Hoehyeon underground shopping area is not a super fancy or huge shopping paradise, but I had read about a couple shops that I really wanted to check out for some Korean skincare products and possible luggage options for later.
From what I read, I knew I had to find Shinsegae Department Store first and then one of the entrances to the Hoehyeon Underground Shopping Center would be in sight.
But of course we got lost, but then we saw these people:
They were wonderful guides who helped visitors and tourists find their way! You could also find them near other major attractions in Seoul. Most of them speak English and some of them even speak multiple languages!
So we got to where we thought we were going, but couldn't find the shops that I was looking for. A gentleman saw that we were lost (and we probably looked like it,) and came by to help. At first he talked Korean to me, but soon realized I couldn't understand much of anything he said, so he started using some English words. We told him we were looking for a couple shops inside the Hoehyeon Underground Shopping Center, and he told us we were actually inside the Namdaemun Undergrond Shopping Center.
Oh!
He tried to tell me how to get to where I wanted to go, and after a little while he said, "follow me!"
And we did.
We then learned he was a guard at the Namdaemun Underground Shopping Center. He was so patient and kind to us, and pulled out a big book/zine that showed detailed maps of major areas in Seoul and pointed to us the map we needed, and explained again where we should go.
He then sent us on our way, and gave us the big book so we could refer to it wherever we went in Seoul! That was so kind and sweet of him!
We did find the entrance to the Hoehyeong Underground Shopping Center and the shops I wanted to visit very soon after that.
The warmth and hospitality these wonderful people (and more others we met later on during our trip) showed us were one of the biggest reasons I loved our trip to Seoul.
No comments:
Post a Comment