A Han River picnic in Korean: 치맥, delivery to the grass, and what to say
Ask a Seoul local what to do on a warm evening and the answer is one syllable: 한강 (Hangang), the Han River. Not a specific spot, not an activity. Just "let's go to the river."
What happens there is very specific, though, and it has its own vocabulary. Here is the evening, in order, with the Korean you will need at each step.
Step one: the mat
Nobody sits on the grass directly. You bring a 돗자리 (dotjari), a thin picnic mat, or you rent one at the entrance to any of the big riverside parks (여의도, 뚝섬, 반포 are the famous ones). The rental stands also sell small tents and, in autumn, blankets.
돗자리 하나 빌릴 수 있어요?
Dotjari hana billil su isseoyo?
Can I rent one mat?
You will be asked for a deposit or an ID. Rentals are cheap, a few thousand won for the evening.
Step two: 치맥
치맥 (chimaek) is fried chicken (치킨, chikin) plus beer (맥주, maekju), squeezed into one word. It is what you eat at the river. Not a suggestion, a rule.
There are two ways to get it. The convenience stores along the river sell cans and snacks, and the same 1+1 logic applies as anywhere else (see Korean convenience store phrases). But the real Han River move is delivery.
Chicken shops deliver straight to the riverbank. You call or use a delivery app, and the driver meets you at a numbered pickup point near the entrance. Every park has signs like 배달 존 (baedal jon, delivery zone) with a number. The phrase to know:
여의도 한강공원 3번 배달존으로 배달해 주세요.
Yeouido Hangang gongwon sam-beon baedaljon-euro baedalhae juseyo.
Please deliver to Yeouido Hangang Park delivery zone 3.
When the driver arrives, they will call you. The call is always the same:
배달이요. 지금 어디세요?
Baedal-iyo. Jigeum eodiseyo?
Delivery. Where are you right now?
Answer with the zone number, or 지금 갈게요 (jigeum galgeyo, I'm coming now), and walk over. Tipping is not expected.
Step three: the ramyeon machine
Korean riverside convenience stores have a machine that most first-time visitors photograph before using: the instant ramyeon cooker. You buy a packet of noodles, pour water into a small foil pot, and the machine cooks it in about four minutes. The staff will not explain it unless you ask, so ask:
라면 기계 어떻게 써요?
Ramyeon gigye eotteoke sseoyo?
How do I use the ramyeon machine?
They will show you, usually while doing three other things. Add an egg if they have them (계란, gyeran). Eating hot ramyeon on a cool night by the water is a small national tradition.
What you will hear around you
The river is where Korean friends talk in the informal register, 반말, because they are close and around the same age. You will hear a lot of:
- 야, 이거 진짜 맛있다. (Ya, igeo jinjja masitda.) "Hey, this is really good." 야 is a casual "hey" for close friends only, never for strangers or older people.
- 한 잔 더? (Han jan deo?) "One more glass?"
- 사진 찍자. (Sajin jjikja.) "Let's take a photo."
- 바람 좋다. (Baram jota.) "The breeze is nice." Koreans comment on the wind and the weather constantly; it is a form of contentment, not small talk.
Notice how the endings are short and drop the polite -요. This is exactly the difference explained in 존댓말 vs 반말. If you are a visitor who has just met these people, keep your own sentences in the polite form and let them decide when to switch.
One sentence you should have ready when you leave:
오늘 정말 재밌었어요. 고마워요.
Oneul jeongmal jaemisseosseoyo. Gomawoyo.
Today was really fun. Thank you.
Small things that matter
- Rubbish: there are sorting bins near the exits. 일반 쓰레기 (general), 재활용 (recycling). Leaving your chicken box on the grass is the one thing that will get you glared at.
- Time: the parks never close, but the last trains do. The subway stops around midnight. Koreans check 막차 (makcha, the last train) and plan around it.
- The bridge fountain: Banpo Bridge runs a light-and-water show on schedule in the evening. Locals call it 달빛무지개분수 (Moonlight Rainbow Fountain). It is free and worth timing your picnic around.
The five sentences
- 돗자리 하나 빌릴 수 있어요? Can I rent a mat?
- 3번 배달존으로 배달해 주세요. Please deliver to zone 3.
- 지금 갈게요. I'm coming now.
- 라면 기계 어떻게 써요? How do I use the ramyeon machine?
- 오늘 정말 재밌었어요. Today was really fun.
Practice the delivery call before you need it. The driver will be on a scooter, in the wind, in a hurry, and your one job is to say a number clearly. It is the most useful Korean listening test in Seoul, and there is chicken at the end.