Day 2 - Coby goes to DMZ!

It was on our itinerary last year but since there was some news concerning North threatening the South, we decided to ditch the idea of going to DMZ. Since this will be our "last" chance for us to go to DMZ (Korea for that matter) we decided to go this time.

After some tremendous search for the cheapest available tour package, we found Adventure Korea! Its 40,000 KRW and it covers the tour plus lunch! It was a bit difficult though to pay for the tour because we are coming from abroad and sometimes wiring money to a bank from another country is difficult. I'm glad that my bank caters to free international bank to bank transfer. It took a while for it to be confirmed and it almost did not get to their bank account on time because I just did the transfer a week before the tour. Phew! I learned about Adventure Korea upon researching doing paragliding in Korea and apparently, they do DMZ tours as well.

our tour group

Day 1 - Autumn in South Korea!

I (actually we), spent 8 days in South Korea last November, hoping to see the lovely autumn colors and the first snow. We didn't get to experience both, but still its an experience of a lifetime. I don't know if I'll get to visit South Korea again, but it will not hurt if I will! Darn the thought itself makes me feel giddy. It is rather a sad thought that I'll not be visiting the websites catering to tourist who wished to visit Korea because it will not have a use for me for the moment. Every blog entry that I'll post about my recent trip in Korea will be bittersweet. I'll try not to be nostalgic sniff..sniff.. I hope I'll get to finish all before anyone starts to plan a tour to Korea next fall and I hope that my blog entries will be a little helpful, just like the other blog posts that I relied as I plan our trip to Korea.

The planning stage was not that long compared to our first trip. We are not that excited or maybe its mixed with stress. I didn't get to check thoroughly our itinerary especially the last 2-3 days, thus we got to pay being lost and spending an awful time walking on the streets of Seoul with less than 10 degrees Celsius brrrrrr... its a big deal for a couple of tourists from a tropical country and living in the Middle East for more than 5 years. 

We arrived at around 8pm at Incheon International Airport. This time we did not look around the airport, we head straight to the convenience store to reload our T-Money. Ugh! I remember losing my old T-Money on our 7th day with more than 20USD still stored. You know that moment you know that when you put it there it will get lost but you put it there anyway, and then it got really lost and you ended up hating yourself for getting that warning but ignored it. Silly me. As usual, I exceeded my trip budget that's excluding airfare and hotel, which I've already paid in advance. Its funny that on the first few days we are splurging and on our last night counting our won (Korean currency) down to the last coin. hehe!

Day 7 - Goodbye Seoul!

Bye Jeju.. later Seoul

Touchdown Gimpo! I can't believe that we've been to several airports in Korea. Incheon, Gimpo, Gimhae and Jeju yay! I can't also believe that this is our last day in Korea. I thought we will be late for our 1:35 pm flight but thank goodness we were not! From the airport we get a glimpse of Mt. Hallasan. Our itinerary for the day is to 1) get our luggage from our hostel 2) go to Myeongdong and have lunch 3) head to Incheon. Until now I am so happy that we get a cheap flight to Jeju. Its just 65.8 USD for our Busan(PUS)-Jeju (CJU)-Seoul (GMP) via Jeju Air.

clearer view of Mt. Hallasan

We went back to our hostel to get our luggage. Mr. Young is so nice that he let us leave our luggage. It rained that day but that didn't stop us from going to Myeongdong and made last minute shopping. Our flight is at 10pm so we still have time. I bought socks, those kpop socks! I completed all SHINee members. Too bad that only Yonghwa is available for CNBLUE and Hongki for FT Island. Actually the choices were limited and its kinda sad. Those idol printed yangmal are so comfy and sturdy. We shopped at SPAO. I bought a belt and guess what? socks! hahaha! I like how big posters of SM Entertainment artists in SPAO. Honestly we went there simply because of its association with SM, but my friend bought a pair of pastel colored pants and swears that its super comfy and now its her favorite pants.

