Korea Diaries: Day 1
안녕! Back on the grind after a delightful week of spring flowers and 12-degree weather in South Korea. I’m sitting on the front porch of the hanok (traditional Korean house) of Moon Guest House in Unni-dong (dong means “neighborhood”), where my family and I stayed on our first night in Seoul.
The hanok is owned and maintained by Anna’s family. It was built by her grandfather, a nobleman, 50 years ago, and they welcome guests (including K-pop stars like Exo!) here who want to experience traditional Korean culture.
Inside the hanok. We arrived in Seoul at around 10 PM, with a temperature so wonderfully cold that our breaths were foggy. What I wore from Manila was obviously not warm enough, however, so I welcomed the warmth brought by the heated wooden floors.
This is where we slept. I’ve noticed in Korean minimalism that they tend to hide appliances or have them blend into the background—in this room, behind the divider is the TV. The windows above it is the airconditioning (who needs it though? Haha). To the left is the closet, and that door with the intricate wooden design is the bathroom. My family watches quite a lot of K-dramas and so we couldn’t help but feel giddy that we were experiencing a slice of that life!
The next day, Anna’s mom came by for a crash course in traditional Korean culture, with Anna as her interpreter. She told us the history of the hanok, the different parts of the house, and the practical reasons for the materials used and the interior details. She then told us a bit about the hanbok (traditional Korean clothing). I learned many things, such as the differences in fabric and design of the hanbok for royalty and for different social classes, but there’s one takeaway I found interesting.
I love looking at traditional clothes in Asia, but my favorite aside from our own Filipiniana wear is the hanbok. I used to think there must be some historical reason for its silhouette and design—apparently, in true Korean fashion (pun unintended), it’s all about the style: according to Anna’s mom, the hanbok’s cropped top-and-maxi skirt style is to elongate the legs and give the illusion of curves. She even added, “It’s great because if you eat a heavy lunch in your hanbok, your bulging stomach won’t show." A centuries-old styling tip. I love it.
Class picture with (counter-clockwise) my sister Miku, cousin Hanna, our Manila-based host Ellen, my brother Vince, aunt Ofel, dad, mom, and cousin Jeru. Anna’s family has quite the collection of elaborate and exquisite hanbok made with silk and other expensive materials. They also have headdresses to complete the look.
Anna’s mom continued the mini-lecture series with a kimchi-making session. I don’t really eat kimchi though, so I left that to the others.
The ingredients used to give kimchi its distinctive spicy flavor. From the brief moment I listened in, you have to leave the vegetables in a mixture of these for a few days to turn it into kimchi.
Aunt, cousin, dad. Whatever they made, they were given to take back home. I don’t know how they’re going to eat all that kimchi in this hot Manila weather though, haha.
The entrance to the hanok. It was situated in a small hanok village. Inside the door on the left is the courtyard where they made kimchi.
Took outfit shots further down the path from the guest house, close to the main streets.
Mesh top, 101 New York. Bag, unbranded.
Hat, Human. Contact lenses, Japanese Candy.
Necklace, Silverworks.
Sunflower midi skirt and polka-dot socks, Forever21. Booties, Dorothy Perkins.
Pearl watch, Fossil.
I like how my Galaxy S4 and iPhone 5 match the nature-inspired surroundings. Maple wood phone wraps, Wrapped Up. Hello Kitty ear jack plug, Sanrio.
Hype this look on Lookbook here and vote for it on Chictopia here.
After the guest house, we went to Insa-dong. It’s considered the city’s arts district for the many galleries, gift shops, and quaintly-designed cafés and tea shops that fill its many alleys.
The wind was messing with my hat and hair so I went for double braids. Heh. Vanilla ice cream on long and crispy tunnel cones. I halved with my brother Vince, hence the V.
This specialty shop sells the ice cream with weird cones, as well as collectible animé cards.
Many of the shops sell more than just artsy stuff. Usually, they have a little bit of everything—stationery, souvenirs, clothes, accessories, toys—with the common denominator being that they’re mostly designed or made by hand.
Chanced upon a blind man with these loyal guide dogs. Just one of the many adorable sights in Insa-dong. It would take a whole day and another blog posts to really see and show everything, so maybe next time when I go back there.
After a couple of hours, we were off to Gyeongbokgung (gung means "palace,” gyeongbok means “greatly blessed by the heavens”). It’s one of the many palaces to explore in South Korea, and the sight of many famous period K-dramas.
Typical of Asian palaces, Gyeongbokgung was vast, with wide spaces and walkways designed to keep the king shielded from potential enemies, far away from the commoners. Here is where he sat, and only those who have earned the right to an audience with him gets to come this close. Otherwise, the visitor has to shout his message from a few hundred meters away, and the king sends back his reply though a messenger.
Also within the palace grounds are “mini-palaces” (not the formal term of course, but that’s what I like to call them) where the king and a wife or loved one—not always the same person—could spend their time away from everyone else. My favorite is this one, reachable by boat.
If you’re lucky, before entering the gates you get to witness a ceremonial show that reenacts the olden times when Korea was ruled by royalty.
Day 1 in Seoul was delightful. When we weren’t touring, we were feasting on scrumptious Korean food, from street treats to gourmet. When we weren’t eating, we were exchanging stories and language lessons with our Korean hosts. It made me wonder what Day 2 had in store for us. ♥ (To be continued)
Photographed by myself and Jeru Czar. What do you think of this post? :) Tweet me @shailagarde or leave a comment below!