A Letter to Travelers Who Need Sustainable Travel Items

Letters to Travelers — A Letter for You Who Need Sustainable Travel Items

The Shopping Cart section of our twice-monthly travel newsletter, ‘Pitch by Letter,’ is a review column in which editors share vivid, firsthand accounts of things they have bought or tried. It covers everything related to consumption: products, films, cafés, restaurants and more. From the Climate Card to Sony headphones, from the film ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ to a local restaurant in Gwangju, here are short letters to our readers, filled with our editors’ candid experiences.

Words Parc Jinmyoung

For You Who Want to Enjoy Gwangju’s Real Food Scene

In the fall of 2023, I went on a reporting trip and met Yoon Hyeonseok, a Gwangju native who runs Parkment Gwangju, a local select shop inside the Asia Culture Center. As we talked about the local character of Gwangju, the conversation turned to food. Coming from a city of gourmets, he took remarkable pride in the local cuisine. “Unlike other versions of yukjeon, Gwangju’s yukjeon is a dish that treats guests with the utmost care. They trim seasonal ingredients like prime Korean beef, shrimp and scallops, coat them in glutinous rice flour and then egg wash, and grill them on the spot, one piece at a time. It’s a dish known for its extreme level of service.” Of the hour-long interview, this part stayed with me most vividly.
So I headed back to Gwangju to try yukjeon for myself. Instead of Mimiwon in Dongmyeong-dong, which Yoon had mentioned, I went to Daegwang Sikdang in Sangmu District. Experiencing it firsthand, I found that he was right. A staff member introduced the ingredients one by one, then lightly coated thinly sliced beef (shank) in glutinous rice flour and egg wash and began grilling it on an electric pan. It was just as I had heard: the warmth of freshly grilled yukjeon, still steaming, the tender texture, the nutty richness spreading through my mouth, and even the generosity of wanting to give guests the very best.

For You Who Love Both Nature and Mysteries

February 2 is World Wetlands Day. How do I remember that, you ask? Thanks to ‘Where the Crawdads Sing,’ a story about the life of a girl who lives in a marsh. It is the first novel by Delia Owens, an ecologist who spent her life studying wildlife, published when she was nearly 70. The book came out in 2019 and was adapted into a film in 2022.
The novel is set in the Outer Banks Wetland on the coast of North Carolina. Kya, the protagonist, has survived here alone since the age of 10, and despite her fragile appearance, she has a strong inner core. She resembles the marsh itself: quiet, yet full of immense vitality. The novel describes the mysterious scenery of the Outer Banks wetland while narrating what happens around Kya, whereas the film conveys the beauty of the wetland through the events of the story (the marshes in the film were reportedly shot at Fontainebleau State Park in Mandeville, Lake Pontchartrain on Eden Isle and elsewhere). When I think of this work, I picture the landscape of Dessau, a small city in Germany, because this book was my travel companion on a solo trip there. It became a friend in trains, restaurants and museums whenever I had a spare moment, and that helped me get through the loneliness. So, is that enough reason for me to remember World Wetlands Day?
P.S. If you want to know the current state of wetlands in Korea, I recommend the film ‘Sura.’ It is a record of Sura, the last tidal flat of Saemangeum, which many assumed had disappeared because of the land reclamation project.

For You Who Can’t Decide Between Apple and Sony Headphones

What got me interested in headphones was not listening to music but purely fashion. Last summer, I happened to stop by the Apple Store in Myeongdong and fell in love with myself (!?) wearing AirPods Max. Add the blessing of noise canceling, and from that day on I couldn’t walk past an electronics store without stopping. I think I’ve tried on every pair of headphones in the world. But since they’re expensive, I couldn’t just open my wallet because they looked pretty. While reading reviews of the AirPods Max, one sentence stuck with me: “Your jaw hurts when you eat while wearing AirPods Max.”
So the pair that finally ended up in my hands after half a year was Sony’s latest model, the WH-1000XM5. What I liked most were its completely redesigned, sleeker look, its comfortable fit and its light weight of 250 grams (the AirPods Max weigh 384.8 grams). Above all, it proved its worth on the plane. It felt as if it blocked out outside noise completely and delivered only the pleasant sounds to my cochlea. The sound that reached my frontal lobe took me into a world of cozy rest (meaning I slept soundly the entire flight). Another point worth noting is that it uses material recycled from car parts! Sony is one of the brands working to build sustainability into its products, for example by developing packaging made from 100 percent paper in-house. Isn’t that an appealing factor for us creative, intellectual travelers, too?

