Walking around Samcheong-dong

This is the 18th in a series of articles highlighting tourism spots in Seoul. The useful guide for planning weekend trips in the capital city will help readers rediscover Seoul. - Ed.





I first went to Samcheongdong Sujebi 20 years ago. It was busy then. Now one of the most famous restaurants in the district, it is still going strong.

Sujebi is a quick meal similar to pasta. The sujebi restaurant makes soup base by boiling clams and shrimp and simmers wheat flour dough flakes in the broth made by hand. Koreans often make sujebi at home because it is easy to prepare. They tend to associate sujebi and bindaetteok (a Korean-style pancake) with rainy days for reasons unknown.

One speculation is that rain made it difficult to go out to pick vegetables, and sujebi does not require ingredients other than those already available at home. Also, having sujebi on a rainy day may follow the thinking that since there was not much work to do on rainy days there was no need to eat well. An old saying goes "if you do not work, you do not eat."

Thanks to economic development in Korea, food made with flour or barley is no longer associated with poverty. Instead, it is now considered healthy. After a bowl of sujebi, take a stroll around Samcheong-dong. Samcheong-dong is near Cheongwadae, the Korean presidential house. With Bukaksan in the background, Samcheong-dong is east of Cheongwadae and Gyeongbokgung. The official residence of the prime minister is near Samcheongdong Sujebi. In the past, government officials and civil servants used to live in Samcheong-dong. In particular, "Palpan-dong," adjacent to Samcheong-dong was the residential area of 8 ("pal" in Korean) ministers ("panseo" in Korean), hence the name Palpan-dong.

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Culture street

Samcheong-dong is within walking distance from Gyeongbokgung Station or Anguk Station on Subway Line 3. Samcheong-dong Street stretches from Dongsipjagak, the watchtower of the palace, to the wall of Gyeongbokgung in the east. It is lined with various shops such as a traditional Korean-style house remodeled into a cafe, a clothing boutique with elegant hanbok (traditional dress) on display and an accessory shop, a small museum, and a gallery in which wood printings and ceramic goods are displayed for sale.

Across the National Folk Museum next to the Geonchunmun, the east gate of Gyeongbokgung, is the alley, Bukchon-gil, which leads to the Jeongdok Library. At the corner of the alley is the restaurant Bukchon Kalguksu. Kalguksu (literally "knife noodle" in Korean) are traditional Korean wheat flour noodles served in a bowl of broth. The name "kalguksu" was given because the noodles are cut with a knife. The restaurant makes the broth by simmering ox bones and serves kalguksu with spicy kimchi.

Various unique museums and galleries are clustered on Bukchon-gil, such as Artsonje Center, Tibet Museum, the Museum of Korean Buddhist Art, the Seoul Museum of Chicken Art, and the World Jewellery Museum. The Artsonje Center is some 100m away from the entrance to the street. However, you cannot miss Trunk Gallery and The Yido Pottery on your way to the Artsonje Center.

The Trunk Gallery (www. trunkgallery.com) exhibits photos for sale. Set up to popularize artistic photography, the gallery is run by a photographer named Park Yeong-suk, and holds photo exhibits by leading photographers in Korea. One work is valued at 16 million won. The Yido Pottery (www.eyoonshin.com), a remodeled traditional Korean-style house, displays and sells ceramics by Yi Yoon-shin, who studied ceramics in Korea and Japan and modernized traditional techniques.

As it is difficult to tell whether The Yido Pottery displays artwork or commercial goods, the boundary between fine art and commercial production is blurred in Samcheong-dong. At Yido, a coffee mug is priced at 15,000 won and a pretty bowl at 100,000 won. The price of a premium dinner set ranges from 800,000 won to 1.5 million won.

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Tibet Museum and World Jewellery Museum

The alley stretching from the Jeongdok Library to Samcheong police station is Hwagae-gil. It used to be an ordinary residential area, but is now lined with museums, cafes and stores. Most of them are small, but they exhibit and sell goods collected or made by the owners.

Upon stepping in the alley, you will be greeted by the Tibet Museum (www.tibetmuseum.co.kr). The first floor of the museum displays various Buddhist statues from Tibet and the second floor traditional Tibetan clothing and masks. It is a "little Tibet," with a wealth of traditional Tibetan colors, designs and music. Visitors can buy small items imported from Tibet at the entrance to the museum.

The World Jewellery Museum displays a variety of jewelry such as rings, necklaces, bracelets, and the like from all over the world. The curator of the museum said she collected traditional accessories while living in nine different countries as the wife of a diplomat, which motivated her to own a museum.

At the corner of the alley is a small shop selling odeng and hotteok - Korean pancakes filled with brown sugar, honey, and chopped peanuts. The owner of the shop says Japanese tourists prefer hotteok to odeng.



Samcheong Park and Samcheonggak

The name "Samcheong-dong" originated from Taoism, and means three palaces where angels live. In other words, the name implies that it is a place mysterious and secluded enough for angels to live. In this sense Samcheong Park perfectly represents Samcheong-dong. The water that runs down from Bukaksan passes through Samcheong Park and joins the water of Cheonggyecheon to flow into the Hangang River. The park turns into a flower garden with bell trees and azalea in full bloom in March and April, serving as a charming space for relaxation for the workers nearby.

Take a walk along the Seoul Fortress Wall that connects Samcheong Park to Bukaksan. If you are willing to walk further, then go to Malbawi some 600 meters away from Samcheong Park and the mountain path behind Cheongwadae along the fortress wall.

Pass the Samcheong Tunnel that connects Samcheong-dong and Seongbuk-dong and you will encounter the Buddhist temple Hongnyeonsa and the restaurant Samcheonggak. Samcheonggak is considered by some to be the best place to go in Seoul when introducing Korean traditional food to foreigners. Parties and banquets are often held there for foreign VIPs and Korean politicians. Samcheonggak is open for anyone, but on reservation only, and provides foreigners with an opportunity to experience Korean culture, including traditional music, craft, tea tasting, etc.

Surrounded by mountains, Samcheonggak leaves a deep impression on its visitors with its magnificent building. It is a traditional Korean-style house remodeled into a banquet hall with a high ceiling like a western-style house, but it nevertheless conveys traditional beauty. Samcheonggak offers a shuttle bus service (02-765-3700) to and from Jogyesa in Insa-dong, Exit 4 of City Hall Station, and the east gate of Gyeongbokgung.

By Heo Shi-myung



[Hot spots]

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Toykino Museum

Located near Samcheong Park past the Samcheong dong police station, The Toykino Museum (www.toykino.com) exhibits movie character toys and other toys from the United States. in Exhibition Hall 1 and Korean made toys and Japanese movie character toys in Exhibition Hall 2. It is a place to relive childhood dreams, and explore various toy related industries.

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Royal court meal at Samcheonggak

Yi gung, the Korean restaurant in Samcheonggak, serves a royal court meal along with other dishes. The set meal is available for a group of two or more for 77,000 won each. Among many dishes served in the course meal, the most notable is sinseollo. Sinseollo is originally intended to be shared with others, but Yi gung serves a sinseollo for each guest in consideration of foreigners who are unfamiliar with sharing a bowl of food with others.



Yeongmujeong in Samcheong Park

Yeongmujeong is the most beautiful spot in Samcheong Park with azalea in spring, waterfall in summer, beautiful autumn leaves in fall, and beautiful snowscapes in winter. Favored by literati in the past, it has a monument engraved with a poem by Jeong Mong ju erected in honor of his loyalty.