Korea Trip 2015 Day 7: Seoul Land, Coex Mall, Daehakro

16 April 2015
Thursday

Because it was a free and easy day, I woke up slightly late today. I had decided to go to Seoul Land and COEX Mall before meeting Heejung for dinner at Daehakro. I decided on Seoul Land because it is a national park and has a zoo.

The weather wasn't fine today. It was cloudy, windy and rainy. When I reached Seoul Land, my hand was freezing due to the strong wind. There were many cherry blossom trees at Seoul Land too. And cherry blossom petals could be seen all over the floor after a breeze of strong wind.

Cherry Blossom at Seoul Land

Just after I bought the zoo ticket, it started to rain heavily that I couldn't continue my journey. Fortunately there was a shelter nearby. I sat there for awhile and found my way to a food court nearby to have lunch. I ordered Yukgaejang which is spicy beef soup. It was the best beef soup that I have ever tried! The beef was tender and very tasty. Coupled with spices and mushrooms, it tasted like food from heaven in the cold weather. I just couldn't have enough of it.

I set off for my zoo tour by visiting the giraffes, rhinos, elephants, lions, reptiles, tigers etc. But to my disappointment, most of the animals were hiding, maybe because of the cold weather. When I was visiting the lion den, I couldn't see any lion. But when I went to the back of the den, I saw this glass door opening into a dark alley, lit only by a few flourescent light. Out of curiosity, I went in. It was dark, with glass panels on my left. It seemed like behind the transparent glass panels were feeding place for the animals. But I couldn't see any animal. As I walked further, I saw a cheetah lying behind the glass. The next glass panel, were all the lions! I think there were seven or eight of them! And there was a male lion staring right at me within 5 metres. Wow it was quite terrifying given that I was all alone there. Although they were behind the glass, I dared not walk closer. I just said Hi and walked out of that terrifying place.

I think the best of the animals were the tigers. The tigers were housed at a park-like space with waterfalls and small ponds. They were not hiding but playing with each other and a ball in the pond. I also saw a couple of hippopotamus at the end of my journey. All in all, the zoo wasn't really enjoyable. The maintenance was quite poor.

Anyway, I have decided to find some place indoors due to the freezing weather. I went to COEX mall as during our last trip, COEX mall was under construction. When I reached there, I saw SMTown building. COEX mall was really no joke. It was super huge. I think it is made up of three shopping malls. I had a tea break in one of the cafes there. The waitress who served me was very beautiful. Then I went to the COEX mall Aquarium. It cost quite a lot, around 22000W but I think it was worth it. Lots of sea creatures from fresh water fish to deep ocean sharks can be found there.

COEX Mall Aquarium

Next I went to SMTown buiilding to have a look at arguably Korea's most successful idol factory, and also to try my luck to meet celebrities. They had 6 or 7 storeys in that building, comprising of main lobby, cafe, recording studio (we were not allowed to enter), hologram theater and many more. Famous SMTown artists photos and merchandise can be seen everywhere here.

SMTown Building

It was almost dinner time when I finished touring SMTown and I headed to Hyehwa station to meet Heejung for dinner.

Initially, Heejung's friend Sujin wanted to join for dinner but Sujin had something on we she couldn't come. I met Heejung and she brought me around Daehakro and found a Budaejjigae restaurant for dinner. Heejung explained that budajjigae is a dish for the army. Budae means army and at that time the army was poor. The american troops gave Korean army western sausages and hams to add in to the Jjigae which means soup, usually Kimchi soup.

Budaejjigae or Army Stew

After dinner, we went to Bins Beans cafe for dessert. Heejung wanted me to try the strawberry waffle dessert which was a trend in Korea at that time. It was super delicious! It was the first time that I had so many strawberries! And did I mention that there was wifi phone charging facility at Bins Beans?

Awesome Strawberry Waffle Dessert

After dessert, we parted ways and I was very grateful for Heejung to spare her time to meet me for another time, considering that she lives so far from Seoul. And she has a really good taste for food I must say. From Kalbi Mandu, Okrumong Bingsu to strawberry waffles, I really enjoyed all the food that she recommended. 

Time flies. Tomorrow will be my last day in Seoul before flying back to Singapore on Saturday.  

Korea Trip 2015 Day 6: Gangchon Rail Bike, Chun Cheon Dalkalbi Street

15 April 2015
Wednesday

I woke up at 7:30am this morning to prepare for Gangchon Rail Bike ride with Haeun. It was a 2 hour journey from Noksapyeong to Gimyujeong. However, I had some delay while walking to Noksapyeong station from HBC house. Having set off from Noksapyeong at 8:30am, I was still on course to reach Gimyujeong at 10:30am. The subway was quick and accurate. However, when I transferred to the Gyeongchun line, the train stopped for about fifteen minutes at Sangbo station, the first station of Gyeongchun line. I was panicked as I won't be able to reach on time due to this stoppage which I think was not captured in the time estimation of the subway app. Along the journey, I calculated that I would reach Gimyujeong at 10:55am. Haeun has already reached at 10:30am. I felt really sorry and told her that I might not make it. However, she reassured me that we could have lunch first then take the next rail bike at 1pm if we miss the 11am ride.

