Can't take the LACK of heat? Go inside!

It’s cold!

I know that Sundays are the perfect time to stroll down your favorite street and pick a random café, restaurant, or shop and take your time at a slow pace. Or maybe go hiking up the mountain in your backyard, or walk along the stream in your front yard. Or just see how far you can get across the city you call your home away from home.

But it’s cold…
So why not look at your other choices?

Seoul is filled with underground markets. Try out Express Bus Terminal. It’s well heated and goes FOREVER! Shops there vary from clothing, to shoes, lamps to knickknacks, and it is also home to many food and coffee establishments. For the more, high-end, there’s Coex, but it’s not the Mall itself, but the shops inside that give it the real attraction points. The Cinema is great main reason to go, but why not spend your time before that at some of their candy shops, foreign food outlets, designer clothing shops, game rooms (both video and board varieties) plus one of their 500 Starbucks Coffee Shops.
If you’d rather go above ground, try one of the towering markets of Dongdaemun? There are several by the future site of the “history and culture park” (written in quotes due to a current lack of both history and culture). If you are handier to Myeongdong Station, there are similar establishments there. For the pricier Sunday out, try the 63 Building, known for being tall to Koreans and quaint to those from other large cities.
If you consider yourself a hot-blooded individual, by all means enjoy the sunny day with the polar bears and penguins. The same parks, streets and streams, as well as the shops nearby will all be open as usual. Unless the owner decides it’s too cold and sleeps in… which sometimes happens. If you do take this route to Sunday invigoration, please be smart and bundle up. If you don’t have the proper hat and gloves, you can by them on any given street in Korea. They might not keep you warm, but at least they’re trendy, and people will think they are keeping you warm and won’t need to feel bad for you. Now, don’t you feel better?

Enjoy your day!

How to NOT get lost in Namdaemun...

Have you ever gotten lost in Namdaemun Market? We have!
Here is a simple guide to what's where of the whole area. Hopefully this is helpful the next time you there!

We found this helpful map at http://kidsfuninseoul.wordpress.com/tag/kids-shopping-seoul/
They also have some great info for toy shopping there, so check it out.

Where Have All the Markets Gone?

This map is courtesy of the folks at http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/SH_EN_7_1_6.jsp
It shows you the location of several of Seoul's Markets (some that we've already posted about) and a few other landmarks around the city.
Can you see anything near your home?

The Pen is Mightier at WHOLESALE PRICES!

Where do you buy stationary? Do you need toys for your kids, nieces, and nephews? Do you want to buy party goods?
Welcome to the wholesale stationary market!
You will love it, I fell in love this street. And I took my foreign friends there. They love the place.

It is located in Dongdaemun, in a dirty hole of a neighborhood. Don’t let the appearance turn you away. The deals inside are worth the inconvenience of a lackluster atmosphere and the occasional crammed cluster of shelves.

Get off at Dongdaemun Station (Line 1-4 transfer station and also quite dirty) and head out Exit 4. You will see a sign that says ”독일약국” (Dogilyagkuk, it is a pharmacy, literally translated as “Germany Pharmacy”, with an orange-colored sign). Turn on to the right street and you will see a HUGE stretch of stationary, toys, and party goods.

The prices here are 20-30% cheaper than normal when you use your card, and up to 50% if you use cash.

A few recommendations would be Lego (30% off), Tape cutter/dispensers (my mother-in-law thought this was cool) or toy pens. Also a wide selection of toys and party favors are here. Hit this place up before next Halloween or any costume party.

As far as Korean standards go, they close fairly early. Make sure to go before 6. Also, they are closed on holidays and Sundays.

If you click on these links you can see a few pictures:

http://sakura0523.blog.me/60155890893

http://cafe.naver.com/joincoll/40
 
I recommend you go there when you have plenty of time. There are so many shops, you’ll need time to explore!

If I had a hammer...

So have you ever been wandering along the Cheonggye Stream and thought to yourself, "I could really use a table saw..."?
Me either, but you can get one while you're there anyway.

Along this historic (not really) stream there is a large market filled with construction supplies. Here you can find hammers, nails, power tools, hinges, bolts, shackles, chains, and much more.
Need a paintbrush? Need paint? How about an electric-powered hot knife that cuts through foam like butter?
Other than tools you can also find a variety of light bulbs and fixtures, wheels and pulleys, and, my favorite, ridiculously strong magnets.

The great thing about this place is that you can get everything at wholesale prices. There is a language gap, but if you hold out and play a little hardball when haggling, you can get great deals.

The easiest way to get there is on either line 2 or 3, Euljiro 3(sam)ga Station. Head out exit 5 and you're already in the midst of it.
If you really need to do some renovations or just want to window shop, this place is perfect and you could spend all day looking around. If you want to rest after a while, you're right by the stream, so there are plenty of places to go nearby.

Wholesale Shoe Market in Seoul

Shoe shopping! Jon hates it, but I'm addicted to it! But if you love it like I do, you need to do it wisely to save money^^

1) How to get there: Line 1, or 4 Dongdaemun station exit 7, 5 minutes walk. The shops are along 청계천 (Cheonggye Stream). There are also even more shops behind the buildings.

2) Pictures
http://blog.naver.com.../next0390?Redirect=Log&logNo=50139715491

http://blog.naver.com/rhddladhkd?Redirect=Log&logNo=50141330851

http://blog.naver.com/thehei?Redirect=Log&logNo=80162697309

3) Opening time: 3:00am~3pm / Sunday-closed

4) Advice
① End of Season: end of February or August, there are big discounts
② I don’t recommend leather shoes- Leather shoes are cheaper than other ones. But still expensive and they can ask for more money to foreigners because they think they don’t know other places prices (Shameful but true).
③ With big smile, you can ask “Kkak kka ju se yo(깍아주세요/ discount pleas)”
④ It is better to look at many places before choosing (Don’t impulse buy), I’ve been there, and even it is the exact same shoe, the price depends on store (The farther from the station, the cheaper the price!)

Wholesale Baking Market in Seoul

For special holidays or just for any time you get pangs for good, old-fashioned, home-baked goods, many people want to make cookies, pies, or cakes. You can get the ingredients you need and the utensils to do it with at a cheap price, and you don't even have to go all the way back to your home country to get it all^^

 The place you're looking for is the the wholesale baking market and it is one of Seoul's hidden gems, even if it is a little rough around the edges. Here you can find everything from molasses to colored sugar, cake pans to cookie-cutters. The market is complicated to find but it is totally worth it to go.

 How to get there: 1) Line 1 Jongno 5(o)-ga station exit 7 You need to walk to Gwangjang Market first. You go through Gwangjang market(광장시장) and then you can see the sign for Bangsan Market (방산시장)

You can see pictures of Bangsan Market (방산시장) here: http://llovebob7.blog.me/159708835

 2) Line 2 Euljiro 4(sa)-ga station exit 6 Go straight , you can see the sign for Bangsan Market (방산시장), then turn left. You can see the pictures here: http://karma21.tistory.com/115
 Times: 9:00am~7:00pm Sunday not open
 What you can get : Baking ingredients, utensils, packing ingredients
 Pictures: http://onblush.net/90137237131
 http://blog.naver.com/wannabe_top?Redirect=Log&logNo=163811470