Seoul '23
Udai and I got to escape the typhoon hitting Hong Kong this weekend and sojourn to Seoul, for a wonderfully sunny long weekend! It was a great "blast from the past" after the two conferences I attended here as part of S&S starting in 2014. My first stop on this trip was to a jimjilbang, a traditional Korean public bath house (shout-out to Amoha for letting me know these exist!). We were staying in Myeongdong and I went to a very small one in Insadong, called Insadong Spa & Sauna. I went for the all-women staff and high reviews, and left feeling reborn. One of the aunties, whom I was told to refer to as Mak-ne-i-mo (apparently it means “head auntie”) seemed to take a personal interest in making sure I was as CLEAN as possible. When I was told there’s a body scrub situation I thought it was like an exfoliating cream put on your back type of thing, but no, it was a full, 40-minute, manual process that made me feel like I was being bathed like a baby. Truly haven’t felt so clean and soft in years.
What really struck me about the jimjilbang experience is that there’s a space built into Korean culture explicitly for rest. It’s not that folks were soaking in the pools the whole time, or everyone got a “treatment” done like in the U.S. or India. Plenty of folks were lounging in their cotton pajamas in the common room, munching on snacks or watching something with a friend, or just sitting quietly and meditating or staring into space. I’ve spoken with so many folks recently about how important it is to build in time for nothing, and it seems that we as a society don’t have much of a competency for that. But coming here was very refreshing in thinking about how a culture has created a very robust practice around spending time relaxing (that is not gentrified or reserved for the privileged few). For the rest of the trip, we asked each of our friends whether they go to the jimjilbang and all four folks we asked had a smile on their lit-up face when they recounted going with their parents as kids, or with friends while in high school, and then wondered why they didn’t go as much anymore. Bring it back!!
In the evening, Udai and I met up with Allen, who had graciously booked us a beautiful restaurant with a full vegan multi-course menu, called A Flower Blossom on the Rice. This was right off of Insadong Street, one of the places I was keen to show Udai after my 2014 trip. Most of the shops had shut but he still got a feel for the energy before Allen walked us to Cheonggyecheon Creek, which, after 3 trips to Seoul I can confirm is still my favorite place in the city. Udai got to take it all in before we walked the few kilometers home, saving energy for the next day!
Bright and early on Friday morning we headed to Gyeongbokgung, the palace that served as the seat of the Emperor in the 14th century and following. Udai was as floored by the architecture as I expected and we darted between ladies in rented hanboks and the red-hot sun to find Gyeonghoeru, the calming reservoir in the palace premises.
We grabbed a refreshing coffee at next door Baekmidang, which had awesome coffee though no dairy-free milk options. They did, however, have soy milk ice cream (!!) so I was a happy cat. After a few meetings, I headed out to continue my mission for Seoul: experiencing every beauty treatment I possibly could in two days. For good fortune I paid my second visit to skincare destination extraordinaire Olive Young before checking myself in for a manicure at Lala Nail in Myeongdong. Here, the women found it genuinely hilarious that I was not Korean. They seemed to be laughing not at me but with me, nearly in splits that a tourist would come into their shop. We got through an entire conversation including negotiation about how much time a mani-pedi would take using only Google Translate, and it was an awesome experience. I’ve never seen someone take so much care to ensure perfect nail shape and polish so perfectly, and think this was on a different level from any simple manicure I’ve gotten elsewhere in the world. I was done in time for the haircut Lisa had booked me at Juno Hair, which felt more like a trendy coffee shop than hair salon. One of the cheapest haircuts I’ve gotten in recent years felt like a full-day spa experience, complete with locker room, changing room, a shampoo that felt like a hair spa, full hair consultation, and lovely blow-dry. I reported this to Lisa and she said, “Sounds like a typical Korean haircut. My place serves me brunch.”
Udai met me at Juno, regretting his choice to cancel his own haircut appointment, and we headed to the Hongdae neighborhood for dinner. This area was a sight to see! It was like Causeway Bay meets local-Asian-cuteness plus aspiring K-Pop buskers and lovely, lit streets. I hadn’t been here before and later learned that this is a much more vast “happening” area than the famous Gangnam! We took in the buskers and energetic atmosphere before meeting up with our new friend Edward! Ed showed us around a few of his favorite spots in Hongdae, our favorite being a bar called “the Corner” where we got to sit on the balcony, take in the breeze, and listen to Beyonce throwbacks with a great view.
