Anyeong Noona

When Noona came closer, it turns out that the stall who owns the cute vampire girl plush doll sells manju in the shape of vampire girl's head. They are too cute to be eaten but Noona decided to buy them (and eat them) anyway. The manju(s) are filled with custard cream. They taste pretty yummy and it feels nice to eat something warm and sweet on a snowing day. 

On top of the manju, the stall is also selling a lot of handmade souvenirs of the little vampire girl. If you like these kind of handmade crafts and accessories, you will love coming to Insadong. This place is basically filled with artsy handmade souvenirs and crafts such as lacquerware, jewelry, pottery, wooden/ metal crafts. At the highest level of Ssamziegil, you will be able to see a small garden with a lot of wishing notes hanged along the fences. 

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Even just by walking around in Ssamziegil, you can see how creative these shop owners can be. In front of most shops along the spiralling pathway, you can see all kind of winter-themed and christmas-themed display. This one looks pretty in blue. 

Since it is near Christmas, a lot of Christmas decoration and art display are being put up by the shop owners too. Noona really loves this time of the year. ^^

How to go to Ssamziegil: 

1. Take the subway to Anguk Station 

2. Go out from the station through exit 6

3. Go 100 metres forward and then turn left onto Insadong street

4. Walk straight and you will see Ssamziegil on your left

There are a total of 70 stores along that spiralling path. However, the 12 stores which are located at the basement of Ssamziegil are originally already there even before Ssamziegil opened its door in 2004. 

With so many artsy display along the path, Ssamziegil is heaven for art and craft lover. A popular sticker-photo studio, Chalcak and pattern craft shop that deals in orgel (a music box) are two of the most popular shops in Ssamziegil.

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The display is so cute, Noona can't even... #cutenessoverdose

When you are hungry, you can either go to the level 4 of Ssamziegil (where all the cafes are located) or pop by the famous Poo Bread Store at the courtyard. From a quick glance to the shop window, you will immediately know you have reached the right place. 

The queue for the poo bread is crazy though. A minimum order of three poo breads are imposed for each buy. Since the crowd seems to be quite eager to queue, we joined the queue too. #peerpressure

Noona did not take the picture after getting her hands on her poo bread so she has to dig the last summer picture when she got it instead. Hahaha. The paper bag used to contain the poo bread is kinda cute but the poo bread taste average at best. It has red bean as its filling. 

Aren't they pretty? A lot of small shops are selling handmade Christmas ornaments too at this time of the year. The Insadong street is really the best place to find all those crafts goodies too. 

Oh, Frosty, the snowman has landed in Seoul. Hello, Frosty! 

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If you have the time, you should make a visit to Ssamziegil. It is basically a shopping complex in the main street of Insadong. It houses over 70 stores selling all kind of goods from clothes, socks, papercraft, ceramics, etc. There are also a lot of art installations displayed in front of the stores of Ssamziegil.

The theme of the art at that time is supposedly to save the earth from global warming. It was kinda sad really seeing that the weather all around the world has gone haywire. Natural disasters are kinda common too nowadays. =(

Since life must go on, let's do more to conserve the energy and not to make the global warming getting worsen off. 

If you are tired of walking, there are a lot of tea houses and cafes in Insadong. You can visit the tourist information centre which is situated near the exit of the subway too for more information. You can also try the Korean traditional hanbok and visit the tourist souvenir store to buy handmade Korean souvenir to bring back home. On weekends, Insadong Street is closed for motor cars.