Palaces, markets and fish that clean your feet

A dozen mosquito bites later, one foot bath (with fish) and one currency incident later, I am settled into the dormitory at Yonsei University in Seoul.

The mosquitoes here have seemingly targeted me and I’ve been one itchy mess until I picked up some soothing Korean medicine to assuage my numerous bites. If you ever come to Korea, bring bug repellant and use it liberally.

As for the foot bath, I went to a café with some of my friends here and apparently you can soak your feet in a bath while small fish suck the dirt, grime and filth off of your feet. The sensation is rather unusual (which would probably be expected), but it is not unpleasant and one of my friends even commented that he’d like to have the fish clean other parts of his body!



My currency debacle derived from a misplaced zero, one of those “mundane details” from the movie Office Space. I withdrew $500 instead of $50. This, however, did not trouble me since Korea’s streets are actually very safe and the people here have helped me numerous times when I’ve been lost.

Apart from these details from my first few days here, I’ve had several days to explore the city alone and also several days to venture beyond campus with several new friends.

My journeys have taken me to a Korean palace named Changdeokgung that hosted the Chosun dynasty rulers, the last dynasty before the Japanese annexed Korea during 1910 and assumed control from the Korean king. The palace’s buildings sprawled out from one central palace and a private wooded garden extended beyond. The architecture is worth seeing. It is preserved well and, although everyone must see the palace during an English, Chinese, Korean or Japanese guided tour, the tour guide’s information provided much needed context for a culture and history I know little about.

If you’re interested in visiting, the tour costs only $3 and the palace is very accessible by bus or subway.

I’ve also seen an open-air marketplace where vendors sell shirts, shoes, food, souvenirs and many other products. The area, called Dongdaemun, is one of Seoul’s main marketplaces and one can find nearly anything while perusing the streets in this area. I walked around for nearly four hours here and noticed the contrast between the street markets and the towering department stores.
The street vendors shouted at me in Korean to come visit their shops and when I did visit, I could barter for the final price. I bought two t-shirts for $10 (10,000 Won).

Across the street from the main open-air market were two large department stores. One had a stage set up outside of the entrance to the store and there were singers and dancers performing to a small crowd gathered near the store. Inside, the department store was much like Macy’s or Nordstrom. The contrast between the department stores which line Seoul’s main streets and the family-owned shops which cluster in narrow alleyways was quite apparent.

In the Shinchon area near Yonsei, I’ve explored the avenues by day and night. It is a youth-oriented district dominated by five or six story buildings, all of which house cafes, restaurants, bars, clubs and various shops.
Each store seems to hang a neon sign outside of their storefront. By night, these signs light up every alleyway and the store’s host the legions of youth descending upon the district at all hours. The streets were just as busy at 8:00 p.m. when I ate dinner as they were at 2:00 a.m. when I finally called it a night.

Among these stores are many Western restaurants as well. There is an Outback Steakhouse near campus, Starbucks stores on every other avenue and some Western style sports bars as well.
And yes, there is McDonald’s.



I'll update later with more adventures and later I'll be posting some feature length stories with interviews about religion in Korea and plastic surgery here.