The rooftop rooms of Korean drama, seen from Huam-dong's 108 stairs

In Korean dramas, the rooftop room, or oktapbang (옥탑방), stands for a life still being built. It comes with a pale green roof deck, a plastic table, laundry on a line and the whole city lit up below. The rooms are real. On the slopes below Namsan, you can see dozens of them from a public stairway without setting foot on anyone's roof.

What the rooftop room stands for

An oktapbang is a small unit built on the roof of a low-rise house or villa. Many began as storage or laundry space and were later rented out. They are hot in August, cold in January and cheap. That is why screenwriters give one to the character who has just moved to Seoul or just lost everything. The roof deck is usually coated in green waterproof paint, and that colour is the easiest way to spot one from above.

Huam-dong and the 108 stairs

Huam-dong sits on the slope between Seoul Station and Namsan, about fifteen minutes' walk from the station. Its 108 stairs climb from the lower streets to Sowol-ro, and an inclined lift now runs beside them for anyone who would rather not climb. Stop partway up and turn around. Below you is a patchwork of water tanks, satellite dishes and green decks, and several of those decks have a single chair facing the view.

Haebangchon at dusk

From the top of the stairs, follow Sowol-ro east toward Haebangchon. The houses here are stacked so steeply that the street above looks straight down onto the roofs below. Come in the hour before sunset, when the tower on Namsan lights up and the first lamps come on inside the rooftop rooms. A few cafés and bars in the neighbourhood have their own roof terraces, and those are the proper places to sit on one.

Looking without intruding

These are homes, mostly rented by students and young workers. Photograph the skyline rather than the people, keep your voice down on residential lanes after dark, and do not climb outdoor staircases, even when a gate is left open.

옥탑방은 드라마 세트가 아니라 누군가의 집이다.