Seodaemun Prison Museum

Last Saturday, over a pizza lunch, Nate and I decided that it was about time we headed off for another around-Seoul exploration adventure. A few minutes of flipping through through the LP Korea book (as my parents inadvertently hijacked my Seoul City Guide) landed us on a page about the Seoul Grand Park. Part zoo, part hillside hike and located just next door to the Seoul Contemporary Art Museum, the Grand Park sounded like an excellent way to pass a crisp but clear Saturday afternoon.

We plowed through the rest of the pizza and met up only a short while later, ready to head south on the subway. Part of the reason we decided to head towards the Grand Park was because it required no subway changes as it is located on the blue Line 4 which we board, and are guaranteed a seat on, at Sanggye Station.

Getting a rather late start on the day we soon realized that our intended destination would take at least an hour to get to, leaving us no more than an hour or so of daylight to explore. While we didn't have a ton of information on the Park, we assumed the zoo didn't stay open, or at least wasn't worth seeing, much past dark. Thus, already on the subway, we began racking our brains for alternatives.

With a little hesitation we decided to try and head towards the Inwangsan Shamanist Hillside Walk, recommended by both the LP Korea and Seoul City Guide. The only problem is that neither of us remembered exactly what subway stop to get off at and where it was from there. For somereason I decided that it had to be the one stop adjacent to Gyeongbokgun Palace as I remember seeing it somewhere near there on a map. So, we headed towards Dongnimmun Station. Though we never did end up making it to this shamanist hillside walk, I later learned, after double checking the book, that I did indeed remember the correct station but simply didn't wander far enough. . .why, well because we got a bit distracted by a little piece o' history.

Coming up out of Dongnimmun Station we paused at an area map to decided which way to go. While we saw no traces of Inwangsan (which is what we thought we were supposed to look for) we did notice that the prison museum was located just topside. Having both heard about it from others and seen it mentioned in our guides, we figured we'd at least check it out real quick to score some culture points and check it off the list of Seoul to dos.

Going out Exit 5 we found our selves only a minute walk away from the museum. After noting the ticket price of 1,500 won (or just over a dollar) we decided it was worth heading in, even if it wasn't too interesting. So, ticket in hand, we proceeded through a small opening in a brick wall that bordered the prison grounds.

Enlarge the photo to read about Seodaemun Prison. . .if you'd like

One of the few remaining watchtowers along the outer wall built in 1923.

Inside the wall we were greeted by a large institutional looking building that really reminded me more of the DMZ than any prison I had ever seen (though on second though, I don't recall ever really being inside a prison before. . .do I?). Not too impressive of a museum from the outside but we headed in to check it out.

Administration Building housing the Exhibition Hall

Immediately inside on our a left a half a dozen locals were watching what I can only assume was an introductory video. Given that it was all in Korean and more of a slide show than a movie, we decide to press onwards, picking up an English brochure on the way. According to this pamphlet, the seven minute video program explains, "the background of the establishment of Seodaumen Prison (Hyeongmuso) where a number of patriotic independence fighters were imprisoned for the their resistance against Japanese invasion and tyranny, and historical changes of the prison." (<-minor editing undertaken while correcting misspelled words) Down a short hallway to our right we entered the Special Exhibition room. The walls of the room were lined with a sort of pictorial timeline that showed the prison's construction, historical uses and multiple additions. While English explanations were sparse, the pictures, and overwhelming sense of national pride, gave a pretty good idea of what was going on. In short, as I haven't taken the time to really thoroughly research the issue, during the early 1900's Korea was overtaken by Japan. It was the Japanese that originally built the prison in order to detain a number of important Korean thinkers as well as the numerous Korean patriots who fought adamantly, and often to the death, for Korea's independence. After years of suffering, Japan was eventually expelled from the Korean peninsula and the prison was in turn left to the control of Korea. It was then operated for a number of decades until finally all prisoners were moved in 1987. The Prison Museum, or History Hall as it's referred to, was opened only ten years ago in 1998. Following signs pointing 'This Way,' we made our way upstairs to the National Resistance Room. With a bit more English that the Exhibition Room, but hardly enough to excite, we breezed through this hall quickly, finding ourselves in the Prison History Room. Here we saw a number of pictures, presented chronologically, that highlighted the prison's many transitions through the years as it changed hands and nationalities. Before returning downstairs we passed through the In-Prison Life Room where pictures and full sized dioramas show depict the atrocities committed against Korean 'patriots' by the Japanese. On the far wall we were even able to enter a life sized 'wall coffin' in which prisoners were locked for days without being able to move; a torture that supposedly led to paralysis, though I'd imagine psychosis would hit first!

