Seoul Neighborhoods: Hyehwa

I wanted to show Beth some of the different parts of the city, so we went to Hyehwa to explore for a day. There is some pretty awesome street art in Hyehwa.

It seems like everyone here has small dogs. Perhaps this is because they have small apartments as well. Regardless, it also seems like people really love dressing their dogs in ridiculously cute outfits. There was a street vendor who was selling all of these doggie outfits. 

This is the official symbol of Seoul, but this particular version of it just reminds me of the Cheshire Cat. 

There was a street vendor selling these fish cake things. I really don't like them, but they are EVERYWHERE. 

It's fish that has been ground up into a paste, then made into flat sheets that are cut and scrunched onto the sticks. The sticks of hardened fish paste are then boiled and people eat the fish and drink cups of the water/broth they've been boiled in. Perhaps there is some seasoning that goes into all of it. I don't know. But I'm not a fan of this particular kind of street food. 

There was a statue that had this inscription on it. 

The Lamp of the East

In the golden age of Asia

Korea was one of its lamp bearers

And that lamp is waiting to be lighted once again

For the illumination in the East.

Which is all well and good... But look at the top part of the statue. 

Haagen-Dazs. Accessorize London. Kraze Burger. The contrast just amused me. 

Donating blood has never been such a cheerful experience!

This is a general view of an average street around Seoul. Lots of cars. Lots of people. Lots of signs. 

Hyehwa does definitely have some unique architecture though. It's difficult to find buildings like this in the rest of the city. It is the theatre district, so it has a fun, artsy vibe. 

And lots of cool coffee shops. 

This is something I encounter in lots of places around Korea. I'm constantly amazed that there aren't more electrical fires. 

I have no clue what a music monster is, but I want one! It's so cute!

There were also some really fun stores to browse around. 

The Shop of original sensibility. 

It had lots of fun knick-knack types of things. 

I don't really know what to make of this, but we walked around a corner, and there it was. 

If you want happiness, all you need to do is come to this store! They sell it by the cup. It was right next to this store:

The small text says "Casual Wine & Bar". I've always wondered what made casual wine different from formal wine. 

This was a fun mural that was painted next to the lock museum. 

I've heard good things about this jazz club, but I've never been to it. 

You should really never question what you find in Korea. Why in the world would it cause confusion to walk down the street and see a MASSIVE statue of Gandalf the White? 

In just one building, you have a Texas Western Ice Bar and Beard Papa's. What more could you need?

More cars, lights and people. 

How this combination of chef and chimp is supposed to make me want Italian food is a mystery to me, but there we have it. 

Finally, this store was the piece de resistance for the day. It's called "Dong Bang". The "Bang" (pronounced bahng, not like a gun) translates to bread. I think the "Dong" part is self-explanatory :)

The employees had great uniforms. They were also really friendly. 

This is what it came out looking like. It was surprisingly delicious. It was like eating a cupcake, only the frosting was inside and it was all warm and gooey. It's also hard to see in this picture (which is unfortunate), but it has a little face on it. Awesome. 

Lunar New Year Gifts

Lunar New Year is rapidly approaching. It is often called Chinese New Year in America, although it isn't called that here. For obvious reasons. This year is a big celebration, because 2012 is the year of the dragon. I will be celebrating Lunar New Year by flying to America, but most people celebrate by giving gifts, bowing to ancestors and eating a special soup that makes you a year older. 

The whole getting a year older thing still kinda throws me off sometimes. In less than a week, I'll be turning 27. My actual biological age is 25, but culturally speaking, I add two years. Everyone has their actual birthday celebration, then everyone adds a year on Lunar New Year, whenever it may fall. I've heard this is especially shocking for expats who are nearing the 30 mark. 

Gift giving is also really important. Many parents give money to their children, and my students all tell me this is the best part of the holiday. However, if you want to give a gift to someone who isn't a child, or to a co-worker, there are different options for that. Giving box sets seems to be a big thing here. It doesn't matter what the holiday is, there are always piles and piles of box sets that go on sale in anticipation of the gift giving season. The first time I saw these gift boxes up close, I was surprised. You see, gift boxes are different here. In America, maybe your box would be some nice lotion and soap, or cheese and sausage. Here are some examples of gift boxes that are quite common in Korea. For price conversion purposes, just assume that 1,000 Korean won is the same as 1 US dollar. It isn't exact, but it gives you a ballpark. 

This is the display rack outside of a grocery store in a busy neighborhood in Seoul. 

Shampoo, body wash, soap and toothpaste. 

Two bottles of canola oil and one bottle of grapeseed oil. I actually almost bought one of these, because that's a rather good price for oil here. 

The combo pack. Oil, tuna and generic SPAM. 

This seems to be quite popular, especially around lunar new year. It's a gift box of SPAM. For $50. 

The Lock Museum

Beth and I were wandering around Hyehwa, and we came upon the lock museum. It seemed interesting when we looked it up online, so we decided to go and take a look. It was small, but there were some interesting things to be seen. 

These two were apparently the welcome committee. Or maybe they were the watchers. Either way, they were the first thing you saw when you walked into the exhibit area. They were really small, but they were in this giant glass cube. It was odd. 

There were locks from lots of different time periods and countries. I was amazed at how beautiful the detail work on them was. This lock was probably only six inches long. 

There was an exhibit of animal locks. I think that in the past, different animals represented different things, so you would choose specific animals to lock certain rooms or spaces. But I don't know much more about it than that. The signs weren't so very helpful in this instance. 

Some of the locks didn't actually look like locks. Like this one. It was really pretty! Again, it was smaller than you would have expected, and it was quite intricate. 

Some of the locks were made out of gold. They were especially beautiful. 

There was a lock sculpture in one of the exhibit spaces. 

That thing that is holding this lock up is fishing line. Just to help give you an idea of scale. Again, this lock is tiny, but incredibly detailed. There are individual scales etched into it. 

This was an example of a keychain from back in the day. 

They had some intricately designed cases that were all locked up. 

These are keys that were used at various points in history. Even the keys are pretty. I feel like I'm missing out on an entire aesthetic experience every time I come home now. 

There were locks for just about everything there.... Doors, boxes, and... well... other things :)

This was just a cool sculpture thing near the exit. I don't think it actually had anything to do with locks, but it was nice.