[food + life] Craving Sunshine (and bingsu)

It's happened. Spring is pretty much gone.

In a blink of an eye, summer has shown up and plans to stay a while. The great thing about this is that there's sunshine all. the. time. Which I love. The days are longer, my sunglasses have a semi-permanent spot in my purse, and my skin will finally get some of the vitamin D it craves... the problem is, most days I'm stuck here:

Weekdays are the worst. While I love my job, having the floor to ceiling windows and seeing everyone outside... just makes productivity go out the window (ha - see what I did there?)

Most days I get out of work and by the time I get home it's dark outside... so I hole up in my room and do some more work while munching. (Side note: I found out I make a mad good batch of rosemary butter popcorn... recipe to come later)

Fortunately, weekends have pretty much been spent outdoors, soaking up whatever sunlight I possibly can. Last weekend, I took a trip to Insadong - a part of Seoul where tradition takes firm root. The whole area prides itself in handmade jewelry, traditional clothing, and everything oh-so-Korean. I should've taken more pictures, but for example - Starbucks is not advertised as Starbucks Coffee but "스타벅스커피" and all the commercial franchises have their names written out in the Korean alphabet. I love that!

My friend Katy and I made our way to Balwoo Kong for some temple food (read about my first trip to Balwoo here) and then to Tea Oreum for some Bingsu! I absolutely LOVE bingsu and am so glad that it's the season for it, and that it's everywhere. Of course, I've had bingsu in the winter before, but now at least I won't be judged for it.

Bingsu and coffee make a wonderful pairing.

Then we made our ways through Ssamzi-gil, another location I love to visit. Basically an outdoor market with handmade jewelry and knick knacks. I love that stuff here is different from anywhere else in Korea - it's all so... homey.

To head to Insadong and the lovely traditional area, head to Jongak Station (line 1) or Anguk Station (line 6). Walk around, grab a bite to eat, and enjoy down-home Korea. And get some sun, too! xoxo.