Best places to visit around CAU, Seoul
Places I spend my spare time as an exchange student in Chung-Ang University, Seoul
I was an exchange student in CAU during August, 2020 till June, 2021. In this article, I’m going to introduce some best places where you can get the best food and fulfill your must-do lists near the Uni.
Heukseok Market(흑석시장)
Heukseok Market is the nearest traditional market near Chung-Ang University(Heukseok campus), also one of my favorite places in Korea. You can get the best local food with reasonable prices and feel the Korean market vibe.
If you are a rice lover, I want to recommend 반찬/Banchan — Korean side dishes to you(especially who goes Vegan). Korean people usually eat Banchan with rice. When we visit Korean restaurants, the dishes are always served with Banchan, and you can always ask for more if you want. There are 3 Banchan shops in the market. You can usually get 3 kinds of Banchan at the price of 5000won.
As I mentioned before, students can find the best local food in the market. There are some restaurants food lovers must visit. Heugsudon(흑수돈) is one of the restaurants. Heugsudon offer customers unlimited tonkatsu at a price of 7000 won. This restaurant makes the best tteokgalbi(떡갈비), if you can’t live without meat, you must try this restaurant.
Besides Heugsudon, Korean noodle restaurant Soomok Sikdang(수목식당) and sundae gukbap restaurant Sundae Nara(순대나라) also worth a visit.
Teobangnae (터방내)
If you find it charming exploring retro places, you definitely wouldn’t miss this place. Established in 1983, Teobangnae is one of the oldest cafés in Seoul. Unlike other trendy cafés in Seoul, you can enjoy classic music in Teobangnae and get a nice little sip of retro Korean style coffee.
Nodeulseom (노들섬)
Take a walk by the Han River is one of the must-dos when you visit Seoul. Nodeulseom is a river island near CAU, you can either walk or ride a bike there. K-drama fan might recognize this place at the first sight, yes, Start-up (starring Bae Suzy, Nam Joo-Hyuk) was filmed in this Island.
Unlike the tech-hub image in the drama, Nodeul is more a cultural space with cafes, a bookstore and a live house. In the bookstore, you can enjoy exploring curated books by 15 independent publishers or bookstores. You can take this small test as soon as you enter the shop, and then you will get a paper saying where you can find books that fit you best.
The island is famous for its sunset and night view at the same time. Don’t forget to choose an afternoon, bring your picnic mat and enjoy food and the best view with friends on the island!
