Seoul 서울
After six and a half years, I finally got myself back to South Korea – for the third time in my life. The first couple of times I went I was a fresh-off-the-boat newbie in Asia, I was on visa runs from China, I was always on a shoestring budget, and I just didn’t have that much travel experience to really put the country into perspective.
This time around, I found myself in Seoul, staying a total of eight days and eight nights. After that I made my way to Busan for the very first time, where I also stayed eight days and seven nights.
So what did I think of Seoul, a city dubbed as “the soul of Asia,” all these years later? Has much changed? How does the city compare to other Asian megacities? How was the food? Were the women really as beautiful as they say? How was the level of English? Was everything hyper-expensive like in Tokyo, or on the cheaper end like in Shanghai? The answers lie within this very trip report.
I remember I used to think that Korea was basically what you’d get if you put China and Japan together in a blender. But would I still stick to that statement now, having lived in both China and Japan for years? Let me take a closer look.
Let’s start with Japan, the country where I currently live. For starters I don’t see anybody in Seoul wearing those stupid surgical masks that plague the entire population of Japan. Nor do Korean people have that awkward, so-polite-it-makes-you-sick kind of demeanor that’s prevalent in Japan. Korean customer service also seems fairly normal, not so exaggerated like in Japan. I see almost no people riding around on bicycles, a stark contrast to urban Japan. So then, is anything the same?
Well, Korean restaurants seem to open and close as they please with no regard for customers, a common feature in Japan. A lot of buildings in Seoul have those flashy ads going up and down the entire sides of buildings, just as they do in every Japanese metropolis. I also notice so many girls wearing bright red lipstick, just like they do in Japan’s Kansai region (who actually started the trend, I don’t know). The buildings and the tiles on the sidewalk have that distinct Northeast Asian look, just as they do in China, Japan, and Mongolia. There’s also a very noticeable lack of variety in the way locals look, another distinct Northeast Asian feature.
As for China, Koreans definitely look remarkably similar to the Northeast Chinese, yet they also look quite a bit like the Mongolians. They also have that distinct aggressive body language that seems oh so common in China and Mongolia, but very lacking in Japan (though the average Korean is infinitely more polite than the average Chinese). Traditional Korean architecture looks remarkably the same as that of China. Korean cuisine seems like an offshoot of northeastern Chinese cuisine.
But the most important thing of all is that Seoul and the rest of Korea just has that China atmosphere. It’s hard to put in words, but if you’ve spent considerable time in both countries, then you’ll surely get my point. So would I still say Korea is simply a mixture of China and Japan? Yes and no. I think it’s better put this way: put three parts China, one part Japan, and one part Mongolia into a blender, and there you have Korea. Korea’s the blending point of Northeast Asia, the same way Thailand is the blending point of Southeast Asia.
Seoul itself seems like a combination of Shanghai and Tokyo. I can see remnants of both cities everywhere I go. It’s located relatively close to the coast and is intersected by several bodies of water. Tall and modern buildings line every major and semi-major street. The metro system is incredibly extensive and overwhelming to the uninitiated newbie (19 lines and hundreds of stations). The city’s streets lack a distinct cultural feel, except for a few small pockets here and there. Extreme vanity has a firm grip over the local population. These giant Asian megacities all seem to blur together more and more as each generation goes by.
Just walking around every day in Seoul, I couldn’t help but notice that it’s a city dominated by youth, particularly those in their twenties and thirties. While there are certainly children, middle-aged folks, and the elderly to be seen here and there, they are greatly outnumbered.
Just like in Bangkok, I also noticed that there seems to be a disproportionately high number of young women in Seoul. For every one young man I see, I surely see two or three young women. I question if the Korean countryside is one big sausage fest.
And while we’re on the topic of Korean women, I can confirm that there’s no shortage of absolute beauties in Seoul. A man who likes women with that distinct Northeast Asian look will have plenty to look at in Korea. Practically every woman between the ages of 18 and 50 is in good shape, has a decent sense of style, and has an attractive face. And just like Mongolian women, Korean women seem to be a bit shapelier than their Chinese and Japanese cousins. It seems like most women were on average half a cup size bigger in the chest and had noticeably more of an ass. They’re no Brazilians when it comes to curves, but they do tend to have a bit more meat in just the right places.
Being one of the epicenters of the Asian fashion scene, it comes as no surprise that so many people in Seoul were dressed to impress. Vanity was so thick in the air you could cut it with a knife. I’m a strong believer in making oneself clean and presentable, but there’s a fine line between looking good and being a self-absorbed narcissist. The entire population of Seoul has clearly stepped over that line. I think Seoul’s got vain cities like Tokyo, Shanghai, and Bangkok beat. If you don’t look good, you’re invisible in Seoul.
