Tag Archives: South Korea

Seoul, a city with a special soul – part 1

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In 2010 I did a stop over in Seoul on my way to London. As usual my intention was to explore the city’s architecture. Friends had warned me Seoul would be a boring place to visit, but they were proved wrong.

I landed in Seoul with a hotel room booked but no idea how to get there. I expected people to be fluent in English, at least the city’s youth, but they weren’t. A young lady at the airport information desk, after a few phone calls, wrote a number of Korean lines on a piece of paper and explained to me, ‘show this line to the officer outside the airport,’ ‘show this line to the driver,’ and so forth. This was not what I had in mind but it worked.

During the bus trip to the hotel, the image of Seoul through my window didn’t appeal to me.

Luckily my friend Alex was a local and happy to take me on a city tour. I met her the following day. We started the day with a lunch at an Italian restaurant. The interior design was quite modern. This was a good example how architectural design travels fast these days as within the premises I could well think I was eating in London, LA or Sydney.

After lunch Alex took me to a venue called O’sulloc Tea House.

O’sulloc Tea House is a modern three storey venue that delivers a fantastic green tea experience. The interior design uses timber has the main leitmotiv which helps to increase the intensity of the tea. I tried a green tea cocktail and later on an employee, with a strong English accent, gave me a lecture on the subtleties of Korean green tea. The amazing thing about the tea house, is that I entered the building knowing zip about green tea and left versatile in the subject.

Late afternoon I did some shopping in an area known as Dongdaemun. The “Dongdaemun design plaza and park” building centre, designed by Zaha Hadid, was under construction. I tried to see beyond the fence but the building was just a hole in the ground at the time.

I met Alex in the evening in a trendy part of Seoul. We had a coffee experience, followed by a promenade to find a place to eat and a random walk in a busy district during the night. Some of the clubs were totally opened to the main road, often all levels. It seemed to me a smart design solution as it replaced a bricks and mortar facade with a livable and vibrant atmosphere.

I returned to the hotel thinking Seoul had so far been an interested experience… but the best was yet to come.

Seoul, a city with a special soul – part 2

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The following day Alex brought a friend with her and together we went to a restaurant called Gilmotungee Chiilie Chacha.

Gilmotungee Chiilie Chacha is a small restaurant. It can only accommodate four couples and one group at any given time. I am unsure whether the food served was traditional Korean but it did not matter as it was simply delicious.

The chef and owner was a middle aged man. I believe the ratio of customer satisfaction per customer served at his restaurant was probably the very best but we are talking about four or five couples served during peak hour. His reputation could travel far but not his revenue as he was unable to serve many people… so why bother?

Later on, when we went to Alex’s favourite cafeteria, a business operating under a staircase that could hardly fit more than three customers at the time, I noticed the barrister breathing his soul into the creation of a coffee experience. I wondered, why so much dedication when a hand full of customers would make his place look busy.

‘So much care and attention, are these people crazy?’ I asked Alex but she was unable to articulate an answer, probably confused by my awkward observation.

After lunch and coffee we rumoured an area of Seoul known as Hongdae. If I wasn’t already secretly in love with Seoul I think Hongdae did the final job.

Architecturally the area isn’t appealing. However, during our random walk, quite often I would come across a retail shop or venue and be surprised with the inside.

The greyish and dirty look of the streets stood in strong contrast to the colour, character and creativity flourishing from within these spaces. Every premise I entered was like stepping into another world. As if the owners had continuously rethought the process of crafting a space to perfection. The end result was often a lesson in interior design.

I think nothing can describe Seoul better than these small worlds of intense experiences. In my post about China I wrote that working passionately does pay dividends but in Seoul I learned it can also inspire other people.

These two posts, part 1 and 2, may well read as a set of loose memories assembled together. Glued by the simple thought that Seoul may look boring and dull at first glance but it is no doubt beautiful within.