On Saturday it was time to take Udai back to Insadong before dark. We started the day on Insadong Street, a favorite among tourists, where UB found a traditional teahouse called Yetchatjip with lovely, soothing interiors and the nicest sweet ginger tea I will probably ever have. We meandered through the markets exploring hand-thrown ceramics and lovely textiles before meeting Sam and Seonjoo for lunch. Sam had looked into traditional temple dining for Udai and me, so we met at Balwoo Gongyang, just across from the Buddhist temple I visited in 2014! This was a four-course menu consisting of monastery-style food that encouraged moderation and balance.
Feeling sufficiently equanimous, we flooded our taste buds with sugar while trying pat-bingsu, or the Korean “snowflake” dessert with red bean paste, at Damjangyeope Gukhwaccot Annyeong. We also had the most delicious (baked) rice cakes I’ve ever had, which tasted like apple pie and had the chewy texture of mochi. Will be coming back to Seoul specifically for these and my next haircut.
After saying goodbye to our lovely friends and their “happy Octopus” son, we walked to Bukchon Hanok Village, winding between 600-year-old houses and many tourists who appeared to be literally melting. We nevertheless stopped a few to do a fragmented photoshoot for us, before walking down to Bukchon shopping street, a really pleasant area that was my favorite new place I visited on this trip.
From here, we took a cab to where else but another jimjilbang!!! My usually-hesistant-for-self-care buddy UB was eager to give this tradition a try based on my review, and agreed to venture to Spalex, a much larger bathhouse complex. This location was about 30x the size of the mini-spa I had gone to on day 1, and captured the true feel of a family bathhouse, with individuals napping on yoga mats sprinkled around this massive complex, kids splashing in the pools, a whole range of saunas in different temperatures, and an entire food court inside! UB gave this a surprisingly high review as a place to sit with his thoughts, and wants to come back next time (with a book). We were happy to see many people our age sitting about and participating in this activity on a Saturday afternoon, even when the city offers so many other options for entertainment and privacy.
Refreshed, we zoomed down to Gangnam for dinner at Samwon Garden Restaurant before Ed showed us around his neighborhood! We got a great overview of the “party streets” in Gangnam before nestling into Alvin Avenue, a lively spot that we found out on arrival happened to have a blues band playing that night!! We caught the second half of an impressive set by the Kwak Jiwon Blues Band, which served as the perfect end to a stellar weekend in Seoul.
What really struck me about the jimjilbang experience is that there’s a space built into Korean culture explicitly for rest. It’s not that folks were soaking in the pools the whole time, or everyone got a “treatment” done like in the U.S. or India. Plenty of folks were lounging in their cotton pajamas in the common room, munching on snacks or watching something with a friend, or just sitting quietly and meditating or staring into space. I’ve spoken with so many folks recently about how important it is to build in time for nothing, and it seems that we as a society don’t have much of a competency for that. But coming here was very refreshing in thinking about how a culture has created a very robust practice around spending time relaxing (that is not gentrified or reserved for the privileged few). For the rest of the trip, we asked each of our friends whether they go to the jimjilbang and all four folks we asked had a smile on their lit-up face when they recounted going with their parents as kids, or with friends while in high school, and then wondered why they didn’t go as much anymore. Bring it back!!
In the evening, Udai and I met up with Allen, who had graciously booked us a beautiful restaurant with a full vegan multi-course menu, called A Flower Blossom on the Rice. This was right off of Insadong Street, one of the places I was keen to show Udai after my 2014 trip. Most of the shops had shut but he still got a feel for the energy before Allen walked us to Cheonggyecheon Creek, which, after 3 trips to Seoul I can confirm is still my favorite place in the city. Udai got to take it all in before we walked the few kilometers home, saving energy for the next day!
Bright and early on Friday morning we headed to Gyeongbokgung, the palace that served as the seat of the Emperor in the 14th century and following. Udai was as floored by the architecture as I expected and we darted between ladies in rented hanboks and the red-hot sun to find Gyeonghoeru, the calming reservoir in the palace premises.