A Japanese Torture Device, the Wall Coffin

Following the instructions to head 'This Way,' we were led back down past the first floor and into the Administration Building's basement were we were met by a rather unpleasant surprise. Here we were able to view the Temporary Detention Room and Torture Rooms that were used by the Japanese. However, rather than just leave the rooms dark and empty, which would have been scary enough, a creative curator decided to fill the rooms with life sized dioramas depicting torture scenes.

Far from G rated, these displays, filled with fake blood and graphic wounds would have a hard time making it in to any politically correct museum back Stateside. Furthermore, motion sensor triggers set off blood curdling screams that echoed through the empty halls as we wandered from display to display. Oh, and if that wasn't enough, every few figures were slightly animated (is that the right word) so that rather than just depicting the shoving of sharp blades under a woman's finger nails, the fake guard actually made jerky lunges at her with the knife, just to help you better understand!

I'm not quite sure why I don't have any pictures of this to share though I don't really know if you'd like to see it. It might have been that there were 'no photo' signs, which I think I recall, but more so probably just because I was trying to get through it as quickly as possible. . .this was not a pleasant place to spend a Saturday afternoon!

The Central Building for Prison Guards

Exiting out back of the Exhibition Hall we followed an arrowed path around towards a rather large construction, or remodeling project taking place on the prison grounds. Inside the Central Building for Prison Guards we were greeted by a slew of Korean and nothing much worth hanging around for. So, we quickly scrambled on through towards the Prison Buildings themselves.

While the pamphlet indicates that there are normally a number of prison halls that one can walk through, due to construction we were only able to visit Prison Building No.11, which was okay with me. The long narrow building seemed to be constructed for no purpose other than detaining prisoners. The walls were lined with cells from end to end divided by a long concreted hallway. As far as I could tell, there were no other rooms, offices or anything other than cells in the building.

Again, in a totally un-American fashion, visitors are left to their own whims while exploring the prison as no signs, guards or velvet ropes separate the exhibition from the patrons. Thus we were able to actually climb into the relatively large (10x10ft) cells and take some pictures. While the presence of natural light made it a bit less threatening than the horrific basement display, anyone who has seen The Rock enough times knows the danger of entering a supposedly 'harmless' prison cell. . .thus we made our temporary detentions extremely quick. . . just long enough to snap a few photos.

Welcome to Seodaemun Prison

Get me outta here!

Seodaemun Prison Building No. 11

The next building over, the Engineering Work Building, we were treated to more displays of Japanese torture and brief descriptions of the work that Korean inmates were forced to undertake. In one room, pictured below, I got the privilege of facing a Japanese Trial Court. Little did I know that the stool I sat on, awaiting my verdict, would suddenly drop out from under me, eliciting a terrifying scream that sent the Korean family who had just exited the room running back in to laugh at the foreigner. . . awesome!

On Trial.

Behind Bars

Back out into the safety of daylight, what little was left of it, we made the last few passes marked by our Guide Map. A stop at the Execution Building proved to be less exciting then the name suggested as the wooden building, which we weren't allowed to enter, simply resembled an old prairie style school house more than a place of ultimate judgement.

Out back of the Execution Building we eagerly searched for the Corpse Removal Exit which turned out to be no more than the entrance to a tunnel where bodies were dropped after being hung. Intense but not incredibly interesting to look at. I'd share a picture with ya but there were no cameras allowed inside the brick walls surrounding the building, and really, not much to photograph!

