Experience Korea

This post is a little different. Everything on this blog so far starts at Incheon Airport, but today I want to take you south to Jeju Island (제주도, Jeju-do) . And this time there are no illustrations. These are photos I took myself on a trip to Jeju in September 2020. Hyeopjae Beach, with Biyangdo Island across the water. Photo: Jay, September 2020 Hyeopjae Beach (협재해수욕장, Hyeopjae Haesuyokjang) Yes, the water really is that color. Hyeopjae is on the west side of Jeju, right next to Hallim Park, and it's one of the beaches Koreans picture when they think of Jeju. The sand is white and mixed with crushed shells, which is part of why the water looks so bright. The water is shallow and the beach slopes gently, so it's an easy place for families and for people who aren't strong swimmers. The little green island in front is Biyangdo (비양도) . It sits close enough that it's in almost every photo you take here. Entry is free , and the beach is open all year. There are...

When the air in Korea turns cold, a smell shows up on street corners before the first snow does. Sweet, smoky, a little bit burnt. That's gun-goguma (군고구마) , roasted sweet potato, and for a lot of Koreans it is simply the taste of winter. Illustration: a winter street cart with a drum-shaped roasting oven What is gun-goguma? Goguma (고구마) means sweet potato, and gun (군) means roasted. Korean sweet potatoes have reddish-purple skin and yellow flesh. Roasted slowly over charcoal or wood, the sugar inside turns to caramel and the edges go sticky and dark. You will usually meet two kinds: Bam-goguma (밤고구마) , the "chestnut sweet potato": dry, fluffy and nutty, a bit like a roasted chestnut. Hobak-goguma (호박고구마) , the "pumpkin sweet potato": soft, moist and very sweet, almost like custard. If you have a favorite, just say "bam" or "hobak" and the seller will know what you mean. Where to find them 1. Street carts with a drum oven Fro...

We hopped off the train at Hongik University, tapped out at the gates, and Mia asked the question every single visitor asks here: “Okay… which exit?” Fair question. Hongdae station is one of the busiest stations in Seoul. It has three train lines and a whole bunch of exits, and if you pick the wrong one with a suitcase in tow, you’ll find out the hard way. Here’s exactly how I walked her through it. ▶ Subscribe on YouTube Watch this episode on YouTube Exit 9: the front door to Hongdae If you’re here for the fun stuff, exit 9 is the one. Walk out and you’re right in Hongdae: the shopping streets, little cafés, street food, buskers, the art and design shops, KT&G Sangsang Madang , and Hongik University itself. Our hotel was just around the corner from it too. But here’s the catch. Exit 9 is stairs only . No escalator, and it’s narrow. On weekday mornings and evenings, and pretty much all weekend, people actually queue to get up those stairs. If you can, avoid exit 9 at rush hour and...

Full of bibimbap, Mia turned to me and asked, “Okay, how do we actually get to Hongdae?” Easy, we take the train. But there’s one mistake I see first-timers make all the time, and it can send you straight past Hongdae. So let me walk you through it the way I walked her through it. ▶ Tap the picture to watch the 40-second short on YouTube ▶ Subscribe on YouTube Watch this episode on YouTube 1. Follow the train signs from the food street From the B1 food street in Terminal 1, just follow the signs with the little train on them. You’ll hop on a moving walkway (Mia loved this) and it drops you at the Transportation Center . The station hall is right there, still on B1. 2. Grab some cash if you need it There’s a bank right in the station hall, so you can exchange money before you go through the gates. Mia swapped her Canadian dollars there. I stood a few steps away and studied the ceiling, as you do. 3. Top up your T-money card Find the kiosk, tap English , then Top up , and pop your cash i...

Mia’s stomach growled so loudly I swear the people at the next café heard it. She went bright red. I’d promised her lunch was on me, so off we went. And then the best part. We sat down, ordered, and before our food even came, six little plates of side dishes landed on the table. Mia’s face. “We didn’t order all this!” Nope. And you don’t pay for them either. ▶ Tap the picture to watch the 40-second short on YouTube ▶ Subscribe on YouTube Watch this episode on YouTube Where to eat: Terminal 1, B1 food street Head down to the basement level (B1). It’s before security, so anyone can go. You’ll find Korean places along the west side and the middle, while the east side has stuff like pork cutlet, tacos and Chinese. Over by the Transportation Center there are burgers, pho and Korean snack food too. Most menus have photos, so you can just point. Mia picked Jeonju bibimbap because, in her words, “it looks so Korean.” Great call. I went for pork gukbap. A few Korean restaurant things nobody te...

Freshly washed up and feeling like a new person. But Mia had one more thing on her mind: “Okay. I need coffee… and something sweet. Like, now.” Fair enough. ▶ Tap the picture to watch the 40-second short on YouTube ▶ Subscribe on YouTube Watch this episode on YouTube Terminal 1: the cafés are right outside arrivals Good news: you don’t have to go hunting. When you come out of the arrival gate in Terminal 1, just look up for the letters B , D or E above the exits. You’ll find a café right by each of them. Easy. Here’s a quick top-down sketch so you know exactly where they are. My own top-down sketch, simplified from the official Incheon Airport map . Not to scale. Cafés in the T1 arrival hall (1F) Where Café Hours Near arrival exit B Tous les Jours, Mimi Dandan 06:00 to 22:00 Between exits B and C Hollys Coffee Open 24 hours Near arrival exit D Paul Bassett 06:00 to 22:00 Near arrival exit E Angel-in-us Open 24 hours Near arrival exit E Normalo Coffee 06:00 to 22:00 Near door 10 Kri...

Right after her video call, Mia walked past a big glass wall, caught her reflection and just… froze. Then she said, very quietly, “I look like a zombie.” I tried really hard not to laugh. I failed. But hey, I’ve been there too. Thirteen hours in economy does that to anyone. So before coffee, before the train, before anything, we went and got her freshened up. Good news: Incheon makes this super easy. ▶ Tap the picture to watch the 40-second short on YouTube ▶ Subscribe on YouTube Watch this episode on YouTube The restrooms are free, clean and literally everywhere You’ll never pay for a public restroom here, and they’re honestly cleaner than most hotel bathrooms I’ve used. Just follow the little restroom signs. You’re never more than a short walk from one. There’s room to actually fix yourself up The mirrors are big and well-lit, so you can wash your face, brush your hair and redo your make-up without feeling rushed. Take your time. Nobody’s going to hurry you along. Bring an empty wate...

Picture this. You’ve just survived a 13-hour flight, you finally walk out into the arrival hall, you turn your phone on… and it says No Service . Your mom is waiting for a “landed safe!” text and you’ve got nothing. That was my friend Mia, about five minutes after she landed in Korea. She was holding her phone up to the ceiling like that was going to help, bless her. So I walked over and sorted it out with her. Honestly? It took us five minutes, tops. ▶ Tap the picture to watch the 40-second short on YouTube ▶ Subscribe on YouTube Watch this episode on YouTube First things first: hop on the free airport Wi-Fi Incheon has free Wi-Fi pretty much everywhere in the terminal, and you don’t need a password. Connect to that before you do anything else. Send the “I’m here!” message, breathe, and then figure out the rest. eSIM, SIM card or pocket Wi-Fi? Just pick one People overthink this one, but it’s really simple: eSIM – you just scan a QR code and you’re done. No tiny cards, no fiddly SIM ...