Lunch & Coffee in Seoul: Coffee Prince's Sanmotoonge (Part 2)

(#1: From the main street, this road goes 

up to Buam-dong)

With our tummies still full from the yummiest lunch at Tong-in Market, we took the Green Bus 7212 across the street, headed north, and got off at Bu-am dong Community Center Bus Stop (Stop # 01139). 

From the bus stop, walk about 70 meters, then hike up following the path of the photos. From there, it's less than 800 meters from the famous café. (On your way back to Gyeongbukgung Station, just cross the street, look for the bus stop, take the same bus going back.)

Sanmotoong-e is a charming café on a hillside made famous by the hit Korean drama, Coffee Prince, and getting there is a bit tricky as there's no public transport that goes into its hilly location in the inner areas of Buam-dong in the Jongno District of Seoul.

But since some of us have been there before, getting lost wasn't a problem. Au contraire, walking from the main road to Sanmotoong-e was a fun stroll!

I took photos of the path we took walking to Sanmotoonge from the main street.

              (#2: The start of our climb up)

      (#3: We simply followed the road up)

When we got there, we weren't surprised to find a lot of people already enjoying an afternoon by the hill.

With the sun out, it was a perfect day to sit by the hillside sipping coffee, sharing cakes, and chatting with friends.

We ordered our drinks and cakes and picked a spot from where we could see the other side of Inwangsan that we climbed before (and definitely deserves a separate blog!).

(#4: There are other cafés along the way up)

               (#5: Be careful if the road forks; 
                just follow the path going up)

                          (#6: Almost there!)

(#7: A bicycle welcomes everyone 

at the entrance of the café!)

If you're a fan of the drama, Coffee Prince, a trip to Sanmootonge is definitely worth the effort. It sets itself apart from all the other cafés in Seoul because, when you're there comfortabley sitting under the cool breezes and surrounded by greeneries, it doesn't feel like you're in the city!

(A life-size, cut-out of the Descendant of the Sun actor awaits your visit at Sanmotoonge)

(My iced cafe mocha pairs perfectly with any cake!)

                       (Coffee, cake, chill!)

(Sanmotoonge's location on the hillside affords a spectacular view of a different Seoul)

(The lower level balcony of the café has tables 

and umbrellas for a sunnier seat)  

(A café with a view: The Seoul Fortress 

wall snakes up and down Inwangsan)

We started with a yummy lunch and ended up with coffee, cakes, and chat! A perfect day, indeed!

So, if you're in Seoul and wanted a different take on the city, a lunch at Tong-in Market and a coffee afternoon at Sanmotoonge would be a perfect break!

Enjoy! :-)

(We stumbled upon this EXO bus on our way back.)

Bundang Bonding: Lunchee, Coffee, Spree!

I had always heard of the place 'Bundang' from Korean friends for years, but I didn't exactly know where it was. All I knew was it's down south of Seoul and was a popular place to live in. My friends Vanji, James, and their respective families used to live there.

I later learned that Bundang is an area in Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province, and it is where our friend, Kristine, and her family currently live!

So, on a free day, Kristine invited us to her neighborhood in Jeonja-dong, Bundang, which was just right next to Jeonja-dong Café Street, a street full of coffee shops, restaurants, and small boutiques. 

(Arriving at Jeonja Station and 

crossing to Tancheon, or Tan Stream)

And since none of us has been there, we figured it was the best way to discover Bundang: head down there and be toured by Kristine around her neighborhood!

Jeonja-dong is less than 20 minutes from Gangnam Station via Jeonja Station (Sinbundang Red Line). Kristine met us at Exit 5 of Jeonja Station, where we started our tour.

                 (NIIED is the National Institute 
                   for International Education)

Just across the subway station is Tancheon, or Tan Stream, a small waterway that, would you believe, flows all the way through Jamsil in Seoul and into the Han River? So, if I walked north from the Tancheon in Bundang, I'd find myself in Daechi-dong in Gangnam-gu in Seoul where I usually play tennis at their sports fields on weekends! 

This is what I also love about Korea, the local governments develop the streams and waterways for the locals to use for biking, running, or simply strolling. Even in my neighborhood in Dongdaemun-gu, we have our own Jeongneung Stream with rubberized paths and complete with ducks and fish!

            (Colored installations in Jeonja-dong)

After a quick visit to the Tancheon, we continued our tour around the streets and alleys of Jeongja-dong to look for a place for lunch.

Along the way, we stopped by the National Institute for International Education, whose front yard was full of interesting installations.

We found Granny Saloon, a restaurant at a creative space-slash-alley decorated with giant chess pieces and colorful artworks. Recommended by Kristine, it specializes in dishes with meatballs. And having walked around Jeonja-dong for about an hour, my meatballs dish was perfect for my grumbling tummy.

