Week 8: Asia Trip: Part 2 - South Korea

This can be found in downtown Seoul

Another great country to visit in Asia is South Korea. Especially considering their recent growth and new, modern infrastructure and architecture to be seen.

Contrary to my opinion about Japan’s capital not being the “true” Japanese place to visit, Seoul is great if you want to see the best of Korea. Actually half of Korea lives there. 

Most of Korean traditional architecture and history had been destroyed by the Japanese (so Korean dislike towards Japan is very widespread, just like many Polish people not liking Russians or Germans).

Also downtown Seoul

So the Seoul area features some of the most beautiful and authentic-looking reconstructions. Also, Seoul is the place to visit to experience modern Korea and experience the core of their economy and development - it is one of the most modern, clean and well-organized cities in the world with great balance between modern skyscrapers, traditional architecture and green areas all in extremely organized urban architecture - probably one of the best in the world.

Most foreign tourists will want to see places such as Gangnam - the business area with expensive shops and restaurants. In reality there is not much to see there, contrary to what the Korean pop icon would like you to believe. There are just countless businesses and overpriced products and services to be found there - which doesn't stop the Koreans from shopping there, their economy allows them to afford a lot. Gangnam is also home to some of the most expensive apartment buildings in Korea.

Gangnam

Hongdae

Another interesting area is Hongdae - THE area for the young people around the Hongik University, which is filled with bars and restaurants.On any typical evening it’s extremely crowded with students looking for a place to get drunk - and by extremely crowded I really mean it. Hongdae is also filled with hostels and is popular for foreign exchange students - most dorms are located there. The thing is, to put it in perspective, Hongdae "party area" is the size of an average district in Warsaw.

It shows perhaps the most underestimated feature of the culture - drinking. They can drink at least as much as the Polish people, and they do it more often. Many people drink beer with everything, even with breakfast or during the lunch break at work - it's completely usual in South Korea.

There are many, many interesting areas in Seoul, each of them is special. For instance, itaewon is a very popular foreigner shopping and residential area, there are little "towns" for major Korean companies and as a matter of fact cities located near Seoul are probably soon to become parts of Seoul.

If you have a little more time and truly want to know all about Korea you should totally take a trip across Korea. If you have even more time, you should take a trip to the Jeju island, which is basically a Korean paradise island:

Jeju Island

Jeju island. Source: https://www.visit7wonders.com/

But back to the trip across the "main" South Korea, hanging out in towns near the North Korean border might be a cool experience for most people. Some of them are mostly occupied by North Korean residents, who are really nice people, and those places feel like time stopped for them in the 60s and it's standing still:

Sokcho

There are many beautiful nature spots. South Korea has some of the most beautiful mountain areas I've ever seen, perhaps being beat only by British Columbia and western Alberta in Canada, and maybe the Guilin area in China.

Seoraksan National Park

Seoraksan National Park

Seoraksan in the morning. Source: Visitkorea.or.kr

I could go on and on about the beauty of the place, but just like with Japan, you should see it yourself and I don't want to spoil your journey too much ;-)

So I'll talk shortly about food. The Koreans like meat - especially beef, so being in Korea you HAVE TO try Bulgogi. They also like Kimchi, beer, seafood and garlic. However, the most interesting part of their eating habits is the Korean BBQ - Gogigui. It is indeed very special, as you are preparing your own food from raw ingredients provided by the restaurant - you have to cook them together with the people you eat with, which makes for one of the most social restaurant experiences ever.

The best Asian food experience, Gogigui

Finally I'll mention my experience with the Korean people, as they are very unique. There are stereotypes about the Asian people known in Poland, but to tell you the truth, each country in Asia is entirely different. While people in Japan are very polite, they seem to be somewhat dishonest about it. In Korea, people are also polite, well organized and act selflessly, but they are very honest and will tell you exactly how they feel. They are much more open towards strangers and they are genuinely nice people to be around - Koreans are some of the best friends you might have. Quiet and emphatic on transit and work (where they spend half of their lives); loud and happy at the bar.

I thought I shouldn't make my blog posts THAT long, so I'll just cut this short and go right to the questions:

What do YOU know about Korea? What do you think about that country? Would you like to visit?

Sources: Own experience and photos.