Kangnam-ku

Kangnam-ku is considered the Beverly Hills of Korea. The McDonald’s of Hotelier is here as well as one of the pub filmed in WLS. It has his favourite restaurants. But most important of all, BOF is in Kangnam-ku!

McDonald’s
This McDonald’s is along the main road of Tosandaero (도산 대로) and a short distance from Hard Rock Cafe. This is a rather big McDonald’s consisting of 2 levels.
When BYJ and SYA went out on an outing, they were caught in a jam because of the rain. BYJ suggested having dinner, thinking that he could spend a nice romantic dinner with the woman that he likes. Instead, she brought him to McDonald’s. How original! I wish I had remembered then exactly which seat he was sitting at in the drama then.

According to the experts at Hotelier2002, they sat downstairs, near the left hand side (if you are facing McDonald’s), near the staircase.

To get to McDonald’s, take Subway Line 3 to Apkujeong Station, use Exit 2, take bus no. 12-3 or 710, alight at Galleria Departmental Store, walk about 15 mins towards Hard Rock Café or take a taxi from the subway station towards Hard Rock Café. Alternatively, if you are coming from BOF, you can take a cab from there, it will cost you about 2,000 won or less. (to see the photos, go to http://www.joonsfamily.com/index.php?name=...ewtopic&t=1869)

Axis
We did not go to this bar this time round but a small group of us did go last year. It was one of the filming scene for WLS where he had drinks here with his manager in a few scenes. It’s a very classy place and a pianist performs there. Outside the pub, you will see a small pic of the WLS being displayed. I’m not sure if this has changed, but you can check it out if you are going to Kangnam-ku.

Again, it’s rather difficult to get to this pub by subway. The address is 서울, 서초4동, 1316-28. T: 599 8191

BOF
Ahhh….the office of BOF. It’s like a pilgrimage for BYJ fans. But like all pilgrimages, it’s not the easiest place to find. I suspect this was done on purpose (hahaha!). Not that it has worked, from what his managers tell us. Many of his fans go there daily, of course, all hoping to bump into him. Unfortunately, he does not go to the office often (no doubt to avoid the group of hysterical fans like us) So if you do meet him, then it is really like winning the lottery.

When we spotted the red letterbox and the distinctive bright yellow umbrellas, we felt as if we have found the greatest treasure on earth- we were so excited. The feel of the office, even from outside is really cozy. It’s really very different from the rest of the buildings around it.

The parking lot is filled with gravel and there is a bit of garden at the edges of this small little parking space. (Wouldn’t it be nice if we could spot BYJ’s car being parked here? OK, I was dreaming)

The office building isn’t big and just outside the office, there is a long wooden table, with chairs- very resort like. There are blinds surrounding this spot. For shade against the sun as well as against prying eyes. Good for relaxing or having a meeting, unless a whole horde of fans like us appear. Hehehe! And the bright yellow umbrellas on the top balcony looked really inviting. I can imagine BYJ and the staff of BOF sitting under these umbrellas, having a cup of coffee or tea. But according to the managers, they do not have this luxury call time. : (

Fans are not allowed inside the office. This is understandable as the staff of BOF do have to work. So we content ourselves taking photos with practically everything that is outside the office. Next to BOF signage, the red letter box, on the wooden chairs outside the office, in the carpark…. Hahaha! And whilst we were there, 3 Japanese fans showed up as well.

We all wish we could work in BOF. We even volunteered our help- as tea lady, cleaner, receptionist, filing clerk, washing their cars (one of the cars parked there do looked as if it needed a good clean). Unfortunately, they were all declined politely. Sigh!

BOF is not near any sub station and we find that it is easiest to take a cab there. From Myeongdong, without traffic jam, it costs about 6,000 won. However, if you are on a budget tour, you can take the subway to Gangnam-gu Office Station and transfer to a taxi. Tell the taxi driver to take you to Nonhyeon-dong, Nanuri Hospital (넌 현 동, 나누리병윈). You must be wondering why a hospital.

As the office is inside a small lane, the biggest landmark is actually the hospital (나누리병윈or Nanuri Hospital) along the main road. And please remember to take down the map in both English as well as Korean. The taxi drivers will not understand the roads in English. If you alight just outside the hospital, take a little walk further up, turn right into the next smaller road/ lane. Walk all the way down and then turn left. You will see the back of BOF. Alternatively, you can walk a little further up, till you reach the next road on your right. Turn into it and walk down till just after the Japanese restaurant (sorry, can’t remember the name), then turn right into the small lane. You will see the front of BOF. You can’t miss it. For a more comprehensible direction, please refer BOF’s website as it has a better map location than the one on the OB.

http://www.bofkorea.com/

Look under About BOF- Locations

(For pictures on BOF, go to http://www.joonsfamily.com/index.php?name=...ewtopic&t=1865)

Meeting up with other sisters
One highlight of this trip was meeting up with the Korean fans. Togeter with the reps from HK, Thailand and Taiwan. They had especially arranged a small gathering just to meet up with the overseas fans like us. It was good to meet and see for myself how Twinmom, Heejin and Style look like. We spent some time just chatting with each other and exchanging things. There were of course other fans but I’m afraid with my bad memory, I could not remember all of them. A thousand apologies.

It does make me think though, if BYJ ever holds a MTF in Korea, it will be an exciting, because it will truly be international.

Side note- I watched the TV faithfully every night for 8 nights in a row, hoping to catch his CF. I saw practically everyone except his!!! LBH, Won Bin, Park Shin Yang, Kim Ha Neul, Kwon Sang Woo but no BYJ!!!!! : (

Of course, not everything about the trip is about BYJ. We went and explore on our own on other sights and sounds.

Hopefully all of you will not be too bored. If you are, please speak now before I continue...hehehe

Please....Tiffany....don't stop!!! I'm enjoying the "details" of the trip so much...promise...continue ...ok?! :wink:

wow ! very interesting description... don't stop... nobody can do a better job than u, i wud hv forgotten all those turning right / turning left ha.. ha.. ha.. will try my luck this Nov if i am there, will keep u posted if i accidentally strike the "lottery"

cheers !!!!

tnx for the picturesque description of Kangnam-Ku here. It seems to be an interesting site to visit!

not bored not bored not bored!
pray do write and post some more!
thanks for sharing!

though i've been to korea twice,
but there are quite a number of shooting sites i havent been,
so it's great reading about your trip.

hope to go there once every year!