2015
The end of a long winter break is unbearable. As we shake off the grogginess of our prolonged rest and make our yearly resolutions with steadfast determination, we stumbled in seamlessly returning to our daily obligations. Missed deadlines, a dearth of communication with classmates/co-workers, and a near short-term amnesia of our roles in society are all common symptoms. Needless to say, the struggle is real.
Picking up where I left off a few days ago, I packed up my bags and boarded the airplane in mid-June. Before heading back to the states, I made a pitstop to Seoul to visit E in the summer of 2015 for about 4 days. I was afraid that I would inaccurately recall my time there, but luckily, I found my journal where I wrote down what I did when I was there.
This trip is my second time to Korea. I went once before during Golden Week in 2014 with a few doukis (colleagues). During that trip, we went to all of the famous historical landmarks, palaces, and gardens. So this time, we decided to partake in some of the popular cultural aspects that Seoul has to offer. However, as luck (or lack of) would have it, MERs struck South Korea when I visited so many of the activities we scheduled were temporarily suspended. :( I'll still post them in this blog, but I can't accurately state my opinion about the experiences since I wasn't able to participate in them.
**Length of Stay**
4 days and 4 nights
I arrived on Tuesday early afternoon and left on Saturday afternoon.
**Accommodation**
I can't remember the name of the place for the life of me, but I stayed in the college district of Sinchon for 2 reasons:
1) cost- the nightly rate was relatively cheap as it wasn't in a highly commercial area
2) location- it's close to numerous restaurants and stores as well as the public transportation with the nearest station being Sinchon station.
~ Tip:
If you don't mind being surrounded by students, staying near a college town is not a bad idea. Food in the nearby restaurants is also cheaper since their regular customers are college kids. There's also a lot of love hotels where you can stay in if you are so inclined. (hey, you don't need to actually do the deed- this is a legit money-saving tip.) They're usually much cheaper than regular hotels. Also, if you have a Korean friend, have him or her make the call to the hotel to ask for rates to ensure you're getting the local price. (This is more so recommended for lesser known hotels/ love hotels than established facilities.)
**Places Visited**
Lotte World
Dongdaemun
Ilsan
Sinchon
Sintangdong
and more that I'll go into detail below
After checking into the hotel, we went to Dongdaemun, one of the largest shopping districts in Seoul, to check out a YG hologram concert. I was so excited to see Big Bang and 2NE1 in hologram form, but unfortunately, the hall was closed and they weren't showing any performances that day. T_T
Next time I head to Seoul, I will definitely make a trip to this performance hall.
A little bit of background on this- it's called "K-live", it's a K-pop hologram performance hall where you can see projected versions of popular artists with a top of the line sound system. They mainly showcase YG artists so you can see performances by Psy, 2NE1, or Big Bang.
It only costs about 15,000 won (about $15 USD) for an adult to experience this and you can get discounts when you reserve online or when you purchase the tickets on certain days.
Note that it's closed on Mondays, New Year's Day, and Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving day).
More info here.
On another note, check out the Visit Korea webpage prior to your trip for travel tips and coupons!
After that, we decided to wipe away our sadness with a huge pot of dobokki/tteokbokki/topokki in the famous dobokki street in Sindangdong.
There were countless dobokki restaurants beckoning us to head into their store, but we decided to eat in one of the more well-known restaurant- the grandma restaurant. I believe the name of the restaurant is "Grandma Ne Rice Cake Boki", but I'm not sure as there's no English name on the placard. Instead, you'll see a picture of a grandma. Apparently, her store got so famous and popular that just a little bit down the street, you'll see another rice cake store that was opened by her son (I think.)
Dobokki is one of my favorite Korean food so imagine my happiness when we got this entire pot for about $8 for 2 people. The value far exceeds the price. This alley is a must if you want to try some delicious and completely reasonably priced dobokki.
