We’ve left the intense heat and humidity of Far North Queensland and headed to the deep winter of Seoul, South Korea – and in particular the uber trendy district of Gangnam, south of the Han River, 60 k’s inland from the frigid Yellow Sea. 

We’ve never been to South Korea, so flying a surprisingly civilised Asiana Airlines A380 out of Sydney we arrived 10 hours later to a very welcome (and hoped for) -1 degrees and snow. It’s over an hour’s drive from Incheon Airport into Seoul along one of many endless, straight and crowded freeways – it was Friday evening and rush hour so I guess that was to be expected. But the sheer scale of Seoul, even at this early stage of our adventure, is staggering. With just over 10 million ‘souls’ it seems a much bigger city, spread out with endless skyscrapers and a bewildering spiders web of freeways, bridges and soaring overpasses. 

We’re staying in the infamous district of Gangnam, of Psy’s 2012 monster hit ‘Gangnam Style’ whose lyrics both celebrate and satirise the nouveau riche excess associated with this busy and stylish district. It put this place on the global map and I guess helped jettison the whole K-pop phenomenon into the stratosphere. Walking around the impossibly fashionable district of Apgujeong Rodeo Street, the status brand-studded K-Star Road and the dizzyingly lux Galleria, you can see why this place is one of the most famous shopping and entertainment districts on the planet. 

The architecture here is also really interesting, each building vying to stand out from the walls of skyscrapers, using playful shapes, metallic cut outs and giant 5-floor TV screens. I reckon in the summer monsoon here, it’d be very Blade Runner, just need the flying taxis… and I’m sure they’re not too far off. 

Gangnam has two sides though, the flip being one of Seoul’s oldest and most revered Buddhist temple complexes, the Bongeunsa Temple, first constructed in the 10^th year of Silla King Weongseong’s reign in 794 AD and now one of the main centres for the revival of Korean Buddhism, complete with ‘Templestay’ programs to experience Buddhist traditions through a monastic daily life to ‘purify your mind and meet your true nature’. Where do I sign up? 

http://temple.bongeunsa.org/public_html_en/explain/temple.asp

Sadly, for us, the Bongeunsa Temple was going through some extensive and quite intrusive renovations, so it was hardly the place to purify one’s mind, despite the eagerness of the many Buddhist followers in the complex. And, just to remind you that you are still in Gangnam, right smack in front of the temple grounds now sits the massive COEX shopping and entertainment centre, complete with, of course, the very epicentre and celebration of all things Gangnam, the ‘Gangnam Style’ Hands Statue with Pys’ hit song blaring out at full blast. 

So, that’s our first day, a 14k round trip ‘Gangnam Walk’. We ended up thrilled by everything we saw but a little frozen at times with very sore feet from pounding these vast and busy yet fascinating streets.