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I was leaving Seoul when I stopped at the Seoul Meeting Plaza expressway service area in Yangjae. I parked next to a black van and headed inside the plaza. At first, I didn’t notice anything unusual—the windows were blacked out, but I didn’t think much of it. On my way back to the car, an older gentleman opened the side door of the van—and a super bright light, like something you’d see inside a house, just beamed out. Turns out, he had fully converted the back rows of the van into a living space. There was a bed, a desk, a TV, and a PC monitor all set up. He even had a blackout curtain separating the front seats from the back to keep the light from spilling out. He got out, walked to the driver’s seat, pulled out two drinks—probably from a cooler—and went back into the rear of the van. Once he shut the door, the light disappeared. This was around 10:30pm. In the U.S., I know people are living the van life—some for fun and adventure, others because of economic pressure. Is this a thing happening in South Korea too? Because what I saw looked like a well-thought-out setup for someone living full-time or traveling in their van. 서울을 떠나는 길에 양재에 있는 서울 만남의광장 고속도로 휴게소에 들렀습니다. 검은색 밴 옆에 주차를 하고 휴게소 안으로 들어갔죠. 처음엔 별다른 이상한 점을 느끼지 못했어요—창문이 완전히 가려져 있었지만 별생각 없이 지나쳤습니다. 차로 돌아가는 길에 나이 지긋한 신사 한 분이 밴의 측면 문을 열었는데, 마치 집 안에서 보는 듯한 아주 밝은 빛이 확 쏟아져 나왔습니다. 알고 보니 밴의 뒷좌석 공간을 완전히 주거 공간으로 개조해 놓은 거였어요. 침대, 책상, TV, 컴퓨터 모니터까지 다 갖춰져 있었습니다. 앞좌석과 뒷공간 사이엔 빛이 새어나오지 않도록 암막 커튼도 설치되어 있었고요. 그 분은 나와서 운전석 쪽으로 가더니—아마도 쿨러에서 꺼낸 듯한—음료 두 개를 들고 다시 밴 뒷공간으로 들어갔습니다. 문을 닫자 밝았던 빛도 사라졌습니다. 이때가 밤 10시 30분쯤이었어요. 미국에서는 어떤 사람들은 재미나 모험을 위해, 또 어떤 사람들은 경제적인 이유 때문에 밴에서 생활하는 경우가 있다는 걸 알고 있어요. 그런데 이런 문화가 한국에도 있는 걸까요? 제가 본 건 누가 봐도 꽤나 체계적으로 꾸며진 밴이었고, 아마도 그 안에서 상시 생활하거나 여행 중인 사람의 공간처럼 보였습니다. submitted by /u/Songtan_Labs |
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