Seoul Vlog: Exploring Sanggye-dong

[@MikeFromKorea]

A note on Romanization: There's a typo in the text at 26:36 showing the Romanized name of the restaurant where I ate. In the video, I wrote 'Maemil', but I had intended to write 'Memil'. Under the Revised Romanization of Korean standard, the Hangul 'ㅔ ' should be 'e', and 'ae' represents 'ㅐ'. That said, not everyone follows that standard. You'll find plenty of examples online of 메밀 being Romanized as 'maemil'. Probably because '메' and '매' can sometimes sound very similar. It's one of those words I'll usually mispronounce unless I'm thinking about it, and I almost always add the 'a' without even realizing it when I write the Romanized form. I just wanted to point that out in case you decide to google it. You'll find better results for 'memil' than 'maemil'.

[@JDPMediastream]

What an amazing experience hanging with you - such a great relaxed pace in your stories to enjoy - love the breathing room you leave in your edits to take things in. Thanks for your time and effort. Never been there, but somehow, Korea lives in my heart, and you have a natural way to take us viewers on your unique journeys.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you very much. I want to show you Korea through my eyes as much as I want to tell you about it. I'm happy to hear that's coming through.

[@Mudskipper9876]

They said it better than I could. You do have an eye for texture and composition. I really enjoyed the Buddha along this walk.

[@MikeFromKorea]

@@Mudskipper9876 Thank you!

[@rranft]

When I lived in Seoul this was basically my Sunday entertainment - go to a random station, get off, and look around for restaurants, book stores, and other interesting spots. Seoul is huge, naturally, so there are just so many interesting things to find. Great vlog!

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you! Random explorations are the best way to see a city, I think.

[@h.s.3172]

마이크씨, 제가 그 동네 출신입니다. 화면으로 보니 반갑네요. 그동네에서 태어나서 런던 오기 전까지 살았어요. 수도도 전화도 없던 시절에 자랐어요. 지금은 20년째 런던에 살고 있는데 동네를 보니 너무 반갑네요. 감사합니다.

[@MikeFromKorea]

감사합니다. 이 영상을 즐기셨다니 기쁩니다. 런던은 제가 가장 좋아하는 여행지 중 하나입니다. 올해 말에 아내와 함께 런던과 잉글랜드의 다른 도시들을 여행할 예정입니다

[@jennifercorvec2452]

I love this video, with so much in it I didn't know, like why neighborhoods are called Sanggye, Jungye and Haggye. The story about people buying many little gas cans after the death of Kim EunJong's(sp?) father died is very interesting, too! I love to see how Korean people lived not so many years ago. It sort of makes me feel that I have a kinship with them. Also, I am discouraged and frustrated by the bull-dozing of areas like part of Sillim-dong and Oksu-dong, for example, so to me your videos are important for several reasons. In Atlantic Canada, where I'm from, most of us love antiques and heritage properties are almost sacred. You must think I'm crazy, lol. I had replied to your Hannam-dong video saying I lived in Seoul(SongPaGu) in the late 90's. I appreciate your passion and diligence in creating these videos. They are very much appreciated by many people ❤.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you so much. It's always nice learning that people are getting something from my videos.

[@Thomas-dq4cn]

Thank you Mike for this clip about the old towns in Seoul. Most of the hilly areas are called daldong-ne meaning you see lights of the moon closer at night from the hillside where financially underprivileged neighbors lived and still living. Those uneven stairs reminded me of my childhood memories! 😂

[@chaisepomme4070]