Rain will not stop us from coming to Myeongdong!	SM Entertainment artists! Siwon!
Yonghwa socks!	Taemina!

I wish train stations here in Dubai would house lockers too! It is so convenient to leave your things or luggage to easily roam around the city. But that time it was difficult to get a big locker for our luggage but we still manage to get one otherwise our Myeongdong shopping will be impossible.

I remember having just a street food for lunch. I was about to stop ajumma in pouring a ketchup like thingy (I am not a fan of ketchup) on my sausage but its too late, but when I tasted it, it was super and I want to go back to her and ask for more! Well I actually glad I didn't because the sauce landed on my wallet, bag and shoes! 

Then we head to the airport. I thought we will be running late for our flight so to save time, we opted for the Airport Railroad Express (AREX). Its super comfy and non stop. There were attendees which is super cool. Not to mentioned that 2PM are on the magazine of Lotte Duty Free which we took it with us. What I didn't know about AREX is that it has timings. I thought its like the one in Hong Kong that doesn't have timings meaning you just hop on to the next train that will arrive. After purchasing our tickets, just then we realized that its for 7:30pm , our flight is 10pm-ish so given the 45-minute journey, we will be at Incheon passed 8pm. Still I think we will arrive at Incheon International Airport earlier if we took the regular train that goes to the airport too plus I know its cheaper. 

And so as usual, Cebu Pacific is late. After check-in we still managed to see duty free and buy bread and coffee at Paris Baguette. Our feet are heavy as we walk towards the plane. We already promised to be back. At that time we don't know exactly, but now we will comeback this autumn! YAY!

Our Seoul-Busan-Jeju trip is awesome! Nothing beats being in a place for the first time. I thank God for the letting me go to places that I just see on the countless drama that I've watched and been watching. Reading my posts, I wonder where I got all the energy to roam around Korea in 7 days. 

Jeju Island - Korea Trip Day 6

Its day 6 of our trip in Korea! Sadly its our last night in Jeju Island. We explored some of the tourist attractions by foot! Yes by foot and that is what I love about Seogwipo. We didn't get lost either because maybe my friend navigates well or its just Seogwipo is tourist friendly! We first tried to find a place to eat for breakfast, and we saw Paris Baguette. Yum yum yum...Those drama PPLs (product placement) are surely effective. I don't know how many times I've seen Paris Baguette in dramas. After breakfast, we just followed the signs pointing to one of the waterfalls in Seogwipo. 

great way finding signage	a cloudy day, that's Mt. Hallasan right?
Paris Baguette addicts!	I really want to try all of their breads.

Jeongbang Waterfalls is the first one. Since its spring, walking is so pleasant. The temperature is not that warm, the sun is shining, flowers in full bloom! It tried so hard not to pick a flower but I did. But I assure you that there's no "Don't pick flowers" sign. Jeongbang Waterfalls reminds of a similar falls (though not that high) in my dad's province in which the water well of course falls near the sea. It is so memorable to me because I passed out for a minute because of dehydration. Entrance fee is 2,000 KRW.

The Jeongbang falls. Amazing!	abalone and soju juseyo!
nearly hitting the sea	If only we could get ourselves wet.

In Jeongbang falls, you'll find makeshift restaurant serving I believe abalones. The raw kind that they just dipped it in gochujang or hot pepper paste. Of course the good'ol soju is present the complete the meal. Neither of us is adventurous enough to try it, but thinking about it now makes me regret that I didn't.

harbor or falls?

Next we head to another waterfalls. I can't iterate enough how the weather is so perfect for walking that day. The streets were somewhat like deserted which makes walking (for me) better. Thinking about how far we walk is disbelieving. We passed by Chilsimni Food Street en route to our next destination. We reached the crossroad one pointing to Seogwipo Harbor and the other to Cheonjiyeon Falls. We can see from a far Seogwipo Harbor already so we opted to there first.

is that you Hallasan?

We got a glimpse of Mt. Hallasan, the highest mountain in South Korea and its situated on the center of the island. Its a bit cloudy that day and we almost missed it. We originally planned to go up the mountain but our schedule can't and maybe our feet too!