I got off at Gimyujeong station at 10:55am and immediately ran for the exit to meet Haeun. As I looked back, there were many people also running behind me. I guess they were at a similar situation as I am. It felt like Running Man for a moment. As I approached the exit, I saw Haeun. We didn't have time to say Hi and off we ran towards the rail bike ticket counter. We were relieved that we were able to make it on time. Most of the people there were for the four seater ride while only a handful including us were for the two seater ride.

At around 11:25am, we finally started our rail bike ride. The feeling was really great as we cycled our way along the rail. After a few minutes, we were on a gentle downward slope and for a moment we were a little too close to the couple in front of us. We had to pull the brakes a couple of times to avoid collision.

Gangchon Rail Bike

The scenery was amazing, with couple of tunnels to go through. There was a short passage where we passed by a rail gate. The gates on the sides were closed, and cars were queuing behind the gates to let us through just like when a train passes through. There was also a tunnel with blinking LED lights and fog from the ground. It was a pretty romantic atmosphere for couples. We stopped by a resting area to enjoy the magnificent view of rivers and mountains. Some went for toilet break. When we resumed our ride, it took us another half an hour to reach the end. The whole journey was around one hour.

Some Scenes Along the Ride

We found that we were at the Gangchon rail bike station when we finished our ride. At that time we were extremely hungry. Haeun recommended a Dalkalbi restaurant at the Dalkalbi street in ChunCheon. We walked for about 20 minutes to Gamchon train station and went to Chuncheon station. We took a bus and alighted at four stops from Chun Cheon station and walked to Dalkalbi street. In Dalkalbi street, both rows of shop houses sell Dalkalbi and Dalkalbi only. Haeun found the restaurant that she recommended and finally we could have our lunch.

Dalkalbi Street 

Delicious Dalkalbi

As expected, the Dalkalbi here was awesome! Just like other Korean restaurants, we had fried rice with the left overs. We chatted a little and enjoyed the awesome food. Haeun wasn't a talkative person, but I didn't feel awkwardness between us even if we didn't talk much. I felt comfortable with her.

After finishing the Dalkalbi, it was already around 2:30pm. My initial plan was to go to Nami Island alone as Haeun needed to go back earlier to study for her midterm hydraulic test on the coming Friday. However, Haeun told me that she wanted to bring me to visit her university. As I wanted to experience local life, I chose to visit her university of Nami Island as there won't be many chances where I could visit a local university. It was a long journey to her university and we were tired. We slept on the train until Sangbo station and transferred to subway.

Haeun's university wasn't very big but the landscape was beautiful. They had many cherry blossom trees and a lake with water fountain. Haeun showed me her faculty and her reinforced concrete lab. We also walked around the sports complex and park. It was a school anniversary holiday so there wasn't any class on that day. We spent for about 40 minutes there and we bid farewell as Haeun had to meet her friends at a cafe nearby.

Haeun's University

I went to Insadong and had Kimchi Jjigae for dinner. Kimchi Jjigae is my favourite Korean dish and it was great especially in a cold weather. I also tried a waffle after dinner. Then I went to Insadong street to search for souvenirs. I bought the Hanbok teddy bears and some hand made key chains. There were many handicrafts along Insadong street. But at that time, most of the shops had already closed because it was around 9pm. There was also a street performer who played and sing along with his guitar. He was pretty good and I gave him 10000Won after listening to 3 songs.

I returned to HBC house but my phone had died. I remembered the route roughly that I should turn into the junction when I see a yellow colour salon. I was walking along that street but I couldn't see any yellow salon. I turned back and tried other streets but to no avail. Fortunately, I found a helpful lady and she brought me to a cafe with internet service. I logged in to my email and studied the powerpoint slides that Eun Kyung had sent me earlier. I found that I was walking along the correct street in my first try and that salon was actually right in front of me! I thanked them and quickly went back to that street and found that salon. I had no idea why I was blinded. Anyway, I managed to find my way back to HBC house. It was a long day starting from all the running and riding at Gangchon Rail Bike station to finding my way back to HBC house late at night.

Tomorrow I will be on a solo trip again. Haven't had any concrete plans yet. I guess I will decide my itinerary on the next morning!

Korea Trip 2015 Day 5: Taejongdae

14 April 2015
Tuesday

Today's plan was to visit Taejongdae and then catch a KTX from Gupo back to Seoul at 6:30pm. Taejongdae is quite far from Sooyoung's place but fortunately there was a bus to downtown Busan.