That said, the women of Seoul were usually dressed to the nines and a bit oversexualized – short skirts, super short shorts, lots of leg showing, very high heels, layer after layer of makeup, hair dye, designer purses, and so forth. If it’s the humble girl-next-door you’re after, you’re gonna have to find her in a sea of self-absorbed bitches. Sure, there was lots of eye candy anywhere and everywhere in Seoul, but the women seemed very aware of their beauty, which was clearly reflected in their behavior and body language. If you want more cute, friendly, and approachable types, Busan would be a better fit (more on that later).
Lots and lots of women in Seoul also have fake, plastic-looking faces and bodies. Just like in Hollywood, it’s dead obvious that plastic surgery is widespread in the city. Like I said, Seoul is a pretentious city. With perhaps the exception of small breast implants, I’m generally not a fan of plastic surgery, so I found this local trend to be a bit of a turn off. Fake-looking plastic faces just aren’t my thing. Luckily, I didn’t notice this trend in Busan.
Though they’re generally quite good-looking, there really isn’t much variety in the average Korean female face and style. Once again, just like Mongolian women, Korean women all have that sisterly, belong-to-the-same-family look. I often just could not tell different girls apart. They all have the same facial structure, makeup style, and fashion style. If it’s variety you’re after, you’re not gonna find much of that in Korea. Korean women all look remarkably the same. Even my Chinese wife thought the girls were barely distinguishable.
Even though there was no shortage of catty bitch types in Seoul, I did get a lot of positive vibes from the local lasses. I wasn’t getting eye-f***ed like I tend to in Ulaanbaatar, Manila, and parts of urban China, but I was getting lots of “soft” glances everywhere I went, particularly from university-aged girls. Whereas the women in Kyoto and Tokyo often go out of their way to avoid making eye contact with me, the women in Seoul would often lock eyes with me if I looked their direction. Not 100% of course, but enough to see a noticeable trend.
Women also seemed receptive to me firing up random conversations with them. Often times I would ask random girls if I could take their picture, or just simply say some random remark to them, and their eyes would instantly light up with joy. It was almost as if they were just waiting for me to talk to them. I also noticed when I went to restaurants popular with young people, whole tables of girls would turn around and look at me every time I got up. I just didn’t expect this kind of behavior from Korean women, as so many of the Korean women I’ve met in other parts of Asia came across as stuck up and prude.
To be perfectly clear, girls would never initiate me first, but if I initiated them, they always seemed delighted. And I don’t speak a lick of Korean, so take that for what it’s worth. If you’re a decent-looking man and have the balls to cold or warm approach random girls, my gut tells me you could probably do quite well in Korea. I felt like I was getting infinitely more female attention in Korea than I ever have in Japan. Perhaps it was on par with what I get in mainland China, which is not bad at all.
Smartphones have really taken over in Korea. I thought Japan was about as bad as it gets when it comes to the prevalence of smartphone zombies in Asia, but I think Korea’s got Japan beat. Anywhere and everywhere I looked, on the metro or in the park, from Seoul to Busan, everyone had their face buried in their phone. If there’s one thing you’ve got to compete with over Korean female attention, it’s surely their smartphones. And people are really zoned into their screens. Sometimes I would just stare at people or start taking their picture with my DSLR camera to see if they’d ever notice me, and surely enough, they never did.
The average level of English in Seoul was about what I expected – above that of both urban Japan and China, but below that of Singapore and the Philippines. Most shopkeepers, clerks, and waitresses knew enough English vocabulary to get me what I wanted, and many service people would initiate me in English before I even opened my mouth, but having any kind of meaningful conversation was usually not possible. And as always, younger people spoke more English than older age groups. I had the most luck with university-aged people, but even their English wasn’t what I’d call good, but it was usually passable. The bottom line is, I didn’t face an enormous language barrier, but I wasn’t exactly doing anything other than basic business transactions 98% of the time.
Korean cuisine has always been one of my Asian favorites. I’m not exactly sure how I’d rank it, perhaps about on par with Thai cuisine. I’ve eaten tons and tons of Korean food prior to my trip to Seoul, especially in Northeast China, and I’ve always been curious as to how authentic those meals were. Apparently they were pretty authentic, indeed.
Practically every dish I tried in Seoul was just like those that I’ve already had outside of Korea. Anything and everything is coated in gochujang, that classic Korean chili paste, which gives the food a lot of kick. It paints every Korean food red, which is a distinct color in Korean cuisine. Lots of pickled vegetables are served as sides to the main course, and seafood can seemingly be incorporated into just about every dish. Very spicy, quite salty, and a bit sweet best describes most Korean cuisine. The flavors did not disappoint. My absolute favorite Korean food is topokki, which can be found on practically every street corner and in every restaurant. Gogigui also deserves an honorable mention.
