Good Morning from Seoul: A Bookish Day Out

As I stepped outside my apartment, I couldn't help but feel a bit awkward. It was as if I was being watched, and to be honest, it did feel a bit weird for me. But here I was in Hapjeong, the setting sun casting a warm glow over the bustling streets. I had a friend waiting to meet up with me, and our plans were going to take us to one of Seoul's most iconic landmarks - the Mesantopolis Mall.

The mall, once a hub of activity when I was living here, now stood as a testament to time passing by. Its grandeur had faded, leaving behind a sense of abandonment that only added to its nostalgic charm. As we made our way through the empty corridors, I couldn't help but feel a pang of nostalgia wash over me. But today wasn't about reminiscing; it was about embracing my love for books and reading.

I had spent the previous night immersing myself in the first book of The Raven Cycle series by Maggie Stiefvater. It had been a wild ride, full of twists and turns that left me breathless. I shared snippets on social media, much to the delight of my followers who eagerly awaited my thoughts on the series. But this morning, I was ready to dive deeper into the world Stiefvater created. The Mesantopolis Mall, with its eclectic mix of shops and eateries, seemed like the perfect place to do so.

As we wandered through the mall, our destination was a small library where I had managed to get hold of a copy of the BTS book - The Story. It was a long read, but one that promised to reveal the untold story behind the K-pop phenomenon. With 500 pages and an array of photographs, it was clear that this wouldn't be a quick read by any means. But I was ready for the challenge.

I settled in on the subway with my book, enjoying the journey as much as the content. The book was full of fascinating details about the band's early days - from their dorm room to their rise to fame. It was like stepping into an alternate universe, one that existed just beyond our own. I loved how each chapter delved deeper into the lore behind BTS, painting a picture that was both captivating and relatable.

The book also featured long-form features on individual artists before they made it big, something that resonated deeply with me. As someone who has always been drawn to creative expression, I found this aspect of the book particularly compelling. It added a layer of depth to our understanding of BTS, highlighting the sacrifices and struggles that went into creating their music.

As I read on the subway, I couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement and wonder. This was what it meant to be a fan - not just watching from afar, but being immersed in the story itself. And as I neared my destination, I couldn't wait to share this experience with my friends.

My day had taken an unexpected turn when my friend sent me on their way to the airport. But that didn't stop me from heading out to a bookstore that caught my eye when I was visiting earlier. It was called BookshopCafe and promised a unique experience - with almost all events being held in Korean, a language not widely spoken outside of Asia.

I entered the store, and what followed was an experience unlike any other. The atmosphere inside was peaceful, almost surreal, as if time had come to stand still. It felt like I'd stumbled into a library - or rather, a book-filled sanctuary. The owner, who put on a YouTube playlist while chatting with me, suddenly stepped out for some reason and the music came to an abrupt halt. It was then that I realized how peaceful the space truly was - a silence so profound it felt almost like death.

That was my experience at BookshopCafe today, a moment I couldn't have anticipated but one that has stayed with me long after leaving its doors behind. As I return home now to make dinner, I feel grateful for this little slice of book-filled heaven and am thinking of giving a shoutout to the amazing platform I've come to love - Skillshare.

For those who don't know, Skillshare is an incredible online learning platform that offers classes in virtually every field imaginable. From cooking and knife skills to coding, UI/UX design, and even blogging - there's something for everyone. One of my personal favorites is the variety of courses available on creative topics, a section that has always held me close.

But today was not just about promoting Skillshare - it was also an opportunity to express my love for vegan cooking, a topic I've come to explore quite deeply in recent years. As someone who doesn't eat meat but does enjoy seafood and other seafood-based foods, experimenting with plant-based recipes has been incredibly fulfilling.

Speaking of which, dinner is calling! My stomach's been growling for what feels like hours now, urging me towards the kitchen where I've prepared a delicious vegan meal that promises to satisfy my cravings. And as I write these words - savoring each taste while looking out at the serene backdrop of Seoul - all I can think about is how truly fortunate I am to live in a world filled with such wonderful experiences, ones that inspire us every single day.

