New Favorite Spot: Bukchon Hanok Village

Just a short jaunt from my favorite area of Seoul, Insadong, is a neighborhood that's vying for the number two spot. Nestled between two palaces and overlooking hip Samcheongdong is the Bukchon Hanok Village -- narrow winding streets flanked with gorgeous hanok houses. I've taken a stroll through this neighborhood several times now and it just never gets old. Not only is this area ridiculously photogenic, but it also offers a variety of cultural activities and history lessons! 

Old and new.

Here's the basic history of the area: During the Joseon Dynasty, when the surrounding palaces, Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung, were actually inhabited, the Bukchon area served as the residential quarters for the upper class, such as nobility and high-ranking government officials. Urbanization, naturally, harmed these neighborhoods, as did the years of Japanese occupation and subsequent war. 

In the years after the Korean war, Seoul's rapid modernization lead to the demolition of even more hanok houses. It wasn't until the 2000s that the Seoul Metropolitan Government created new policies to beautify and preserve what was left of the hanok houses. 

The hanok houses themselves are works of art. The slope of the rooftops is just aesthetically pleasing, and all the intricate patterns on the walls, windows, and doors will keep any photo-happy tourist busy for hours. 

In addition to being a touristy, gorgeous neighborhood, it's actually still just that -- a neighborhood. As you walk around, you'll see signs about the neighborhood's curfew as well as a reminder to respect the privacy of the residents. 

If you're hoping to get a glimpse inside the hanok houses, don't worry. They aren't all residential. In fact, many have been turned into mini-museums, showcasing artifacts and "intangible" cultural heritage. 

My first visit to Bukchon, I was completely unaware that these types of activities existed. Arriving shortly before closing time 5pm, we realized we were missing out on a ton of cultural workshops. I then vowed to go back and try to start exploring what the different hanok houses had to offer. 

Just look for signs like this outside some of the hanok houses -- it means there's something cool inside! 

When I was in Bukchon most recently, we wandered into a hanok house that had a sign outside advertising different kinds of alcohol. When we walked in, we were immediately greeted by an older gentleman who worked there and spoke excellent English. He told us about the history of the neighborhood, the house we were in, and led us through the different gallery rooms with display cases full of beautiful folk crafts.

After we looked all around, our host told us about what this particular hanok house offered: soju tasting. We all grimaced, as it was around noon, but he assured us that it was just tiny samples.

Only three of our party decided to do the alcohol tasting, and the price listed above provided enough for us to split it.

From top to bottom: the (very strong) soju, the yakju, and the makgeolli. The makgeolli and yakju were my favorites! 

After sampling the drinks, we made more conversation with our host and were brought free samples of moju, which I had never had before. It's a "folk" liquor that's made from boiling down makgeolli and mixing it with medicinal herbs. It was sweet and warm and delicious -- also with a very low alcohol content. Our host told us that it's thought of as a drink served by Korean moms since it's full of herbs and spices! 

We didn't have time to check out any of the other hanok houses on this particular visit, which I suppose just means I'll have to be making another weekend trip over there sometime soon. No complaints here -- I saw signs on other hanok houses for embroidery and pottery museums, which might even include some kind of workshop! 

For more information about the attractions of Bukchon, check out this excellent website by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. You can read more about the history as well as getting a preview of the museums, cultural workshop experiences, and a map for a walking tour. As you walk around, keep an eye out for information guides -- they'll have red aprons and are always happy to hand you a map and suggest the best route. 

Directions: 

• Anguk Station (on Line 3), Exit 2. 
• Walk straight for about 300m, keeping an eye out for signs/Tourist Information Center. 

I highly recommend spending an afternoon (or four) in the Bukchon Hanok Village. Between the photo opportunities and all the activities, it's definitely a neat, culturally infused way to learn more about Korea's past. 

Have you been to the Bukchon Hanok Village or any other hanok villages in Korea? Leave a comment below to share your experiences or thoughts! 

Dear Korea, please explain, volume one.

