In seoul for two days transitting to toronto

I%26#39;m getting into Seoul from Ho Chi Minh on saturday (26th july), and then leaving monday or tuesday for toronto. I decided since im transitng i might aswell spend a day or two and see the city. I%26#39;ve read some other posts and gathered some info, but had some more questions...

1-is there a particular ';downtown'; area in seoul, where i can just walk around, have coffee, lunch, dinner, shop, drink, clubs, entertainment, etc. If there is, i%26#39;d like to stay in this area as i know i dont have much time to see too many places and just want to take in the atmosphere and culture. What are good hotels in this area, or waht is this area called, so i can do an expedia search for hotels. would this be a good place to stay with lots of activity or should i consider something else. i%26#39;m 27 btw, so it woudl also help if there are hotels or particular aplces where people more my age hang out, etc. i want to have a productive two days btw.

2-i thought alot of foreigners went to seoul, but comparing the activity on the south korea forums to vietnam or thailand etc it seems theres not too many. will i have problems with menus, communicating with people, taxis, etc? I%26#39;ve spent alot of time in vietnam and have spent time in thailand and malaysia so i%26#39;m used to the language barrier, but it helps to be in a place where they see enough tourists to atleast be somewhat friendly, have menus in english, etc.

3-what are some good shopping areas in seoul?

4-where is the nightlife/bars/clubs in seoul? any particular destinations?

5-anything else anyone can suggest that i can do in 2 days. places to see, things to do?

also if theres any other lone travellers that might want to have a drink or two to occupy some time it would be great to meet up.

In seoul for two days transitting to toronto

Seoul is really huge city and there are several downtown areas with lots of shopping, eating and clubbing. Good news is Seoul has very excellent subway system with English signs, so you can go about several areas quite easily! You can get subway map at Inchon airport or hotel lobbies.

I stayed at Best Western Premier Kukdo, which has excellent tranporttion. The airport suttle bus stops right in front and very close to subway station. Although the area around the hotel isn%26#39;t that lively, but it%26#39;s close to major shopping and downtown areas such as Myungdong, which has many shops and restaurants, Namdaemoon market, a bigger version of Saigon market and Insadong where there are many traditional Korean arts and crafts stores, galleries and awesome restaurants. On weekends, there are some street performances and demonstrations. The hotel is also close wakling distance to Chung Gae Chun, revived riverwalk area where you can enjoy nice stroll or stop by at Gwang Jang Market where you can get pizza sized mung bean pancake for 5000 won (as of march 2008).

For shopping, definitely head to Dongdaemoon market which stays open all night long. You can get many fashion items there. I personally found many clothes are smaller size and bit too shiny. Koreans seem just love cubics. But I bought really excellent herb teas and souveniors at Insadong area.

As per clubbing, definitely check out Hongdae area where there lots of clubs of many genres, indi rock band, electronic, hip hop and so on.

Areas that I mentioned are within 20 mins of subway ride.

In seoul for two days transitting to toronto

I was told the gangnam area is pretty nice, its across the river, and is the second downtown of seoul. should i be looking at this as an option? also how far is this from the main dwontown of seoul by subway?

Gangnam (south of Han river) is more modern and bustling downtown, with more upscale and glitzy shops and restaurants. It is however more expensive and doesn%26#39;t have much of real Korean feel than Gangbook (North of River). Rodeo Drive near Apgujung station(subway line 3)is worth check it out. Chungdamdong area is very nice with lots of upscale clubs, again be prepared to spend more money here. Samsung COEX mall, right next to Samsung station is really great American style mall, but with korean food courts.

Although I haven%26#39;t been there, but I heard Itaewon area has most foreigners-friendly bars, clubs, restaurants and shops.

I am not sure what is your preference, but since I stayed both Gangnam and Gangbook area, I prefer Gangbook cause more down to earth and cheaper. As I mentioned earlier you can get to both ares easily via subways, which is so modern and clean that I was depressed to ride dirty and old subways of NY after my trip to Korea.