Day 7
We felt a bit tired after our trip to Gangneung, so we had a slow morning before I headed to Hongdae to have lunch with Kyeongeun from Talk To Me In Korean. After lunch, we headed to the office to say hi to the others and it was so much fun to catch up with the team members that so many of us rely on for learning Korean.
In the evening I met Geonha’s friend from school for the most delicious Korean beef I have ever eaten. We thoroughly enjoyed the food before going to another place for a few beers. I always enjoy meeting other people who knew him well, as it’s such a wonderful way of reliving and sharing all the happy memories.
Day 8
After breakfast, my Danish friend and I headed north to explore the area around Paju – the book city, Heyri Art Village, and the outlet mall. The bus trip takes about an hour from Seoul and along the way, you get a sense of the tension that remains because of the proximity to North Korea. Along the bus route, you see tons of barbed wire, and near the outlet mall you can actually see North Korea in the distance across the river.
We first got off the bus in Paju Book Village where many of the largest Korean publishers have their headquarters. There’s also a huge library and a book store, where I picked up a ton of books.
Next stop was Heyri Art Village which was mostly a collection of cute cafés and craft shops. We found a nice Italian restaurant where we had real Italian pizza for lunch. Pizza can be a tough one in Korea as the Korean versions are usually very heavy and with tons of toppings – many of them sweet.
We then hopped back on the bus toward the outlet mall. I used to go there a few times a year when I was living in Korea, and it was just as busy as ever. It probably wasn’t the best idea to go there on a Saturday, since it’s busiest on weekends but it was still fun.
Back in Seoul we went for another round of noraebang and had a blast!
Day 9
Having spent so much time outside of central Seoul we decided to head downtown to see Namdaemun market and Myeongdong. I was happy to see both places appear to be back to pre-pandemic activities. In the summer of ’22 most of Myeongdong still looked like a ghost town.
We walked along the Seoullo walking path to Namdaemun market, where we took our time to look at the many different shops. My friend found some nice souvenirs before the market got too crowded. In Myeongdong we did some beauty shopping before heading to the nearby café Coffee Hanyakbang. It’s the cutest little café in one of the narrowest alleys in Seoul and the coffee selection is exquisite.
Then we headed to Namsangol Hanok Village but didn’t spend a long time since the weather was extremely hot. Instead, we found a kimbap shop where we ate a quick lunch before heading back to the hotel to rest for a few hours.
In the evening we had planned to do some fine dining and I had made reservations at Görtz in Sangsu. Görtz is famous for its European cuisine, fine wines, and panoramic view of the Han River. It’s also appeared in several dramas – among others My Love from the Star.
We had a lovely dinner with wine pairing which was a perfect end to our last weekend in Seoul.
That’s it for now. Make sure to follow along for part 4 and my last three days in Korea.
