Got through restoration for about 14 years, Ihwa Mural Village has been one of shining tourist destinations in Seoul since it finished in 2010. It attracts both local and non-local tourist to come and mostly enjoy the scattered murals which were painted on the wall of residents’ houses.
As someone who lately has her sense of art showed more (ignore this, this is an hallow bragging though), I also became one of those tourists who flocked and enjoyed all of those murals. I wrote before that I only had the destination’s name in my mind; I had no specific idea about the area. So it also happened to Ihwa Mural Village, I only got the general issue about its attractive murals, but anything else. I was too lazy to search the information more (seriously Yuna, in this free information and very easy access?). 😀 😀
So, here the list of things I did there, that I figured out later when I was roaming around, and in the future I probably do it all again while visiting Ihwa Mural Village which lies at the southern slope of Naksan (Nakta Mountain).
- Play hide-and-seek with the scattered murals
Sure, this is the main reason for me going there. Since I didn’t bring any area’s map and didn’t even bother to find one, it felt like I was playing hide-and-seek. It was also resulted the same surprise and content feelings as I played hide-and-seek while I was young, every time I discovered the mural, one by one.
- Bring out my wildest imagination and my inner-Naomi-Campbell
I did it that time and I will always do this one. While visiting ‘instagramable’ area like Ihwa Mural Village, one of the best things to do is, bring out our best imagination and also our inner-Naomi-Campbell at the time we see our favorite murals, and then bring out our best poses, as though it was our photo session. Forget the long queue behind us because all of them would do the same thing. 😀 😀 ❤ Please feel free to call me ‘Shameless Yuna’.
- Get my pictured taken at various famous Drama’s shooting location (Yeah)
Actually I didn’t do it. However I saw so many couples did it, and most of them re-acted the action from that famous drama. Some dramas I did notice, but some other dramas I didn’t, but I could guess it kind of famous one. Just looking what was the most popular pose people do, it would give me a clue. 😀 😀 Some people and couple did it a little different by giving their own poses.
P.S.
I might do the same if I had partner though. *can you smell any jealousy here?* kekekekeke.
- Get myself drawn by an artist (may be next time)
This too, I didn’t do that time, maybe next chance. There were plenty of artists there. I think this one nice choice especially when we get tired of digital type pictures. 😀 😀 It helps the artists shaping up theirs drawing skill anyway.
- Enjoying any drinks and meals
There are plenty choices of drink, snacks, and meals at Ihwa Mural Village. And guess what? I didn’t even have any idea about this before. So that was why, before going there, I bought two litter bottle of water and plenty of snacks with me, in case I got thirsty and hungry. Later, when I arrived on the spot, I was dumbfounded by seeing so many of food stalls and bar which were nicely design. *Don’t be like Yuna*
- Rent Korean Oldschool’s uniform (ehm, I just suggested this, but I don’t think I would do it) 😀 😀
I can only suggest doing this because I didn’t do it and I don’t think I’m going to do it. This also made a kind of amazement for me. I saw so many young people in group or couple, were using Korean vintage uniform all over Ihwa Mural Village. At first, I thought it was a school’s activity, but it was weekend. So, to feed my curiosity, I asked one of the groups and later found out that they were cosplaying. The uniforms were rented somewhere in Ihwa Mural Village. All of them rented it for having fun and of course for their own photo-season. Great!
- Breath the fresh air while enjoying Seoul’s cityscape at the tops of Naksan
My most favorite part. I hiked up to the tops of Ihwa Mural Village and enjoyed the striking Seoul’s cityscape from every possible angle, which brought contentment for me. I especially like it when the spring’s breeze of Seoul touched my cheeks and its fresh air greeted my lungs. That was pleasing.
Those 7 things I did and I suggest doing while visiting attractive Ihwa Mural Village. I do recommend #2 and #7.
Little Orange World 
Seru bgt ya jadi kayak nyari2 mural yg kece gitu
Iyah mba Non, sambil main-main, berusaha mengabaikan para pasangan yang bikin mupeng. #eaaaacurcol. Maap.
Aku nggak kesini kemaren T_T .
Ahhh, mau dibilang sayang gimna yah Ti, yang penting tujuan utama tercapaikan? *belom dengar ceritamu dari Korea kayanya* atau aku terlewat?
belom …ini si lappie baru baik ..3 minggu sakitnya 😦
Lama yah sakitnya si Lappie, untung aja udah sembuh, penasaran berbagi cerita. Ini juga tumben2an aku rajin nulis setelah balik travel. Banyak kisaah. *tangan gatel apa daya gak enak ama tetangga meja kantor kalo liat gw bolak balik ngetik dan liat2 poto liburan* 😀
me too . My cubicle had cctv spot on my desk , (gegara baru pindah dekat pintu masuk ) so …errr…yeah. gotta update at home. 🙂
Ah, my friends eyes work much better than CCTV though. 😀 😀
I’ve heard they erased the murals on the staircases?
Yes, they did, I’ve also heard that it would be replaced with new murals, however those were two most famous murals; fishes and flowers. T__T
I’m not sure about the replacement, though. hehe
😥
Another issue was, the residents felt a little bit bothered by the noisy sound of visitors. Make sense.
Yup. That’s it!