William Chong

So yesterday I left the Anglophilic bubble of the Grand Hyatt, where our conference was, and stepped out into the authentic streets of Seoul for three days of sightseeing.

I had my Googlemaps directions at the ready, and it told me to get to 9beonji Jongno2-ga, Jongno-gu by using two different subway lines. However when I got off at the directed stop (Euljiro4-ga), the hotel was nowhere to be found. The mental image to have here is of a lost-looking dude wheeling an oversize green suitcase up and down the pothole-filled lanes of a neighbourhood market, bemused stall owners looking on. After asking a few shop owners in fractured Korean (thanks, Collins phrase book and Farm Cove Intermediate Korean class), I realised that Googlemaps lied and the YMCA Hotel was actually 1.5 km further.

Lessons to learn here: Korean streets are divided into numbered sections. The same stretch of Jongno, which means Bell Road, gets divided into Jongno1-ga, Jongno2-ga, Jongno3-ga and so on. The main intersection signs tell you what division of the road lies ahead, rather than what road you’re actually on (that’s on a separate sign on top). And you have to be careful as well as an intersection sign before the intersection gives different road names to a sign that’s after the intersection.

Monday night: a quick walk around the area

This is the “Street of Youth”, off Jongno2-ga, across the road from the YMCA building. It links up with a warren of alleyways that run parallel to Jongno Road itself – my guidebook notes that these alleyways were once used by the peasant class so they wouldn’t have to keep bowing to the aristocrats that traversed on the main road.

In any case, it was a bevy of sights and smells.

Out here, it’s a fascinating mix of Korean pop music and the street vendors plying their wares. I popped into a small restaurant and ordered something familiar – deep fried pork on rice (kassudon in Korean). I think I’ll be content to have more of a shop round tomorrow, and inject some Korean won (the local currency) into the Seoul economy.

One thing I noticed was the faint smell of sewage on the streets. Seoul, like most Asian cities, must have a different method of moving water and sewage through the city that makes the smell more prevalent. Another thing here that’s different to NZ is that smoking is a lot more prevalent around here. Most restaurants have a large smoking section and so if you’re not used to it you may have to hold your breath when walking between shops. It’s definitely a good thing that the previous Government legislated against smoking inside restaurants and many public areas have smoking bans in NZ. We’re quite fortunate in that respect.

My internet connection here is quite patchy – but will promise more photos soon!

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