After spending several weeks amidst geisha, high speed bullet trains, and heaping bowls of ramen, Simon and I continued our soul searching in none other than Japan’s neighbor, South Korea.

We were only in Seoul for a blink of an eye, with nothing on our itineraries except to seek out good food – and that wasn’t hard to find. No matter what night of the week it was, there was never any street with food stalls in short supply. Impromptu folding tables and chairs crowded the sidewalks and spilled onto the streets. It didn’t take long into the evening before empty green bottles of soju littered the ground while charcoal smoke filled the air along with mouthwatering scents of grilled meats.

No matter if it was bulgogi (beef barbeque), soondubu jjigae (tofu soup), pajeon (pancakes), or galbitang (short rib soup), Simon and I happily ate the spicy side dishes of kimchee and daikon along with the meals to our hearts desire.

We karaoked with locals to K-pop, Radiohead, and La Bamba – leave it to the Koreans to show you how to do it right. Their enthusiasm and drunken camaraderie whilst sharing one mic was definitely a night of shenanigans.

Our short trip was a whirlwind of sights, whether it was walking through the chilling incursion tunnels at the DMZ (demilitarized zone), chancing upon a cultural performance in the downtown city center, or window shopping it till we dropped, our stay was much too short.

I’ll leave it to the food photos to whet your appetite for a little more Seoul.