Some fun time around Konkuk University

Even though my time is ticking away here in Korea I still hope to spend it with friends and exploring around town. I met up with a new friend last Sunday to enjoy an early movie, lunch and just looking around the Konkuk University area.

At the small independent theater run on the campus we saw "First Position", a documentary about young talent making it into the the dance world. It was a good movie and it flowed well as sometimes documentaries can get stuffy. For the most part I became inspired by the stories and also ignited my feeling to return to America. The tales of some immigrants who are trying to make it in America, makes me want to jump over and help them. I don't think you need to see this movie in the theater and can easily watch it at home and still enjoy it.

After the movie we headed across the street to 우마이도, which was an amazing and splendidly delicious Japanese ramen restaurant. The menu was by far the most simplest of things I have ever seen, with just two main choices and side dishes. I ordered the "regular" one where you could have ordered the "spicy" version.

What you see here is, and sorry the color isn't just right, a bowl full of fresh noodles, pork slices, hard boiled egg and green onion seasonings. The broth is what makes Japanese ramen unique and they did a really great job. For a cool end-of-fall day this hit the spot!

Next my friend suggested we wander around the Konkuk University campus and so I enjoyed the peaceful scenery. I didn't even know there was a small lake on the premises.

The lake came complete with geese who were eager to get some crackers or something off the visitors.

Sharing time with friends in Seoul is timeless and the walk around the lake quite memorable. But things were starting to get cooler and so we headed towards the downtown area, where I knew of a cat cafe.

This was my friend's first time to a cat cafe and I enjoyed watching his reaction. As for me I've been to many and so sized up the place.

The ...

고양이다락방 건대점

was a good cat cafe as it had many cats who were friendly and playful. Also the owners of the place weren't too strict on people and politely corrected where needed. It was a nice balance of sleeping cats vs. playful ones. 

I even managed to get one to sit on my lap and get a photo taken.

We stayed in this warm and cozy environment for a good amount of time, soaking up the sights of cats and people interacting with them. It came time to leave and on the way out I spotted the door covered in cat drawings, which was awesome. 

The rest of the evening was having pizza at a place nearby and then heading home to rest before starting the work week. It's great how there is still many places to discover here in Seoul before I leave. I certainly feel like I fit into this city and country and leaving is going to be quite an adjustment. But I'm confident the transition won't be too difficult. ;)

Cat Cafe: Ycat (previously known as Gio Cat)

It's amazing how things change over the years, and that you can reflect on these nuances as time goes by. One such place is the well known cat cafe in Hongdae, which has been known as Gio Cat. I'm not sure when but they changed their name and I am guessing owner, some time ago. 

This renewed cat cafe is called Ycat or 천춘고양이, and is located in the same place as Gio Cat in case you need to find it.

There were a few notable changes since 2010, on my last visit. For one the space is opened up more, and you have to but a ticket from a vending machine as your admission. The ticket gets you a drink and a table to park yourself at. Also, it seemed there were a different set of cats and new places for them to climb on.

One such new fun place for the cats to enjoy was a ramp attached to the ceiling. I'm thinking this is an ingenious addition as it allows cats who want a break from the petting zoo to catch a few naps alone.

I found these cats to be friendly and gentle amongst the patrons, and didn't mind being the center of attention. You had a variety of short haired cats and a few "munchkin" types with incredibly short legs.

At our table one of the cats plopped itself down, gave itself a bath and began to enjoy a nap. No mind we were there!

I liked the layout of the back of the cafe, as they had a nice set up of their food and water. Along the back wall were plexiglass enclosures for kittens (or I don't know if this was a kennel set up). 

Unfortunately, it seems they have a litter box issue as some cats treated a back corner as a bathroom. I saw the staff getting frustrated over this, and assumed this was a daily occurrence. Litter boxes weren't in sight, and I think were behind a wall with a small opening. I think they will have to consider litter training a few of the cats better, which is hard to do.

All together the cafe was a nice place to hang out in on a rainy day in Seoul. However, it seems they need to freshen things up a bit more, but I think the cats have a good life there. 

So why not head to the cat cafe and have a unique experience in Korea? Follow the directions on my old post, and you should be fine. Generally, it is at the end of an alley near that artsy-crafts park and next to a Smoothie King on the University side of Hongdae. 

Some of those fur-balls were so cute, I wanted to take a few home with me! haha

Seonyudo Park: In the spring time

As you might recall I wasn't having the best of times at the Yeouido Flower festival, and so headed to a familiar park nearby. After checking my digital smart-phone App I found that Seonyudo park was just down the river.

It had been since around 2010 since my last visit and so knew I needed to head there again. Since then a whole new subway line opened, which brings you closer to the park. Seonyudo station lets you exit and walk up a street to a covered bridge, which crosses the great highway.

You might recognize the following view, only with out the filters I applied to it for my blog header.

One of the fun parts of visiting this park is the humped bridge crossing you take to get over.

Spring seemed to be in a jolly mood on this little island in the center of Seoul, as greenery and flowers were found.

I parked myself under a shady tree and had a small lunch of a Caffe Bene sandwich, along with some tteok cakes I picked up. It was a wonderful moment enjoying watching the people pass by, and the pleasantness of a new spring day.

Afterwards, I explored around admiring the flower blossoms. Warning spring amazingness!

The amount of couples prowling about were quite a plenty. It made me wonder how long these relationships would last, or whether the spring air would help keep love strong out there in the love mingling of Seoul.

Otherwise the kids were enjoying the new warmth in the air. I like the following view of Seoul through these yellow blooms.

When you visit Seonyudo park you basically just follow this circular path that takes through the greenery, but then you approach the architectural historic aspects. Not to mention it had mountain peaks taken off, and became a sewage plant. This place is fun to poke around to find all these remnants of history. I found myself at the botanical garden and the sewage treatment remnants.

The park was just starting to get more crowded as I headed out, so I was glad to get some feeling of space in there. On my way back to the subway station, I found myself at what looked like a new minted cafe. Called, "Ipanema" they had a selection of coffees and cool drinks. Staffed by some cute youngins, I enjoyed a blueish lemonade.

I'm telling you, if the rest of Seoul wants to restore itself with these hipster cafes, then I'm all for it! In fact this little stretch of street in Seoul had other cafes and restaurants which looked new, too. Although, many will think it is best to keep Seoul in it's traditional form, I think getting rid of the eye-sore store fronts and million signs, is going to be a blessing.

Anyways, I highly recommend you get out to Seonyudo park, as one of the more green places to visit in this city. You can get great views, have a picnic and cross some fun bridges.