I took the bus and asked the bus driver the station that I needed to alight / transfer to Taejongdae. He told me that I should alight at Busan Deport bus station and transfer. I was quite proud that this conversation was all in Korean and I managed to get off and transfer to a bus bound for Taejongdae from Busan Deport station. The thing I like about Korea is that they have announcements on the bus unlike in Singapore. So it was pretty easy to ensure that I alighted at the right stop. Along the way, the bus driver was playing Korean old songs from the 70s and 80s. It felt really local to be on the bus while enjoying the local scenery of downtown Busan.

There were a few buses which gets you to Taejongdae. I took the first bus that arrived which was bus 66. On the bus there was a Malaysian family (I could tell by their accent). And they were wondering which stop should they alight for Taejongdae. I told them it is the last stop. I passed by Yeongdo bridge on my way to Taejongdae as expected (after studying Busan's landscape from Busan Tower yesterday) and I could see many fishermen nearby the port. This is the original Busan!

The weather was very sunny and windy today, perfect weather to go to Taejongdae. I opted to walk the trail to reach the Taejongdae landmark which was at the midpoint of the trail. Along the way I went down to the seashore to catch a close up view of the sea. But I sort of regretted when I needed to climb my way back to the trail.

Taejongdae Entrance

View from 1st Observatory Site 

Nevertheless, after 40 minutes or so, I reached the highest point at the observatory deck. The scene was majestic from here. I also took a rest and had some Busan Odeng at the observatory deck along with an ice cream waffle.

View From Highest Observatory Site 

Busan Odeng

I continued my journey to Taejongdae lighthouse and the landmark structure. The lighthouse was nothing fun to be honest. From here you could see Sinseon Rock at about 80-100m below. There were some stairs and rocks which could lead you to that rock and cliffs down there.

Hmm..Wonder what does this symbolize

Yeongdo Lighthouse

Taejongdae Landmark with Sinseon Rock at the bottom left

Sinseon Rock / Cliff

Of course, I took the route down to the cliffs. I think if you only stayed up there and did not spend the effort or courage to go down, you have never experienced Taejongdae. It wasn't very difficult to go to Sinseon Rock. Just need to be careful of the rocky path. When I reached there, it was a totally different feeling. I saw on the cliff while looking out at the vast ocean. It was just amazing. I was glad that the Malaysian family that I saw on the bus made their way to Sinseon rock too.

View from Sinseon Rock Below

Taejongdae Rock Cliffs

After spending quite some time enjoying the cliffs, I climbed back up for about 280m back to the trail. This was the hardest and most challenging part! I was panting away heavily after I reached the top. However, I was running out of time. There was a Danubi train here and I asked the train lady whether I could buy a ticket on the spot. She allowed and I took the Danubi train to finish the second half of the journey back to the starting point.

Riding the Danubi Train

The train only took about 10 minutes to reach the starting point where I got off and rode a bus back to Busan Deport and then to Mora.

Quickly I packed my things and headed for Gupo KTX station which was only three stations from Mora. Gupo station was about 10 minutes walk from Gupo metro station. I passed by a bakery selling Gyeongju Bbang (Bread) and I bought some of them for dinner on the train. I bid farewell to Busan and started my journey back to Seoul. I will be staying at a guesthouse called HBC house. It is also near Noksapyeong area.

While I was on the train, the guesthouse host, Eun Kyung texted me saying that it was raining in Seoul and she and her boyfriend would be picking me up from Seoul Station by car to their guesthouse. It was really kind for her to offer me a ride and I really thanked them for their generosity.

I reached Seoul station on time and met Eun Kyung and her boyfriend Adonis. They were very friendly and spoke good English. What's more was that they were listening to mandarin channel on the radio! They told me that that radio station plays nice chinese love songs at night and they liked it. I told them about my plans to go for Gangchon ride bike tomorrow and they were surprised that I was able to find such place because Gangchon is a suburb area of Korea.

HBC House was small, but they had everything that you need! From towels, washing machine, clothe hanger, TV, snacks, fruits, umbrellas, phone charger, travelling guides, electric stove, utensils, fridge etc. I would really recommend this guesthouse. You only need to bring yourself and clothes and the guesthouse will take care of the rest. Eun Kyung also visits the guesthouse once a day to clean up. So the entire place was very neat and clean. I stayed in a room with two bunkers (4 beds) but during that period that room wasn't occupied. The other room however was occupied by a Korean man who works in a Japanese company. Eun Kyung told me that last week, my room was occupied by three girls from Singapore.

I took a shower, did my laundry and contacted Haeun for our meeting time and place for tomorrow's rail bike ride. We would be meeting at Gimyujeong station at 10:20am and our rail bike schedule was at 11:00am. We should have ample of time to find the rail bike station.