Prison Grounds at Sunset

Finally, before heading out, we made a stop at the Underground Cells. This pagoda looking building, encircled in glass had a fully excavated floor that revealed underground cells where women inmates were kept. Apparently the cells were built so short that even Korean prisoners could not stand fully upright. . . after all this, you really start to better understand why Koreans exhibit such a hatred for all things Japanese!

At the entrance/exit to Seodaemun Prison. . .which I believe it says in Hanguel above my head!

With the sun not quite below the horizon we decided to spend a few minutes wandering around the giant park that encompassed the prison museum. We later learned, off a large sign, that we were wandering Independence Park, established to memorialize the patriots who valiantly fought the Japanese for Korea's independence. Though most of the park was blocked off due to pending construction (which there seems to be a great deal of in this city) it was really rather peaceful to be so removed from the city through we were still right in the middle of it, only a few miles from 'downtown.'

A Monument in Independence Park

Having been taking about my desire for a real sandwich all day, we finished up around Independence Park and strode south towards the city center in search of a Subway that remembered seeing in Myeong-dong; a bustling commercial area that caters primarily to youngsters while boasting the ninth highest rent per floor space in the world. I also remember seeing somewhere, perhaps anecdotally but I'm not sure, that the Myeong-dong Starbucks, which spans three floors, is the chain's highest grossing branch in the world. . .seems possible to me!

On the way towards Myeong-dong we wandered first through a high rise suburban district then along an overpass that spit us out right near City Hall. Coming out into a big city square we were surprised by the sudden emergence of a lights and activity. Apparently we had stumbled upon a mid-city out door ice rink. Well, two actually. The two miniature rinks were connected to each other by a narrow iced over pathway. I considered renting a pair of skates for a moment until I realized that Koreans are even worse at skating then they are at skiing. More so, there were willing to skate on ice with a human density that I don't feel comfortable standing in, more or less skating in! So we snapped a couple pictures of the crowds and lingering Christmas lights before moving onwards.

Merry Christmas from Downtown Seoul

Skating near City Hall

A little further down the road we happend across the Lotte Winder Wonderland that I had once found myself at during the night of the first snow. While much less romantic and awe-inspiring without snow, the mass of lights still manages to bring a bit of cheer to an otherwise cold and dark evening.

Lotte Winter Wonderland

Winter Wonderland Cnt'd

Just past Lotte we wound up at Cheonggyecheon, the recently uneartherd stream that runs through downtown Seoul. We paused at an announcement over a pair of loudspeakers that brought our attention to an enormous group of Koreans packed together tightly along a bridge spanning the stream. We eagerly searched for whatever it is they were watching but couldn't find anything of note. Thus we assumed that they were waiting for something grand to happen and decided it would be worth sticking around.

We hadn't waited more than ten minutes before a number of hoses in the stream began lauching a mist into the air that immediately froze on anything it touched. Music began playing and through the mist a laser show began, originating from the bridge we had just crossed. We waitied for a few minutes for something interesting to happen but eventually decided that the the few beams of light that shown in the mist were the entire spectacle. . .so we trudged onwards.

A less-than-thrilling light show

Not far up the road we managed to miraculously come across the Myeong-dong Subway which provided us with everything that I had been waiting for all day. A hot sub, on real bread with meat that didn't require deboning, vegetables that weren't chili peppers, cheese yes, cheese, and of course a fountain Pepsi. . . where as I once ate Subway almost daily in St. Thomas I have now come to hold it in such high regard that finding one on our journeys provides me with an overwhelming sense of satisfaction. . .odd, I know.

From Subway we headed towards the Wolfhound in Itaewon where I met up with Phil Kwak, a younger buddy from Tulane who was in town visiting family. We stayed in the 'Twon only for a few minutes as he and his Korean cousin, (meaning she's actually from Korea) who's aiming to be a big time movie/tv star, decided that there were simply too many foreigners to handle. They both admitted that they had never seen such a place in all of Seoul before and had no idea that it existed. The only reason I say this is to give you a sense of why Nate and I return to Itaewon every so often to kind of 'escape' Korea. . . .I hope you can understand.