The pleasure of writing this piece has been immense; I hope you've enjoyed this little foray into my life as much as I have.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enGood morning everyone! Hi from Seoul. You'reoutside of my apartment - is this weird foryou? It's weird for me. I am here in Hapjeongthis morning, I'm meeting up with a friend.Crazy - I'm at the Mesantopolis Mall whichwas like the new mall when I was living hereand now it's like old and kind of abandoned.So but I'm gonna hopefully have a little bookishday. I'm gonna take you along. I, last night,video coming soon, but last night I read thefirst book of The Raven Cycle. I shared itwith you guys on Instagram...So I'm trying to hold back and not binge theseries because I'm trying to record my reactionand I can't do it when I'm out in public becauseI would be feral and so instead I justgot on hold from my library (I waited a reallylong time)...there's a dog somewhere in thismall...I waited a really long time but Igot the BTS book. the Story. So I'm gonnaread that, that's gonna be my book of the day. It's 500 pages but also there's like a lot of photosso I think it's not going tobe quite as long. I read it while I was onthe subway and I'm really enjoying it so far.I love those like you know like Rolling Stonelong features. I just love like the lore of anartist before they hit it big so I'm reallyenjoying it. Also like just a fun fact - thedorm room where they first started is very,it's in my neighborhood. It is very close tomy home so when they're talking about allof the members getting horrifically lost, tryingto find it when they first moved into thedorm I was like babe, I know I know. Anywayyeah I am excited and I'm gonna get a coffee beforeI meet up with my friends so if I don't checkin for a while, see you at a couple cafes.I will be highly caffeinated the next timewe talk :)So it just sent my friend to the airport andnow I'm heading over to this bookstore thatI saw a while ago when I was visiting, whenI was coming over here to get coffee witha friend but they're closed on Mondays andtoday's Tuesday so I'm gonna go! It is a BookshopCafe. They apparently have a lot of like bookevents almost completely in Korean - I haven'tseen a English event yet. But we're gonnacheck it out!Hi everyone I'm home! Sorry if the air conditioneris loud. What a day. That - I know I didn'tfilm a lot in there but that Booktiquebookstore/bookshop whatever, was so nice. Itwas me, one other girl, the shop owner and itwas just like - he put on like a YouTubeplaylist but then while he was, he steppedout for a second and while he was gone itturned off and it was just like a libraryin there. It was like just dead silence surroundedby - oh it was so nice. So anyway I'm homenow and I'm gonna start making dinner. I'llshow you what I'm making, hold on. LazyGirl dinner. Oh hey so while past Cari goesand makes her Lazy Girl dinner I would liketo give a shout out to the sponsor of thisvideo which is Skillshare. I have talked aboutSkillshare so often so you guys know thatI love them. Skillshare is a wonderful platformfor online learning. They have classes rangingfrom cooking and knife skills (which past Carineeds) but they have how to use Notion andChatGPT and how to do any kind of hobby/craft you could ever think of, to skills likecoding and UI/UX design and stuff like that.Truly anything you could want to learn,check out Skillshare. There will probably bea class for you. I actually, if you are interestedin making vlogs like one you are seeing rightnow, I actually have a class on Skillsharejust for beginning to blog, what do you needin terms of actual products and what doyou need in terms of the mindset you havegoing into starting a YouTube channel. Therewill be a link in the description box thefirst 1000 people to click it will get a monthfree of Skillshare access to every class onthe platform, highly recommend. I will alsolink my class down below but really thankyou as always to Skillshare and I will letyou get back to your dinner now okay? See ya!So I have an air fryer and if youneed to know one thing about me, it's thatI love a dumpling. Oh my God, I love dumplingsso much but I also don't eat meat - I do eatseafood fish and shrimp and stuff like that -but I don't eat what normally is in at leastKorean dumplings which is pork and even ifthey say like \"I'm just a kimchi dumpling\" or\"I'm just a shrimp dumpling,\" there will sometimes(with kimchi almost always) there will be porkin it. So I've been missing my dumplings andif you watch my main channel you've alreadyseen this a billion times so I'm really sorrybut bibigo made these air fryer - or like youcan make them a bunch of different ways -dumplings but they're a vegan brand or the likesub brand is called Plantable. Fake meat inKorea has not like gone over as well as ithas in other countries so I was reallynervous that this would not perform well