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The past two weeks, I visited Namsan Tower twice. The first time as a first-timer with my friends from Australia and Germany, and the second time with my fellow native teachers.

"Nam" = South. "San" = Mountain. It has the #1 view of Seoul. You can see Myungdong and sprawled neighborhoods of surrounding districts, gorgeous green mountains, and the Han River. The best means of getting there is taking Subway Line 4, Myungdong, exit #3. You will see Pacific Hotel and go up the alley on the right-hand side (just keep going straight for about 15 minutes). You can either walk all the way up or take the cable car (7,500 W round-trip).

When you get out of the cable car, the trees are lush and green, arching over wide wooden steps. You climb up and see a traditional pagoda and Namsan Tower.

Wire Men and Love 'locks

These floating figurines are unique art forms that float in the sky. I love the positions the artist posed them in as if mid-flight, mid-thought, or mid-dream. It adds to the somewhat "magical" and "dreamy" element of Namsan Tower. Now, what I didn't expect when visiting the tower was the love-factor. Where it was once a place for people to visit and watch sunsets or get 360 degree views of Seoul, Namsan Tower has become the quintessential location for couples to proclaim their love.

The metal bars that surround the base of the tower are covered in various padlocks. There are even metal padlock trees rusting with long-locked metaphors for long-lasting love. Couples often come to this area for proposals or romantic evenings. The padlock represents permanent love. After it is locked, the key is thrown away.

In fact, so many keys have been thrown away, that there are signs that read, "DON'T THROW AWAY YOUR KEY." This is so popular in Korea, the country where couples rule over singles, that the romantic gesture has shown in quite a few Korean dramas. A later addition were rubber hearts where couples write their declarations of love, how long they have been together, or marriage proposals. I like how many are written in languages besides Korean, too.

We rated strangers' relationships based on padlock type. The hardcore bronze or silver-plated blocks didn't seem very romantic, and instead screamed, "Run! Prison!" The plain black combination locks seemed bland. The bicycle combination locks said, "I will ride away when I get the chance." And there was one binder clip that seemed unreliably fragile. Our favorites were the unique locks that people had obviously gone out of their way to find and present to their loved one.

(postnote: When I returned in 2011, the wire men installation was gone (booo~~). On the upside, the installations seem to be changing every few months. During my most recent visit there were gigantic bears. Who knows what you might see?)

Observatory

It costs an adult 8,000 W to go up to the observatory. Though I think the price is a little much (and I've heard it's doubled-up in a short amount of time), it is well worth it. It's best to go on a clear day around sunset. I really wish I had a panoramic camera to catch more of the view.

On the way back down, you go down a flight of stairs and DROP BY THE BATHROOM to your left! I thought it was hilarious that even the bathroom had a fantastic view out into the city as well as some fancy mirrors with brightly glowing lights you might expect at a Tiffany store. By far, one of the nicest bathrooms I've ever walked into.

Light Show

During the first visit, it took a while to get on the elevator back down. The line wrapped around the entire floor. We met another foreigner who was traveling and chatted together for a bit. When we exited, we were distracted by a Wire Man we had missed earlier. As we were taking photos and admiring how gorgeous everything looked in the dusk, an unexpected light show was announced. It began with a bloom of cherry blossoms onto the tower itself. As people watched, they were covered in technicolor. Water unexpectedly sprouted out of the ground and children ran back and forth in the spray. The mood was celebratory and very heartwarming. An excellent end to our visit.

Myungdong

Myundong's a great stop after a trip to Namsan Tower. It is one of the best spots besides Dongdaemun to go shopping at cheap prices. You can find expensive name brands, but for cheaper buys, I recommend sticking to street vendors or going into the tall building with the bright red "Migliore" sign on the top floor. Bargain, bargain, bargain.

If a shopkeeper tries to take advantage of you because you're a foreigner then move on because you can most likely find the same thing in another store. You can see people dressed as strange characters or shop-girls dressed up and trying to lure customers into their store (didn't mean to make it sound so provocative, but it's true). You can also find some good eats and bars. My favorite time to go is at nighttime because all the lights come on and it is always bustling!

Bargaining Tips

I was introduced to bargaining at a young age in Korea. I thought it was one of the most unethical and horrifying things and dreaded the moment my mother would begin the process. Sometimes the shopkeepers or my mother seemed angry as they brought the price down, then, when all was agreed, they were grateful to one another. I'm not as extreme when it comes to bargaining, but I can work the price down.

First, don't give away your emotions. If you really love something and the shopkeeper can see it, you've already screwed yourself. It's best to be undecided or calm, like you can definitely walk away. Whenever a shopkeeper gives me the initial price, I look incredulous. If they ask me to choose the starting price, I cut 30-50% off of what I think it should be.

Then, I examine the product thoroughly, looking for the flaws. With clothes or anything sewn you can usually find a long thread or something askew and ask the storekeeper, "What is this?" or just show it to them while looking skeptical. Lower the price. Of course, if it's a big flaw, you may want to move on to another store.

If you still want it lower, then look for other problems, or talk about the material, or say you were offered the same thing at another store for cheaper (if this backfires, the storekeeper may call you on it and tell you to buy the item at the other place). I almost always cut the price twice. First with light complaints. Then, I give a final price slightly lower that what I'm willing to pay and say, "I'll buy it if you give it to me for ____ Won/$."

Other ways to bring the cost down:
*Ask for a discount because you are paying in cash. Sometimes they pocket some of the money, so they are willing to cut the price a little more.
*Ask them for a different color/fabric/etc. Ask them to cut the price because they don't have the color/fabric/etc. that you want.
*Play the foreigner card. Come on, give me a good impression of your country, cut me some slack. (I know, I'm terrible, but this works just as the "foreigner inflation price," y'know, the one where you go into another country and get charged more than locals?)
*Ask if they'll give you a greater discount if you buy more than one.
*feel free to contribute any other methods that have worked for you...[/list]

And be reasonable, they have to make money, too. If you try too many tactics, they will just get annoyed and want you to leave. This can also work in department stores where merchandise is particularly expensive. It's much more difficult, but possible.

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