Usually I’d say that going to Seoul on a week night is a bad plan (90 minutes on the subway each way…), but if Myeong Dong is included, I will neverrrr say no to such an idea again. This week Sophia was like.. if you’re free on Thursday we should go to Myeong Dong. Not knowing what that is or where that is, I was just like, yeah sure sounds good. Well turns out…. MYEONG DONG IS THE COOLEST PLACE IN THE WHOLE WORLD. It is shopping heaven, so I feel really shallow even saying such a thing, but I can’t help myself!!!! We came out of the subway straight into this GIANT department store that was like 17 floors of pure beauty. A whole floor for jeans, one for shoes, one for coats, one for men’s suits, one for designer shoppes, one for makeup, etc etc. Like Nordstrom on crack.
The only problem with being Nordstrom on crack is that the prices were also on crack, so I’ll probably never actually buy anything from there. But it’s really pretty to look at! Outside there was a big light display (I can’t believe it’s December!), and the beginning of a giant maze of shopping streets that seemed to stretch on for miles. The middle picture below is just one example of the visual overload I was trying to take in. So we wandered around looking at all sorts of pretty stuff, and what did I find?? Zara and Forever 21!!! That’s right, even in Korea, I just can’t get away from them. (Jackie– imagine the one in San Francisco but 5 times bigger. Dangerous.) So Sophia and I spent a very long time rummaging through both stores, and I came out with some very lovely finds. Including a beautiful pair of black heel boots, which I’m sure you’ll see more of in pictures soon. Honestly it’s not very characteristic of me to be THIS excited about shopping (can’t you see the !!!’s everywhere!) but somehow it just made me the happiest person in the world. The Christmas music was blaring in the streets, familiar sites like Outback, Starbucks, and Smoothie King were on every corner, and the streets were PACKED with cute little Asians dressed in peak fashion. So throw all that in with a newly stocked Korean bank account, and the hugest F21 in the world, and how could I not be this happy?
The subway trip home was borderline miserable, but I will try to overlook that part. Even on a Thursday night at 11pm, it was PACKED and we had to stand for almost a whole hour before it cleared enough for us to get seats. My feet hurt, I kept coughing all over the place (no my cold still isn’t gone), there was no fresh air, and it was toooo crowded for my likings. However, I’ll happily forget that part for a repeat of the fun little excursion to the heaven that is Myeong Dong.
Nordstrom on crack? MUST BE AWESOME.