We grabbed a refreshing coffee at next door Baekmidang, which had awesome coffee though no dairy-free milk options. They did, however, have soy milk ice cream (!!) so I was a happy cat. After a few meetings, I headed out to continue my mission for Seoul: experiencing every beauty treatment I possibly could in two days. For good fortune I paid my second visit to skincare destination extraordinaire Olive Young before checking myself in for a manicure at Lala Nail in Myeongdong. Here, the women found it genuinely hilarious that I was not Korean. They seemed to be laughing not at me but with me, nearly in splits that a tourist would come into their shop. We got through an entire conversation including negotiation about how much time a mani-pedi would take using only Google Translate, and it was an awesome experience. I’ve never seen someone take so much care to ensure perfect nail shape and polish so perfectly, and think this was on a different level from any simple manicure I’ve gotten elsewhere in the world. I was done in time for the haircut Lisa had booked me at Juno Hair, which felt more like a trendy coffee shop than hair salon. One of the cheapest haircuts I’ve gotten in recent years felt like a full-day spa experience, complete with locker room, changing room, a shampoo that felt like a hair spa, full hair consultation, and lovely blow-dry. I reported this to Lisa and she said, “Sounds like a typical Korean haircut. My place serves me brunch.”
Udai met me at Juno, regretting his choice to cancel his own haircut appointment, and we headed to the Hongdae neighborhood for dinner. This area was a sight to see! It was like Causeway Bay meets local-Asian-cuteness plus aspiring K-Pop buskers and lovely, lit streets. I hadn’t been here before and later learned that this is a much more vast “happening” area than the famous Gangnam! We took in the buskers and energetic atmosphere before meeting up with our new friend Edward! Ed showed us around a few of his favorite spots in Hongdae, our favorite being a bar called “the Corner” where we got to sit on the balcony, take in the breeze, and listen to Beyonce throwbacks with a great view.
On Saturday it was time to take Udai back to Insadong before dark. We started the day on Insadong Street, a favorite among tourists, where UB found a traditional teahouse called Yetchatjip with lovely, soothing interiors and the nicest sweet ginger tea I will probably ever have. We meandered through the markets exploring hand-thrown ceramics and lovely textiles before meeting Sam and Seonjoo for lunch. Sam had looked into traditional temple dining for Udai and me, so we met at Balwoo Gongyang, just across from the Buddhist temple I visited in 2014! This was a four-course menu consisting of monastery-style food that encouraged moderation and balance.
Feeling sufficiently equanimous, we flooded our taste buds with sugar while trying pat-bingsu, or the Korean “snowflake” dessert with red bean paste, at Damjangyeope Gukhwaccot Annyeong. We also had the most delicious (baked) rice cakes I’ve ever had, which tasted like apple pie and had the chewy texture of mochi. Will be coming back to Seoul specifically for these and my next haircut.
After saying goodbye to our lovely friends and their “happy Octopus” son, we walked to Bukchon Hanok Village, winding between 600-year-old houses and many tourists who appeared to be literally melting. We nevertheless stopped a few to do a fragmented photoshoot for us, before walking down to Bukchon shopping street, a really pleasant area that was my favorite new place I visited on this trip.
From here, we took a cab to where else but another jimjilbang!!! My usually-hesistant-for-self-care buddy UB was eager to give this tradition a try based on my review, and agreed to venture to Spalex, a much larger bathhouse complex. This location was about 30x the size of the mini-spa I had gone to on day 1, and captured the true feel of a family bathhouse, with individuals napping on yoga mats sprinkled around this massive complex, kids splashing in the pools, a whole range of saunas in different temperatures, and an entire food court inside! UB gave this a surprisingly high review as a place to sit with his thoughts, and wants to come back next time (with a book). We were happy to see many people our age sitting about and participating in this activity on a Saturday afternoon, even when the city offers so many other options for entertainment and privacy.
Refreshed, we zoomed down to Gangnam for dinner at Samwon Garden Restaurant before Ed showed us around his neighborhood! We got a great overview of the “party streets” in Gangnam before nestling into Alvin Avenue, a lively spot that we found out on arrival happened to have a blues band playing that night!! We caught the second half of an impressive set by the Kwak Jiwon Blues Band, which served as the perfect end to a stellar weekend in Seoul.
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