Coby the Explorer! Exploring Seogwipo by foot!

Seogwipo Harbor houses of course docked boats and yachts, Saeseom Island Saeyeongyo Bridge. We did not go to island at the end of the bridge because the wind was blowing so freaking hard. I was so afraid that the wind will blow us off from the island hehe! Saeyeongyi Bridge's middle portion looks very much the same as the Burj Al Arab here in Dubai. I believe both were inspired by a sail.

Then we walk again to Cheonjiyeon Falls has a park vibe. The walk from the entrance to the falls is a bit far, but the scenery around will let you not mind the long walk. There's more tourists here than Jeongbang falls and it is more tourist friendly but I like the rawness of Jeongbang falls. We bought octopus tentacles on stick, shredded squid and fish (the cooked one, I'll comeback for the live one). 

I don't know how many tourists I shoved to get this solo

No we did not eat it all, we saved it later for soju and makgeolli! Good thing I can read hangul a bit we were able to spot the right bottles in 7-11. We didn't get ourselves wasted, just tasted these two Korean liquors. I like makgeolli more because its just like drinking vinegar. While soju is like gin. Yea, I'd rather drink vinegar than gin. hehe! We ate the rest of the shredded squid  and spent the rest of the afternoon at the hotel and watched home TV shopping.

Jeju Island - Korea Trip Day 5!

Annyeong!

We opted to stay in Seogwipo City, the southern part of Jeju Island. Our room (based on booking.com) promised a view. Indeed it has a little view. A construction in on-going at time so there was a crane obstructing our view. We can see an island from our window. The hotel is not along the coast but was close enough to walk.

"Room with a view"

It's so easy to fall in love with Jeju Island. I like the laid back life there, but at the same time you don't feel any remoteness. That day we went to Jeju Folk Village, Seopjikoji, and Sunrise Peak (Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak). The hotel called a cab that we paid 120 USD (if my memory serves me right) for 8 hours. The driver don't speak English. Our communication was limited only to how long we can spend on that tourist spot. We really want to go see the lava tubes but they said that its very cold at that time. Bummer. We get into the cab, I really wish that I've remember our drivers name and the first guy that helped us in Seoul. But I was to excited to remember things at that time or ever.. haha!

First stop is Jeju Folk Village. Honestly I want to skip this place because I kinda get a glimpse of those houses in Seoul. But since we can't go to the lava tubes, we decided to go there instead. One good thing about going there was there's a few people there. Or perhaps we are early. Again if you've seen a lot of sageuk, it will be fun to see those houses in real life! As you read through the different captions, you'll get educated on how people in Jeju island lived on those days.

One thing I can't forget about Jeju Folk Village is the ostrich. I think its the first time that I saw an ostrich. Souvenirs are pretty cheap there so don't forget to grab a few for your friends. I bought  the phallic statue miniatures holding tangerines key chains 10,000 KRW for 5 key chains.

Annyeong ostrich!

Seoul - Busan - Jeju Island! - Korea Trip Day 4

Korail tickets

And we rode the train to Busan! That saved us a lot of money for 1) No overnight stay fee on a hostel 2) Cheaper fare (only 27 USD) while KTX costs around 57 USD. I remember some budget travelers do this especially when they are touring Europe. The cons are of course its a bit tiring (not as comfortable as lying in a bed) and you don't get to see view of the countryside. I suggest that you bring something to cover your eyes for they are not turning off the lights. Well that is if you can't sleep with the lights on. Luckily I always bring my buff when I travel because its super functional, and in this instance I used it as a sleep mask.

We arrived at Busan maybe around 5 in the morning and there are no lounge (or we don't know) or even seats with back rest that we can doze while waiting for the city bus tour -- another way to go around Busan in an easier budget friendly way. 

King Sejong, Yi Sun-sin and Jokbal - Seoul Day 3!