Following our meal, we headed to Hongdae, which is another college district near Hongik University. According to Wikipedia, it's known for its urban arts and indie music. We definitely stumbled upon some of the art in the Avenue of Youth where we saw live performances and displays of artistic projects. The street vibrated youth and liveliness with rows of brightly-lit restaurants filled with smoke from bbq and chatter from its patrons. Even if you don't end up going to a bar or restaurant there, sitting on the bench and people-watching is a super fun activity in itself. Apparently, it used to be an art street, but foreigners started to gather there quite frequently so bars and restaurants opened up in rapid succession.
To end the night, we head back to Sinchon to a shaved ice store- Sul-bing. Shaved ice or popbingsu is incredibly popular during the summer and I think Sul-bing is one or the more popular places to go. In fact, there is a Sul-bing look-alike in LA when I visited last month.
We ordered the mango and cheese. Initially, I doubted the compatibility of cheese and mango, but unexpectedly it was very delicious! It's not the best idea to eat dessert right before bed, but I was so tired that I fell immediately to sleep when I got back to the hotel.
On the second day, E took me to his hometown, Ilsan in Goyang. I don't think tourists normally get to visit the suburbs surrounding Seoul so this was a very precious experience for me. From a potential visitor standpoint, this paragraph would not be too helpful. But if you're willing to travel a little bit outside of Seoul and experience some of the everyday life of the locals, I recommend going out to the suburbs- especially Ilsan. The mascot of the town is a cat because goyanie means cat.
After taking the train to Ilsan, we rode the citybike around town. The citybike is a green or orange bike that you can rent and ride for an unlimited number of hours provided that you return it to one of its terminals dispersed around the town. It's insanely cheap with the monthly pass being only about $9.
In Ilsan, he took me to visit his home where he grew up, his elementary school, and middle school. This day was probably my favorite day of the trip just because I learned so much about him and his early life. Visiting the schools was an interesting experience. He told me that his elementary school used to be only 1 floor, but they've built new floors every so often that the size of the building increased significantly. Also, kids there don't have to wear uniforms and the ground in the playground was comprised of sand. Apparently, it's cheaper to keep the sand than use other materials for the ground. But I'd be worried about sand getting into my eyes as I run around and play sports.
For lunch, he took me to a trendy yet traditional Korean buffet that was all the rage that summer. It became so popular so rapidly that branches were established in rapid pace. I heard they even expanded to LA. The English name of the place is called "Seasons Table". One reason behind the popularity is that they serve healthy, reasonably priced, traditional Korean cuisines. They also have over 60 dishes to choose from bulgogi meat to fried rice to shaved ice. The food was very fresh and despite the volume, it doesn't feel heavy at all.
If you can read Korean, this is a link to the website: http://www.seasonstable.co.kr/
We sought to burn off some of the calories we gained during lunch by hiking a small mountain and heading to Lake Park, a massive park that has a giant lake in the middle.
The mountain is called "Jongbal". I was told that elementary school classes often make hiking trips to this mountain. And so do families and elderly people as the path is sweet and short.
Afterward, we headed to Lake Park. It's nearby residential apartments so you'd see families with children and pets walking and exercising in the park. Besides the typical sceneries you'd see in a park, Lake Park offers gardens, exhibitions, fountains, observation decks, and a giant folk swing that you'd normally have a pay a hefty fee and wait in a long time to go on in a cultural center.
I love Lake Park. It's a massive park so we had to get on a bike and ride around in order to see a fraction of what it has to offer. Don't just take my word for it, here are some more details and reviews on Lake Park:
TripAdvisor
Seoul Stop
Our day is not over so we stopped by La Festa, a shopping mall located in the downtown part of the town near Lake Park. We also went to the Korean version of Sam's Club and a Korean supermarket. I found that Korean supermarkets resemble more like American supermarkets compared to Japanese supermarkets. Going back to La Festa, if you like stationeries- check out Art Box. The store sells a lot of cute stationeries and small gifts.
We ended our night with a round of Karaoke or Noraebang.
====
It's getting late and I have to wake up super early for work tomorrow so I'll post day 3 and 4 in a little bit!