I really like these old neighborhoods. They may be considered shantytowns but the plants in the planters - I think I saw some young tomato plants - to me shows pride and hope in the present and the future. Same, when I see laundry hanging outside… I spent the first six years of my life in Seoul and although my Korean is pretty shoddy, my memories as a pre-schooler and kindergarten student are still vivid. Speaking of bath house or sauna, in the mid sixties most houses in my neighborhood did not technically have bathtubs so to get a bath, you had to go to the local bath house every week. Heating the house was achieved via large cylindrical charcoal bricks which were delivered (black when fresh and beige when burned up) and then picked up after use. There was always a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning in a poorly ventilated house. Yes, I’m that old…I still remember the suspicious talks between the adults around me about who among them might be a secret Communist (literally translated as “a red guy”) because they happened to have been spotted reading a Communist newspaper. Your videos really have going back to those early carefree but also such tension-filled times. And that neng mien looked absolutely gorgeous…now I really miss it.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you for sharing. There were still houses using those old charcoal heaters in Dongducheon when I first got here in 91. I spent the night on a friend's floor with one of those things in the center of the room. I knew a woman there who had married a US soldier in the 60s and left Korea with him. They'd come back for retirement and opened a bar a year or two before I arrived. She told me once that the first time she'd come back was in the latter half of the 70s, several years after she'd left. She walked into a little super to buy some cigarettes. When she asked for them, the owner told her to wait and went into the back to, he told her, find them. In reality, he was calling the authorities on suspicion that she was a North Korean spy, as the brand of cigarettes she'd asked for were no longer on the market. It was definitely a different world, then.

[@D2K1530]

I don't know why, but your video about Hongdae popped up on my screen and I was glad to find it because Hongdae is where I live now and I love it. Although I'm Korean, I got to know about Sanggye-dong through you. Thank you for the video. While watching, I imagined myself walking along with you and talking with you.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you!

[@clyde3769]

Hi, Mike. I've randomly stumbled upon your channel and found your commentary really soothing to listen to. Actually, I've been teaching English in Asian countries, in Korea hopefully one of these days, and I thought I could make a good use of your video to teach vocabulary and expression like "hole in the wall restaurants".

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you! That's pretty cool to hear.

[@ernestobueno5875]

Hello Mike! New subscriber here! Have been binge watching your videos all day!! Great work sir!!!

[@MikeFromKorea]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@Mudskipper9876]

I love the street mural art and the planters along this walk. Both seem to represent hope and resilience.

[@sloanseaman8776]

I think I'm exploring Seoul and then I see your videos. Please do keep posting. Awesome stuff.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you!

[@bartandpocca1774]

Back in 2017 my wife and I considered moving to this area because of the historical feel to the place. I loved exploring Sanggye-dong by bike as I rode from Uijeongbu to the Han River. Late 70s, the government thought the area would be great (and far enough away from the worlds cameras, here for the Olympics)) for shipping off all of the undesirables from other areas around Seoul, and it became a shanty town, as someone else has mentioned. However, the government changed its mind sometime in the early 80s and decided to move out the people from Sanggye-dong to yet another area. If you do a search of Sanggye-dong apartments, you may still see construction dates of 1985, 1986, and 1987 for 10-12 story buildings. Edit: forgot to add to the last sentence: which means the gentrification of the neighborhood right before the 1988 Olympics. Odd that they thought foreign news media would venture up that far north unless they were tipped off. NBC (American news outlet) was unfairly and relentlessly seeking out all the dirt it could find on Korea, at a time when Korea was trying to improve foreign perception. In many Koreans minds, it was a great betrayal.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Yeah, I read that there was a population boom in the area in the 80s from redevelopment sparked in part by the Olympics. That one was a puzzler for me, too.

[@sharonfrancis2571]

Last week in Seoul really tempted to go and explore for myself, wondering vlog thanks Mike

[@MikeFromKorea]

Whichever way you decide, I hope you enjoy your final week!

[@pantium98]

상계동에 이런 곳이 있었네. 창동 살고 있어서 상계동은 가까운데, 은행사거리에 있는 학원 갈때 상계역에서 바로 버스 타고 학원으러 바로 가고 다시 집에 바로 가서 상계동 자체는 그렇게 친숙한 곳이 아니라 잘 몰랐었는데 이렇게 알아가니까 재밌네요

[@grapepak365]

Wow, this vid is like the 1960's Seoul (Young San, Yee Tae Won) when i was growing up, a time capsule. Yes indeed, buckwheat noodles (naang myon) is my favorite too, yummy. Thanks again.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you for sharing. I've seen some of those older homes in a small corner near Yongsan Station and on a few backstreets very near Itaewon in Bogwang-dong. I imagined it would have looked similar to what I saw in this video. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

[@HAGR-x7x]

Never seen 상계뉴타운 before but It's amazing! It seems like there are no more people living there. I found from a little search that both Zones 1 and 2 are in the final stage before demolition. Recently, most new town projects tend to be delayed due to the increase in construction costs. By the way, the buckwheat noodle looks really delicious. I'd like to go there if I had a chance

[@MikeFromKorea]

There were obvious signs of people still living in Zones 1 and 2. And I saw several people going back and forth the whole time I was there. So I don't know what the actual situation is.

