Sungnyemun Gate | Seoul, South Korea

Sungnyemun Gate, also known as Namdaemun Gate, is located in Namdaemun near the popular Namdaemun outdoor market. This cherished piece of Seoul's history sits north of the Han River surrounded by the hustle and bustle of busy traffic and towering sky scrapers. The stark contrast between modern day Seoul and this historic gate that dates all the way back to 1398 is incredible.

The gate has been damaged and restored numerous times throughout the years and really is a sight to see. Ethan and I visited the gate just before sundown. It was a great time to come because we were able to see the gate in the day time and also lit up right as the sun lowered under the horizon. There weren't very many people, which makes for a nice photo opp and less post work for me. Ha!

There weren't a ton of people here, however I spotted this family taking photos in front of the gate. The man had the camera as the women posed. I'm always on the look out for a possible photographer to grab a shot of Ethan and I, so I walked up to him and offered to take the shot of he and his family all in the photo together. I don't speak hangugeo, however it was easy to communicate my desire: I'll shoot you if you shoot me! He happily obliged and we were both able to get a great photo.

If you're visiting Seoul and are around Namdaemun (which I highly recommend adding to your itinerary; there are plenty of cool things to see, like the outdoor market and infamous camera street!), you'll definitely want to check out this gate. It's a quick stop and worth your time!
But just in case you're not planning to be in Seoul anytime soon, I've added the gate's historical information below for your convenience. You'll see it's been through quite a bit, yet appears very well kept, which serves as a testament to the gate's value to Seoul and the country of South Korea.

National Treature No. 1
Designated Dec. 20, 1962
Sungnyemun, the South Gate of Seoul, was erected in 1398, 7th year of King Taejo, founder of the Joseon Dynasty, as one of the four main gates of the capital city. Major repairs were done on the gate in 1448, the 30th years of King Seojong the Great, in 1479, the 10th year of king Seongjong, and during the reign of King Gojong (reg. 1863~1907), the second to the last king of Joseon. During the Joseon period, the gate was closed around 10 p.m. and opened around 4 a.m., at which times the bell installed in the gate house tolled to proclaim the closing and opening of the gate. At times of flood and drought, the king came to the gate to preside over prayer rituals invoking fair weather and rainfall, respectively.
The two-story gate house erected atop the gate wall has a sturdy internal structure and beautifully decorated early Joseon-style bracket system. Between 1907 and 1908, the city walls to the left and right of the gate were torn down by the Japanese, who had made Korea their protectorate in 1905 and exercised practically sovereign power.
The gate was damaged during the Korean War (1950-53), so from 1961 to 1963, it was taken completely apart, thoroughly repair, and fully reassembled. in February 2008, an arsonist set fire to the gate, almost entirely destroying the roof of the gate house, to the nation's great horror. Repair was planned and carried out for five years from 2008 to 2013, during which the city walls to the right and left of the gate were also restored.

Below is the street view of Sungnyemun Gate that I pulled from Google. It's no longer under construction, but I thought it'd be cool for you to see what it looked like when it was being restored between 2008-2013.

The Details

• What: Sungnyemun (Namdaemun) Gate in Seoul
• When: 09:00-18:00
  June-August: 09:00–18:30
  December-February: 09:00-17:30
• Where:  40, Sejong-daero, Jung-gu, Seoul 서울특별시 중구 세종대로 40 (남대문로4가)
• Cost: Admission is free!

If you're taking the subway, the best route is to get off at Hoehyeon station. It's only a short walk from there. Happy travels!

Namdaemun Camera Market | Seoul, South Korea

Namdaemun is a great area to explore. There's an outdoor market that you can walk through with various shops and a lot of street food.
We actually happened upon the camera street by accident. It was our first trip to Seoul and we didn't quite understand how to navigate the city. We were wandering without a destination and by chance found this well-known street of camera shops in Seoul. The best part? I had my Canon 5D MIII with me, so photos ensued! We didn't spend much time here because the sun was going down, the shops were closing and there was more we wanted to see, but I was able to snap a couple of shots for you all.

The prices weren't too bad. I'd say they were fairly reasonable, especially for being able to walk away with the product instead of waiting for an online order to ship. 

I don't know for sure, but I wonder how much of the product here is gray market. I honestly couldn't tell you. From my research, I've heard that the equipment works the same, but don't take my word on that. I encourage you to do your own research when purchasing big ticket items like these.

For a photographer like me, it was really exciting to just happen upon this area. I definitely had my eye on a couple of new lenses. The large windows of cameras and lenses were like eye candy!

Since I had my camera with me, we stopped in one shop to ask about a focus issue I was having. The Korean men running the store were helpful, despite the language barrier. I walked away with the problem solved free of charge and a handful of "test shots" on my memory card. The man helping me used the other man's eyeball to focus on while adjusting the settings. I could tell that this wasn't the first time they'd done this, because the man just turned to him and stared straight into the lens while he took the shot. Too funny.

There were many cool camera bags and lens bags in this shop. They also sold camera equipment and lenses of all brands. I hope to come back with more time to spare so I can browse other shops as well.

I've attached a screen shot from Google maps below to give you an idea of the location. As you can see, it's an entire street full of shops that sell photography equipment with popular brands like Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Sony and more. You can also use the address below to get you in that general area. It's not difficult to find. Make sure, while you're there, to check out Sungnyemun (Namdaemun) Gate and the Namdaemun Market, which are both close by and noteworthy tourist destinations. The closest subway stations are Seoul Station or Hoehyeon Station. Happy travels!