So, to show Kwak (having an interesting last name and being ROTC has lead Phil to become known solely by his surname) a real 'Korean Nightlife,' Jen (his cousin), Nate and I decided that we should head towards Hongdae. To our surprise and enjoyment, we quickly came across an outdoor performance by a band called Soundbox that Nate and I have now had the pleasure of seeing/hearing a couple times. We spent at least an hour dancing around in the freezing cold as this 10+ piece (including a number of tapdancers who also play instruments) jam band lit up the night with their funky (for Seoul at least) tunes and tin can fires.

Lemme hear it for Soundbox!

As the show wound down to an end we turned to each other to figure out what to do when we were approached by a group of three. The large, middle aged man made some comment to us about the younger woman, who he was accompanied by, having an interest in us. This clearly turned out to be a lie and I still can't quite figure out why this man, who could easily have been our father, devised a quirky pick up line ot get the attention of two young foreigners.

Anyways, after a few minutes of chatting he invited us to join him as a bar just down the street. Enjoying the opportunity to talk to someone with pretty good English, always down for an adventure, and, acknowledging that this guy would likely be footing the bill (as he is older and native Korean) we decided to give it a shot.

Turns out homeboy went to Princeton a couple decades ago to study chemical engineering before returning to Columbia to pick up an MBA. He know manages a hedge fund, that is apparently rather successfuly, and employs the two other people in his party, Sung-woo and Su-hee. While I don't remember exactly, neither of these two were much older than Nate or I and had no real greater qualifications for working on a hedge fund than either of us. In fact, a few pitchers of maekju deep, the Big Boss (as we referred to him, having never given his name and it being more respectful in Korea to refer to someone by their position anyways) had suggested that we get in contact with Sung and Su about possibly coming to work for him. As silly as it sounded, he insisted that Sung take down our information.

The night progressed to the point where Big Boss Man ended up passing out at the table. . .after showing us a drinking 'tick' that he supposedly invented while at Princeton. Helping him down the stairs Nate and Sung made it a couple steps before Boss Man decided that it'd be quicker to just fall. . . which he did, face first on to the hard metal stairs. . .not of course with out taking Sung and Nate down in a painful heap with him. Why didn't they stop him you ask. Well, this man is hardly your average Korean. He was at least as tall as Nate but built like a professional rugby player. . .oh yeah, which he might have played during his time playing professional soccer in Ireland. . . anyways, this guy weighed in at well over 250 lbs which, when it decides it wants to roll down the stairs. . .well. . . it's going to roll and no ones going to stop it!

For a moment I wondered whether we should start running for the hills as the immoble Boss Man indicated to me that he was certainly dead. When the pool of blood coming from his head that I was waiting for never arrived, Sung, Nate and I again got the Boss to his feet and started down a second flight of stairs. We made it all the way to the bottom this time beofre Big decided to throw himself through the door, this time faceplanting on a solid concrete step. Okay, now here comes the pool of blood. . . .

Well, luckily, that never happend, but he sure as heck wasn't moving anywhere by himself. Me, nursing a hand that got jammed into the door, Nate, nursing a knee twisted on the first fall, and Sung, nursing his embarassment, helped Boss Man up and out into the street before tossing him into the back of a cab.

We said good bye to Sung and Su who hopped in with their unconscious employer to ensure that he survived the trip home. Whether he did or not, I'll probably never know, but I wish him the best. . .it's not every day you meet a trained chemical engineer from Princeton who formally played professional soccer in Ireland and offered you a job working at his hedge fund before faceplanting, twice, onto a rock solid surface after drinking nearly an entire bottle of Jack Daniels to himself. . . .It's too bad that Kwak had left soon after we met Big as I'm sure it would have been a side of Korea that even he had never expereienced!

Nate and I caught the next cab back to Junggye and called it a night. I sent Su and Sung a note the other day thanking them for their boss' generosity, hoping for some sort of response, either indicating his status as a living human being or perchance a job offer with a starting salary in the millions. . .neither have come through yet, but I'll let you know if I hear anything!

A Cultural Bust!

