Itaewon vs Khoa San Road

originally posted on 9/20/07

First off, I'm aware of the insanely small audience that could be interested in this. but, I want to talk about Khao San Road vs Itaewon. I know that few people that might actually read this have been to either location, nonetheless both, but it is a fair point to raise. Basically, it's been said by many that they are quite common. I say they aren't.

Itaewon is the foreigner (ie, non-Korean) ghetto in Seoul, and KSR is the foreigner/backpacker center in Bangkok. Both locations have lots of non-Asians in the central area of a major Asian city. Not shockingly, both have a McDonald's and a Subway. Both sell tons of knockoff items. If you want pirate DVDs or fake Oakleys (and you know I do), you could do worse than either of these areas. Also, you aren't going to have much trouble finding a beer in either place.

The primary difference, of course, is that everyone, probably 99.9% of the patrons at any bar on KSR, is on vacation. Whereas, in Itaewon, nobody is. Everybody at the bars on KSR is staying at a hostel/hotel/guesthouse within a ten minute walk of whatever bar they happen to be in. Virtually everyone in Itaewon lives in Seoul, but only a tiny minority actually lives in Itaewon itself. KSR, being a major tourism draw, really makes full use of it's "foreigner area" tag. I met people from, literally, all over the world. Itaewon, on the other hand, is easily 70% Americans and Canadians, the rest of the foreign population is British, Australian, Kiwi, some English speaking country. There's also some Nigerians, but they pretty much only hang out at two bars. Much like the rest of Korea, there are no tourists. In fact, other than people like my dad and Wiley, people that come to Korea to visit people who live here, I've never met a single western tourist here. And I'm people that knows people.

Both areas certainly have their niche market. KSR, as I said, is people from all over the world, mostly backpackers. People have a wide degree of backgrounds, and there's a larger age range of people there. Itaewon, on the other hand, has far less diversity in this matter. If I walk into a bar in Itaewon, my story is already told. I'm an English teacher, just like everyone else there. I could be a soldier, but my haircut gives me away there. Also, virtually everyone is English teacher/soldier age, 22-35.
Which do I like better? Both have their plusses and minuses. KSR has cheaper, better food, but Itaewon has more variety. KSR has cheaper beer, but again, Itaewon has more variety. Itaewon is more unique within its country. In monolithic Korea, there's nothing else remotely like Itaewon, and it's the only place in the country to get reliable Mexican food. KSR has new people coming and going every day. Itaewon is certainly transient as well, but less so. Most westerners are in Bangkok for a few days on their way to or from backpacking around Southeast Asia on 5 cents a day or whatever. Most westerners in Itaewon are contractually spending a year in Seoul. KSR is certainly more "fun," in that it's only people on vacation. Itaewon is more "real," because it's people getting hammered after work. Everyone in Itaewon has a job, not necessarily true in KSR. I suppose Itaewon might slightly win, due to the fact that the bars are open much later, and the fact that everyone there wears a shirt.