Seoul Cafe Stroll

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Seoul is nesting some of my most favorite people on earth. Within this metropolitan city they are building their small worlds with passions.

Like Min Yong, the bright and young owner of the hostel Backpackers Inside, opened his first hostel in the center of Seoul and is on his way to expand his business across South Korea. His dream is simply, to travel around the world and to welcome foreigners to his country with open arms. Like Forest and his circle of artists, genuinely worship music and stand for the sacredness of arts. My dear sis JianYi and my dear friend Ares, are both on their journeys to defend their righteousness and values. To these people I deeply respect, and can't express how grateful I am to have met them in my early twenties, the time when I'm in need of guidance and inspirations.

In a city like Seoul, where the group mentality culture has suppressed artistic creativity, where individual characteristics are almost absent in the mainstream pop culture, cafes are surprisingly full of characters. Taking a day for cafe crawling with my camera was well worth the time and pleasant. Each cafe I've been to, I could certainly see the efforts of the owner to make the place a comfortable and unique area for their visitors.

Another reason I love cafe strolling is that I want to open my own cafe one day. Not only that it can fulfill my love for tea and coffee. In fact this is secondary. What's more important is that a cafe has been a place for artists and intellectuals to get caffeine-stimulated imaginations and ideas, a place for everyday people to get together to talk about everyday life. The Turks like to say,"The heart doesn't yearn for coffee or a coffee house. The heart yearns for friends, coffee is the excuse." Perhaps, the dream of opening a cafe is merely an excuse for an opportunity to listen to people's stories and to walk into their lives.

I will end my blog entry with the lyrics of Stand by Sly & The Family Stone.

Stand
In the end you'll still be you
One that's done all the things you set out to do
Stand
There's a cross for you to bear
Things to go through if you're going anywhere
Stand
For the things you know are right
It s the truth that the truth makes them so uptight
Stand
All the things you want are real
You have you to complete and there is no deal
Stand
You've been sitting much too long
There's a permanent crease in your right and wrong
Stand
There's a midget standing tall
And the giant beside him about to fall
Stand
They will try to make you crawl
And they know what you're saying makes sense and all
Stand
Don't you know that you are free
Well at least in your mind if you want to be
Everybody
Stand, stand, stand

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Comments

[Kevin Jemison]

Is your dream really to open a cafe?
:) I don't recall if I mentioned it to you, but that is also my dream. I'll be opening an "English Conversation Cafe" in Nara next January or February.

[Fang in JapanLand]

One of my dreams. ^.P
Yes Kevin, it is one of my dreams. And you did mention it to me. I sure will pay you a visit by then. ^^ I'm a bit jealous though that your dream comes true so soon. haha.

[Rick Vaughn]

I remember Mo' Better Blues from 2006/2007
when I was living in Seoul, and I liked how dark and cozy it was then. It looks too bright and brittle now. But I would still love to spend all day there sipping tea or coffee, reading, and listening to good jazz. I hope they kept all the old letters and notes and drawings that people pinned to the walls.