Day 31 -- Eunpyeong and Birthday Dinner

After class, I had Greek Day and then took a taxi with Mom and Dad to Eunpyeong hanok village, an area full of modern versions of traditional Korean buildings. The buildings were interesting to see in comparison to older hanok because they were newly painted, had fresh wood, and had different decorations than traditional ones. 




After walking around briefly, we went to 1in1jan, a six story building with beautiful views of the village and the mountain behind it. I got a grapefruit ade to drink, and the three of us shared a cake with lemon cream and strawberry jam, a chocolate-mugwort-injeolmi cake, and three types of tteok with red bean inside. All three were delicious, and from the cafe decor to the views to the food itself, everything about the cafe was amazing.




We went to the rooftop to see some more views before going on a longer walk around the village to appreciate the buildings more. We also went to the Eunpyeong History Hanok Museum to learn about some of the design features of hanok and the history of the Eunpyeong area itself. Outside of the museum there was a really nice garden with a shady seating area and another great view of the mountain.




We took a taxi to Suguksa Temple next. Suguksa Temple is completely gold, and the inside was full of huge lanterns. The golden exterior looked beautiful in the sun, and was very different from other temples I have seen before.




Next, we went to Daol Charcoal Grill in Myeongdong and met up with Sandi, Sonia, and Adeline for my pre-birthday dinner. We had some amazing Korean barbecue with lots of delicious side dishes, but probably the most exciting part of the dinner was that I tried soju (a vodka-like drink that is the most popular alcoholic beverage in Korea) and makjeolli (a sweet rice wine). I did not like the soju, but the makjeolli was fine. Although I wouldn't actively seek it out and would prefer water if given the choice, I could totally drink it. It was probably the best alcoholic beverage I have ever had, but to be fair I don't like most alcohol.




After dinner, we went to Sulbing and got mango bingsu, melon and red bean bingsu, and injeolmi bingsu to split among the six of us.


Mom and Dad left after we ate bingsu, and Sandi, Sonia, Adeline, and I explored Myeongdong. We walked along the streets and tried some street food. I had egg bread for the first time, which was sweeter than I was expecting and was pretty good. After walking around Myeongdong for a while, we got on the subway and went back to our dorms.

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