This is a fun installment to my website that I thought would be helpful for those of you visiting Korea! When I was initially planning my trip, the thing I was really excited for was the SHOPPING. Seoul, Korea is the shopping mecca and of course, there are different areas that sell different things and have different vibes. Because of this, I wanted to create shopping guides for the different shopping districts! Today's post is going to be on the most notorious place; Myeongdong!

Myeongdong (명동) is the number one shopping district in Seoul. It attracts people from all over the world because it's the one-stop shop for essentially everything. All the streets are lined with delicious places to eat, beauty stores, and international clothing stores and designers.

So let's get to the breakdown of shopping in Myeongdong...

Beauty Shops

If you're looking for one place to buy all your Korean makeup and skincare needs, you should definitely go to Myeongdong. Myeongdong has every Korean beauty brand you could think of and most likely, a couple of the same kind. For example, you can walk down one street in Myeongdong and see at Etude House. Take a stroll a little further, you'll probably find another...and another...and another! This is especially convenient for those of you who like to find the best deals! You can shop around and find the best prices because yes, some of the stores will offer different deals. For example, you could go to one Etude House and find buy one, get one face mask and then go to another Etude House and find buy 10, get 10 face masks. 

Also, you'll notice that since they're are so many beauty shops, there will be sales people standing outside of the stores offering you free samples to come in and look. You do have to enter the store if you want the sample (usually it's a small box of cotton pads or a sheet mask), and look around. You actually don't have to buy anything to look, but I usually don't enter a store unless I'm interested in buying something. This is only because in Korea, the sales associates in the stores are very attentive, especially in the beauty shops. They'll actually follow you around so you can ask questions and they'll usually try to have you try some of their products.

Heads up though if you don't speak Korean, Japanese, or Chinese. If you speak one of these languages, there is almost always someone who can help you. English speakers are a little harder to find and you will rarely find someone to help you if you speak any other language. That's not to say you can't enjoy shopping here! Just be prepared to be a little on your own if you don't speak these languages. But hey, maybe you like shopping that way! 

Restaurants/Street Food

If you're hungry, you can definitely find all kinds of food at Myeongdong. Whether you're in the mood for sitting down somewhere nice for something to eat or just picking something up from a food cart to snack on as you walk around, you'll find it here! 

Don't forget to look up! Usually more places to eat :) 

In this area, you can find all kinds of foods, including international foods and fast food. The prices, even at restaurants, are fairly reasonable. If you're looking for something really cheap, check out the food carts that are usually lined along the streets! For about $1-3 USD, you can buy tteokboki, chicken skewers, spiral potatoes on a stick, and many other choices! And of course, they're delicious. You can always find something to your liking to eat :)   

Clothing Stores

Myeongdong is where you can find a mix of international and Korean clothing stores. The prices here for clothing are mid-range. They're not super cheap but you can clothing for reasonable prices. There are stores like H&M and Forever 21 and also stores like SPAO and UNIQLO. Typically, international brands like Levi's or Converse are more expensive since they're imported. If you're looking for super cheap clothing, check out the carts that come out later in the day or at night or go to another shopping district like Dongdaemun or by EWHA University which I will feature in later posts.   

Hope this was a helpful guide to shopping in Myeongdong! More guides like this to come so let me know if it's helpful or if you have more questions!

xoxo, 

Morgan 

Follow Morgan: Visiting Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, Korea!

My mom and I decided to visit Gyeongbokgung Palace the second day we were in Seoul, Korea. Again, this is another you must do if you're ever visiting Seoul.

Since we started our day off by visiting the palace, my mom and I needed to get something to eat. We ate at this little cafe, The Healing Place, which is across the street from the Gyeongbokgung Palace.  

I can't remember how much it cost to get into the gates but I don't think it's too expensive. Once you're inside, you can spend a couple hours checking out the whole area. There's a lot of land to cover so if you're really interested in looking at the entire area, I would definitely wear comfortable walking shoes! 

What's crazy about this palace for me is that this historical spot is located smack in the busy center of Seoul. Although, most of it was destroyed during the Japanese occupation in the early 20th century, several restoration efforts have been made to re-establish it's former glory.

On a side note, one really cool thing about the Gyeongbokgung Palace is that it has free tours is several different languages. Just head over to the information booth to see what time they are held and where to meet. This was the english-speaking one and as you can see, the tour guides wear traditional hanboks, so they're fairly easy to find. 

One of the first buildings you'll come across is the Geunjeongjeon. This the royal throne hall where the king was formally briefed by his officials. 

This is what the inside looked like. As you can see, this is the throne that the king would sit on. Isn't it so pretty?!

 One thing you'll notice on many of the buildings are gargoyles lining the roofs. Our tour guide pointed these out and told us it's supposed to ward off evil spirits and energies. Be sure to look out for these! I find them so interesting!

