DAY 9: Hongdae - Trickeye Museum and Cat Cafe

Kelly and I took the train to Hongdae (Hongik University, #9) and had lunch there. We stumbled into a random restaurant, which turned out to be a place that specialised in solnongtang 설농탕. This classic Korean dish is basically beef bone simmered in a soup broth.

Solnongtang from Sinseon Seolnongtang - taken from The Seoul Guide

On to the main activity! The main reason we were in Hongdae was to go to the Trickeye Museum, which is an interactive 'museum' with lots of 2D murals painted to look 3D at just the right angle. Of course, on the day I needed to take the most photos, my camera died halfway through because I didn't charge it the night before after using it. Anyway, the entry to the museum (incl. the ice museum and circus museum - both tiny) cost 15,000W, and I got a 2000W tote bag as a souvenir for myself. The place was a little smaller than expected, but it was still really fun!

PRO-TIP: Some murals require more than one or two people so it'd be good to go in a group. Also, go with the expectation of being wacky! Have fun! Don't be too self-conscious!

Before going to Korea, I did some research on cat cafes, since I thought they'd be a pretty cool thing to try. I had located one or two in Hongdae (Tom's cat cafe), and so I made it a point of going there on the same day as the Trickeye Museum. However, after locating the place after we walked through a maze of alleys, it turned out Tom's Cat Cafe had permanently closed down. But no worries! It was a good thing I had a backup cat cafe in my Google Maps. Whew!

So, we went to Cat Attic instead. At the entrance, you have to take your shoes off and change into the rubber slippers provided. To actually enter, you have to pay 8000W which gives you entry to the cat cafe area and a complimentary drink (whether hot or cold). The whole place was very cosy and about the size of one or two rooms. We placed our belongings in the small cupboards which were located on the edges of the room where the seats were, and the main area in the middle was where you could sit around and hope for a cat to choose to come near you. The cafe also had 'aprons' you could wear if you wanted to sit on your lap without getting cat hair on your clothes.

Cats staring at imaginary birds...

One of my favourites was this black cat called Tama (top right in image). There's just something about black cats and their mysterious vibe. And this cat actually look a liking to me. #soulmates

We probably spent one to two hours there, so by the time we left it was dark. For dinner, we bought some tteokbokki (spicy rice cake) and twigim (fried vegatable/tempura) from a street stall at near the Hongdae subway exits. Then, we took the bus 7337 home.

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