Songtan style Part I... of many

The town right outside the gates of the air base, Songtan,  has been through so many changes since my husband was here the first time in 2002. I was here to visit a few times back then and I can personally attest to it. The main drag was full of bars, strip clubs, massage parlors, street vendors, tailors, blanket shops, and purse shops. Much of that remains today but there is a slow emergence of cute little shops and restaurants that are reassurance that things are changing.

First, a little bit of the strange and unchanged.


Do women really wear these?!




These are some of the creepiest masks I have ever seen!

 

This cute little guy has an orange tail! I also saw a poodle with pink ears but missed that photo op.

Very clever. Get a tattoo and a movie at the same time! Why haven't they thought of this in the US?!

 
Now... on to the "change" I was telling you about!




This is a great little coffee shop with good desserts. It's a nice quiet place to go with a friend or your honey. (Mine is not even remotely interested, but maybe you could talk yours into it.)



There are now quite a few of these little boutiques popping up all over. The shops are super small but the owners make a fantastic effort with merchandising and utilizing the space. We could learn something here!




I love this little pottery shop. And she's doing classes now! How cool is that?!


Songtan also has an amazing array of restaurants (good ones) to choose from. There are any number of Korean restaurants, a fantastic sushi place, three Brazilian steakhouses, a Vietnamese noodle house, awesome Thai, Chinese, Peruvian, Mexican, Phillipino, Turkish kebabs, Greek, and Italian. I'm sure I'm missing something.

Koreans are incredibly innovative and have the ability to change and adapt very quickly. I really admire that about them. This place will be unrecognizable in ten years. I'm sure of it!

Until next time,
Lisa