[@elekow7998]

@@MikeFromKorea 이미 모두 철거예정입니다. 사람이 살고 있다하더라도 철거과정에 있기때문에 모두 사라질 예정입니다. 다만 행정절차가 복잡하기때문에 시간이 걸릴 쁜입니다

[@MikeFromKorea]

@@elekow7998 네, 물론입니다. 4구역과 6구역은 이미 완료되었습니다. 다른 구역들은 어느 단계에 있는지 명확하지 않습니다. 5구역에는 비어 있는 집들이 표시된 것을 봤습니다. 1구역과 2구역에서는 그런 집들을 보지 못했습니다.

[@elekow7998]

@@MikeFromKorea 검색하면 기사가 나옵니다. 재개발엔 많은 절차가 있어요. 해당구역은 조합설립 후 여러 절차를 진행증입니다. 절차가 끝나면 철거와 재개발이 진행됩니다. 저 지역은 어차피 무허가 건물 지역입니다. 다만 실거주자들의 권리를 인정해주기때문에 그들에 대한 보상 후에 재개발이 진행되죠. 따라서 시간이 많이 필요하죠. 한국의 재개발 과정이 복잡한 이유입니다. 한국은 중국처럼 강제로 재개발 할 수 있는 곳이 아니니까요

[@elekow7998]

@@MikeFromKorea 조합설립 후 여러 과정이 진행 중이에요. 어차피 모두 철거와 재개발 될 겁니다

[@TopsyKreetz-bp1yk]

Good video! Please make video about Guro Digital Complex area. Thanks.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks! I'll get there eventually.

[@--ee6dm]

Not a few those New Town Projects have been stuck or delayed with recent high inflation to build costs. estimated 30~50% higher than before.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Yeah, that's tough, as there are repercussions throughout multiple sectors. My wife is a real estate agent dealing and is having a really tough time right now. Depressed construction is one part of that.

[@Domichoi_journey]

안녕하세요 도미여행입니다. 구독으로 이웃신청합니다. 영상 공유 감사히 잘볼께요~👍🙏

[@MikeFromKorea]

감사합니다!

[@연연이-p3j]

Where have all the people with countless stories gone? The alley without people is lonely 😢 Still, the birds are still there..

[@--ee6dm]

Real the police line tape used just single or double lines in general. 😂

[@강원도사랑]

hello! nice to meet you! 안녕하세요? 반갑습니다! 한국에서 오래 사셨다고 했는데 혹시 어느 나라에서 오셨나요? 한국의 좋은 곳을 보여주셔서 감사합니다! 한국어로도 소통이 가능하신가요?채널 번창하시고 대박나시길 바랍니다! 감사합니다!

[@MikeFromKorea]

감사합니다! 반갑습니다. 저는 미국에서 왔어요. 한국어를 할 수 있지만, 유창하지는 않습니다.

[@amator8468]

내 고향 상계동 ❤❤ 옛날에 정말 가난했지요.. 당시 유일한 외국인은 몰몬교 선교사들이었지요 ^^

[@lizardears4861]

Some of these areas remind me of a KZbin post on many elderly people queuing early morning at soup kitchens in Jongno. It seems South Korea don’t look after their elderly. If they don’t put their own money away during their working life there’s no government pension as a safety net. I’ve seen figures that over 40% over the age of 66 live under the poverty line.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Traditionally, the eldest son and his family were expected to take care of aging parents. Poverty among the elderly didn't really start to become a a problem as far as I'm aware until maybe the late 90s or early 2000s. As I understand it, it's a combination of people being financially unable to take care of their parents, a longer life expectancy, and a falling birthrate. There are some public programs that have come about to help with this (for example, "adult day care" facilities for families who can't spare the time or money to take care of elderly parents during the day), but it seems policy is lagging more broadly. I haven't looked into this issue enough to have a full grasp of it, though, so I can't speak on it more than that.

