Day 18: Seoul — K-pop, Kimchi, and Other Korean Curiosities

“Seoul is attracting the world’s attention these days.” – Munsoo Kwon

When I arrived in Seoul, I could sense that I was going to enjoy this place. The night lights were colorful and flashing, often displaying some tasty Korean dishes, the sound of dance music and K-pop was blaring through the streets, and the air smelled of Korean BBQ.

I was sold.

Like Taipei, Soul also has a food market culture. I was staying close to Gwangjang market, so I had to check it out immediately. This is one of the more traditional markets of Seoul, and you can find foods like mung bean cakes, gimpab (seaweed rolls), dumplings, chicken feet, japchae (Korean glass stir-fried noodles), beef tartar, blood sausage, rice cakes, kimchi bibim guksu (spicy cold noodles with kimchi), and red bean porridge.

Upon ordering just about any dish in South Korea, you will be served small plates of “banchan.” These are side dishes that can consist of kimchi, seasoned soybean sprouts, spinach, spicy cucumber salad, stir-fried zucchini, spicy radish salad, steamed eggplants, braised potatoes, and many more.

Having this wide range of side dishes with every meal is quite a delight. With every bite of the main course, I found myself mixing and matching tiny bites of my banchan. It made each mouthful interesting and unique. A little bit of this, a little bit of that, a little bit more of this… why not?!

I found Korean dishes to be very well-balanced: Spicy, savory, salty, fatty, and acidic to the perfect degree. There weren’t many meals that I didn’t enjoy.

Out of all the banchan, kimchi seems to be the most important. Kimchi (pictured in the middle above) is fermented cabbage doused in a red mix of seasonings and peppers. The flavor can vary a bit depending on the family recipe, but it is often the perfect mixture of spicy and tangy, cutting through the fat in meat-heavy meals and serving as a palate cleanser. It’s quite a strong and distinctive flavor that will likely grow on you.

Aside from the food, the people will also quickly grow on you. While they hold matters of respect and decency to utmost importance, through various interactions and watching many bizarre Korean advertisements on the metro, I got the sense that Koreans are also people who love to have a laugh and don’t take themselves too seriously.

Plus, I found myself wanting to show off my horrendous dance moves to K-pop that can be heard playing through the speakers of many public places. This led me to think about the recent exportation of Korean culture to the rest of the world. Korean media continues to rise in popularity, and we have seen pop groups like BTS and shows like Squid Game become household names here in the US. This level of creative cultural exportation is certainly impressive for a relatively small and homogenous nation.

South Korea is a country that kept me wanting more. Music music, more kimchi, more delicious grilled meat. While there are surely many dystopian aspects of Korean society as well that I didn’t get into here, it is a great country that I think just about anyone would enjoy. If you are curious about trying new flavors and foods (and listening to a lot of K-pop), this is the place for you.

I’d only advise you to eat enough kimchi to counter the inevitable meat sweats.