Saturday afternoon, at Cleo's recommendation, Nate and I set out for the grand opening of a week long cultural festival held at a small park in the heart of Samcheong-dong, just north of Seoul's city center. Armed with only a general idea of what subway stop to get off at and a printout, entirely in Korean, explaining where to go for the festival, we set out in search of big time culture points!

Trying to minimize our subway transfers we got off Line 1 at Jongno3-ga Station a few stops short of our intended destination Anguk. Having yet to be in this area during daylight hours, we took a few moments to wander around and snap photos of the all too interesting Jogno Tower and less than enthralling Bosingak, where the city's new years bell is kept.

Bosingak

Jogno Tower

With the sound of drumming in our ears, we were foolish enough to believe that our blind choice of subway stations led us directly to the celebration that we were looking for. We followed the noise to the banks of the recently uncovered Cheonggyecheon Stream where a circle of drummers, adorned in traditional Korean dress, were all banging away on different percussion instruments. After snapping a pair of touristy pictures (meaning we really didn't know what we were photographing but felt like we should) we quickly bolted down stream away from the clamor!

Traditional Dummers

As it appeared that the road running along Cheonggyechon had been blocked off, we further incorrectly assumed that whatever festival we were looking for must be just around the next bend. We stopped a few, unlucky, passerbys in an attempt to gain some sort of directional insight, but gained none. Curiously however one man was kind and honest enough to actually say that he could not help us rather than point aimlessly in any which direction as many Koreans seem to do when flustered!

Cheonggyecheon Stream

After no more than five minutes of wandering we happened upon a small information booth at the stream's edge. Perfect! Inside we were ever luckier yet that the one worker was sitting behind the English, and not Japanese, sign! I showed her our Rosetta Stone of directions and after a confused moment she whipped out a map and pointed us in the right direction. As I had somewhat expected, we were wandering in the wrong direction! However, from our current location we needed to simply wander north, down the bustling Insadong-gil, past Gyeongbokgung Palace and we would certainly find ourselves in the heart of Samcheong-dong. So, we set off on foot!

While wandering through Insadong seemed like a fantastic idea to kinda of get us in the mood to score some culture points, it turned out to nearly double the time of our already extended journey. As I had either overlooked or forgotten, the streets of Insadong are packed, jam packed! If one needed to get through the crowds quickly for some reason, it simply would not be possible unless they had Andre the Giant at their sides to part the sea of humans for them. So, slowly, and impatiently, Nate and I trudged along making only the slightest of progress as we watched the sun threaten to slip behind the downtown skyline.

Making faces in a bamboo forest along Insadong-gil

About halfway down the long corridor, we came across a plaza emanating the sounds of an, wait, all brass band!? No way! This I had to see! Sure enough, stepping into the crowded square (the same one where I took the pictures of the recycled art before) we were greeted by a six piece brass band blowing away, unfortunately for the drummer he was stuck behind the car exhibit. Wait, what? Oh yeah, it appears as if the whole event was for an unveiling of some new car model. Quite the interesting way to garish attention for your product!

Brass Banding It

Anyways, no sooner had I stepped into the plaza and raised my camera for a snapshot did the band suddenly break down into "Oh When the Saints." Now I don't know what forces you believe in but there's something about the power of Nola that always finds a way to let you know she's still with you, no matter where you are in the world, whether it be fleur-de-lis guarding Turkish mosques, a brass band funeral in Ghana or the blowin' of "Oh When the Saints" on a back alley in Korea! Enjoy!

For an encore, the group went on to play a very (un)popular Village People number at which point I decided it best for our sanity to take off in the other direction! We finally escape the confines of Insadong and were back out on the open road where we hustled down to the next intersection to cross over a street running along the eastern edge of Gyeongbokgung Palace. The hustling was entirely unnecessary. We waited at this single light for what had to have been almost ten minutes. No, we weren't stupid and it wasn't a 'go when you're brave enough' affair, that's simply how long it took the light to change in our favor at this four way intersection of two eight lane 'highways.' We did eventually get across the street only to be disheartened by the crowd of literally hundreds crossing the opposite way. . .that's never a good sign when you're going to an event!

