Insadong is somewhere I've been wanting to go to for ages! It's a market street area that specializes in traditional and antique crafts and goods. My Korean teacher highly recommended it to me too. There's lots of street vendor food as well, and shops down every alley to be seen. Namdaemun is also well known, along with Dongdaemun, for their shopping! It was also on my list of places to visit when I came here. So now after this tour all that's left on my list are Myeongdong (where my next hotel is once I return to Seoul) and Hongdae (where all the young people congregate for food, meet-ups, clubbing and bars). I want to go but I'm not going to go by myself hahah.
I got MAJORLY carsick in the taxi...like I'm talking on the verge of throwing up -.- My driver for some reason drove the entire way with a tap tap tap puuuush tap tap tap push on the gas pedal kind of driving. You know the kind you do when you're teasing your car mates so everyone's heads bobs back and hit the headrest over and over? I DROVE FOR A HALF HOUR IN A HUMID CLAUSTROPHOBIC TAXI LIKE THAT. I was hanging out my open window trying to focus on breathing by the time we arrived at the palace. I was dry-heaving by like the 10 minute mark. Jesus criminy. No wonder nobody drives here.
Additionally, if I hadn't been so carsick I would've been afraid for my life; people drive in the middle of lanes all over the place and cut across and in front of everyone so people are constantly slamming brakes and like 2 cm from sideswiping each other. I have an awesome respect for these Korean drivers who drive in this utter madness and still don't hit the other cars. AND there's motorists everywhere adding to the craziness and people serving and cars driving on sidewalks...yea. Life lesson: don't drive in Korea if you can help it.
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