[@jamielove179]

Raise your horns? Is that a demonic song? It would have been a beautiful song if it said raise your hearts, not horns.

[@MikeFromKorea]

No, it is not a demonic song. The singer started a campaign against the stigma of mental illness in the worlds of metal and rock. The song is part of that. It comes from the phrase "raise your horns and take a picture". That's a common thing to do in the rock world, raise your hand with the index and pinky fingers extended when someone's snapping a photo. Some people may call that "devil's horns" or "demon's horns", or ascribe some nefarious meaning to it, but to most people doing it, it's just part of the rock & metal culture and has been for decades. Read more about the song here: www.forbes.com/sites/cathyolson/2022/11/04/mind-reading-halestorms-lzzy-hale-is-hell-bent-on-busting-the-mental-health-stigma-in-hard-rock/?sh=737811971677

[@jamielove179]

@@MikeFromKorea I have heard the horns as a rock on symbol. But it is used by demon worshippers. By the title of that article, it does sound demonic. Metal is also sometimes demonic.

[@jamielove179]

Anyways, this was still a great video. Thank you 😊

[@edwardsbarbara25]

It was a gorgeous song!!

[@jamielove179]

@@edwardsbarbara25 yes, but raise your horns just does not make sense to me in this inspirational song. It should be hearts. Horns just makes it sound childish or maybe she truly was going for demonic, who knows but her?

[@ThatsJeanette]

Personally, I find it somewhat sad that Seoul is losing part of its soul with these drastic changes to such parts of the city. Why not leave some areas as they were in the 60s, 70s and 80s to preserve this architectural and cultural heritage? Some of these one- and two-story houses could be completely renovated but their soul could be preserved. In Europe, there are still houses that are 600-700 years old. And I couldn't imagine the landscape without them. I hope this doesn't happen to all parts of the city.

[@MikeFromKorea]

There's one area of the old buildings that has not been zoned as part of Sanggye New Town, just to the north of Zone 3. I didn't actually go through it, but looking at Naver/Google map images, it's similar to the scenes I showed in the 'Raise your Horns' segment: bit.ly/3wTfDml I don't know if it's a temporary reprieve or not. Time will tell. There are multiple "mural" villages around the country where former slums have been gussied up by artists and art students. The reception has been mixed. Ihwa Mural Village in central Seoul and Gamcheon Culture Village in Busan are probably the most well known: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ihwa_Mural_Village en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamcheon_Culture_Village Perhaps there's a better way than turning them into artsy mural villages, but any attempt to preserve them long-term is bound to result in them becoming tourist attractions. What's the point of preserving them if no one's going to see them? I think it's a tension that's difficult to reconcile.

[@elekow7998]

저 동네는 낭만적인 파리 올드타운이 아닙니다. 재개발의 그림자일 뿐..

[@masizzungchocowooyoo3546]

You also have to think about the people who live there. Buildings that were built with great care in the past are worth preserving, and they are, but other than these, the other low-end buildings are inconvenient and too dangerous for safety. The old buildings in Europe were the best buildings at the time when they were built during the heyday of the country, but the buildings in Korea in the 70s and 80s are cheap buildings made haphazardly with cheap materials during a difficult time, so they cannot be used as examples for comparison. I don't feel a soul in slate-roofed houses or red-brick tenements. The reason you feel the soul of such a place is probably because you spent your childhood in that era. I actually feel nostalgic for uniform apartment complexes, but I don't think that old apartment complexes should be preserved. What needs to be changed needs to be changed

[@ThatsJeanette]

@@masizzungchocowooyoo3546 yes, you are right. If the building is in a dangerous condition it should be definitely demolished. This is also done in Europe. And also it is not possible to preserve all of them, this is really expensive and there are often also not enough people who know how to preserve an really old building correctly. But on the other hand I hope that there will be areas where they preserve at least some slate-roofed houses or red-brick tenements, because they are contemporary witnesses of the past, of the time they were built in, that’s why I personally love them. But yes the future can’t be hold on.

[@GiyoungBae-xi2sy]

❤❤❤❤❤