Summer Day at Ewha Womans University • 이화여자대학교

Ewha Womans University (이화여자대학교) is one of those tourists spots in Seoul that’s worth making a visit for. Plus, if you’re a fan of architecture, you’ll probably have a lot of fun checking this place out. Designed by Dominique Perrault Architecture, the campus was build in the middle of Seoul’s urban neighborhood creating a new unique topography reminiscent of the Champs-Élysées in Paris or the Campidoglio in Rome. From the shape of the architecture, the scale of the campus, the amphitheater-like stairs area, and the garden on a hilly slope, the campus is a perfect place to walk around and admire this contemporary structure and the view surrounding it.

I’ve been to Ewha Womans University many times in the past and I still find this place fascinating during every single visit. I also brought many of my friends who were visiting Seoul for the first time to this place just because I personally think that the architecture of the campus is pretty cool. And since I’ve been here quite a bit, I can also say that the vibes also change during every season (fall is probably the prettiest season to visit this place, especially during peak autumn week). During summer, the campus is pretty much surrounded by greeneries. There’s less people sitting on the stairs during daytime because most people prefers the cool air-conditioned indoor spaces than sitting outside under the scorching hot sun during Korea’s humid summer day. But right before sunset when the sun is not as high up in the sky, you’ll see more people around the area. From students who just finished their classes to visitors who simply came to walk around the campus or sit down on the stairs to enjoy their afternoon coffee, everybody seems to be enjoying their time around this campus.

Note: Photos were taken before the pandemic.

Also, you can check this post out if you want to see what it looks like during winter time.

 

Ewha Womans University • 이화여자대학교

Address: 서울 서대문구 이화여대길 52
Subway: Subway Line 2 | Exit 2,3

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Baobab • 바오밥

After we finished our photowalk (see my previous post here), we went to Baobab (바오밥) in Sinchon (신촌) to get dinner. The place is fairly new, I think, cos last time I was here, they just had their grand opening. Never been to this place before but the menu looks good, the food looks good, so I thought I should give it a try (and dragged Yais with me too this time). Their menu is not particularly extensive, which is usually a good sign for a Korean restaurant since they have to cook those few menus real good, otherwise people won't come back after their first visit. There are 4 main menus to choose from and some sides too if you feel like you need to order more food to add to your mains.

When it comes to food, I'm a fairly easy eater. Doesn't matter if the food is simple, as long as it tastes good, I'm a happy camper. Simple delicious foods are the best sometimes and that was exactly what I got from this meal. We ordered one pan of the galbi (소갈비한판)—which comes with rice and banchan—and the steamed egg with cheese and shrimp (치즈새우계란찜). Everything tasted good, seasoned well, and the portion was just right for two people to share. It was a solid meal, especially after all those walking around we did earlier that day.

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After dinner, we decided to go to Homilbat (호밀밭) to get some bingsu (빙수). This is probably one of my fav milky bingsu spots up to date, so I thought it'd be a good idea for Yais to try it too before he leaves. We ordered the summer special—the watermelon bingsu (수박빙수)—and it was really good. Ending a hot summer day with bingsu is never a bad idea, really. So that was my Saturday. And oh, I did a post before about Homilbat which you can check out here. That's it for now.

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Chowon Bookstore • 초원 서점

When I was living in Seoul, I lived in the neighborhood located in between Sinchon Station (신촌역) and Ewha Station (이대역). Since my school was in that area, I spent a lot of time hanging out in those two neighborhoods and eventually, these areas somewhat became something that feels like home for me during my stay. This time around, I ended up staying at my friend's place in the Ewha side. Even though it's close to my old neighborhood, I never really venture to this part of Ewha. So today I decided to walked around and see if there's anything interesting around here.

That's how my walk at Yeonmi-dong (염리동) started (that's the name of the neighborhood btw). Not much going on around here other than hilly roads, a couple of murals here and there, neighborhood shops and residential area. I did stumbled upon two bookstores on my walk. The first one was Chowon Bookstore (초원 서점). The retro-vibes bookstore is filled with books about music, local and foreign. Even though almost everything is mainly in Korean, it was still pretty fun looking at the nicely designed book covers and the old tapes and vinyl covers that they have in the store.

I ended up talking with the friendly guy who was manning the store and found out a couple of random interesting things about the place. The store is owned by the guy's girlfriend. She used to have a dream to open a music bookstore and she finally opened this place 3 months ago. He's helping out around the store and he himself is a full-time bassist for a local rock/disco band and has been playing bass for more than 10 years. They sometimes have guitar lesson sessions in the store and they stamp your book with the purchase date just like a library system when you purchase a book from the store. I thought that was pretty neat. Anyway, he gave me a couple of recommendations on which books that are easy enough for me to read and understand (with my limited Korean skills) and was kind enough to answered all of my questions that I asked him in my broken Korean. As a bonus, he even gave me an orange juice before I left. How cool is that? I ended purchasing a short story book written by one of the local musician since it seems like it could be something that I can digest or at least learn something new from. Whether or not I can actually finish reading the whole thing, that's another story tho. I'll let you know. Maybe.

Anyways, stay tuned for the second bookstore I visited on this walk. That'll be for the next post.

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Ewha Campus Complex

Ewha Campus Complex (이화여자대학교) is one of my favorite architectures here in Seoul. Built by Dominique Perrault, this grand complex certainly left quite an impression for first time, even returning visitors. The modern campus complex is nothing like I've seen before anywhere else in this city. It is also interesting to see, even when they have this very modern building structure, they're still preserving the old 19th-century gothic brick buildings surrounding the top part of the complex.

Sharing the shots I took during winter, that particular day was pretty cold. So not a lot of people were crowding the place, only the locals who were braving the cold weather, I assumed. We got there right before sunset, and it was my first time too coming to the campus at that time of day. Seeing how the sunlight hit the vertical structure of the stainless metal was certainly a new experience.

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Hana Okonomiyaki

I'm starting this post with a little confession that I didn't know the name of this place until I was about to write this post. The main reason is this place is right around my neighborhood, passed this place like thousands of times, but never bothered to read the name of the place. I only knew this spot as 'that-okonomiyaki-place-that-always-have-people-lining-up-for-seats'. First I thought maybe because the place is pretty small, but after I finally had the chance to try this place, I can see why.

Hana Okonomiyaki (하나 오코노미야키 야키소바 a.k.a 신촌 하나) is located in Sinchon neighborhood, in between Sinchon Station and Ehwa Station. The place is famous for their okonomiyaki and yakisoba, and I asked my Japanese friends and they said the taste is pretty good and authentic. The price is also relatively not expensive, ranging from 7,000—9,000KRW. I let my friends ordered last time so I'm not exactly sure what we ordered, but everything was delicious. We even ordered seconds too. Tips: If you come here during dinner time, come early or you'll most likely will have to wait for seats. Go during lunch time since there's usually fewer people waiting in line.

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