The Week I Apparently Did a Lot of Shopping
- Kathryn Wilson
- Nov 12, 2022
- 5 min read
I am suddenly realizing I spent a weird amount of time walking around malls or shopping areas this week. Read on to hear more about it along with the food I ate (as always) and my first Korean amusement park.
November 4th
Friday was an exciting day- my friend was getting her tattoo! We headed to Yeonnam for her appointment. After dropping her off, I walked around the streets to find a nearby cafe to do some work. I ended up at Randy’s Donuts- a famous donut place from LA that I hadn’t heard of before. However, it had a line of people outside waiting for it to open, so I figured it was worth checking out. I tend to go pretty simple with my donuts since I don’t like anything that’s overly sweet, so I just got glazed, chocolate, and M&Ms (crazy I know). They were actually way better than I expected, the inside was really fluffy and light. I spent the next 4 hours studying until my friend was finished with her tattoo. Afterward, we walked around the area. The neighborhood had a very downtown feeling, with lots of boutiques and handmade goods. It felt like the type of place you live for the first couple of years after graduating college, if that makes any sense. We browsed for an hour or two until we decided to get dinner at Little Papa Pho. We knew it was going to be amazing when we saw they had chairs and a waiting list ready outside. Thankfully, we got there right before the dinner rush, so we didn’t have to wait. My friend got beef loin pho and I got a seafood noodle dish. And wow. The broth was incredible. I felt like drinking it would cure me of any disease. It was savory but there was also something almost sweet about it? We were both literally starstruck. I cannot recommend this place enough.
November 5th
On Saturday, we made our way to Dongdaemun Design Plaza, an area that’s known for its shopping and art. We started off by grabbing a quick mango smoothie from GoMango, where literally everything is mango-colored and themed. We then found a food court in the basement of Doota Mall where we got this amazing cheese and bacon omurice (an omlette made with fried rice and topped with ketchup). We then walked around Doota Mall and the Hyundai Outlets, where I bought flower embroidered converse. We finished up the night in the Design Lab, where local creatives sell different goods, like postcards or coffee cups. It also featured GS25’s new character- a serious fox named Moomoossi that doesn’t enjoy work anymore. Our favorite phrase of his is “Mountain is mountain, work is work.” Not entirely sure what it means, but we love it.
November 8th
On Tuesday in my diplomacy class, we heard from the former ambassador to Kazakhstan and Israel on Korea’s relations with Africa. It was really interesting to learn about how diplomatic ties developed over history, especially considering South Korea’s diplomatic competition with North Korea for legitimacy in the United Nations.
That night for dinner, we went to a place called Anam Skewers and got their combination plate. It came with chicken, two other unknown meats, and these circular green vegetables we later discovered were a type of Korean squash (we think). It was pretty good, but one of the mystery meats had a very crunchy? (described as gristly by my friend) texture. We finished the night with drinks and cookies at a cute place called ‘I’m Bean’ near the dorm.
November 9th
Wednesday after classes, my friend and I went to Wangsimni Station for dinner. The Bitplex mall here is where I went with my language partner and got gimbap. So I did the exact same thing this time. It was just as delicious as before. This time I explored more of the shops, which included a Kodak clothing store? Everything was pretty expensive there, but I find myself incredibly tempted by the random companies that sell clothes here (there was also a Jeep and Discovery Expedition store). There was also a place where you could play arcade games for free and a super slow carousel decorated for Christmas. My friend and I’s favorite pastime has quickly become finding stores that have random stuff marked down to 10,000 won. This time, we bought a shirt with “Screwball League” on the front. We have no clue what it means, but the shirt was pretty nice and the deal was too good to pass up.
November 10th
Thursday after class, we had the International Student’s Fair on campus. Basically, there are a bunch of tents in the main square of campus where students set up different activities and serve food and drinks from their country. It was incredible to see the variety of places represented. Canada served maple syrup toast and you could play hockey, while Spain gave you sangria and a tomato bread dish. The booth that really stole the show was Indonesia, they apparently stayed up all night cooking and served like five amazing Indonesian dishes. There was also a talent show and fashion show at the end to show off each country’s dress and cultural traditions. My friends and I finished up the night with some Korean barbeque for dinner.
November 11th
Friday the weather was super nice and somewhat warm for a change, so my friend and I headed to Seoul Forest. All the trees and colors were gorgeous, and it was good to temporarily be outside the city, even if we were only a few steps out of it. Interestingly enough, they have an enclosure that holds deer as an attraction, which is funny coming from a place where deer are very common. There was also a bridge that went through part of the park and to the edge of the Han river, which gave a beautiful view of the sunset over the city. As we headed out, we saw THE largest white, fluffy dog ever. No lie, we stood there for like 5 minutes just watching it walk around.
After we got over our shock, we walked to a Line Friends store pop-up, where they basically just set up a bunch of decorations and characters you could take pictures with. Most importantly, we got free stickers. For dinner, we got Mangchi Burger, which was delicious. One thing about burgers in Korea, when they do them, they do them right. The store owner was very happy that we enjoyed them, and we even got stickers there too. We also happened upon Understand Avenue, where they put a bunch of pop-up local stores in shipping containers, and the SM building (the entertainment company that represents a bunch of K-pop idols among other things).
November 12th
On Saturday, I made the 2-hour trek to Everland, a big amusement park just outside of Seoul. It was supposed to rain, which wouldn’t be fun, but I was hopeful it would make the lines shorter. The entry was surprisingly cheap at just 15,000 won compared to more expensive parks back home. I would say the rides are pretty similar to those at Six Flags, but I still really enjoyed them. We went on an apparently really famous ride there where you sit in a little floating tube and float down a river. You get to cover yourself with a waterproof tarp, but it didn’t help much once the water started splashing over the sides. We spent over an hour in line to ride the world’s tallest wooden rollercoaster, but, the heavy rain, unfortunately, meant the ride couldn’t operate anymore. Regardless, it was still a fun time overall.
Coffee Shop Thoughts
As I sit here in this coffee shop, writing about the past week or so, I am also realizing I have about 40 days left here in Korea. However, as opposed to the anxiousness I felt to do as much as possible about a month ago, I feel more content now. Don’t get me wrong, I am not itching to go home this instant or anything, but I do feel that I have experienced a good amount of Korea now. That being said, I’m still as excited as ever to continue exploring.
As always I love reading your blog and your adventures. Enjoy your last "few" days!