My favorite site in Seoul so far is definitely the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP). The building just opened in March so it is brand spanking new. My minor is going to be in Multi-Disciplinary Design. Seeing this building gets my designing nerd out. The building is enormous with smooth curves and many pathways to explore its beauty. The DDP houses exhibitions, Design Lab, Design Market, museum, shops, and galleries. It has everything for everyone who loves art and design.
So far I’ve gone to two exhibitions: Inspiring Journey and My Love From Another Star. Inspiring Journey is an artsy fartsy exhibition with lots of photo opportunities. The exhibition big installations of layers of colored fabric put together to create amazing shapes. There were also little activities for guests to participate in like making your own “seed” sticker and tag. This exhibition thoroughly stimulated my eyeballs and creative thinking. My Love from Another Star exhibition is for those die hard Korean drama fans. My Love from Another Star is the newest Korean drama hit in Korea and internationally. I see the main leads plastered on every shop in Seoul. They advertise everything from clothing to beer to bakeries. Anyways back to the exhibition. It was pretty much the sets from the drama rebuilt at the DDP. It was cool to see but I wasn’t as excited as my friend who almost fainted at the sight of each set.
The area surrounding DDP is full of malls, shopping, and a few landmarks. About a 5 minute walk from the building there is the Dongdaemun Gate. In Seoul there is four main gates that protected the city during the imperial dynasty. If you walk about 30 minutes you can reach the heart of Seoul where Cheonggyecheon and Gwanghwamun Plaza. I’ll save those two attractions for another day though.