Gangnam and Taekwondo – Seoul, South Korea

For our final day in Seoul, I planned a day for the teens. We went to the ‘cool’ district. Dubbed the Beverley Hills of Seoul, Gangnam had a distinctly different feel to it.

I’ll explain with cars…..

Where we are staying in Dongdaemun it is all Hyundai and Kia (good models with all the bells and whistles). In Gangnam, it is Genesis, Porsche, Maserati, Ferrari, Range Rover, BMW and Rolls Royce territory. This is where you come to be seen.

Or….. you could come here to be transformed, with plastic surgeons, dermatologists and other specialists on every street corner. It is kind of like the Harley Street of London and the Champs Elysees of Paris mixed together.

But….. you all knew that, because you’ve heard the song right? The one about ‘Gangnam Style’ (If you are anything like me, you mumbled along to the foreign but catchy song and sung the bit ‘hey, sexy lady. Oppa Gangnam Style’ but had no idea what it was all about).

Well….. it was about the lifestyle in this area, about being trendy and hip (ha, the opposite of me). The song by Psy, released in 2012 was a world wide hit and a lot of it was to do with his weird dance moves. Today we stood under the bronze statue hands that pay tribute to the unusual ‘horse dance’.

Warning: I do apologise if the song is now stuck in your head for days.

After our photo session, we found a shopping centre (in our price range) and spent a couple of hours shopping. Today, it was Miss 14’s turn for skin care (South Korea’s specialty) and we were again greeted with an enthusiastic sales woman. She pointed out exactly what was required and showed us the bargains. Miss 14 was very happy with the outcome and has been cleansing, oiling and moisturising ever since. Master 17 was not so successful today, it seems Korea is not the place to buy US14 sized shoes!!

After lunch and a wander through downtown Gangnam, we taxied back to our side of the Han river for a K-Kick Taekwondo show. This is when the kids were cringing…… “Mum, what have you brought us to?”.

After a slow start, we all enjoyed the show, especially the bit where they drag someone out of the audience. Master 17 volunteered himself and the look on the actor’s face when he stood, was hilarious. He said “oh wow, he is a mountain”.

His task was to copy their moves and break a board with a kick. He succeeded and was presented with an autographed board for his trouble. I was so proud of him and his sense of fun. Miss 14 could not stop laughing. Definitely a family memory we’ll treasure.

Our time in Seoul has come to an end. I have one more blog to write, which will be a summary of the city. Needless to say, we have thoroughly enjoyed our time here. Next up, our annual ski trip in Japan.

TTB