Seoul: Lunar New Year

The Lunar New Year is an important time of the year for Koreans to migrate to their hometowns and spend time with their families. The Korean New Year is celebrated on January 26th and we were given both Monday and Tuesday off in recognition of the holiday. While everyone else is with their families and departing the large cities, the foreigners (us) took the four day weekend to trek it up to Seoul to enjoy some good food, diversity, and relaxation.

Caitlin's school had an extra day off on Friday so she took the bus up early to hang out in Incheon where there is a ceramics village and hot springs. I came up with the Avalon crew the following day on Korea's high-speed rail, the KTX. This high-speed train hits a maximum of 350 kph [217mph] but is not allowed to go more than 300 kph [186 mph] with passengers. They display the speed on a video screen inside the cabin and I only saw it hit about 284 kph [176 mph] at the max.

Although its not the fastest train in the world, like the French [574.8 kph] or Japanese Maglev [500 kph], it only took 2.5 hours to go from Gwangju to Seoul. This trip usually takes 3-4 hours, depending on weather and how much soju the driver has had. The train was quiet, comfortable and quick. They also do it right with their service here; you can get a beverage or snack on board for the same price [1W] as you would in a bodega. A bottle of water doesn't cost 6 bucks like it would on a train or airline in the states. The cost of this train rides is 38,000W [$ 27 USD].

The train ride up was snowy and felt like the Polar Express as we whizzed through a snowy Korean countryside. I was waiting for Tom Hanks to come through, punch my ticket and whisper something magical in my ear. Instead, I watched music videos with Lisa [including one of my all-time favorite animated shorts, Pixar's Boundin' ], read Matt's copy of the Economist, then fell asleep. Arriving in Seoul, the weather was about 10 degrees colder than Gwangju and a bit windier, similar to the 4-hour climate difference between Philly and Syracuse.

Pixar's Boundin'

The priority for the weekend quickly became food. We started with lunch, dinner, and the following breakfast with Mexican. For those of your visiting Seoul, we went to Dos Tacos in Hongdae [Hongik University metro stop] and On the Border, just one stop to the east. Later that night we went to Black Sheep, an "organic" Italian fusion restaurant. The food was good, but a bit costly and the service was poor. They also didn't have the first two things that I ordered, pasta and chianti, so half of the menu choices were eliminated. Buuut, they did give us a deck of Guinness playing cards on our way out.


The next day we sought out [Caitlin sought out] a place to get brunch in Itaewon. Because of her clairvoyant navigational senses, we were able to find the Flying Pan. Run by two Korean sisters, this cafe/restaurant makes its own bread and serves up some of the best eggs, french toast, pancakes, salads, herb-infused sausages, and decadent cake I have ever tasted. This was not only the best restaurant I went to in Seoul but perhaps one of the best restaurants I have ever been to. It was so delicious that Caitlin and I went back that night for dinner before heading back to Gwangju.

If you want to find the Flying Pan restaurant, take the metro to the Itaewon stop. Stay on the left-hand side of the main drag and make another left just after the Hamilton Hotel. The restaurant is below ground on the right, just keep an eye out for their sign...

The Flying Pan
Open 9 am to 8 pm Monday to Saturday
10:30 am to 5 pm Sundays
736-5 Hannam 2 Dong
[Reviews here, here, and here]

Seoul Subway Map

We explored a bunch of new places we had never been to in Seoul and managed to find some worthwhile nooks [Gwangju wouldn't even know what to do with a nook if it knew what one was]. We went to a cool Japanese Sake restaurant, a tea house that has birds flying around inside, and a bar small enough for ten people called Vinyl that serves their drinks in plastic bags. They have cheap mixed drinks, excellent wheat beers, and good music.

The lax public drinking laws in Korea are exemplified by Vinyl's drinks-to-go takeout window.

Vinyl

From the Hangik University metro stop, head up towards the main gate of the university and make a right. From there, walk down 5 minutes or so and you will see Vinyl on your right [it has a big robot].


At the bird tea house, you can get your own little cubby and sit amongst chirping little finches while sipping on warm jujube tea. A cup of tea runs about 6,000W but is definitely worth the flavor and environment. The bird cafe is located in Insa-dong, [get off at Anguk metro stop on the orange line] it is called The Old Cafe and is located down a little alleyway. You just have to keep an eye out for a sign with a bird on it.

We also managed to see a techno fashion show, dance our faces off in an 70s urban-chique owl club, try seven different kinds of canadian-brewed beers, and watch a Manchester United match on our hotel room [I don't have a TV in my apartment, this is huge].

All-in-all we found some of our new favorite hangouts in Seoul. Although the city is massive [metropolitan population of over 10 million], it is easy to navigate as long as you are savvy with the subway map.

The rest of the photos from our Seoul extravaganza can be viewed here.


...Aaaand, if I haven't bored your face off already and you are suffering from bad air quality in your office cubicle, here is some more web content to petrify your skull.