If I have one major complaint about Korean food, it would have to be that it just isn’t that healthy. Tasty sure, but good for your health? I don’t think so. Most cuts of meat have more fat than lean meat. There’s enough salt in every dish to raise your blood pressure levels in no time. And there are far too many simple carbs in the diet for just about everyone except the most active of people, such as marathon runners and Olympic weightlifters.
And just like the Thais, the Koreans have an unhealthy obsession with deep-frying. Deep-fried snacks are on every corner, and fried chicken restaurants are a dime a dozen. And finally the Koreans seem to be taking note from their mainland Chinese cousins by drenching everything in shitty cooking oils. I say if yo absolutely must eat healthy while in Korea, then go for the soups and pickled vegetables.
Foreign restaurants were everywhere in Seoul. I was particularly surprised at how much Mexican food was available. Hell, even Taco Bells were fairly abundant, which are almost nonexistent in the rest of Asia. Chinese and Japanese restaurants were also fairly ubiquitous. Koreans seem to have a newfound obsession with pizza, so finding affordable and decent pizza is no problem, unlike in Japan and China where pizza tends to be expensive and shitty. I wholeheartedly recommend Mr. Pizza, a local Korean pizza franchise. The bottom line is, the foreign food scene in Seoul is one of the best I’ve ever seen in Asia. It gives Bangkok, my previous number one, a run for its money.
If you like drinking, I’m happy to report that Seoul has a vibrant nightlife scene. Just like in Tokyo and Ulaanbaatar, lots of trendy and cozy little bars were on practically every street. These places seemed the most popular with young people, whereas the older guys mostly seemed to get drunk old-school style while eating a meal together at restaurants. Bottles of domestic beer at most bars were medium-expensive – far more than in Ulaanbaatar, but a bit cheaper than in Tokyo.
The natural landscape of Seoul did have some beauty, but it didn’t stand out as anything special. There are some hilly areas throughout the city, and the Han River does intersect the city, but other than that, it’s mostly just a concrete jungle. Very much on par with other Asian megacities like Tokyo, Shanghai, and Bangkok.
There was also a constant brown haze hovering over the city during my entire weeklong stay. This made the sky a bit of an eyesore. It was no Beijing for sure, but it was something I immediately noticed once leaving the airport.
The weather was pretty miserable all weeklong. No surprise considering I was there in mid-August. I actually love hot weather, but it wasn’t so much the temperature that got to me in Seoul, but rather the crushing humidity. Only minutes after stepping outside, I would always be covered in sweat. This was made all the worse by the fact that Koreans seem to be largely anti-air conditioning. Subway stations and other public places seemed to have no AC whatsoever. So very Chinese and so very un-Thai-like. Everywhere I went I saw people carrying those little paper hand fans cooling down their faces. I felt like I was back in third tier China.
There was the occasional brief downpour of rain, but not enough that it put a damper on my plans. The sunshine was also intense, made all the worse by the fact that there was nowhere to hide in the shade. If I was outside, I had no choice but to roast in the hot sun and sweat my ass off. So very Bangkok. I wish more cities would take note from places like Singapore and Penang, where buildings are built with the upper floors hovering over the footpaths, which creates a natural shade for pedestrians.
Seoul was a bit expensive for an Asian city. It was certainly no Tokyo, but it wasn’t too far behind a city like Singapore. Accommodation was not bad at all, seeing as I only paid an average of 35,000 won or so per night to stay in a guesthouse in a central area (Myeong-dong), but things like public transportation and food were a bit high for a city of its dynamics.
I paid about 1,350 won for most subway rides, which is about the same as Singapore, but about four times more than Shanghai. Most locals meals cost me around 8,000 won, give or take a thousand, and most foreign meals cost me anywhere from 10 to 15,000 won. Portions were about 1.5 times those of Japan, but maybe a bit less than those in Shanghai. Excluding accommodation, I spent an average of about 40 to 50,000 won a day, and I don’t feel like I had to be that careful with my money either.
Quite frankly, Seoul just didn’t strike me as a very interesting city. Just like Tokyo, it’s a bit too big and overdeveloped for its own good. Except for a few pockets here and there, the streets largely lacked a local vibe. I never had a “Wow, I’m in Seoul” kind of feeling. In stark contrast to Busan, I also had to pay close attention to try and find anything I wanted to photograph. I’ve found that when a place is boring to photograph, it’s usually boring to explore, too. Seoul is just too sanitized.