Recap of 2015: Part 2- Korea- Seoul & Ilsan (1/2)
The end of a long winter break is unbearable. As we shake off the grogginess of our prolonged rest and make our yearly resolutions with steadfast determination, we stumbled in seamlessly returning to our daily obligations. Missed deadlines, a dearth of communication with classmates/co-workers, and a near short-term amnesia of our roles in society are all common symptoms. Needless to say, the struggle is real.
Picking up where I left off a few days ago, I packed up my bags and boarded the airplane in mid-June. Before heading back to the states, I made a pitstop to Seoul to visit E in the summer of 2015 for about 4 days. I was afraid that I would inaccurately recall my time there, but luckily, I found my journal where I wrote down what I did when I was there.
This trip is my second time to Korea. I went once before during Golden Week in 2014 with a few doukis (colleagues). During that trip, we went to all of the famous historical landmarks, palaces, and gardens. So this time, we decided to partake in some of the popular cultural aspects that Seoul has to offer. However, as luck (or lack of) would have it, MERs struck South Korea when I visited so many of the activities we scheduled were temporarily suspended. :( I'll still post them in this blog, but I can't accurately state my opinion about the experiences since I wasn't able to participate in them.
 |
| 2 years worth of possessions! |
OVERVIEW
4 days and 4 nights
I arrived on Tuesday early afternoon and left on Saturday afternoon.
**Accommodation**
I can't remember the name of the place for the life of me, but I stayed in the college district of Sinchon for 2 reasons:
1) cost- the nightly rate was relatively cheap as it wasn't in a highly commercial area
2) location- it's close to numerous restaurants and stores as well as the public transportation with the nearest station being Sinchon station.
~ Tip:
If you don't mind being surrounded by students, staying near a college town is not a bad idea. Food in the nearby restaurants is also cheaper since their regular customers are college kids. There's also a lot of love hotels where you can stay in if you are so inclined. (hey, you don't need to actually do the deed- this is a legit money-saving tip.) They're usually much cheaper than regular hotels. Also, if you have a Korean friend, have him or her make the call to the hotel to ask for rates to ensure you're getting the local price. (This is more so recommended for lesser known hotels/ love hotels than established facilities.)
**Places Visited**
Lotte World
Dongdaemun
Ilsan
Sinchon
Sintangdong
and more that I'll go into detail below
 |
| Welcome to Korea! |
DAY 1
After checking into the hotel, we went to Dongdaemun, one of the largest shopping districts in Seoul, to check out a YG hologram concert. I was so excited to see Big Bang and 2NE1 in hologram form, but unfortunately, the hall was closed and they weren't showing any performances that day. T_T
Next time I head to Seoul, I will definitely make a trip to this performance hall.
A little bit of background on this- it's called "K-live", it's a K-pop hologram performance hall where you can see projected versions of popular artists with a top of the line sound system. They mainly showcase YG artists so you can see performances by Psy, 2NE1, or Big Bang.
It only costs about 15,000 won (about $15 USD) for an adult to experience this and you can get discounts when you reserve online or when you purchase the tickets on certain days.
Note that it's closed on Mondays, New Year's Day, and Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving day).
More info here.
On another note, check out the Visit Korea webpage prior to your trip for travel tips and coupons!
 |
| I'll just have to be satisfied with cardboard cut-outs instead of holograms then! |
After that, we decided to wipe away our sadness with a huge pot of dobokki/tteokbokki/topokki in the famous dobokki street in Sindangdong.
There were countless dobokki restaurants beckoning us to head into their store, but we decided to eat in one of the more well-known restaurant- the grandma restaurant. I believe the name of the restaurant is "Grandma Ne Rice Cake Boki", but I'm not sure as there's no English name on the placard. Instead, you'll see a picture of a grandma. Apparently, her store got so famous and popular that just a little bit down the street, you'll see another rice cake store that was opened by her son (I think.)