It is my utmost goal to post about my Korea trip at least before its anniversary or my next (hopefully) trip to Seoul.  I don’t know how much I can recall about my trip and a good thing about posting about it so late is that I get to reminisce the times that me and my friend had in Korea.

Day 3 is yet another palace (Changdeokgung), a museum this time (King Sejong Story), a mall (COEX Mall), a pharmacy (sadly I got sick) and KTX (to Busan)! And 3 days is not enough for Seoul. For us its crunch time because we have catch the last train to Busan. Equipped with our newly found favorite -- banana uyu (milk), we head first to a very familiar place Gwanghwamun Square where you can find King Sejong's and Admiral Yi Sun-sin's statues. I remember one of the episode of Queen In-Hyun’s Man when Kim Boong-do emerged riding a horse from Gwanghwamun Gate!

Episode 1 - Queen In-hyun's Man from dramabeans.com

Sageuk, Cherry - Seoul Day 2!

We choose to visit Seoul around spring. When I first thought about visiting Seoul, I didn't think of a particular season. Maybe its because I never thought that I'll really get to go because of money constraints. Now that I have some to spare for a trip, I thought of visiting Seoul during spring and get to see Ms. Cherry! Cherry Blossoms that is! How many times do you see them as backgrounds to a lot of drama? A lot and its so pretty! Its just a pity that we didn't see them actually falling,for it could have made our trip more dramatic) but still seeing them in real life is beautiful!

Seoul Day 1.1 - 14 April 2013

This is technically our first day of our long awaited tour of Korea. What is good about arriving at night is that you've probably regain much energy needed for your tour the next day. We slept around 2 am I guess and we woke up around 8. Mr. Young knocked on our door and we thought he is inviting us for church, since its Sunday. When we are about to head out, he asked if we book for a tour. I told him that nothing was finalized. I feel bad about that because we were supposed to take DMZ Tour, but due to the news going around that time (NK threatening SK), I thought that it will not be a good idea, plus we may not be able to go to some location because MAYBE security was tightened. A lot were concerned with our safety, but the look that we have on our faces says it all, "No news will stop us from going there!" Though as a precaution, we skip the whole DMZ tour. We head out around 10 am, which became the pattern of our entire tour of Korea. Itinerary for the day: 

1. Hwaseong Fortress
2. N Seoul Tower
3. Myeong-dong 

Seoul Day 1.0

After maybe after 6 months of countdown and years of dreaming to go to the land of Koreanovela (what Pinoy refer to Korean dramas) aka KDrama and KPop, we finally landed SAFE in Korea, the South part that is! We arrived at Manila on the night of 12th of April and went to Korea the afternoon of the next day! Jet lag means nothing to two people yearning to go to South Korea!

As we reach Incheon International Airport, we were taking snaps from the plane window, even joking about requesting for the pilot to tilt the plane on the left to have a better view! Only upon landing a guy told us that we almost got into an accident if the pilot wasn't able to pull up the plane. And so that's explains the  brief roller coaster ride feel that I felt! whew!

I can't remember what time we landed, but it should be around 9pm. We got our T-money at the airport and followed the signage leading to the trains. We didn't take the airport express because our stop is Hongdae (Hongik University Station) and airport express train skips Hongdae and goes straight to Seoul Station.

at Incheon International Airport

inside train to Seoul

I knew we were at the right place when a drama is being shown on TV at the waiting area. Its Kdrama of course, though I don't know what it is, and pity that its not subbed.. hehehe of course! On board the train to Seoul, I heard one lady calling the man she's with, "oppa", boy, I can't help but smile! I said to myself, "INDEED I AM IN KOREA!" hahaha!

