Listening to: UV-Itaewon Freedom (ft. JYP)
Feeling: Calm
Myeongdong Cathedral
With everything that had happened so far and with me finally making it to Korea, I felt like it was important to take the time and pray before my journey went any farther. I also wanted the time to collect my thoughts and think about the things I should do to make the most out of my trip here. With this in mind, I thought what a great opportunity this was to visit the Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul. I had heard all about it weeks before I left the states when the Pope visited and the 800,000 people that gathered to see him…
Umm..can you say “Holy snikies”?!?!
Directions
Take line 4 until you reach Myeongdong, and then leave out of exit 10. This map will also make things easier. The huge dark grey area is the cathedral.
When you leave the subway walk straight until you come across the 삼일대로9길/Samil-daero street and take a left (you’ll see a Dominos pizza on the other side). At this point just keep walking straight for a fair distance.
And FYI as you walk toward the cathedral you’ll see another huge church on your right. I got confused and thought “Oh wow! That must be it!” But it’s not. It’s the 영락교회 church you see on the map. Think of it as a marker that you’re going the right way.
Then finally you’ll reach an intersection. Stay left and walk into Myeongdong-gil street. If you see a Starbucks it means you’re on the correct road. It wont be long until you see the the cathedral. It’s huge!
They have service at these times: 7:00, 9:00, 10:00, 11:00, 12:00. Whats more awesome is that the mass at 9:00AM is an English mass! The inside of the cathedral is beautiful. They have TV’s in the back so everyone can see the service.
Catholicism is known for being the same no matter where in the world you are attending mass, and that held true to the service I went to. The only noticeable differences I saw was:
- There was no knee rests on the floor, so there was no kneeling. At any time during the service.
- Instead of shaking hands to show a sign of peace, they instead put their hands together (like how you do when you are praying), bowed, and said “peace”. I guess this is a faster and less of a germ sharing method to doing things.
Afterwords I walked around the complex and took pictures, and a lady was nice enough to take the picture of me in front of the cathedral. I also looked into the store next to the church to find a rosary for my mother, but I didn’t find one that I liked enough to buy (Working on it Ma!). I then met up with another SEE student, EunHye, and she took me to see Itaewon.
Itaewon
Itaewon is one of the most diverse places in Seoul and is the foreigner hub of the city. They have so many different types of bars, clubs, and shops (Mexican bar, transgender club, a bar for foreigners, an Islamic section of the area). They even have a beautiful muslin temple that lights up at night. It’s a place full of diversity and a mix of the random. If you’re looking to meet people of the same or a different country this is the place to go.
I went with my friend EunHye as she showed me around and we ate the most delicious pizza I’ve ever had in my life at a popular place called Pizzarium. Later we stopped and had coffee as we compared and contrasts each others culture. We also made a list of the places and things I needed to do before I left Korea so I would have no regrets when I returned home.
I went back to Itaewon a few days later with my friends EunJi and Jee at night, and the atmosphere was totally different. Things are much more lively at night. We went to a foreigner bar where the girls laughed at me when I obnoxiously sang the English songs that came on (Three Doors Down’s “Here Without You” came on and I just couldn’t hold myself back), and just altogether caught up since we last saw each other in Maine. The waiter and barmaid weren’t Korean, but spoke both Korean and English.
I have never looked more sophisticated in my life.
EunJi has this app on her phone that can create 3o sec videos that are like little montages of an event. Her and Jee made these videos all the time back at Husson whenever they would do an activity such as bowling, lobster dinner, or their visit to Acadia park. She made one for our little get together at Itaewon.
McDonald’s Delivery
It’s 10:00PM. My roommate and I are starving and we really don’t feel like making the trip outside to go to the store or find a restaurant.
Me: Hey. You know what me should do?
Roommate: What?
Me: Order McDonald’s delivery.
*Silence*
*Roommate gets up and grabs her computer*
Roommate: OMG we should! Let’s do this!
Yes. You read right. McDonald’s delivers here. This is the site we use:
It was a bit tricky at first because you have to put your entire address in Korean, and the entire ordering process is in Korean (Note: Google translate is your best friend!). You also need to give a Korean phone number they can call if there are an issues, and I was blessed enough to have a friend who translated and volunteered to be our “messenger” (ie use his phone number).
The McDonald’s menu is basically the same as it is in America. Big Mac, McNuggets, Happy Meals, snack wraps, etc. The only thing I saw differently was:
- They have chicken drumsticks which have a slight bite to them.
- They only have 3 condiments: Sweet Chili, Cajun, Sweet and Sour sauce, and Ketchup. No ranch, mustard, and, worst of all, no Mayo. Sad face.
You’ll get a window in your browser that shows the status of your order so you can be on the look out for the delivery guy. You can pay with either cash or a debit/credit card. They deliver the food on a yellow moped with the McDonald’s logo on the side.
And not just McDonalds. Several other well known titles such as Pizza Hut and Chinese restaurants deliver as well
The fruit of our labor ladies and gentlemen:
Wooooooorth it!!
Music – UV
UV is a two man project band and are comprised of comedians Yoo Se Yoon and High Syde’s Muzi. I can’t think of a song more suitable for this post than their notorious “Itaewon Freedom” song!
This is one of the most random, crazy, ridiculous, and hilarious music videos I have ever seen, and is right up there with “Gangnam Style”. It doesn’t help that its also so addictive and catchy! The entire time I was there I was going “Itaewon FREEEEEEeedom!”
I couldn’t find a English subtitled video for the song, but they are basically just singing about the diverse and awesomeness that is Itaewon!
My Days as an Exchange Student in S.Korea 