                       (A giant chess piece!)

(My meatball lunchee with rice and fried noodles)

But before we headed to coffee and dessert, Kristine brought us to Naver's headquarters. Yes, Naver as in Korea's top search engine company. Although it has a café wing, we visited its library that was 'green', literary and figuratively. 

                    (Can you read my mind?)

It's a huge library with bookshelves topped with plants while its clear walls let natural light in to conserve energy. It has long tables, comfortable armchairs, and sofas for everyone to use. Gosh, it even has tall lamps in case you want to light your own corner! If only this library were next to my apartment, I'd be here almost every day! 

        (The plants on top of bookshelves probably 
           aid one's study as they provide more 
                       oxygen to the place.)

                              (Quiet, please!)

After quietly roaming the library (there were a few people reading and studying!), we headed back to the main street in search of coffee and dessert!

The Jeonja-dong neighborhood is a mix of office buildings and apartment complexes. It has a lot of schools, which I think make it attractive for families with grade school and high school kids. 

This Bundang visit was long overdue and I was glad I made the trip with friends.

And its café street definitely provides a relaxing corner for the residents (as well as visitors!) to hang out during weekends, while its Tancheon provides another option for those who want to stretch their legs and exercise as well as a space for parents and kids to run around.  

(This café in Jeonja-dong was a part of the location shoot for two drama series: 'Descendants of the Sun' and 'The Lonely and Great God - Goblin')

As our final stop, we settled in a small coffee shop (not a franchise) at the café street that also served different yummy cakes!  

Here, we finally rested our legs, chatted some more, and ended our fun tour of Kristine's Jeonja-dong neighborhood.

            (Kristine and her tourist friends having 
          dessert and coffee in Jeonja-dong Café Street)

Thanks to Kristine, I have finally been to Bundang! 

And importantly, I now know why it is a popular place to live in with a lot of popular spots to hang out at! :-)

From Where I Sip: Textbooks And Students

To continue on with my From Where I Sip series...

In most coffee shops, on any given day (or night!), there would always be people reading text books, scribbling notes and discussing lessons with their classmates. 

These are the studious students. Mostly high school and college students doing their homework, writing their papers or cramming for an exam. In my high school and college days, there was only a library and a study hall. Nowadays, these students have another venue: coffee shops!

I can understand it's always difficult to concentrate or get your homework done at home where there's TV and a comfortable bed. And perhaps, noisy neighbors.

These students I always see at coffee shops would buy a drink, occupy a quiet corner, get their textbooks and iPods out, and study away! The whole morning, afternoon or night! 

I used to see a lot of them at Starbucks and at the 24-hour Tom N Toms in Itaewon. But when a group of noisy people seated at the next table is as noisy as a jet plane taking off, you would need more than the concentration of a pilot flying an Airbus 380! It's always irritating when two or three people facing each other at a table are talking at a volume so loud it's as if they are a kilometer away from each other. I'm not sure if they have hearing problems, or maybe, they just don't care that a student seated nearby is cramming for an exam the next day.

I was a good student myself (naks!), and I know that getting good grades needs a lot of hard work and studying. 

So, the next time you and your friends are in a coffee shop babbling loudly away about a new thing you bought or gossiping about other people, try to look around and be considerate. The student seated next to you is studying for his or her future. Who knows? Perhaps, that student would become somebody some day.

From Where I Sip....

The cafe culture in Korea is huge. That's why, when you walk around Seoul, you'd see one coffee shop after another. A neighborhood wouldn't be complete without one, even if it's just a kiosk.

And just like any Korean, I also like sitting in coffee shops or cafes. But unlike any Korean, who usually loves to order iced americano, I prefer an iced cafe mocha! Ha-ha-ha!

All these years of living in Seoul, I must have sat down in hundreds of cafes. Why? Because that's where I update this blog, chat with friends, grab something to eat, read a book, write my essays, and most important, work overtime! 

Yes, during my busy work days, I usually extend my working hours....at a coffee shop! That's why I always like sitting in a cafe that closes past midnight! I remember one time, at a coffee shop in my Hannam-dong neighborhood in the Yongsan District, I was so engrossed in my work that I lost track of time until...the crew told me that they were closing! It was 11:30PM! I got kicked out of a cafe! Ha-ha-ha! Too bad, that cafe already closed down; I liked their soft seats and tables. And of course, their iced cafe mocha in tall glasses!

During those hundreds of cafe visits for me, I sometimes observed what other people were doing, which gave me an idea. What about a series of blogs about them?

I will be sharing stories soon...from where I sip.