December's things to do

Remember the scene in the romantic comedy About Time, when a girl and a boy first encounter each other in complete darkness. A similar total-darkness experience is available in Seoul, unfortunately, its concept is not about finding your one true love. Rather, Dialogue in the Dark (located in Bukchon) is an awareness raising exhibition. It was created in 1988 by Andreas Heinecke as a result of a life-long search for answers to the question, “On what ground do we judge people and feel inferior or superior?” Interestingly, it was an acquaintance who had lost his eyesight in a car accident that helped Heinecke realize not only the answers to his question but also his fascination of the world of blind people. In order to confront this prejudice about blindness, Dialogue in the Dark was started, in a small warehouse. Now, this exhibition has over 130 locations in 20 different countries with over 9 million visitors. Once inside, you will be stripped of all possible lighting devices (phones, watches, etc.) and will be ‘blind’ for 100 minutes. You will listen to the directions of the ‘road master’ and utilize a white cane to navigate rooms of different themes; leaves, forest, using wind to rotate a sailboat in the right direction, matching smell and touch with places and objects, etc. Dialogue in the Dark isn’t just about being blind; it’s an experience that will indulge yourself in all your other senses. For safety issues, only visitors between the age of 9 to 70 are allowed, with...

Originally from Japan, with more than 130 studios nationwide, ABC Cooking Studio has expanded to other parts of Asia including Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand, and has finally landed in Seoul. This Lotte World Mall location is the first and the only studio of ABC's in Korea. Can't imagine a cooking class inside a mall? Well, if you just have one look at this place through its full wall window, you'll be surprised at how open and breezy it is. And very likely, you'll be anxious to join the little groups of part time cooks. What sets out ABC Cooking Studio from the rest of institutions of the kind is the freedom of choice in the curricula. While most cooking classes are set up for a certain period of time for a particular type of cuisine or license, this institution allows you to choose any date, time slot and menu among the 3 different courses (cooking, bread and desserts) which it offers at all times. There are different menus for each course, and they change every month. The cooking course, for example, includes the Japanese Menu (Japanese home cooking and dinner parties), Home Party Menu (Thanksgiving dinners, Christmas dinners, Halloween parties, etc.) and World Menu (Asian, European, etc.). Instead of demonstrations or lectures, every class taught here is practice based. At each kitchen island, individuals in a small group (4 to 5, depending on the course) create their own result with the help of one teacher. There are signature gift wraps and greeting cards...

Would there be any other place in the city that's full of such happy looking adults? This “indoor fishing café” located in Daehangno is what you can imagine plus so much more liveliness and lighthearted fun. With the helpful and energetic staff, fishing becomes real entrainment here. At just 10,000 won, you get an hour of fishing, free snacks, coffee and soft drinks. Mind you, though—you might assume that you're not into fishing, but once you're here, several hours pass by pretty quickly. Opening daily until 2am, Father Carp Indoor Fishing Café qualifies as a nice (though unusual) night hangout spot in the city. Waiting for my lucky catch, even a can of Hite (3,000 won) somehow tastes better than I remember.