Like I said in the previous post, some serious jetlagged induced insomnia here (posting this at 3:00 AM), but in anticipation of my move to Seoul next month, a return to my home of eight years, I am posting a Flickr slideshow which captures a bit of what I love about the place. Some of the alleys are inviting, some aren’t, all capture the imagination a bit. Alleys in Seoul are best meandered late at night holding the hand of your loved one, a special moment before heading home but after the first drink of the evening where anything seems possible, just around the corner.
http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=104087
You can wander the glitzy wide-laned avenues (made possible by the Korean War) and admire the fantastic public transportation (best I have ever seen). You can sample Asian cuisine at its finest, drink the finest wines, marvel in the setting sun atop Namsam, but, like anywhere else, the city is best consumed on street level, deep in the networks of alleys that double as home, markets, closets, parking garages, playgrounds. I will be there wandering quite a bit.