Joseph Giordono / S&S
The COEX Mall features seemingly dozens of food courts, all with different themes.
Joseph Giordono / S&S The mall, particularly the aptly-named MegaBox Cineplex, is a mecca for young South Koreans in Seoul.
Joseph Giordono / S&S The entrance to the aquarium is supposed to convey flight — you’re off to see the seven seas, hence the fake pictures of airplanes on windows in the corridor.
Joseph Giordono / S&S The biggest draw at the COEX Aquarium is the shark tank. The giant tank houses scores of sharks, some up to 10 feet long.
Joseph Giordono / S&S The mall has a little bit of everything — including a local fine arts display hanging under a giant coconut-like lighting fixture.
SEOUL — Fendi, or fish? DKNY, or dinosaurs?
Luckily, there’s no need to decide between upscale consumerism and lowbrow, pseudo-educational romps in Seoul. You can have it all at the same time.
Sprawling over the better part of a city block in the Kangnam ward of Seoul, the COEX Mall — a creative shortening of the name “Convention and Exhibition Center” — is a bright, glittering, climate-controlled amalgam of South Korea’s consumer culture and a few traditional Western tourist traps.
It’s also a great place to while away a Sunday afternoon. If you’re a shopper, you can hit everything from an official Apple computer and iPod outlet to a Karl Kani boutique. (Sure, the prices will be higher than in Itaewon, but at least you can be sure it’s authentic).
And while shoppers are browsing though the hundreds of stores, the rest of the group can hit the aquarium, an animatronic Jurassic Park exhibit running through April 1, or the Sejoong Game World, where you can play dozens of the latest computer games for free.
If neither of those agendas sound appealing, simply bask in the garish, unrepentant glare of neon and plastic.
The COEX Mall is a perfect example of the writer Pico Iyer’s first rule for travelers: “Everything is interesting if you look at it with the right eyes.”
On a recent weekend afternoon, COEX was filled with young South Koreans, who regard the place as something of a youth culture Mecca. In addition to the fashionable shops, another draw for the young crowd is the huge Megabox Cineplex within the mall. Several screens show both South Korea and English-language films, including the latest Hollywood blockbusters.
The mall is seemingly overrun with food options — everything from several McDonald’s outlets to Korean, Japanese and Italian food, a Bennigan’s chain and something called Jug Jug Beer.
Jug Jug Beer tempts customers with a large banner out front touting its “Healthy Menu” options: Jug Jug Pizza, chicken wings and fried cheese sticks, among others.
By following the directional signs, you can end up at the COEX Aquarium, hands down the best aquarium inside a giant, partially-underground shopping mall in Seoul. Boasting 2,500 tons of water displays containing more than 40,000 different examples of marine life, the aquarium is organized by a Seven Seas theme.
For some reason, the Seven Seas includes a tropical rain forest — which is just as humid as the real thing — and an Inca Empire exhibit that seemed empty save for one faux cave with about a dozen sleeping bats, hanging upside down.
If you didn’t eat before entering the aquarium and the exhibits spark your appetite, no worries. About halfway through, you can hit Deep Blue, a seafood restaurant with tables that face a 2,000 ton shark and fish tank that is the aquarium’s centerpiece display.
Inside, a Seoul man who said his name was Scott summed it up: “I’m taking my kids through here while my wife and her sister shop. It’s a good way to pass the afternoon when it’s so cold out.”
Admission to the aquarium is 14,500 won (about $12) for adults; 12,000 won ($10) for students; and 9,500 won ($8) for kids younger than 12.
Once back in the mall, check out the Bandi & Luni bookstore, which offers a large selection of decently priced English-language books. Nearby is an exhibit of fine art from local painters; for some reason, the paintings are displayed under giant, coconut- shaped, green neon light fixtures.
To be honest, I never even made it to check out the dinosaurs. By the time I’d walked through the aquarium and got lost in the sprawling corridors of shops and restaurants, I’d had enough. I didn’t even get downstairs to see the Kimchi Field Museum. Instead, every walkway seemed to end in a massive food court, indistinguishable from the last even though its “theme” was different.
The theme of COEX seems clear: bring your wallet and bring your sense of bemusement. You’ll be dipping heavily into both, and enjoying every minute.
If you go ...
Getting there:
By subway: From Yongsan Garrison, take Line 6 to Yaksu and transfer to Line 3. At Seoul National University of Education, transfer to Line 2 and get off at Samsung Station, using exit 5 or 6. The trip costs 700 won (about 60 cents) each way.
By car: Unless you want to fight traffic, get lost and then pay for parking, driving there is not recommended. Though, there are two large underground parking garages.
This article is provided courtesy of Stars & Stripes, which got its start as a newspaper for Union troops during the Civil War, and has been published continuously since 1942 in Europe and 1945 in the Pacific. Stripes reporters have been in the field with American soldiers, sailors and airmen in World War II, Korea, the Cold War, Vietnam, the Gulf War, Bosnia and Kosovo, and are now on assignment in the Middle East. Stars & Stripes Website