butPlantable just expanded and they now havevegan ddeokgalbi and hamburger steaks whichlike are neither of my favorite things butI feel like that's a good sign for this adventureof bibigo. So I'm gonna make a couple of thesebut before I put them in the noisy air fryer,we have another thing to open. It's an excitingday and the air conditioner has not kickedin yet so I am toasty. Oh sick they do giveus the light bulbs. You have no idea what itis hold on. It's a candle warmer! Yeah so Ilove candles especially as autumn fast approacheshowever Kurt loves to remind me that candles,especially in a small space, we live in a studio -the smoke it's just like not the most idealsituation. So he gets a little nervous whenI burn candles and I love candles the secondit gets cooler and I have so many thatsmell so good and I want to use them withoutmaking my husband anxious so I got a, I gota candle warmer! Okay how do we actuallyplug these in? Okay just for right now I'mgoing to move the cord at some point butoh my goodness let me go get a candle! I wasactually burning this yesterday which is whatmade me think of buying one this is from boysmells. It is the it was a limited editionbut it's redhead so I had to get it and itsmells amazing. Zoom you in a little bit. Solet's see if it does anything. It is - heywhat time is it? It's 5:29pm. It's 5:29. Ohit feels warm yeah I will keep an eye on ifit's warming the books and then I might movethis. Oh my goodness it looks so cozy. It'smuch more warm in real life, it looks alittle cool on my camera. Very excited so nowlet's make some dumplings and I'll talk toyou about BTS.Hi! Slight change of clothesso that I don't get stuff on mywhite shirt. I know this is gonna be so hot.So good. Anyway. Breathing in so much steam.While I let these cool, what are my thoughtson the BTS book?I'm about 30% - I'm 160 pages in and it says it's 500 pages but a lot of it is pictures.The formatting of the Kindle version is alittle weird which is nothing, like nothingbad with the book it's just like the Kindleedition's fault. The formatting is kind offunky. But I really liked the first chapter. I thought that the amount it's - it's kindof like a (don't come for me) but it's low key aglorified Wikipedia entry but they mix ininterviews with the members. And so I thoughtthe first chapter did that really well wherethey were setting up their stories of howthe hell did all of them get to Seoul and gettogether and become trainees - like not evendebut. It was, I thought, really well done withthe amount that the members got to speak andthen the amount of just like telling it likeit is and the kind of informationthat we were given. But as it continues likechapter two and now on to chapter three isreading very much like...I can tell that thiswas combed over by Big Hit. As someone who'sread more than a few directly translatedthings from entertainment companies, it feelsvery much like 'oh this was written by an entertainmentcompany' you know? Or just like Korean musicindustry like even journalists - it's notnecessarily I'm not saying like oh this wasjust like fed, planted stuff from Big Hit butlike this is also the way that music journalistswrite. And so it just kind of felt, likeI said, kind of a glorified Wikipedia but throughthe lens of like obviously the entertainmentcompany, obviously their management you know?So I think what is doing thatis that there are less interview sections.Like when there are just parts of the bookwhere the members are allowed to talk, that'smy favorite part. I'm debating skimming tojust read their quotes because it's also likeI have been a K-pop fan since like 2006so a lot of the stuff that they're mentioningis like yeah, I know this. So I just kind ofwonder who the audience is because if I wasreading this as a fan, I know half of thisstuff. Like even as just a vague fan like someonewho - I was actually really into them probablyup until like 2017 and then I just kind oflike just me personally wasn't listening tomuch K-pop at that time. But I was therefor their, I saw their debut stage like I wasthere for the beginning and I rememberall of this stuff. There's not a whole lotof stuff that like I don't know yet. I haven'tlearned anything new that I didn't knowabout them so it's like - is it for the fans?Is it for...because I wouldn't see someone who'slike not a fan of BTS pick this up and belike yes I want to read 500 pages about BTS.I feel like it's more of just a historicaldocument. Like I feel like it's gonna be goodfor maybe brand new fans or fans that maybehave heard of BTS within the past year ortwo who like don't know the stuff that happenedbefore Run, I would say. I Need U. So yeahI'm like enjoying it but it's sort of likejust brushing up on stuff that I know andI, like I said, I'm just a casual fan. Yeah Iwould say it's like not a waste of money ortime if you are a BTS fan, like I think thatit would be something that would