Adventures — Finding Bouken

We only knew a tiny bit about Korean cuisine before out trip, so we were very happy to have been able to try different kinds of food. Some of the items in this post have already been discussed in our previous daily blog posts, but don't fret! We're adding fun snippets of information along the way.

Do you like...

...fresh fruit juice?
...spicy food?
...side dishes?
...street food?
...rice cakes?
...long spoons?

FRESH FRUIT JUICE? YES, PLEASE!

There's something funny about paying $1 or 1,000 won for a fresh cup of fruit juice. It's funny and sad at the same time that freshly squeezed lemonade or orange juice costs so little in a country whose economy is much smaller (in terms of 2016 GDP) compared to that of the United States. We suppose this point of view has to do with the health, organic, and green fad going on our side of the coast. Getting a glass of freshly squeezed juice in our hometown would cost us 3-5 times that amount!

The best part? You can get them almost anywhere! Yes, they do squeeze those oranges right in front of you.

THE LAND OF SPICE AND (EVERYTHING SPICY)

Are you a big fan of spicy food? Well then you're in for a treat! Almost every food dish you can think of will have a spicy kick to it. Our friend Bee believes that "Korean level spicy" is at the very top of the how-spicy-is-something list. We're inclined to agree with her, especially after trying out what non-spicy is supposed to be - surprise, it's regular spicy!

When we had a black bean soup base for our lunch at Myeong-dong, we were pleasantly surprised the soup had a nice spicy kick to it. It wasn't meant to be spicy at all; the soup base was supposed to be the mildest of the mild!

SIDE DISHES GALORE!

Almost every sit-down meal in a traditional Korean restaurant will include various side dishes. Many of these include kimchi, pickled [insert pickled-item-of-choice-here], dried squid or octopus, rice noodles, soy-based soup, tofu, and so much more. While the side dishes in general are the same, we found that they can vary depending on where you go. For example, during our visit in the province of Gangneung, we had multiple tofu side dishes. The Chodang Dubu village in Gangneung province is very well-known for their salt water tofu, so it's not surprising to see more than one tofu side dish wherever we ate.

Bonus: Side dishes are refilled for free. Yes, rice is a side dish.

STREET FOOD, WHERE?!

For our foodie friends out there, yes they have a lively street food scene! Most of the stalls, and some food trucks, open up shop late in the afternoon. The timing heavily correlates with the end of the work day. As you likely read, we visited Myeong-dong a second time to taste the different street food items available (sans-lobster because Hamu is allergic to shellfish).

Street food varieties are similar to the ones we found in Japan, though there are some variations. The most notable items we found were freshly squeezed / prepared juices and lobster tails with cheese. You can find grilled octopus, multitude of deep fried items (rice cakes, octopus, squid, dumplings, sausages), rice cake and cheese skewers, potato tornado skewers, galbi meatballs, beef skewers, and even Japanese yakisoba!

Since this trip was primarily driven by food, we were almost always full no matter where we went. Unfortunately, this includes the time we visited Myeong-dong to have street food. We were able to try a few different items and some familiar ones.

Bonus: they don't make potato tornadoes extra crispy here! The outer side is crispy, but the inside part of the potato is soft and chewy!

ALL HAIL LONG SOUP SPOONS!

Who knew long soup spoons would be useful? Not these adventurers!

Since this trip, we have increased appreciation for long spoons! The long spoons we're talking about are locally referred to as sutgarak [숟가락] or sometimes sujeo [수저], though sujeo is also used a reference to the set of eating utensils, including chopsticks. If you have never used one, we recommend trying it out the next time you're in a Korean restaurant.

We liked the spoons so much we bought a set to use at home.

Our primary form of transportation during the trip was by taxi. Unlike the United States, taxis are very cheap in South Korea. We paid anywhere from $8-12 for a ride split 4 ways for an average of roughly 5 miles each way.

TAXIS AND THE DIFFERENT KINDS

There are three primary types of cabs available: standard, deluxe, and jumbo. All images in this section were copied from the Visit Korea tourism website.

Standard taxis are regular sedans that usually come in silver, white, or orange. They are the most common and fares start at 3,000 won, increasing in 100 won increments. The orange taxis can be international taxis where the drivers can speak another language: English, Japanese, or Chinese.

Deluxe taxis come in black and has more cabin space than a standard taxi. They supposedly offer a higher level of service, though we're unclear what that means. We didn't take any during our trip since we only needed transit from point a to b in the cheapest manner possible.

Jumbo taxis as the word implies, is a big taxi, though it really is more of a van. Not to confuse with actual call vans which are different in pricing! We used one to and fro Gimpo airport. They come with wifi, very roomy, and comfortable. The first one we rode even had led lights inside the cabin.

For more info on taxis, click here!

TRAINS AND BUSES

Trains and buses were typical to what you would encounter in Japan. They have their own IC card (like Clipper, Suica, or Pasmo) that you can even use to pay a cab. Since our cab fare would be split 4 ways, it was ultimately cheaper and more comfortable to take taxis than the crowded train system, especially during rush hour.

Buses had less seating room, which Bee explained was on purpose in order to maximize the amount of people who can take the bus. The space one seat takes can fit two people if they stand close to each other.

And finally, the most exciting part of this post...

DRIVING IN SEOUL

Bee once joked during one of our visits to LA that her parents think Buns drives like a Korean driver. We thought it was a little exaggerated, but oh boy, were we so wrong. It's worse. Imagine driving aggressively in a metropolitan city, then add in complete disregard of traffic rules altogether.

Did we mention delivery motorcycles run red lights all the time and or drive on the sidewalk? No? Well now you know. We found out that motorcycles can run through an intersection if there is 40% or less time left for pedestrians to cross. They're apparently not supposed to, but traffic laws aren't really imposed on them.

The driving reminded me of Manila where driving is aggressive and insane compared to American standards. We're just glad we weren't the ones braving the busy Seoul traffic. We're fine leaving that responsibility to the pros!

South Korea Recap: Food and Yummy Goodness