Seoul cafés

CNN: Leading the world in fluff news stories, silver foxes under the age of 40, and Americanos.

There are cafés EVERYWHERE in Seoul and the surrounding areas. I think a little of this comes from the classiness associated with the cafés of Europe--particularly Paris--and also that it's a way to get out of the apartment. Most young Koreans live with their parents past the age of 18, some even up until they get married. Heading to a café is a good way to meet friends, study, or canoodle with your significant other in the corner without Mom and Dad peeking around the corner.

Perhaps due to this, it's a bit rare to see people in a café by themselves. You may get a few strange looks, but just set up your laptop and most people will figure you're just waiting for a friend.

The Americano is the closest beverage I can regularly find that comes close to American-style drip coffee, but I've been getting really, really sick of them for some reason. Besides an Americano, Dutch coffee or drip coffee is the next best thing, but be warned--there's no such thing as a bottomless cup unless you're in really good standing with the waitress or owner. Each cup will cost you, leading many expats to purchase a French press or--if you have around $40USD to drop--a coffee maker. (I'm finding appliances to be really expensive here...) But take heart; when you put it up for sale on a foreigner flea market, you're almost guaranteed to find a buyer!