Incheon Station and its environs an interesting place to spend an afternoon.

I like to break my routine and try to be helpful on here every now and then.  I am sure many people already know all this, but if you don't and want to to explore a different part of the Seoul/Gyeonggi area give the Incheon Station area a visit.  I took my Korean gf there over the holiday and she's from Seoul and had never known about the area (except for that China Town hill which I had no interest in.) 

But, the area behind the China Town is where foreigners were allowed to have enclaves back in the old days, so it actually has architecture that you don't really see elsewhere in Korea nestled among the more typical squat ugly Korean buildings we all know so well.  There are the old Japanese banks.  You can pay a small fee and go inside them.  There is street of two storey brick buildings with a closed off pedestrian street that house various galleries. There is the Incheon Brewery where there is a bar of some sort to enjoy their micro brews.  They have a small shop downstairs where you can get them to go.  Bit pricey but I bought a tasty IPA. There is the Sinpo International Market which will leave you wondering why the word International is used, but was full of shoppers.  It also has a restaurant named Jacob's Pizza (maybe it was Joshua's) that does Napoli style pizza in a wood oven. It opened at four and by 4:05 all tables were full and people were standing outside waiting for people to leave. It was pretty good.  One drawback was there was only one woman working there and she had to do everything.  I hope on a non holiday weekend she has some help.  I chanced upon a place called Koala Pie.  It billed itself as an Australian/New Zealand restaurant.  But they only had pies.  I had a pulled pork one.  They were doing a brisk business but the crust was a bit too flaky for my tastes.  They also sold their own beer in cans.  It might have been made by the Chillhops Brewery in Seosan judging by the Chillhops posters on the walls.

Anyways, I first started poking around this area about five or six years ago.  It just has a different vibe and certainly a different look than the surrounding drab, typical blah Korean city neighbourhoods.  There's also Korea's answer to Coney Island, Wolmido nearby.  I walk out to Wolmido every so often to have a beer and look out at the sea.  I can get there by subway so it makes a nice change for an afternoon. 

Great read August. I love this kind of info being posted. It just adds to places that I now want go and have a wander around.
I lived in Incheon back in the early 2000s for a short time (sorting out a business) but didn't even get to have a look at China Town, I was just so busy. We always talk about going up for a couple of days to visit my wife's friends. Now I have something to check-out.

This sounds really cool. Next time I am in Seoul I'll be sure to check it out.

Yeah, I've only ever passed through there. I'll be sure to actually look around the place the next time I'm there.

I'm going there on the Sunday before my parents leave on the Monday. I already want them to be in Incheon the day before. Sleep in Unseo stn hotel and jet out the next day. 

Incheon Airport Station and its environs are an interesting place to wake up to when getting on the last airport express train from Seoul Station or wherever to Hongdae/DMC.

Quite the Korean culture experience--beer, pizza and meat pies.

Quite the Korean culture experience--beer, pizza and meat pies.

I don't know where you came up with "Korean culture experience" tag, but if anyone said it was a solely Korean cultural experience, they were mistaken.  But, it is an interesting area in Korea.  If you are coming to visit Korea and you want a solely Korean experience just take the subway one stop and you'll be amongst apartments and regular Korean neighbourhoods.  No problem. 

I'm going there on the Sunday before my parents leave on the Monday. I already want them to be in Incheon the day before. Sleep in Unseo stn hotel and jet out the next day.

Your parents enjoying the trip and the nice temperatures over the long weekend?  They left warmer weather behind, unfortunately. 

I used to always stay at an Unseo Stn. hotel back when an airport bus was not a short walk from my door, and before the Songdo bridge to the airport was built.  There used to be much worse traffic getting to the airport so getting a room in Unseo and having a few beers at a corner mart was a relaxing evening before a flight. 

I don't know where you came up with "Korean culture experience" tag, but if anyone said it was a solely Korean cultural experience, they were mistaken.  But, it is an interesting area in Korea.  If you are coming to visit Korea and you want a solely Korean experience just take the subway one stop and you'll be amongst apartments and regular Korean neighbourhoods.  No problem. 

But what makes it interesting to you has nothing to do with Korea. It would be more accurate IMO to say interesting place to eat foreign foods and drink beer.

Geez, you don't usually get around here to until after 11.00 pm our time. Shit the bed or something?

Geez, you don't usually get around here to until after 11.00 pm our time. Shit the bed or something?

 

Geez, you don't usually get around here to until after 11.00 pm our time. Shit the bed or something?

Your mother woke me up.

But what makes it interesting to you has nothing to do with Korea. It would be more accurate IMO to say interesting place to eat foreign foods and drink beer.

Who said what makes it interesting to me has to follow certain criteria?  I get it it, you’re generally someone who just comes on here to whine and nitpick, but I described it exactly as wanted to. I couldn’t care less how you feel the place should be described. I don’t have an agenda when I go out roaming the Seoul/Gyeonngi area.

Your mother woke me up.

There's a word for that, and I'm pretty sure it's illegal where you live. 

I know I promised Solvent that I would mend my ways, but tell us more about this Korean "gf" (gas fire, I assume).