be nice toreturn to in the future. I think a BTSfan would like to have it on their shelf ifyou're thinking of getting it for a friendwho's a fan, whatever. But I just like I'm confusedas to who the audience is. I'm enjoyingit though, it's like I said I do enjoy readingthat kind of content that is like you knowthat they they hit it big like something happenedand I just love reading those kind of struggles.I will say that the translation isdefinitely in the style of how people translatecertain Kpop things. It's better but thereare certain sentences that I'm like 'oh thatwas directly translated from Big Hit' so Ijust I'm hoping that as it continues, becausethey have said that like the members havesaid in the book that this kind of from debutuntil most beautiful moment in life is hazyfor them because it's like it was such a struggleand just like so messy that they don't havea ton of memories from that period. So I'mhoping that now going from I Need U up untilpresent day there's gonna be more of justthe members talking - like let the members speakplease. So yeah I just want to hear from themyou know? So anyway I'm gonna eat this andI'm gonna keep reading but I will check in with you a little later when I'm done with my dumplings!Hi hello from Seoul Forestwhere I just had - I felt like a Disney princessbut I realized I don't want to be a Disneyprincess. A bird almost landed on me, a ratalmost ran over my foot.No. But anyway, I just wanted to give a littleupdate and kind of wrap this vlog up. I'mabout 50% of the way through and I can't readthis book. And that's - it's frustrating becauseit's, you know, it's not to say that like - tobe clear, BTS did not write this and like Idon't know how much of a hand, I doubt theyhad much of a hand in it other than just simplybeing interviewed for it, so this is nothingagainst BTS, nothing against Army, but likethis is a bad memoir. Like I said, I don't knowwho it's written for. It's not written - it'sreally written like a Wikipedia article arethey trying to write a memoir where perhapsthey could make some kind of have some kindof storytelling element to it, like anything!This is just like this happened, this happened,this happened, this happened, quote. This happened,this happened, this happened, this happened,quote. The translation is very literal. It feelslike when people translate tweets - you knowpeople there are like a lot of translatorswho have twitters and they will very quicklytranslate like if another if a K-pop Idoltweets they will translate that to you? It'svery literal and so it just doesn't sound...it's not interesting at all. And it's justlike a lot of \"they sold this many units andthen they sold this many units and that'stwice and that's a lot.\" I don't know, it wasjust it's so frustrating because I was excitedfor them to have a book and it's just, it'sbad. And I ended up stopping - there's a pointwhere they talk about something and they literallysay like \"this is a thing that most fans knowbecause it's such a big deal\" and then theygo on to describe it in like many many manymany many many pages before they even getto a quote from the member and it's like ifmost of the fans already know this happening,why do I need to read many pages about itthat are not interesting or funny? Like theyjust - it was so dry. Anyway maybe I'm justa little roughed up from the rat for the mousebut I'm just really disappointed in this book.And a lot of people message me and said theyfelt the same. I'm glad because I didn't want -I know a lot of you guys are Army so I didn'twant people to be upset by my review but itsounds like a lot of Army don't even likeit. So once again, begging the question - whowas this for? I have no idea. So yeah alsosomeone messaged me about - I pointed outone spelling error when they called Jin, Jim.But there were - there were a lot of grammatical errors, a lot of spelling mistakes. It was justvery very odd. Like was this rushed? Becausethe whole book is about how thoughtful everythingBTS does, everything Hybe/Big Hit does is sothoughtful and like so intentional and thisbook feels so not thoughtful and not intentional.Just kind of a vague money grab. And I justwonder, I wonder. So anyway I'm going toend the video here. Let me know your thoughtsdown below. I feel really bad but have youguys read it? What did you think? What is thepurpose of this text? But yeah I'm goingto head home and I will see you guys nexttime. I have a lot of - I have one book thatI'm reading that I'm like dying over so I'mreally excited to share that but once againthere is a link in the description box forSkillshare. First 1000 people to click it willget a month free trial of Skillshare. Highlyrecommend. Like I said, my class will alsobe linked down below but I'm very excitedto hear your thoughts. I know so many of youlove BTS (rightfully so) and I'm just perplexed.So I'll catch you later and yeah thanks asalways, bye!\n"