on my fourth day in seoul, my true love sent to me... a partridge in a pear tree. wait that doesn't sound right. i don't even know what a partridge is to begin with. i actually had to consult dear google and i was quite surprised that it's a bird! it's a plane! it's superman man of steel! oh the random things that go wheezing in my cloudy mind. my apologies.
let me do it one more time. yes, on my fourth day in seoul, i headed over to ewha womans university and that's the correct spelling so, don't go grammar (spelling?) nazi on me. it was intentionally spelled that way because the university adheres to the idea where every woman deserves respect and collectively naming them as women would give lesser emphasis.
but why did i exactly visit the university and on a holiday at that? aside from me being weird, its campus is by far the most picturesque school grounds i have seen before my eyes. it got to be worth the visit!
my initial agenda was to wander around hongik university but when i reached the train platform, i suddenly decided to go straight to ewha womans university. good thing, both universities are serviced by the same train line. i couldn't imagine having some people with me because for sure, they'd go nuts with my indecision!
when i finally reached the ewha womans university station, i just followed the ample signs that would lead me to the campus. it was a considerable walk that i felt i was lost but then, i have this strange feeling that my feet have a mind of their own and true enough, they had led me to the campus without a hitch.
i passed through an unguarded open gate and i wasn't even sure at first if i could walk in directly just like that. after all, i am used to seeing campuses in the philippines that are manned with wicked security guards. yes, impetuously wicked that they are! but after several years out of college, i have moved on. haha and i know they're just doing their jobs. probably.
okay now, let me take you to a tour to my campus with breathtaking views! ahhh... a girl can dream you know. so, let me pretend for now and may this little delusion can take me a little further in life. lol anyway, quite obvious with the university's name, the university is an exclusive school for women. i spent my high school in an all girls school so, i can just understand how it is to only find girls within your peripheral vision the entire time. not that it's a bad thing.
the stairs leading to the university church were less formidable from afar but just look at this! i was almost out of breath when i reached the middle. the winter air made it even harder. of course, i can easily cook up with such reason just like that, without mentioning how apparently out of shape i am. on another related matter, this explains why korean girls stay slender and i tell you, seoul has this kind of stairs even in train stations. so, beware!
i have been swept away and have readily fallen in love with this enchanting door! and with my whimsical mind, i did imagine i would be transported into an enchanted place once i pass through the door. alice in the wonderland is different because she fell down a rabbit hole while for me in this case, i went through a door. my goodness, are you still following me? haha i can totally understand if somehow i've lost you in my trail of far-out thoughts.
after having a moment in front of the magical door, i leisurely roamed around the campus while taking in the striking scenery around me. this, i shared with only a handful of people, probably tourists as well. the campus grounds is in fact very spacious with buildings located quite distant from each other. it has also conveniently made room for nature, complete with gigantic trees and manicured plants that surely offer a great relief to students after a hard toil inside the classrooms. because i am without a doubt, biased, the snow made everything a lot prettier. my only regret was, i didn't spare my idle time by sitting around a picnic table, savoring all the prettiness while playfully kicking the thick wad of snow with my feet. you see, small and ordinary things can already make me happy.
i ended up in a full circle when i found myself at the opposite end of this two very interesting rows of buildings that look like the ground was intentionally dug out and these structures serve as the side walls. when you scroll back to the first photo, the other end protrudes at the right. this whole stretch is actually very long that the people in the other end reduced to being ant-size kind of tiny. but then again, it could be because i have poor eyesight and i suggest you better forego that questionable observation. what i'm trying to say is that, it definitely spans across a great length. what i have pondered though, this area must not be flood prone for this to actually work. or are there even floods in seoul?
i didn't dwell much on my flood-related thought that i exited from the campus shortly after. i then went straight to find my lunch and i ended up in saboten which is ironically a japanese food chain famous for their scrumptious tonkatsu. hunger and the biting cold both had something to do with my swift decision.
when i confidently made my way to the second floor of the building where saboten was, i found only locals dining in. shrugging off the passing curious stares, i settled in my own big table. i must have looked really weird. haha the woman who served my order was nice enough to show me what i should do with the mortar and pestle that came along with my food tray. it was for my tonkatsu's sauce that had sesame seeds which i still had to grind. pfft!.. kidding!
after my tank was full, i went around for some teeny-weeny shopping while i still had to decide where exactly i'd go next. the vicinity of ewha womans university is known for shopping that's considerably cheaper than the other shopping areas in seoul. i'm not sure if some of the shops belong to local designers because they pretty sure gave off that vibe. the only thing however, since this is a university area, the styles seem to cater for the collegiate. i like to believe that i still can squeeze myself in that age range and i was able to buy a few things, as evidence. (pinilit talaga?) i even got a jumper that i got at such a steal price because the shop had an ongoing sale madness. winter was a blessing in disguise because many of the clothes were mainly for winter or spring. yay?
shopping aside, the university is actually one of the prestigious universities in south korea and that as of 2012, it holds the number 40 spot in asia. (source: wiki) with my insight on south korea's education from the high school guides during my palace tour, it must really be a great pride, being a student in this university. hard work may be an understatement, i reckon.
o-O
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