 |
| Look out for the Grandma! |
 |
| This was amazing! Try it! |
Following our meal, we headed to Hongdae, which is another college district near Hongik University. According to Wikipedia, it's known for its urban arts and indie music. We definitely stumbled upon some of the art in the Avenue of Youth where we saw live performances and displays of artistic projects. The street vibrated youth and liveliness with rows of brightly-lit restaurants filled with smoke from bbq and chatter from its patrons. Even if you don't end up going to a bar or restaurant there, sitting on the bench and people-watching is a super fun activity in itself. Apparently, it used to be an art street, but foreigners started to gather there quite frequently so bars and restaurants opened up in rapid succession.
 |
| The night never ends here! |
To end the night, we head back to Sinchon to a shaved ice store- Sul-bing. Shaved ice or popbingsu is incredibly popular during the summer and I think Sul-bing is one or the more popular places to go. In fact, there is a Sul-bing look-alike in LA when I visited last month.
We ordered the mango and cheese. Initially, I doubted the compatibility of cheese and mango, but unexpectedly it was very delicious! It's not the best idea to eat dessert right before bed, but I was so tired that I fell immediately to sleep when I got back to the hotel.
 |
| Super delicious, but one order is enough for 2 people to share! |
DAY 2
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| There were so many Line characters~ I think they're trying hard to gain a foothold in Korea. |
 |
| On the way to Ilsan, I saw a commercial of my favorite triplets! Deahan, Minguk, Manse! |
After taking the train to Ilsan, we rode the citybike around town. The citybike is a green or orange bike that you can rent and ride for an unlimited number of hours provided that you return it to one of its terminals dispersed around the town. It's insanely cheap with the monthly pass being only about $9.
 |
| Kind of like the Citi-bikes in New York, but cheaper. |
 |
| Paying for our bikes~ |
In Ilsan, he took me to visit his home where he grew up, his elementary school, and middle school. This day was probably my favorite day of the trip just because I learned so much about him and his early life. Visiting the schools was an interesting experience. He told me that his elementary school used to be only 1 floor, but they've built new floors every so often that the size of the building increased significantly. Also, kids there don't have to wear uniforms and the ground in the playground was comprised of sand. Apparently, it's cheaper to keep the sand than use other materials for the ground. But I'd be worried about sand getting into my eyes as I run around and play sports.
For lunch, he took me to a trendy yet traditional Korean buffet that was all the rage that summer. It became so popular so rapidly that branches were established in rapid pace. I heard they even expanded to LA. The English name of the place is called "Seasons Table". One reason behind the popularity is that they serve healthy, reasonably priced, traditional Korean cuisines. They also have over 60 dishes to choose from bulgogi meat to fried rice to shaved ice. The food was very fresh and despite the volume, it doesn't feel heavy at all.
If you can read Korean, this is a link to the website: http://www.seasonstable.co.kr/
 |
| Just a small snippet of what Seasons Table offer. |
We sought to burn off some of the calories we gained during lunch by hiking a small mountain and heading to Lake Park, a massive park that has a giant lake in the middle.
The mountain is called "Jongbal". I was told that elementary school classes often make hiking trips to this mountain. And so do families and elderly people as the path is sweet and short.
 |
| The view from the peak. A little foggy, but serene nonetheless. |
I love Lake Park. It's a massive park so we had to get on a bike and ride around in order to see a fraction of what it has to offer. Don't just take my word for it, here are some more details and reviews on Lake Park:
TripAdvisor
Seoul Stop
 |
| A beautiful lotus garden in Lake Park. |
 |
| We found the mascot of Ilsan! |
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| The traditional Korean folk swing. Doesn't it look amazing? |
 |
| Weee! |
Our day is not over so we stopped by La Festa, a shopping mall located in the downtown part of the town near Lake Park. We also went to the Korean version of Sam's Club and a Korean supermarket. I found that Korean supermarkets resemble more like American supermarkets compared to Japanese supermarkets. Going back to La Festa, if you like stationeries- check out Art Box. The store sells a lot of cute stationeries and small gifts.
 |
| Just thought it was funny lol, it's a Soju-pouch! |
We ended our night with a round of Karaoke or Noraebang.
 |
| So typical lol. |
====
It's getting late and I have to wake up super early for work tomorrow so I'll post day 3 and 4 in a little bit!
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