The Fabeled Intersection

Not ones to give up on our adventures until we really need to give up, we continued walking towards, or at least in the general direction of this supposed Samcheong-dong Park. The road alongside Gyeongbokgung looked absolutely amazing as all the trees lining the street had begun to glow in the deep yellow of an almost set sun. However, to our right, on the other side of the street, the skyline was filled with a large, ugly, run down government looking building guarded with some uninteresting iron work and a high electric fence. Not sure exactly what this was but it certainly didn't boost the overall attractiveness of the area.

Across the street from Gyeongbokgung

Sunset over Gyeongbokgung Entrance

Eventually we were forced to veer off to the right as the road we were walking along ended at a guard post that didn't look to welcoming. We turned on to what I guess is known as the Samcheongdong Walkway, and continued onwards. Now this newly discovered (at least by us) walkway was quite the pleasant surprise, offering an experience that was truly a world apart from the high rise laden Seoul we have grown so accustomed to. Intimate and architecturally captivating storefronts lined every side of the walkway and seemed to come in only three varieties. At first there were mostly modern art galleries, often composed of only one room and just large enough to house a desk along with the single exhibit (was was sometimes indistinguishable from other previously made smudges on the walls). As the galleries thinned, the trendy, overpriced cafes became more prevalent with a sprinkling of chic boutiques selling everything from, well, really just shoes, hats and jewelry! Even while exuding an uber-trendy and ultra-chic aura, Samcheongdong managed to retain a truly authentic, down to earth atmosphere; much more akin to Magazine St. in my beloved New Orleans than anywhere comparable in New York or L.A.

Fall colors along Samcheongdong Walkway

To add to the artistic experience, everyone and their mother traveled with a clunky, yet modern digital SLR hanging from their neck that they used to shoot a series of all too cliche photos of women standing in doorways and dying flowers wrapped around rusted iron work. It was cute. . .but almost in that kitten in a hat type of way. . .yeah.

While we were both starving, Nate and I decided to plug onwards, hoping to find our coveted festival before the last rays of natural light disappeared over the turning trees. We had already lost the sun and the sky was darkening quickly. At the top of another hill, somewhat removed from the commercial strip below, we ducked into a corner store to split a litre of Purple Jazz Juice; a mixture of all the dark berries' juices. . . mmmmmm! This particular convenience store was not at GS nor 7/11 but rather a small store front attached to living quarters of about the same size. The reason I know this is that the 'clerk', if you will, sat on the floor just inside an indoor doorway in what looked like the floor of his kitchen, while Nate and I were left unbothered to wander the single aisle of snacks.

On my way out, I turned around suddenly thinking that this kind man might be symbolize our last hope of finding Samcheongdong Park and we seemed to have come to the end of the road. I showed him our 'map' and smiled, indicating that the park was simply around the corner and up the hill another 100 meters! No way! We thanked him and took off, partially refueled by Purple Jazz. Sure enough, just up the hill we came to the entrance of a public park which people were retreating out of by the dozens. Stepping inside it was evident that we were certainly too late for whatever festival had occurred earlier in the day. Not willing to turn around just yet however we thought it best to wander the park for a bit in search of something, anything 'worthwhile.'

Not far inside we spotted a sign indicating the way to 'prospect point,' now that sounded like a worth goal! We began headed upwards following a series of smoothed dirt paths alternating with steps made of logs. As we climbed, we were soon engrossed in a fiery surrounding as the leaves both above and below us turned a deep crimson, accentuated by the last glimmer of daylight.

Samcheongdong Park

We ascended gradually winding back and forth as the path grew steeper and steps taller. Every 100 meters we were reminded of the distance to the point yet each marker grew increasingly distant from the previous one! Finally, just as the last ray of light fell over the horizon, we made it to long and narrow path running along what I believe is the Old Fortress Wall of Seoul. Here, the past sharply contrasted with the present as we were able to make out a relatively modern looking bunker/outpost hidden behind a row of fences on the peak of a hill along which the fortress wall runs. Only a few dozen meters ahead we arrived at a wooden plateau set into a flat granite face, Prospect Point, on which a pair of cameramen had taken up seats, inevitably capturing the night sky in some appropriately over-artistic manner.

