Ma’s Tents at Gwangju River.
Posted by Ko Namil (at 2010/07/14 09:20)
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I've always wondered what these orange tents are for and why they are shown on TV shows when people are angry, upset or depressed. Do they overcharge? Is the food edible? Are they clean? No worries, just pay a visit.
The orange tents start to light up ataround 6 in the evening. Ajumas get ready to welcome customers. Along Gwangju river, very near downtown, more than 10 orange tents set up for business every evening. This is what Koreans call po-jang-ma-cha (포장마차). As its name implies, it is a temporary place to sell food and drinks.
At night, when you feel like you have to eat something, but not really hungry to eat a full meal, pojangmacha is the one you can visit. The price is cheaper than other places, everything on the menu is 15,000 won and noodles are 3,000 won. Regardless, very cheap and delicious. Some of the more popular menu items are roasted chicken feet (닭발볶음) and roasted pork (돼지고기 볶음).
Roasted Chicken Feet (닭발볶음)
Every ajuma shares the same menu and the prices are all exactly the same. Only one thing is different between each of the orange tents. The owners are different and they each have their own special free food that is simply set on the table. This free food is same, no matter what you order. They usually offer broth and fruit.
Every ajuma shares the same menu and the prices are all exactly the same. Only one thing is different between each of the orange tents. The owners are different and they each have their own special free food that is simply set on the table. This free food is same, no matter what you order. They usually offer broth and fruit.
This is what you can see outside the pojang macha. This area originally was nothing but rundown urban space. Gwangju City has developed this space into a small park and at night it flows with a waterfall and a small water stream. The modernity of the park is an excellent compliment to the rustic pojang macha.
I have attached a map for those of you who might be interested in experiencing a different type of evening in Gwangju. The Red star is where the pojang machas are located.
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