1. For those who don’t want to be studying in their rooms every day but find cafes a bit too expensive to make a daily habit, try Yeoksam Global Village Library. It’s a ten minute walk from UP, super quiet, and great for settling in and getting plenty of work done. You can find it here: Yeoksam Global Village Center.
2. For all things temple stay related, visit this website: Templestay. Temple stays involve visiting a temple and joining the daily activities, including meditation, tea ceremony, and traditional temple food meals. There are many temples across Seoul and beyond, and many of them offer student discounts.
3. Keeping with the theme of all-you-can-eat, a recent discovery is an all-you-can-eat lunch buffet for 5000 won, about a five minute walk from UP. Buffet lasts from 11am till 2pm, and they vary up the food every day. You can find the location here.
4. Runners! If you head about ten minutes walk south of UP you will find a running track which cuts through the forest and goes for about 5 kilometres. It’s a beautiful spot to run, there are outdoor workout gyms along the way, and it’s a lovely escape from the tall buildings of Gangnam, despite being very close. To find it, turn left out of UP, and then left again on the corner with Juicy. Head straight down that road for about seven minutes, and when you reach a bridge that goes over the road, take the steps on either side of it up onto the running path.
5. Favourite neighbourhood of the week: Sinchon. This university town is one stop beyond Hongdae. Full of street markets, little cafes and bakeries, and an abundance of restaurants, it’s a great place to spend a day. If you go and want to get work done, it also happens to be home to one of my favourite cafes in Seoul, an 8th story spot with a terrace that looks out over the city, called Dok Dabang.
