I know: Seoul again? My autumn/birthday plans had been to come back to Osaka, but work really ramped up after June and by October I was a molotov cocktail of burnout, anxiety, and depression, and I didn’t really have the energy for the plans I’d been making. I just wanted to go somewhere cold and wear my sweaters and the super cute gilet I got on sale at Mango, and I already kind of knew my way around the city, so Seoul it was. I really went from telling friends that I didn’t really see myself going there to visiting three times in one year.
November 10
My first order of business was heading over to Kim’s Deli Market so I could try their adorable tomato bagel with cream cheese and pesto. It’s made with rice flour, which definitely explains this springiness and chew to it that I really liked. The color of the bagel comes from real tomatoes, and the tomato flavor shines through and complements the filling.
I hadn’t been planning on staying to eat, but it was early enough and I liked the idea of spending some of my day in the quaint little shop. I also ordered a fizzy mixed berry drink, as well as a chocolate conch bread to go. I had some of the conch for dessert that night, and finished it off for breakfast the next morning. The sweetness was deep and dark, and I liked the play on textures with the soft bread, smooth cream, and chunky chocolate piece inside.
I had trouble locating Your Mind at first. It was in a quiet neighborhood, on the second floor of a gated building with all these indie lifestyle shops, and there was a huge yard full of fallen autumn leaves. I have to admit that stepping through the gate reminded me of the houses in K-dramas.
A major point of this trip was to collect zines and prints by local artists, and this was the shop that stood out to me the most when I was doing my research.
I often wish I were better versed in Korean, especially when I read about j-hope lyrics, but on this trip I felt particularly regretful that I couldn’t buy all these beautiful books because I couldn’t have understood them.
I set a budget for this trip, but it felt good to just gather all this printed matter in my arms and pick up whatever I wanted without looking at the price tag. I finally got some TABACOBOOKS stuff, and the bookmarks I got were so sweet and cute. There was also a wall of artists’ calling cards for ₩500, and of course I was happy to find one by LEEGOC. My favorite out of this haul is Heeda Garden’s Sleeping Gypsy, a gorgeous and whimsical book of sketches, photos, and collages from trips to different cities.
I passed a streetside samgyeopsal cart on my way to pick up dinner, and I didn’t get any, but I savored the smell of it and wanted to remember that.
Before I went to bed I got in the tub with a bottle of Soak’s bubblegum bubble bath in warm water, and I put on “Salt” by Rainsford, which is kind of about having a bath while you’re lonely and heartbroken, but not really.
November 11
I think the Mango straight pants I got myself last Christmas cut such a pleasant silhouette with my sweaters and the oversize sling I bought so I could stuff the art prints I was supposed to hoard at Nuunu in Kyoto into it. (Never say never—I’m kind of already planning to go ahead with the Osaka trip next May.) Olive green is truly my color of the moment.
I went back to Anguk Station so I could buy more art prints at Object, but this branch was being renovated, so I drowned my sorrows in apple iced tea and banana split Dippin’ Dots at the 7-Eleven next door. I’d been looking in the freezers for the packaged kind and was delighted to find that they were being served scooped into cups at the counter.
This is my favorite shot out of this entire trip, I think, and it makes me want to kick myself again that I decided to leave my Canon G9X at home.
I’d let go of my Telfar eggplant dreams a long time ago, but I chanced upon this Fennec bag online and fell in love with it. I’d been planning to buy it when I got home, but I decided to hunt for it at the Lotte Department Store since, hello, I was already in Seoul anyway. I ended up getting it with a great discount thanks to the Black Friday sale and the tax deduction.
The department store was in a very commercial part of the city. I could have crossed the street and explored more of Myeongdong, but I don’t think I was ready for that quite yet. It reminded me of the city center in Kuala Lumpur, and there were all these Christmas lights and decorations at the entrance with seasonal music blaring, so it opened up this whole can of emotional worms that I needed to get away from but also wanted to wrap myself in.
I decided to take a bus—but I got on the wrong one, so I got off as soon as I saw a Lotteria and got a late lunch while I figured out my next move.
I’d also bookmarked Storage Book & Film on Naver Maps when I was looking for places to get zines, but I didn’t prioritize it since it seemed difficult to get to. But when I went to check the map to see how I could get back to my hotel, the little yellow star marking its location was right next to where I was. So I figured I might as well go.
The bus that passes right by it was small and green, and there was a stop right in front of the Lotteria. I tried to ride it, but it was late afternoon and each one was full. I booked a ride instead, and then I discovered that my initial plan of walking to the bookstore from the nearest train station was never going to be the right choice: it was on a very steep hill.
