We had been using a travel guide by DK called Seoul's Top 10 and it mentioned all of the markets inside. What it failed to do, however, was truly communicate the differences in the markets. Sure, it mentioned things you could do or eat specifically at each place, but it couldn't really give you the "feeling" of each market. Descriptions were rather bland. You had to experience the markets in person to truly grasp the concept of the book. After visiting the markets, the brief written descriptions made a whole lot more sense. My prior limited exposure to markets were in Madison, WI around the capitol building and in Croatia in Zagreb and Pozega. I'm not sure what prior experience Teppy had with them. I will set the record straight right here and let you know that THOSE MARKETS AIN'T GOT NOTHING ON KOREAN MARKETS!
This post will be all about the Namdaemun Market. We had so much fun at this market that we actually went back a 2nd time to do more shopping AND Teppy bought an extra suitcase here so she could transport all of her market items home! This place is the queen mother of souvenir shopping. Out of the 3 markets, I guess I would call it the smallest. If I have to recall 5 things that this market sold plenty of, I would say it was these 5 things: t-shirts, purses/bags/luggage, eyeglass wear, hats, and mens/women's/children's clothing. Granted, it sold EVERYTHING under the sun too, but I saw more than 1 vendor selling those 5 items.
Our first purchase was a set of gigantic Minnie Mouse bows. They were only 1000 won ($1 USD). From that moment on, we were hooked! When we figured out we could negotiate, things got really fun. Not every vendor would negotiate, but when they did, we always walked away with a mental fist pump. I negotiated several items, but my biggest win was a 10 count set of stainless steel Korean spoons with long handles. I love these spoons and wanted to have 10 of them so I could have them in my silverware drawer back at home to use for things like eating cereal and icecream. The problem was, they were kind of expensive. Everybody had a pricetag on them like 20 bucks for 10 spoons. After negotiating unsuccesfully at several spoon vendors, I finally hit the jackpot and got a 10 set of spoons for 7 bucks! When the guy told me how much and I shook my head no, I thought we were done again. He waited a moment and asked me how much I was willing to pay. I told him 7000 won. He shook his head no. I hung around on purpose (I learned this trick in Venice when Vlad told me how to negotiate with the Roma/Gypsies) because I knew he'd come back at me. Finally, about a minute later, he said ok and bagged up the 20 dollar spoons for 7! Woohoo! Victory! Teppy was also able to score a Coach replica backpack for 35 bucks after some careful negotiation which began at 45 bucks. It was fun to haggle with people. We found that haggling was most effective with the suitcase/bag people, but like I said, we were able to negotiate with the spoons too. It just depended on the person.
We went to town at Namdaemun. We got socks, tshirts, a suitcase, Korean trinket souvenirs, a vest for photography, hats, kpop trinkets, jewelry, food, a parasol, purses, satchels, and lots more. We bought so much and saw so much! At one point, we noticed a male vendor wearing a bra on his head and another bra on his chest standing on a mound of clothing. There were women on their knees picking through the mound. It was like a shark feeding frenzy. He saw that I had my camera and called me over. He asked me to pose for a picture with him, so I gave Teppy the camera and the results are below. He kept telling us that he liked America! He was a crazy little bastard that we probably should have avoided, but it sure makes for a good story...and for great photos!
The food we bought was soooooo good too! There were food vendors all over the market, all making things fresh while you stood there. It was all extremely affordable and you could definitely feed yourself for under $5.00. We did!
While all 3 of the markets had food vendors, I would have to say that this market had the LEAST amount of food vendors compared to the others. I could be wrong, but, since it is the smallest of the 3, I believe that to be the case and it certainly seemed that way.
Our final take on Namdaemun Market? Bring cash and a big bag (possibly 2) when you visit. You will not leave empty handed. And, if you can find the creepy guy with a bra on his head, be sure to get a photo with him!