I bide in the 'coolest neebourheid' in the warld. It's no as braw as ye'd think

In 2021, I wis speired by Time Out tae nominate a Seoul neebourheid for its annual list o the warld’s coolest. I didna think muckle o it an pit furrit the ane I bide in, Jongno 3-ga, in the auld centre o the ceety. Somehou, it got rankit third.

This week, the same airt wis named the coolest neebourheid in the warld. I shud be pleased, but instead, I am fair devastat.

A’ these lists seem tae celebrate the same idea o cool: expensive conceptual airt galleries, high-end restaurants, an the sort o places that cater tae a narra demographic o fowk wha read lifestyle magazines. Maist ceeties hae thae places.

But whan I flitted tae Jongno 3-ga, I chose somewhere that wis the opposite: hamely, raw an clean unpretentious.

I wis first drawn tae the neebourheid 20 year syne, fresh oot o schuil. I min wi sweet nostalgia bein ane o the few tourists at a time whan South Korea wisna cool, an fowk aften advised me agains travellin there, confusin South Korea wi North Korea.

There were nae English menus, but restaurants were welcomin. Shopfronts were rusty but fu o artisanry, while alleys that gaed naewhair an were slieghtly dilapidated felt cosie. There were men gettin fou ower bottles o soju wha occasionally gat intae a barney, but naething that ever felt particularly threatenin. I felt at hame an eventually made it my hame.

It wis a refuge for society’s rejects: fowk wi naewhair tae gang, some o the poorest in Seoul, residents o the ceety’s tiny-room settlements an fowk wi disabilities. In Tapgol Park, elderly wimmen sauld sexual services tae aulder men in plain sicht. Ootside the park, pensioners played janggi, Korean chess, on the pavement. Aroud them lived musicians an airtists. In Jongno 3-ga, everyane wis welcome.

For years, the pojangmacha, the street-fuid tents that serve everythin frae fried squid tae kimchi pancake, catered tae aulder fowk drinkin through tae the early evenin. Syne at some point – aroud 9pm – there wis an unofficial handover tae the gay scene.

South Korea is socially conservative an the LGBTQ+ community is still vera muckle frowned upon. But come the weekend, hunners o excited men o a’ ages cam tae let aff steam oot in the open, as weel as in ane o the airt’s mair than 100 gay bars an karaoke rooms. Jongno 3-ga wis a place whaur fowk cud be thairsels, withoot fear o bein outit, harassed or judged.

Nane o that wis cool. But that wis the entire pynt: fowk cud mind thair ain business in a safe haven amid a culture addictit tae consumerism an keepin up appearances.

That a’ chynged efter Covid. The street barbecues an pojangmacha are still there, but nou they hae queues, some up tae an hour lang. Fowk line up for a seat, tak thair Instagram shots, an the neebourheid that uised tae hide fowk has become a place tae be seen.

Wi the crouds cam the displacement. Gay patrons nae langer tak ower the streets at nicht. The aulder drinkers hae lairgely gane. The sex workers hae been pished oot. The chess boards ootside Tapgol Park were cleared awa. Rents hae risen sharply.

The airt is nou littert wi kitschy tourist shops, claw-machine arcades an unmanned photo-booths, an, in the streets nearby, bakery efter bakery, coffee shop efter coffee shop. Ane by ane, the sma merchants hae left, tae be replaced wi anither dessert shop. It is nou hard tae find the hamely rice-an-soup places that fed this neebourheid for decades. The ance shabby an unremarkable place is nou heavily curated, an disna feel vera Korean ony mair.

Locals compleen about lost identity an gentrification but pit on a brave face for the hordes o tourists, baith local an international, wha come tae gorge on this airt.

Nane o this is the faut o the veesitors either. They were telt the place wis worth seein, an they are buyin exactly whit they were sauld. K-culture has never been mair popular. Frae the likes o BTS tae Squid Game, the hale warld is lookin tae South Korea an keeps comin – an things are chyingin tae accommodate for these tourist dollars.

But in a way, I feel pairt o the problem. I highlighted a place I loed for bein overlookit, an feel I helped create a monster. Nou, as the neebourheid becomes amaist unrecognisable, I wunner whit effect these rankins hae on the fowk wha bide in the listit destinations.

Jongno 3-ga becomin the warld’s coolest neebourheid is nae thin tae celebrate. I feel guilty for callin it cool. I wad tak the word back if I cud.