Still, I’d made it, and it was well worth the detour. I got another bunch of travel zines and some bookmarks and postcards, including one for Storage itself. The checkout counter was behind a curtain, so I couldn’t immediately see who was ringing me up. They had short hair, so I assumed it was a man. But when they handed me my card back along with my paper bag, they finally looked up, and I came eye to eye with the most beautiful, soft spoken butch I’d ever seen in my pathetic gay life. I had never witnessed features this distinct and delicate in all my days. A face you could never forget, but if I’m being honest, I’m not really able to picture it clearly anymore in my mind—but I like the romance of keeping it in that moment and only then.
(But of course I’ve already scrolled down the bookstore’s Instagram feed and tags in case I could find her in the periphery of even a single photo.)
I walked downhill until I reached a bridal shop with a pride flag and the Palestine flag in the window, which made me so happy. I booked a ride from there and just watched the skies darken out the window. For dinner I got toowoomba pasta from the GS25 around the corner.
November 12
At noon I was set to watch a screening of Hope on the Stage The Movie, and all I had to do was literally cross the street to the CGV near my hotel. I still find it so amusing how convenient this ended up being for me, and I got my ticket through an automated kiosk.
There were only two of us in the theater. When it was over and we were waiting for the elevator back down to the lobby, she turned to me and said hello, and she knew enough English that we were able to make small talk about the movie and where I was from and what I was doing in the city. I found her really nice and she helped me through the process of claiming the really cute commemorative ticket, which was most of the reason I even made time to see the movie in Seoul. (I already had plans to see it back home.) I think we both wanted to talk more, but she was pretty shy and so was I, and we never even got each other’s names. It’s a memory and interaction I treasure anyway.
Next time I would love to catch a rare movie that I wouldn’t have gotten to watch elsewhere, but unfortunately they don’t provide subtitles for titles that are local to them.
Since February I’ve been trying to find the most convenient and walkable way to be by the Han River, and so far it’s been Yeouido Hangang Park, which is right by Yeouinaru Station and also has a Hangang Bus dock. I didn’t have time to go on a boat ride, but it was enough for me to sit on a bench and admire the river while I listened to my current heavy rotation playlist. (“unlearning you” by Crying City is at the top.)
When I’m back I’ll be taking the water bus, and maybe braving a stop at Euljidarak so I can try their bolognese with a pretty scoop of whipped cream.
I did take the bus after, though. The right route, this time, a 40-minute ride back to my hotel. I got to take a seat early and admire views of the city I hadn’t gotten a chance to glimpse since I was always on the subway. It was a late Wednesday afternoon, the sun starting to dip, casting a poignant glow over the buildings and storefronts we passed.
I turned out all the lights in my hotel room and watched the walls grow darker. I went to get dinner later, a warm bowl of tuna mayo and egg rice with extra umami from nori strips. It was a short walk from my hotel but the brightness of the lights against the night sky and the perfect temperature made me wistful. It was 8 p.m. and I had to be up by 3 a.m. to make it to my flight at seven, but I felt a pull—a yearning—to explore one last time.
I finished my dinner and went back down so I could take a walk. It was the rightest amount of cold I’d experienced out of the entire trip, feeling like the autumn chill was just dusting my cheeks, little kisses of it here and there. I walked aimlessly down the side street behind the building with the CGV. It’s right by a university, so there were a lot of places open late and students milling about and dragging each other to neon-lit arcades and busy coffee shops.
I stayed out for an hour, and then I crossed the street back to the hotel. I’d left the window open so I could be welcomed by the flicker of streetlights. I kept the curtains drawn apart while I finished packing, and it wasn’t long before I had to say goodbye to the view, too.
At the airport I sat at the Hwangsaengga Kalguksu close to my gate. I ordered what I thought was going to be a quick snack of mandu, but the dumplings were massive. They were very good.
On this trip I made a list of places I wanted to visit, but it was mostly unplanned. I made sure not to let the pressure of “making the most of it” hang over my head, and I just went with whatever I felt like doing. It was never going to be a montage of those “Seoul’s best-kept secrets” I’d been bookmarking—and it still made me happy and healed me regardless.
I’ve been learning lately that for now, I’m kind of an escapist when I travel. I established long ago that I’ll never be a traveler or vagabond, more of a city-dwelling vacationer, but where my heart is at these days is really just getting out of my head, getting on a train, seeing what I can do and where I can go to let go and have fun for a little while. And for me, that’s not always found in bucket lists and best-ofs.
More than anything, it’s just about having a nice day.
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