Anywhere in the world, you're bound to see things that just baffle you. I'm talking about the small, mundane things that are just a little off or unexpected. I could easily rattle off a list of things like this from the U.S., and I'm from there -- these things should be somewhat normal to me, and yet they still catch my eye. Being on the other side of the world though? Completely different assortment of perplexing and, as my students say, "strange-ee."

To show you what I mean, here's (the first installment of) a photographic journey through some of the more... unique things from Korea that I just really, really need someone to explain.

This is ice cream. You peel it like a banana. It's kind of like mochi on the outside, with ice cream on the inside, and it's entirely banana flavored. A+ for creativity.

Chew this lady gum while you write with your BIC "For Her" pens.

Because who doesn't want a box of chocolates with Korean men printed on them? For the record: these were "service," or free, from a chocolate vendor when I purchased a ton of the cactus chocolate and stuff to send back to family and friends. Also, let the record show that I was highly disappointed to find that the faces were not edible.

Kakao is the most popular free messaging app in this country, and they have some of the strangest emoticons... Most of the time, the peach looks more like a butt. Also, I spy something racist? 

Stay classy, Korea. 

Underwear bomb? On display at the airport? 

"Blood Diamonds." Nice jacket, bro.

In the winter, walking to work is kind of like ice skating, but the super dangerous kind where you don't have any ice skates and it's awful. The sidewalks aren't cleared here, so all the heavy snowfall just gets packed down until it starts to melt and then freezes again overnight into solid ice! Fun times for all.

This was one of those moments where I felt like the kind ajummas at our local gimbap house were trolling us. The banchan, or free side dishes, are often a little different when we go in there, so I always get excited when there's something I've never had before. When this was placed in front of us, I didn't think twice before trying it, not knowing what it was exactly. Can you guess from the picture? Because it was definitely sliced hotdogs in ketchup. Well played, gimbap house ajummas. Well played.

One of the strangest things in Korea for me is this: the soap on a stick that's in most public bathrooms. It both grosses me out and amuses me. It's so logical, and yet so absurd. 

I love this country, but sometimes... what?

oh, engrish, volume one.

i love engrish. i first discovered its existence back in high school when i was studying japanese and the internet was becoming a thing. i remember finding a website dedicated to engrish and i would check it regularly. and now, since i am in asia, it is everywhere.

back in the late '90s and early 2000s, chinese and japanese characters were on everything. it was one of the cool trends back then, and i owned quite a few shirts with something i couldn't read or understand scrawled down the side. at the time, i remember wondering what on earth it actually said, and being amused at the prospect that it possibly didn't make any sense at all. i imagined chinese and japanese people passing these shirts in the stores and laughing or rolling their eyes at the horrible misuse of their language. and i hoped they felt amused by it, rather than annoyed.

now i find the situation reversed -- everywhere i go, i see english. well, engrish. or maybe even konglish.

often, the grammatical awkwardness comes from a literal translation of the korean. it technically makes sense the way it's phrased, but it isn't actually how we would say it as native speakers.

sometimes i see interesting misspellings, which comes i'm sure from the different languages having different sounds. a good example is the lack of 'z' in korean, meaning my name is spelled with a 'j' instead. or the oft joked about "rice" vs. "lice."

and then sometimes, i see a phrase or a paragraph that just doesn't make any sense whatsoever. someone just found a blurb from an article, the bible, wikipedia, the side of a cereal box... and then slapped it on their product or storefront.

so at this point, finding strange english has become a hobby when i'm out and about.

this will be a new series of photos, just a handful at a time, of the interesting english i've found here and there in korea. it will range from the slightly awkward to the nonsensical, and i hope you enjoy. :)

(sidenote: in no way am i trying to be disrespectful or mocking of koreans or their culture. there is nothing malicious about my intentions here, so do know that i'm not trying to offend.)

this is actually an accurate representation of how i feel about milk. 

the best part of this was it was a sign for a seminar for english teachers...

woo.

appropriately on the side of a love motel.

best. shirt. ever.

after diseases part?

just thinking about this sends me into fits of giggles. 

that's all for this round! i've got another batch of photos queued up for the next post, so expect that sometime soon!