NYC- Day 8- Reflecting In The Flatiron District, Lunch In Korea Town, & Shopping In Soho

Ahh… with Garret gone our pace in NYC slowed down considerably. We woke up slow and made our way down to the Flatiron District, stopping in shops along the way. We chilled out in Madison Square Park appreciating the architectural beauty of the Flatiron Building, the Met Life Tower, and the other buildings old and new that stood around us. We quite enjoyed the art exhibition, Event Horizon. It featured 31 life size nude bronze cast statures of artist Antony Gormley, that were placed on buildings and in and around Madison Square Park. The exhibition created a feeling of surveillance, of being watched from above and below, the piece gives you a sense of place.

We were starting to get hungry so made our way down to Korea Town. When we got there, Korea Town seemed more like Korea Block as all the businesses were densely clustered on 32^nd between 5^th and Broadway. But the feel remained overwhelmingly Korean with buildings arranged architecturally similar to Korea’s big cities and with just as much sign population as well.

We carefully walked down the street and scouted out the best option for authentic Korean food. We chose Kunjip, it was packed with Koreas and lined up out the door- a good sign! The tables were crowed, the place was loud, the service and atmosphere was fast-paced, verging on hectic, and the only cooks in the kitchen were old Korean grandmas- we thought we were back in Korea! The menu was also extensive and offered many local dishes that you probably would have a hard time finding anywhere in the city. Alissa had the classic Kim Chi Jji Gae and Matt Bu Dae Jji Gae- both were better than what you would get at some restaurants in Korea.

After filling up on our meals and a few refills of some of the side dishes, we made our way to SoHo by subway.

We took the afternoon exploring the back roads and main streets of Soho. The shopping here was some of the most interesting in NYC. We broke up the shopping with a pint in Puck Fair, a funky Irish pub that manages to retain its historical feel.

We made our way all the way down to TriBeCa before we realized that it is 6:00 and we are missing dinner! We took the stuffed-to-capacity subway home.