[JKT to KOR]Ihwa Mural Village(이화벽화마을)

*** Your memories make your destiny ***

 

[06.Oct.22~16.Oct.22] #Ihwa Mural Village 이화벽화마을

We visited South Korea during Early Fall 2022.

Overall weather was really nice. Cool crisp air and clear blue sky, with trees turning fiery red.

It was pretty comfortable to walk around in thick knitted cardigan and your casual bottoms. And when it got warmer, you can comfortably take the bulky cardigan off.

1. Check-In(Glue Hotel)

We arrived in Seoul Station at 11:00AM or so.

Then we checked in to a nice little boutique hotel. Glue Hotel, located strategically in the middle of cultural area in Seoul.

Frequently visited by tourist, the hotel has a homey, artsy, albeit western-y vibes. It has mainly black, dark grey, and red accent on a neutral color walls and furniture. In our room, we were surprised to find a vinyl turntable player and an actual disc that could play Nat King Cole songs.

 

The highlight of the hotel room would be the large window overlooking the neighborhood. It was nice to open it just a little bit to enjoy cool breeze, tapping of the light rain, while sipping hot tea inside the warmth of the hotel room.

 

2. Lunch(보승회관)

We were starving, and so we decided to eat at one of the traditional restaurants scattered nearby the hotel. We had Sundegukbab – a spicy pork soup served with rice, Steamed Korean Sausage, and two bottles of Soju. It was quite a feast at a reasonable price!

 

3. Ihwa Mural Village(이화벽화마을)

After polishing off the dishes, we were finally ready to go to Ihwa Mural Village which is the most popular mountainside mural village in Korea.

Since it was located in a hilly neighborhood, it means that visitors should prepare to hike up to enjoy the best of the murals. Unfortunately, at that moment we do not have the energy to do so, especially when we got another appointment in the afternoon.

Still and all, the path that we took was beautiful enough. The sidewalk was dotted with pine trees and persimmon trees that bears fat, juicy, roundish fruits of the season!

We did find some cute statues (such as this bunny) and photo spot mural (such as this angel wings), but other than that, we did not see much around.The neighborhood itself was a sunset one, dominated by residential living of mostly senior citizens.

 

You could find coffee shops every 50 meters or so. Most offers a variety of coffee and cakes and scenic view.

We stopped by a coffee shop that served sour coffee ☹ but great iced peach tea 😊!

Coffe Shop --> Cafe URURU

Our coffee shop located at a balcony at eye level with fourth floor of an old apartment building. Our table was side by side with tall trees with long dangling leaves, so beautiful and so abundant that many large birds came to savor its fruits.Apparently, the Ihwa mural village was previously seen as a bit of a slum and down-trodden area, but in 2006 the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism decided to revitalize the neighborhood. Nobody went to the trouble to check with the elderlies who dwell in the area, whom like most people would certainly prefer some peace and quietness on the bosom of their home.

This would not happen with tourists coming in, loudly chit chatting, taking pictures, and peering curiously at every nook and cranny of the neighborhood. We read later, that the residents actually painted over some of the most popular murals / photo spots. Perhaps that was why we didn’t see much and therefore we didn’t quite understand what’s the fuss about this tourist spot. On our way back to the main street, we saw many beautiful painted tiles over a cemented wall of a bridge. We almost overlooked this hidden beauty because of all the car parked nearby. But luckily we spotted it, and we thought it was the most precious artwork amongst all the rest.