Thus goes the first line of that hit song “Gangnam Style” and the phenomenal dance craze performed by the South Korean rapper, singer, and songwriter Park Jae-sang, better known as PSY, which affirmed the bombastic entry of K-pop into the consciousness of the world.
The music video of the song became the first YouTube video to reach one billion views and was the most-watched for nearly five years.
It was no surprise then that on this latest Seoul visit, I made it a point to know more about Gangnam. When translated to English, the word means “south of the Han River” and refers to a wealthy district in Seoul, which has luxury condominiums, fine dining restaurants, and boutiques that blend opulent fashion, avant-garde culture, and refined taste.
The many events held in this part of town feature the exuberant spirit of youth—dancing, singing, and performing with twinkle-eyed enthusiasm—serving as the catalyst for Gangnam’s pivotal role in the birth of K-pop.
Every autumn, the district hosts the very popular Gangnam Festival, which includes a Fashion Fiesta, open-air concerts, gourmet tours, street performances, and a separate show featuring up-and-coming K-pop stars. It is actually more than just a festival—it’s a sensory journey bannering the essence of contemporary Korea.
I was pleased to stay in a hotel right in the middle of Gangnam District. It was easy for me to take a stroll in all directions, enjoying its many attractions, although the minus-15-degree weather was quite a challenge to handle. Totally bundled up from head to foot, I managed to visit and see the city’s tribute to PSY—an outdoor giant golden replica of the signature cross-hands in the Gangnam-style dance, as shown on this page.
The many high-end establishments in the Gangnam district have also proven to be “telegenic.” When I had a drink at the Alvin Avenue Lounge Bar, I found out that the exact spot where I was seated was once occupied by the star of the very popular Korean comic-drama Melo Is My Nature in one of its episodes.
When I had dinner with my friends at the nearby Wolfgang’s Steakhouse, in the course of our sumptuous meal, the maître d’ started a small conversation with us and told us that the table we occupied was the same one used by the stars of the Korean hit drama Crash Landing on You in its opening episode. Of course, we immediately saved the occasion with a photo-op.
My friends and I were fortunate that the expo we participated in was held in a venue (COEX) attached to the humongous Starfield Mall, which houses 320 stores. Of course, a foreign trip is never complete without shopping, so you can easily guess how we spent our evening hours.
The Instagrammable Byulmadang Library has bookshelves 13 meters high. It has a collection of 50,000 volumes covering a range of topics such as liberal arts, economics, special interests, and utilities. There are sections for foreign editions and e-books for iPads. Its Magazines Section has 600 different foreign and domestic periodicals. It even has thousands of children’s books, much to the delight of parents who leave their children in the library while they go around the mall shopping. Looking at the library’s façade, I wondered how I could get to see the books on its topmost shelves.
I was also very pleasantly surprised to see a Pan Am store. My first job straight out of college was at Pan Am, once the biggest airline in the world. It had a branch in Cebu City, and there were only two of us—my manager and myself—so I had to be a multi-tasker, handling reservations, ticketing, accounting, and marketing. Thanks to this challenging start to my career, I learned so many things in such a short period of time, which I now credit as the best training anybody in the travel industry could get.
Unfortunately, Pan Am ceased operations in 1991. The store in Starfield Mall was no longer an airline office but one selling Pan Am-branded fashion apparel, accessories, and travel-related merchandise. It was such a nostalgic moment browsing around the store, as it reminded me of the golden days of the travel industry, when everything was much simpler, easier, and cheaper.
There are many other attractions in Gangnam that visitors can entertain themselves with. No wonder this district in Seoul is named the center of the Korean Wave. As PSY delightfully declares, “Oppan Gangnam Seutail.”
For feedback, I’m at bobzozobrado@gmail.com