considering this offence, I am not sure if I am guilty or not, but I acquiesced and turned the music down. Then, the third time was quite comical: an elderly man was sitting on one of the maroon benches reserved for the elderly, the handicapped or pregnant women. He shook his finger at Amy and me and made the shush noise. Amy shook her finger back at him and refused to comply. It’s true that these men targeted only us and not the Korean people who were talking or loudly listening to their music, which happened quite frequently. I guess you could say that we were subjected to anti-American sentiment, but in reality, it is simply a Korean phenomenon that the older generation tends to resist “foreigners,” a category that includes anyone who does not look Korean.

(Amy told me this story of one night when she went out with some friends and they passed by a club that was yelling out “Foreigners get in free!” We had a good laugh about this because could you imagine that happening in the US? “Black people get in free. Asian people get in free. Hispanics get in free!” No! That would be ridiculous, so Korea is kind of interesting in that way.) Amy calls it homogeneity that everyone looks alike, dresses alike, eats the same food—which is delicious but not extremely varied—listens to the same music—most often pop music called KPop, which is even popular in the Philippines. Even after these three experiences, I have no doubt that Koreans are in general quite welcoming and willing to help, more than some Americans with people who don’t speak English. For as many times as I was rudely confronted in the subway, there were two times that I was so wonderfully helped and guided by perfect strangers.

DMZ souvenir shop: I went to the Demilitarized Zone on a tour that lasted the morning and part of the afternoon. The DMZ was established at the end of the Korean War and remains to this day the demarcation of the border between North and South Korea. It was a pretty somber tour since the implications of what I was seeing are quite serious for the people of both nations. (Amy told me that some of her students, when asked what they would do if they ever became president, said that they would reunify the North and the South. South Koreans are quite sensitized to the ongoing separation of the two countries, but it is not a problem that is actively pursued in politics and will likely carry on for some time and maybe forever. No one could have predicted the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Berlin Wall or the Iron Curtain, so it is difficult to say if this separation will persist for many years or will disintegrate.) Anyway, even though this was an extremely grave and depressing tour, my tour guide still gave me the opportunity to check out the gift shop where I could purchase DMZ paraphernalia (anyone for a DMZ t-shirt or coffee mug?) and traditional Korean items. We stopped at three different gift shops, so we had plenty of time to deliberate between the souvenir items we wanted to bring back with us. (If you can’t tell by my sardonic tone, I did not buy any items and I wouldn’t have even stepped inside had it not been below zero and had the souvenir shop not had a space heater where I warmed my frozen body.)

I found out that South Koreans even get products made right over the border of the DMZ in North Korea. These laborers are basically slaves to the government. They are given a small wage, which is so taxed and pillaged by the government that what the factory workers actually receive is barely a pittance. What is cruelest about the whole situation is that the South Koreans profit from this situation and the North Korean government profits from the situation, but the common people, the laborers and the poor—the whole country of North Korea besides those in government—receive no benefits only hardship and oppression. My dad always says that the government is godless, and I agree, especially when you see these political forces at work. Needless to say, it was a very interesting excursion. I still do not really know how to analyze or describe what I saw. Desolation, antiquation, and militarism are a few nouns I can conjure for what I saw. The whole affair was very official and regulation. We could not do anything—especially take pictures—without the authorization of our military escorts.

Currently, there are fewer than 40 American soldiers at the DMZ. There used to be more, but slowly and surely, they have been phased out of the mission. It is primarily run by South Korean soldiers (called ROK soldiers, which stands for Republic of Korea), who serve a two-year post at this location, which is quite monotonous due to the lack of activity allowed in this area. The American soldiers, who have above average intelligence and have no military or civilian records of misdemeanor, work alongside the ROK soldiers at the Joint Security Area, which is also a division of the United Nations peacekeeping department. (I am not sure what it means to be “above average” but I was not too impressed by the knowledge of our guides. You would think that with all that time to oneself, you would learn every nook and cranny of your situation. I suppose not everyone is that eager to learn the information before him.)

Even though the surrounding area is quite bare and untouched, there are two villages—Unification Village and Freedom Village—which remain even after all the political turmoil. (The DMZ has not been touched for over 50 years so it is one of the richest areas in terms of animal species and land fertility. We watched a video on the DMZ, and it was so bizarre because it made the DMZ look like such a nice place, full of hope and life, when in reality, there is nothing but despair marked in the derelict buildings and the faces of the serious soldiers who guard unwaveringly each day and night, facing their enemies in the closest proximity in the world. How amazing it is to me how people can make the media say and describe whatever is the intent, reality or fiction.) These villages currently house fewer than 600 residents between the two settlements, and they are required to live in their homes for ¾ of the year, with permission to live elsewhere for about 90 days or so. These residents are quite wealthy even though they are simple farmers. They are given about 17 acres on which to farm, where the average Korean farms on only four acres. Furthermore, they are not taxed and are even given government subsidies on top of that. They make about $80,000 to $100,000 a year, which is about five times the amount other Korean farmers make, the number of whom is dwindling each year.