Prospect Point at Night

We rested at the Point just long enough for our bodies, dripping in sweat, to dry off to a shivering chill. . .at which point we decided we had better start making our way back down. Now I don't know what rules 'real' climbers go by, but I'm pretty sure that hiking at night, without any source of light falls into the realm of stupid! Yet this is what we had to do, having no alternative but to stay at Prospect Point until dawn! We slowly and carefully felt our way back down the path and managed to avoid any major injuries although I did reaggravate my left knee that I injured one Sunday a while back and have yet to allow to fully heal as I amble on through the second half of SSFL's fall season.

Seoul at night looking towards Namsan Hill/Tower

Back down on the safety of flat land we decided that we had scored enough cultural points for the day and that a good, hearty, non-Korean dinner was in store. Thus, we rang Cleo, who had expressed interest in meeting us in Itaewon that night, and told her to get moving, we were ready to eat. Well, apparently young females around the world operate on the same 'as soon as I'm ready' schedule, which is way, way longer than you would ever intentionally wait. Nevertheless, Nate and I fended off the urge to just plop down in a ritzy cafe after checking out one of the absurdly overpriced and unimpressive menus given to us by a disdainful (was he French) waiter.

Thus, we slowly made our way back to the Anguk Station where we took Line 3 to 6 and hopped off at Itaewon, hours before Cleo would eventually arrive with her friend, Ji-Young. To kill the time, and subdue our hunger, we darted into an Iranian kebab house where we snacked and rested on their perfectly plush couches. Finally, hours after descending Prospect Point, we met Cleo and Ji-Young in front of the Hamilton Hotel where we agreed to eat anything so long as they decided. Having both spent time in Europe they decided to try out a Bulgarian restaurant at the top of the hill behind the Hamilton. Having never tried, nor even really heard of, Bulgarian food, Nate and I agreed to give it a whirl.

While it certainly was a pleasant surprise to start a meal with french bread and butter, versus kimchi and radish, my meat lasagna was substantially less than substantial. . . .to say the least! The lasagna bolognese itself was fantastic! Oh how I had been craving thick wide noodles soaked in marinara and held together firmly by layers of melted cheese. However the dish that it was served it was notably smaller than the bowl that I eat my cereal out of in the morning. . .thus, I left dinner far from satisfied!

No worries, on our way back down the hill we passed by a dejected looking chef sitting on the curb outside. Truly curious, I asked him where the eating was good and he flamboyantly sprung to life, guiding us into a a small pastry shop down a small side alley. Here we relaxed for a while while sharing a pecan and chocolate cream pie. Nate was enticed into a 'warm gooey' chocolate pecan cookie that was apparently 'fresh out of the oven,' though it had grown crisp by the time it made it to our table and was still apparently 'fresh out of the oven' as we left almost half an hour later! Not the best sweets I've ever had in the world but you gotta admit, the guy was a great salesman!

We capped off the night wandering from Woodstock, where an incredibly interesting trio was replaced by a horrific sounding one that literally drove me out of the venue holding my ears. Swinging by Stompers, where I had read about a battle of the bands, we decided to not stay long as the place was literally overflowing with young musicians grasping their instruments for dear life trying to stand their ground and get in close to the stage. Finally, we made it to a back alley where we located the once elusive Wolfhound and plopped down, exhausted on a comfy pub-like bench. We spent the next few hours battling sleep while watching all sort of rugby and soccer matches, cheering along the Irish patrons in the pub while jeering the Canadians! Ahh, how fun it is to be American abroad sometimes!

V for Victory as we finally found the elusive Wolfhound!

While we never did find out traditional festival that we set out for, I'd say we managed to rack up more than enough culture points as we wandered from Cheonggyecheon, through Insadong, along Gyeongbokgugn, through Samcheondong, up to Prospect Point, back down to Woodstock and across the pond to a quaint Irish Pub, the Wolfhound! And we did this all while remaining in the confines of downtown Seoul. . .what an interesting city this is!