 I think at this point, my mom and I decided to wander off from the tour. We'd gotten a lot of interesting information from it, but wanted to walk around a little bit for ourselves. The actual area is so gorgeous and green! Here is the Gyeonghoeru. Look familiar?? That's because this is the same structure that is on the 10,000 won! The King also held formal banquets here.

 Another beautiful structure to check out is the Hyangwonjeong. This was the King's informal banquet hall. Although, I have to say, it still looks pretty dang nice to me for being "informal".

 We found these statues outside of the museum. I believe it represents the 12 Korean Zodiac Animals...

 Like I said earlier, what's really amazing to me is how all of this is located right in the center of Seoul. You almost forget you're in such a busy city! If there is ever a day you feel like you need to get away from the crowds and connect with nature, you should definitely visit here!

The last thing I wanted to mention was the changing of the guards! I would check before you go to see what time of the day they change, but every day, they have a traditional ceremony. It's pretty fun to watch and you can also take pictures with the guards, who of course, are emotionless and don't move. But hey, it's all still fun! 

Well I hope you enjoyed this post! I know some people enjoy seeing pictures and reading about traveling versus watching videos so I wanted to do both!

xoxo,

Morgan

Follow Morgan: Visiting Namsan Tower and Riding the Cable Car

Visiting Namsan Tower if you're ever in Seoul, Korea is, in my opinion, something that you should definitely do! Namsan Tower, which means "North Tower", is both a communication tower used for radio and television and also an observation point since it's the tallest point in Seoul. This is definitely a fun tourist destination because there is so much to do!

In my video, you can see that we took the cable car up to the base of Namsan Mountain. The tickets were pretty affordable and the view is for sure worth the ticket price. 

There are a lot of things to do at Namsan Tower. They have several restaurants at the base and even an Olive Young! 

This is also where the infamous lock trees and gates are located. Here, you can personalize a lock and attach it to one of these to ensure you and your love will be together forever (well let's hope so!).

You can buy locks here, but I hear they're pretty expensive and that you're almost better off buying a lock before you come. 

After you're done soaking up all the beautiful sights of Seoul, you can take an escalator into the actual tower itself. From there, you have an even better view and Seoul! There's also a fantastic gift shop that sells all kinds of cute things and activities for children. 

 This is one of the pictures I took from inside the tower. Pretty neat huh? :)

Hope that this Seoul travel series is interesting to you guys! Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions for my next Seoul trip! :)

xoxo,
Morgan

Follow Morgan: My Experience at the Hello Kitty Café in Seoul, Korea! 헬로키티 카페 왔습니다

Helloooo there! So I’ve decided to make posts about my trip last summer to Seoul, Korea because I know there are some of you who enjoy reading about my experiences and looking at the pictures versus watching a video about it! Today’s post is going to be about my trip to the Hello Kitty Café! 

If you do want to check out the video though, here it is! I also have other videos on my channel, The Beauty Breakdown, that I haven't made posts on yet. So if you want to see more travel vlogs and Korean beauty and fashion videos, definitely subscribe! It would make me so happy :) 

The one we went to is located in Hongdae. Now let me tell you, it was quite the excursion trying to find this place! We ended up walking into a couple stores and asking for directions! Haha. It’s a little hidden, but not impossible to find, you just have to know where to look.

I was so excited we finally found it! This place is a great place to take a ton of pictures of course!

I took this map from the Official Website!

Anyways, you walk in and straight away, you see all the cute Hello Kitty themed desserts and drinks. They have a wide range of cakes, drinks, cookies and more! Seriously, this stuff is too cute to eat! Just see for yourself!

What you see when you walk in the front door.

Some of their drinks! You can see they had a 40th anniversary drink out when I was there. 

Look at those cakes! Aren't they so cool!? 

All kinds of goodies! 

I ended up ordering a peach tea drink though because I wasn't in the mood for dessert or something sweet. However, my drink ended up being SUPER sweet anyways so I guess this is not the best place to come if you're not craving sugar.

Seriously....diabetes in a cup. 

The sugar is getting to me...

If you're looking for souvenirs to take home with you, you've definitely come to the right place! They had a whole wall of Hello Kitty merchandise... everything from tea sets to trinkets to plushie toys!

Now get this, even the bathroom is Hello Kitty themed! I didn't take a picture of the bathroom but I took a picture of the sign pointing to the bathroom. I never knew a toilet could be so cute! 

 You'll also notice there is writing all over the walls. I assume it's ok to do this since there was literally writing everywhere! haha. I left my own little personal message... if you find it, please take a picture and send it to me! I want to see :D

I wish I'd brought a darker marker! All I had was a blue pen. haha. 

Should be easier to find since I wrote right next to that sticker! haha.

This is definitely a place I'd try to visit if you ever come to Seoul and love Hello Kitty like I do. I love that Seoul has all kinds of themed cafes and something for everyone! Hope you guys enjoy these travel posts! More to come :)