What do people do in Euljiro-3-ga? They put on suits and ties and go to work at the gleaming new glass and steel office towers that crowd around the intersection of Eulji-ro (을지로) and Samil-daero (삼일대로). Or they put on white hard hats and reflective vests and go to work building two more such towers. …
The gates that gave their names to the Dongdaemun and Namdaemun neighborhoods still stand, and their presence puts the stamp of history on the areas around them. They’re constant reminders of the city’s Long Ago and chains that link the contemporary lives lived around them to the lives lived there hundreds of years ago. Seodaemun,…
On a normal day Euljiro-1-ga pulses with activity, occupying the sweet center between Myeongdong’s shopping bazaar, the metropolitan seat of power at City Hall, and Seoul’s centuries-old main boulevard, Jongno. The day I visited, though, was the day before Chuseok, Korea’s biggest holiday, and with many shops closed and a large number of Seoulites out…
There are chickens in Myeongdong. Not stuffed or deep-fried, but real actual chickens, about ten of them, that twitch and peck at the dirt in someone’s small yard. Administratively speaking, they may technically be in Hoehyeon-dong-2-ga (회현동2가) and not Myeong-dong (명동), but with a strong throw you might be able to hit the station with…
There are some neighborhoods in Seoul that have their own distinct character or spirit. Then there are neighborhoods like Chungjeongno that don’t feel quite like their own place but rather sponge up elements of the neighborhoods around them. West of the station, you quickly find yourself on the edge of Ahyeon’s large furniture market; to…
Seoul Sub→urban 