In other news, I went to this place called Dongdaemun (Heunginjimun)...twice.

Apparently it has the largest shopping district in Jongno-gu, Seoul. It also has many historical attractions, including the Great Eastern Gate, a.k.a. Dongdaemun (동대문) a.k.a. 東大門. Most importantly, it has GREAT street food!

The first time I went to Dongdaemun, I was with my Housetay-mates (and fellow SNU exchange students) Dan and Emily; the second time was with fellow UH Manoa student Julia. The first thing we saw after exiting the subway was a sidewalk full of street vendors, selling everything from cheap shoes to strawberries to rubberbands. Pretty much every non-food good sold on the streets were very cheap. I purchased a pair of running shoes for $10!

After walking straight for about 10 minutes, we encountered this place:

KwangJang Market is one of the many traditional markets within Dongdaemun. The entrance that we took lead us to a food market, saturated with people, vendors, and the smell of Korean street food. Check it out:

The delicious street foods that were being sold include buchimgae, juk, pork rinds, chicken feet (so good!), sundae (ridiculously good), ddukbokki, and gimbap. During my second visit, Julia and I had three rounds of 'ono food: first was ddukbokki, gimbap, and kimchee buchimgae; second round was chicken feet and pork rinds; third round was some meat buchimgae-esque pancake-thing. Great eats.

Different things were sold in different parts of KwangJang Market. Each section had many stands and stores selling the exact same thing. Literally every ajumma in the food section was yelling, "Gimbap, Dukkbokki, Gimbaaaaaaap!"

The other sections of the market include the fabric section (which is right next to the clothing section), and the seafood market. Oh boy, Korean mini-mini-mini-Tsukiji market: 

There were other traditional markets besides KwangJang Market; one of them being Chungbu Market. This market's product of choice is dried seafood. They had every dried seafood conceivably possible for sale, from dried squid to dried octopus to dried seaweed to dried fish (of many species) and dried Loch Ness Monster. Basically, the whole place smelled bad. Good times.

Dongdaemun not only has traditional markets, but also retail stores and department stores. The two I've been to are Maxtyle and Doosan Tower:

Overall, Dongdaemun is a very interesting place. It has both traditional markets and modern stores; both selling cheap products that look good. It also has historical sites, including the Great Eastern Gate. Thus, you would be able to experience Korea's heritage, street food, modern shopping, and street food (yes, I say it twice because it was that good), all in the same district. As service, here are some pictures of horrible Korean-style parking, rooftop view of the department store section, and the day & night view of Chyeonggye Stream in Dongdaemun:

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do."

It's a quite universal traveling rule; wherever you go, respect the host culture and make an effort to learn their customs.  

Korea is a very, very, VERY, interesting place in terms of cultural aspects. Here is a list of Korean culture trivia facts that you may want to memorize before entering this unforgivingly awesome place:

The Basics
- It smells like Kim Chee. Everywhere. You get used to it.
- They drink a lot.
- Mmmmm plastic surgery mmmmmm
- They don't mind shoving. So feel free to purposefully bump into oncoming people. They won't call you out!
- Drivers are crazy! Pedestrians by law are supposed to have the right of way; Korean drivers nonetheless have no fear in speeding in front of pedestrians to make turns and what not. It's dangerous, so keep an eye out when you're walking besides the road!
- Not much chivalry here...
- They drink a lot.
- Some Ajummas are scary. You're more likely to beat Kobe Bryant in a dunking contest than defeat a mad Ajumma in a mortal combat match on the subway.
- Many people speak English, others speak Engrish, and the rest mime while speaking broken Korengrish. So practice your basic phrases!  시간있어?
- Did I mention they drink a lot?

Food and Such
- Eat out. A good meal costs $4-$6 in Seoul.
- Street food vendors serve ridiculously delicious food (sundae, odeng, ddukbokki, chicken feet, you know, the good stuff); however, beware of being overcharged, especially in tourist places like Itaewon and Dongdaemun.
- Wait for your seniors to pick up their utensils. It's a sign of respect.
- Get used to using flat, metal chopsticks. They're very difficult to wield.
- Don't raise your rice/soup bowl. I've been called out on it a couple times (yet I continue to do it...)
- Ask for more side dishes! They're free!

The Bathroom
- In every bathroom stall, there is a trash can. When you wipe after you're done, don't flush the toilet paper; throw it in the trashcan. Although gross, the reason why you shouldn't flush toilet paper down the toilet in Korea is because most of the pipes are too small for toilet paper; thus, it would clog the sewage.
- In the dorms and around campus, there is a bar of soap attached to a metal rod. To utilize the bar of soap, you literally have to...well...um...how should I say this...errr...jerk it...  The soap isn't detachable, so it's the only way. Cool story, aye?
- Korean dudes, most likely because they've served in the military, have established a new tier of bro-hood, as they have no problem "X-Men-ing." Check it:

Transportation
- Efficient and cheap. Taxi fares are ridiculously cheap.
- The subway system is very easy to use. Foreigner friendly.
- The bus system is a bit odd because the stops aren't in English; just act hopeless and a knight in shining armor (in my case, Hyuna) will come to your aid.

Shopping
- Some retailers are like housewives on Wisteria Lane: Desperate. They creep up behind you and force you to try on their cheaply made clothes. When in doubt, speak Spanish and say, "NO!"
- Haggling is the game. Play it.
- In many places (especially in Dongdaemun), many stores lined up next to each other sell the exact same thing. For example, every store on one side of a block in Dongdaemun sold bags of rubberbands. Could somebody explain this? I actually don't know why...

I probably missed a lot but I'll eventually find out...hopefully not the hard way.