Seoul searching

South Korea has become a cultural powerhouse, and MARIA BRESLIN finds out why on a fascinating rail tour with a trip to its sprawling capital taking in markets, music, art and temples

- MARIA BRESLIN

MESMERISING: Donggung Palace and Wolji Pond

IT'S a Friday night I won't forget. Perched on my knee is a West End wannabe belting out a hit from The Rocky Horror Show.

Just minutes ago Seok In Mo was serving us beer at the Showflix bar in Seoul's hip Sindang district. Now he's rocking stockings, suspenders and snug shorts as he serenades me.

South Korea is having its moment. K-pop, K-beauty, K-drama, K-food it seems the world has gone K-crazy. KPop Demon Hunters dominated summer, snail serum is becoming a beauty staple and everyone loves a bibimbap.

Capital Seoul is the first port of call on our rail tour by travel specialists InsideAsia. We're at the Sindang theatre bar with InsideAsia guide Meggie Yu who is determined to show us a good time.

Showflix's waiting staff are all musical theatre hopefuls and, while the food may be average, the talent is anything but.

For those who want to venture off the beaten path, hiring a guide helps especially when it's Jitse Jager, a 6ft 8in Dutchman who stands out in the crowd as we wind our way through the streets of Seongsu-dong.

Dubbed the Brooklyn of Seoul, this former industrial district is now a merry maze of warehouse cafes, galleries and boutique shops.

We kickstart the day with a coffee at Oude Bakery while a leisurely stroll takes us past a popup Labubu shop and a Christian Dior store suggesting gentrification is well under way.

We then navigate Seoul, a sprawling city of more than nine million people, by underground, which is clean, efficient and easy to use. It's worth investing in a top-up T-Money card, valid across the country as well as on buses and in taxis and convenience stores. If Seongsu-dong is a magnet for the young, the vast Gyeongdong Market offers a more traditional insight into the lives of South Koreans.