Well, to close this account on the DMZ, which I consider my most interesting if not surprising experience in South Korea, I will talk about the tunnel I traversed before beginning the return trip to downtown Seoul. This tunnel was the third tunnel the ROK soldiers discovered thanks to a North Korean defector who revealed its location. The North Koreans had been digging tunnels in an attempt to infiltrate enemy lines and make a surprise attack on the unassuming ROK and US forces. They did not make it very far, and the ROK soldiers are still unsure of how many tunnels were actually dug. We walked about 600 meters, although the North Koreans had only dug about 480 meters. The South Koreans built a ramp and even a route for handicap people to use in order to permit anyone the chance to see this handiwork of the enemy. It was very moist underground; we were about 75 meters underground, and dim bulbs lighted the way. We wore hard hats because the ceiling was quite low; I had to duck my head and even then I still hit my head a couple of times on the rocks above. This encounter with another physical representation of the divide between the countries made me realize how little we Americans can conceptualize a breech in freedom. We live with abounding liberty each day and yet, how fast could that liberty be removed, and if it were ever removed, with which tools could we ever take it back? This is something to ponder.

Cruise on the Han River: Oh my goodness! If I had to select one thing as being the most bizarre and random experience of the trip, I would choose this river cruise. From the brochure, it looked as if it was going to be an elegant evening with a wonderful view of the city skyline plus a nice live music presentation. Well, I would hesitate to say elegant, classy or fancy. Words that spring to mind are: old Vegas, vintage, and discarded. Granted it was about 15 degrees Fahrenheit when we took the cruise and the brochures had shown people outside enjoying the evening air while we were confined to this spacious room, cover with 70’s reddish colored carpet and set up with chairs that were kind of musty and unused. Our “live music” was this one guy with a guitar and his computer. He really catered to the little kids that were sitting in the front row, playing some out-of-nowhere Korean kid songs. Thankfully Amy and I brought some soju (weak Korean vodka) with us to abate the pain of having to listen to this guy. The boat ride last about an hour and 20 minutes, but the “entertainment” only lasted for about half of the boat ride. The funniest part was when he hooked up his accompaniment. Not only did we have to listen to him, a poor guitar player at best, we had to endure his “background vocals.” We could not stop laughing and shaking our heads in curiosity over what we had chosen for that evening. You just never know.
Moral of the story: Don’t trust Korean brochures. Get word-of-mouth verification, and when you can’t get a positive confirmation you take your evening into your own hands ☺

Four-Year-Old Guidebook: For anyone interested in visiting Seoul, I would definitely recommend getting a guidebook. I mean, I am all for the explore-and-see-what-you-find method, but in such a big city, it sure helps to have a guide to tell you what is really good and what is average. (They did not accurately portray the Han River cruise, so I guess you have to still be skeptical!) However, I would also advise that your guide is recent, like within the last year or so. The guide book I was using was from 2006, I believe, which means that it was completed in 2005, making it almost five years old by the time we started using it. When Amy bought it, she didn’t realize it was so old or that there was a more recent version. Surprisingly and thankfully, it did not steer us wrong on many accounts, except on one occasion. There are public bathhouses in Seoul that are pretty well known and are supposed to be really relaxing, especially appealing to people who are frozen from the cold. I saved this experience until the last evening, thinking that would be a great way to end my stay in Seoul. I found a bathhouse that sounded good, and it happened to be in a district that Amy really liked, so I thought, “Great! I will get to see a neat district of Seoul and get to immerse myself in this lovely Korean pastime.” Think again. We found the place (amazing, right?) but it was definitely closed. It looked a little seedy anyway, but I was so disappointed. Next time I venture into Seoul, in April, I plan on going to one of these houses, and this time, I am not going to rely on an old guidebook to get me there!

Conclusion

I know this has been a long entry, but I saw so much and made so many observations as I walked around and people watched that I wanted to make sure to give a thorough account of my travels to Seoul. I am always exhilarated with the beautiful differences and attractions I see in each place. Every place I have ever visited has offered some really great memories and opportunities to see things not present in my hometown. I am excited for the next seven months and all that my travels have in store. I have now reached my 19th country and my passport is almost full. When I return to the US I will need to get more pages added to the passport since it is still valid for another four years!