Seoul Mates: Day 3 of 5

03 February 2012 - Friday


Good morning, Hongdae!

We are waiting for Dos Tacos to open, so we can eat Mexican food for lunch.

What is with the caricatures at the bottom?!

I ordered a potato burrito. Michele ordered a veggie burrito. We split a Nachos Grande. The food wasn't authentic or remotely close to the real thing, but at least some of the flavors were there and it was still good for what it was.

Next we traveled to Dongnimmun to visit Seodaemun Prison. The prison was built during the Japanese occupation (1910-1945). The site witnessed the torture and execution of Korean followers of the Independence Movement. Inmates constructed the prison itself and served as labourers during the day. Methods of torture included using sharp needle-like objects to prick prisoners' fingers, pouring boiling water into prisoners' mouths, hanging prisoners by their feet and dunking their heads in water, and bodily mutilation. If that didn't lead to mortality, the scorching Summers and frostbite-inducing Winters did.

Our visit felt sadly poetic because we came at the heart of Winter. The grounds were covered in untrodden snow. The indoor cells were freezing, even with our thick / puffy jackets, hats, scarves, and several layers of clothing. It was quiet because there weren't many visitors. The largest group of people we saw were an older group of Korean photographers, who seemed more interested in taking artsy photos than learning about the history. I think they had been there several times before because one of them kept telling us which way to go. He asked where Michele and I were from. He was surprised that such young tourists were interested in visiting a prison/museum, probably because it's not centralized on the map. 

The displays were a little bit freaky. Wax figures + cold prison = no bueno. In one building, the prison cells were pitch black, but Michele bravely peered in and saw wax figures sitting in each one. She took a picture with her phone and showed me. I couldn't see anything from where I was standing, so I warily stepped closer to see for myself. Then Michele jumped at me and I let out a scream that scared everyone else in adjacent rooms of the building. We observed people in pairs huddled much closer together after that.

Afterwards, we headed to Namdaemun Market in Hoehyeon. The large traditional market supposedly dates back to 1414 and is one of the oldest continuing markets in Seoul and South Korea. We bargained in my crappy Korean and got some pretty good deals.

For dinner, we ate back in Hongdae. Chicken & Cheese Dduk-Boki (떡볶이).

It was really spicy for some people ...

And a breach of dietary regulations for others.