For You Who Rely Completely on Restaurant Reviews

After a reporting trip to Taean, in Chungcheongnam-do, I finished all my appointments and stopped at a nearby café for a cup of coffee. It was Pino Cafe, facing Mallipo Beach, which is called ‘the California of Korea.’ On the menu I spotted an unusual coffee drink, and my curiosity kicked in: the ‘Taean Einspänner,’ with layers of espresso, matcha and milk, topped with thick cream and sprinkled with gamtae (seaweed), a Taean specialty, and salt. Its first impression, reminiscent of a matcha Einspänner, passed the test. I took a sip of the heavy, sunken matcha latte with a little of the thick cream. Behind the sweetness, the fishy aroma of the seaweed and the saltiness began to fill my mouth. I put the cup down and ordered an iced Americano instead.😅
Visiting a café or restaurant with no information at all is a more fun experience than you might think. Just as a dog keeps sniffing out new smells on a path it walks every day, try venturing out without relying on reviews. Even a failed order can become a good experience and memory!
P.S. The weather was gloomy, so I couldn’t enjoy the ocean view, but I hear the sunset from the café is beautiful. And don’t forget to ask for your drink in a mug when you order.

For You Who Want to Buy a Luxury Brand Wallet

These days, whenever I want to buy something, my habit is to check secondhand marketplaces first. I opened a resale app because I wanted to replace my worn-out wallet, and a luxury-brand wallet caught my eye. The scratches on the leather looked stylish and the price was reasonable, so I added it to my wishlist. Then, by chance, I came across a wallet of a similar design from a brand called Ilbussetto at an online select shop. The price was close to the secondhand wallet I had my eye on, so I suspected it might be a knockoff. As it turns out, the two brands are connected!
Lemaire is a brand launched by Christophe Lemaire, once the head designer at Hermès. Lemaire teamed up with a leather label from Milan, Italy, to make bags, wallets, and more, and that label was Ilbussetto. The biggest hallmark of Ilbussetto’s products is their glossy leather, shaped with a molding technique. The pieces are made with a seamless technique, using dyes and adhesives extracted from nature. The minimalist design that defines Lemaire is striking.
The biggest difference from the secondhand piece I had seen is that the word “Lemaire” is missing from the debossed brand name on the back of the wallet. The brands may differ, but isn’t the story behind the product reason enough to choose this wallet?
P.S. The wallet is very narrow, so it may be inconvenient if you usually carry several cards. It isn’t suitable as a business card holder, either.

For Those Who Get Around Seoul on Foot

On January 27, 2024, the Seoul city government launched the Climate Companion Card, which allows unlimited use of public transportation for around 60,000 won a month. Some criticized it as a “half-baked ticket” because it is hard to use in most of the greater metropolitan area, including Gyeonggi-do and Incheon, but it drew an unexpectedly strong response, with more than 310,000 sold in just ten days. Physical cards were so scarce that people couldn’t get one. Since March 30, the Gimpo Goldline has been included as well, so the service area is gradually expanding. I bought one too. Android users can top up and use it directly through the Tmoney app, but because I use an iPhone, I had to pay 3,000 won in cash for a physical card.
One thing to watch out for: when you get off the subway outside Seoul, make sure the line accepts the Climate Companion Card. You may have to call a station attendant and pay an additional fare. And when transferring to the Shinbundang Line, you have to re-board with a card that works on that line.
The model the Climate Companion Card drew on, Germany’s Deutschlandticket (D-Ticket), costs 49 euros a month (about 70,000 won) and covers all public transportation in Germany except long-distance trains. The introduction of that ticket is estimated to cut carbon emissions by 700 tons a year. I’m curious what results Seoul’s Climate Companion Card will bring.
P.S. I carry my Climate Companion Card in the wallet I introduced above! 😉