But it wasn’t all that bad in Seoul. There were a few notable highlights. My fondest memory was walking through Bukchon Hanok Village, a more traditional and laidback residential area in the city’s north. It was by far the most scenic part I saw of the city. It felt far more Korean than the entire rest of the city.
I also enjoyed just walking on foot at night through Namsan, the area surrounding N Seoul Tower. It’s very hilly, so I was always walking up and downhill, but I liked the more local vibes.
The Yongsan Electronics Market was also a highlight, as I enjoy looking at all things related to electronics, particularly camera gear and computer parts. The whole area is remarkably similar in look and feel to Nipponbashi Den-Den Town in Osaka’s Ninaiwa Ward.
Though it was absolutely not to my liking, I took a couple of evening strolls through Itaewon, Seoul’s infamous foreigner ghetto that’s filled with countless bars, restaurants, and shops that largely cater to Westerners. Itaewon is adjacent to Seoul’s giant American military base, so lots of douchey, culturally-insensitive soldier types flock there to drink and party – kinda like an offshoot of Bangkok’s Khaosan Road or Ho Chi Minh City’s Pham Ngu Lao Street. The whole area was overly pretentious and filled with young people who desperately want to be noticed and to be perceived as “cool.” Not my kinda scene. Maybe I could’ve enjoyed it more when I was ten years younger.
I also spent a day in Gangnam, the part of Seoul just south of the Han River that was made famous by Korean singer PSY’s song “Gangnam Style.” Glitzy malls and stores, beauty clinics, trendy restaurants, and tall skyscrapers all line the area. It reminded me of Tokyo’s Ginza shopping district. I didn’t feel the need to stick around long.
If I have one major grievance about Seoul, it’s not the fact that the whole city is a bit dull and lacking in culture. Rather it’s the absurd amount of mainland Chinese tourists, particularly small groups of young women, that plague anywhere and everywhere of interest to tourists. Just about any time I went somewhere on the main tourist trail, I would see far more Chinese people than actual locals. Even my Chinese wife was getting really irritated by them, because they act just like they do in the mainland – completely lacking in any kind of civility. They were everywhere in Myeong-dong, Gangnam, and Bukchon, but oddly enough, they were nowhere to be seen in Itaewon.
At both of my guesthouses, about 75% of the guests were mainland Chinese. The others guests were mostly small groups of other Asians, particularly Thais and Filipinos. Westerners were very few and far between. It’s quite obvious that South Korea is very much off the beaten track for most Westerners, as I really didn’t see many over my 15-day stay (except for in Itaewon, of course). Their lack in numbers was very comparable to second tier China. Sure, you might see one here and there, but not enough to really care. Northeast Asia in general really just doesn’t attract Westerners the way Southeast Asia does. Seoul is clearly the territory of Asian tourists.
Conclusion
Seoul is a giant city with endless possibilities. It truly is one of the epicenters of Asia. The local food tastes great and lives up to expectations. The foreign food scene is very diverse and has something for everyone. The women are smoking hot, in good-shape, dressed to impress, and age very gracefully. If shopping’s your thing, the sky’s the limit in Seoul – electronics, clothing, cosmetics – it’s all there. Public transportation is extensive, efficient, and affordable. Free high-speed wi-fi is anywhere and everywhere.
But Seoul is not the best city for those looking for adventure. The street life is very sanitized and bland. The city largely lacks in distinct local vibes. While quite good, the local food can get boring fast, nor is most of it conductive to a healthy diet. The women of Seoul may be very easy on the eyes, but so many of them come across as bitchy, self-absorbed, and full of silicone. The whole city is infected with shallow and pretentious people. People never stop looking at their smartphones. Nor is Seoul cheap on an Asia-wide scale – the cost of traveling is very comparable to medium-large American cities like Dallas or St. Louis. Seoul has also sold its soul to Asian tourists, particularly the mainland Chinese.
Whether or not you’d like Seoul depends on countless factors. How much of Asia have you already seen? Do you like megacities? Does Korean food strike your fancy? Do Korean women appeal to you? Do you want a bit of challenge and adventure or a safe and straightforward journey? For better or for worse, Seoul, just like Tokyo and Singapore, feels like Asia on easy mode.
Though I was happy to spend an entire week in the city and learn about it more through firsthand experience, the truth is I couldn’t wait to get out of Seoul and on to Busan. The city has its good sides for sure, but I felt they were greatly overshadowed by its downsides, particularly the vanity. Seoul is just not for me. I doubt I’ll be back anytime soon. On the other hand, Busan was a whole ‘nother story. Stay tuned for part two of my Korea trip report in the upcoming weeks. Thanks for reading.
As of September 9th, 2016, 1 USD = 1,101 KRW.
, but I want to bury my face in their *ss*s 