Train stations in Seoul is no joke. It has several lines and several exits.  We got off Hongik University station, and contemplated on which way to go. I got confused with "Bank" on the map, it says Hyundai Bank (at least to what I read) and the one at our back is Woo-something bank. And the Hyundai that I see across the street is a petrol station. A guy helped us, because we are so obviously "lost" bless him! I asked for his name but I can't remember anymore. Apparently, our guesthouse is 10 mins walk from the train station and as a treat for us, we passed by FNC! The studio where CNBLUE started and was the very street that CNBLUE most likely roamed around during their training days. Mr. Helpful guy commented on how excited we were (because we are squealing) and we can only answer "Yes!" I was about to explain why but I'm afraid it will be gibberish to him and might say to himself "Ugh! Fangirls". hehe!

We got into our guesthouse, still full of energy even if its already almost midnight. We stayed at Seoulwise Guesthouse. The owner, Mr. Young speaks English well so we don't have any problems communication wise. The room that we stayed is cozy and clean. We booked a 55,000 KRW/night room and we have our own bathroom. They clean the room everyday, free breakfast, till 10 am but we always fail to have it. After we put our things to our room, we head out to the convenient store for ramyun!

See some travel tips (from what I learned from our day 1 in Seoul) below.

Lessons learned... er...Travel tips!

1. Go for a morning flight if its your first time to visit a country. Unless a friend will pick you up or the hotel will pick you up from the airport. Although, we did not feel threatened (maybe because we are over excited), still you're a foreigner and technically know nothing about the place, except from months and months of googling and reading from different blog posts, still its different when you are already there. I think you will enjoy more scenery when you will arrive during the day. 
2. Install handy apps! Install ahead of time Seoul's or Korea's train system. As I said above, its no joke, well at least for me, who just happened to live in two countries where there are 2-3 lines of trains and just have 2-4 exits. If you don't have a smartphone, which I don't know what's stopping you to get one, have a print out of the train system and make sure its colored.
3. Know train timings. We were appreciating Incheon International Airport when we landed and even snaps pictures, taking our sweet time, without knowing that trains don't run 24/7! Good thing we did not miss the train towards Seoul.
4. Read the map thoroughly. Because in Korea, a petrol station/gasoline station is called an Oilbank! I actually learned it the next day, when everything is lit up. So the map is not wrong, I just failed to read the whole thing. Its Hyundai Oilbank, not Hyundai Bank, dummy! If only I read it well, We will not be standing there, debating or rather nearing to do a "eeny, meeny, miny, moe". Though it made us meet a kind person that made our impression of Seoul better.
5. Eat on the plane. Eat whatever they offer if you booked for a night flight. We had our lunch and snack in Manila and Incheon is 4 hr flight, 1 hr train ride. You'll be hungry and the best option is a convenient store. Cebu Pacific offers decent (rice & viand) food for 300 Php. So I guess its better to have it rather than not finding anything to eat when you land.

Vacay I Like!

I am actually back from my holidays and still too lazy to work. I didn't write an entry during my vacation for 1) I am chained to Candy Crush Saga 2) I am glued on TV for a 58-episode drama 3) Laziness. Haha! I do feel that I have a license to be lazy after all I waited 1 year and 4 months. As an overseas worker, we are to get a month long vacation every year and as for me, I usually go on vacation on a "need" basis. Like if I want to spend my Christmas and my mom's birthday, I'll go on December, if I want a summer vacation, I'll go some time March or April. This time, I need to be in Korea during spring for the cherry blossoms, thus I left mid April and enjoy a 5-week vacation! yay!

I'd rather rather talk much of the little stresses associated with this vacay, starting from my luggage (ask any OFW.. hehehe), to overly talkative passengers that started chatting (a little loudly) from the time their butts hit their seats all the way to Brunei which is a 7.5-hour plane ride. Ugh!

So where did I go? Its more of a "go" to me than "do" this vacation actually. I went to places this time but I kinda guilty of not "doing" much. Oh I did something dummy! Thus a new page on this blog... polymer clay. yay!

I think this is the grandest vacay ever! I've gone to South Korea and Hong Kong. Striking out one place on my bucket list (still got a lot on that list by the way). And CNBLUE! For its already second time is a charm! hehe

So hopefully, I'll be able to document my Korea trip and my BLUEMOON experience!