Min engelska räcker egentligen inte till att beskriva Hongdae men jag gör ett litet försök!
English:
My former classmate (now living in Korea) told me about his friend who recently opened a guesthouse in the Hongik area of Seoul. It’s located about 10 minutes by foot from Hongdae subway station (line 3) where the airport buses stop. Hongdae area is named for its university and is clustered with small, unique shops, karaokerooms, BBQ-restaurants and clubs. If Kangnam is an upscale version of Stockholm’s Östermalm, then Hongdae would be kinda like Sofo. I don’t claim to be an expert in partying but Hongdae is a great place for fun! If you go there after 7 PM, you won’t want to leave. And you won’t need to either!
Back to the guesthouse. The owner apparently has a car and can come for pick-up at the subway station free of charge, which is great for us jetlagged travellers usually carrying a 20kg bag! Not having to argue with (only) Korean-speaking taxi drivers, or dragging those bags in 90% humidity +30 degrees heat? Seriously, that’s a service I could pay hundreds of SEK for (you won’t until you’ve been in that situation).
I haven’t personally been to the guesthouse. BUT if the pictures are somewhat realistic, and from my friend’s description, it seems like a great place. Very much like my Korean family’s apartment(s). It’s actually the owner’s apartment re-made (re-built?) into a guesthouse with room for 1-10 people. If you’re lucky enough to be the only guest, I think it would be quite like a homestay.