The Details

• What: Namedaemun Camera Street
• When: Open daily, store hours vary
• Where: Namchang-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul, right across from Sungnyemun (Namdaemun) Gate

Veggie Spring Rolls

Ah, spring rolls. This was a fun way to spend an evening. Ethan and I had a lot of laughs trying out this recipe, and I wouldn't say we've quite mastered it. Although, this recipe mixed with some adult beverages and good music made for a great date night at home. We're cool like that.

Really though, these veggie filled rolls are a great way to add a ton of nutrients and roughage to your diet in one tidy little wrap. They're great to stick in a to-go container for lunch with some spicy peanut dipping sauce and will keep for about a week in the fridge. Ethan and I have been trying to pack as many fruits and veggies into our meals as possible. We rarely eat meat or dairy. When I saw this recipe on the blog "The Mostly Vegan", I had to give it a try. It caught my eye because I feel like the name describes us perfectly. We're mostly veggie eaters. But we do have our days. Kristie does a fantastic job at walking you through the process (her photos are gorgeous) and she makes rolling these babies look super easy. 

So here's a disclaimer for ya, because I wasn't aware until I started making these spring rolls and then it was too late to turn back. The rice paper and rice noodles are a different texture than you might be used to, if you've never had them before. They're very... sticky when wet. We'll leave it at that.

But we love to try new things around here, so I encourage you to give this one a shot. 

So start by collecting your veggies. I'd say this is completely up to you as to what you use and what is available to you. Here we've got asian lettuce, carrots, red bell peppers, bean sprouts, asian cucumber, and a head of purple cabbage all rinsed and ready to cut. 

As you know, we live in South Korea, and guess what? All of these veggies were purchased on the economy, which is pretty exciting. When we first arrived here, we really struggled with the prices of produce at our local commissary (military installation grocery store). They were and still remain ridiculously overpriced. ($3 for an avocado? $6 for a pack of Korean strawberries? I don't think so.) So we've ventured out of our comfort zone and have had great success! The bean sprouts and lettuce are from the 4/9 market down the street, and the rest of the vegetables are from our local grocer around the corner. I think that's pretty awesome! What leftovers we had from this recipe, we made into a salad that we've enjoyed every night this week. Heck yes. (Who knew one could get so worked up about vegetables? This girl!)

Ah! Look at those colors! I'm in love. It's February here, guys.

After you've cut your veggies, you'll want to cook your rice noodles. I used these brands from our local grocer. Heat a pot of water to boiling, add the noodles for about 3-4 minutes. I took mine out at 2 minutes and they were still hard, so I had to boil another pot of water. I think this depends on the type of rice noodles you have. Learn from my mistakes.

You'll also want to get out a plate with a curved lip around the edge. Add some water. This is what you'll use to wet your rice paper. Count to five Mississippi and then remove the rice paper. Add your veggies and roll. Slowly and carefully. One edge rolled into your veggies, fold the sides in, and finish the roll. The rice paper sticks to itself. It's very sticky. Did I say that already?

Ethan's giving the roll a go. It's harder than it looks, so take your time! And don't get frustrated if the paper rips. They'll taste the same, I promise.

Soon you'll be a rolling pro and it won't be as frustrating. You won't want to just throw all of your cut veggies into a bowl and eat it as a salad. We did not do that after rolling a couple of spring rolls. 

...Just keeping it real.

And then you have your spicy peanut dipping sauce. Mine is a mixture of peanut butter, rice vinegar, honey, low-sodium soy sauce, and chili garlic sauce. I liked it. Ethan did not. So take that for what you will. Those are peanuts, by the way, because creamy peanut butter is disgusting and I refuse to buy it.

Have I convinced you to give this recipe a go? Yes? No? Haha!

Thanks to Kristie at The Mostly Vegan for the inspiration!

I'm glad I tried these veggie spring rolls because I can roll spring rolls now, and that's a very important skill to have in life. So, yeah. I think I'll go have a salad now.

Veggie Spring Rolls with Spicy Peanut Sauce

Spring Rolls

Veggie amounts depend on how many rolls you'd like to make, that's your call.

- cabbage, sliced

- carrots, shredded or julienned

- red bell pepper, sliced thinly

- bean sprouts, halved

- cucumber, sliced lengthwise

- lettuce, romaine or other, halved

- vermicelli rice noodles

- New Vietnam rice paper

Spicy Peanut Sauce

- 1/2 C peanut butter

- 1/2 C rice wine vinegar

- 1/4 C raw honey

- 1/4 C low-sodium soy sauce

- 1/4 C chili garlic sauce

Instructions

1. Rinse and cut your veggies: cabbage, carrots, pepper, bean sprouts, cucumber and lettuce.
2. Cook the rice noodles in a pot of boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. Snip with kitchen shears or cut with a knife through the noodles a couple of times to cut them into smaller pieces.
3. Prepared a plate with cool water to wet the rice paper. 
4. Gather all ingredients in a central workspace. Start with one piece of rice paper. Wet it for 5 seconds and transfer to work space. Layer on the ingredients starting with the lettuce. Try not to overstuff. 
5. Roll the rice paper, starting on one edge. fold in the sides and finish the roll. The rice paper will stick to itself, so sealing is pretty easy. You'll find that this is a trial and error process, so try to be patient. You'll get the hang of it.
6. Prep your sauce by mixing peanut butter, rice wine vinegar, raw honey, soy sauce, and chili garlic sauce. Whisk to combine.
7. Serve immediately or refrigerate up to one week. Enjoy!