Korea Trip 2015 Day 4: Beomeosa Temple, Busan Tower

13 April 2015
Monday

I woke up at 9:30am and tried out Mrs. Park's Korean breakfast. It was really delicious and she said that her family eats this sort of breakfast everyday. I think Korean homemade dishes are better. Here is a picture of the breakfast that Mrs. Park made:

I also got to meet Sooyoung for the first time. She was really friendly and spoke fluent English in American accent. Sooyoung also told me about the direct buses from her house and it was very convenient that there was a bus from her house to downtown Busan. She also suggested a few places for me to go. In the end, I have decided on my original plan to visit Beomeosa temple, Oncheoncheon and Geumjong mountain.

It was rainy and windy today. It took about one hour for me to reach Beomeosa station and I took bus no. 90 to go up to the temple. It was a steep and winding road. Located on the mountain, the sight of the temple was different compared to our temples in Malaysia. Coupled with the rainy weather, mist of clouds were hovering the mountain. The surroundings was quiet and calm, and occasionally I saw people walking down from the mountain trail. Buddhist monks and nuns could be spotted around the corner too.

Beameosa Temple

I climbed up the temple and the interior was similar to our temple with golden statues. I really liked the atmosphere here and I think it is a good place for meditation and spiritual healing. On the side on the temple there were this "sea of rocks". Out of curiosity, I hiked my way along these rocks to sea where it would lead to. The higher I went, the better the view. But there was no one around. I just took my time to enjoy the cool and calm atmosphere here. When I was heading down, I saw a lady hiking up the rocks like I did earlier.

Sea of Rocks

After having lunch at the foot of the mountain, I wanted to go to Oncheoncheon. If someone says there's Cheongyecheon in Seoul, then there is Oncheoncheon in Busan. However, Oncheoncheon is bigger and it is a natural stream. However, due to the weather, I couldn't see the Oncheoncheon that I was expecting. There were no one cycling by the river and there was mud all over. I was a bit disappointed. I think this place will be great in summer. Then I moved on to m next destination which was Geunjong mountain. It is a famous mountain range in Busan near Beomeosa. And there is a cable car to the top.

I tried to find my way to Geumjong mountain through Geumgang park from website routes but failed. In the end I met this young lady who was eager to help. She cound't speak English but fortunately she could understand my broken Korean. She brought me to a taxi and told the taxi driver my situation. I thanked her and took a cab to Geumgang park. The taxi fare in Busan was quite cheap, only 4000 Won for fifteen minutes ride. But today wasn't a good day for me. When I reached Geumgang park, I fond that the cable car was under maintenance. Hugely disappointed, I had to plan the rest of the day impromptu.

I made a decision to visit Yongdusan Park and Busan Tower and maybe Nampodong at downtown Busan. When I reached Yongdusan Park, I went on this 3 tier escalator. And as I walked my way up to the park I could see Busan Tower. There was this guardian statue like "Guan Gong" in front of the tower, overseeing Busan. There weren't as many tourist as I expected, partly because of Monday and the cold weather I guess. When I was about to enter Busan tower, the elevator ladies asked us to follow them to the elevator entrance before I could find the ticket office. And up we went to the observatory deck. It was free of charge! Something to cheer about after some disappointing encounters. The Busan tower observatory deck has multiple window panes in 360 degrees. Each window capture a particular famous area of Busan such as Jagalchi Market, Gamcheon Culture Village, Yeongdo Bridge, Oryukdo etc.

Beautiful View of Busan Captured from Busan Tower

With a Busan map on hand, I walked around the observatory deck a few rounds, trying to figure out the landscape of Busan according to the map. I could locate the island that houses Taejongdae although Taejongdae was hidden from view. But I knew from the map that that island is the island that I will travel to tomorrow. I spent quite a long time up there capturing the view of entire Busan town area.

After Busan Tower, I went down to the town area somewhere around Nampodong. The streets were nice but it was too cold, so I went into a shopping mall instead. I think it was a Lotte shopping mall. On the ground floor I saw this musical fountain that was three storeys high. The fountain not only ejects water from the bottom but also from the top, forming beautiful patterns.

Fountain Show 

I had my dinner there and went to a CD store. It was my first time visiting Korean CD store as now there is less and less CD stores available. There were so many Korean artists CDs (Of course! I am in Korea!). I bought Yiruma's and Lee Sun Hee's 30th anniversary concert DVD.

It was already 8:30pm and it has been a tiring day for me. So I headed home and had a rest to prepare for tomorrow's Taejongdae trip before travelling back to Seoul.  

Korea Trip 2015 Day 3: Busan Gangseo Canola Flowers

12 April 2015
Sunday

I took an early KTX from Seoul station to Busan. It was my first time riding a bullet train. Eunjin and I would be meeting at 1pm at Sasang for lunch. The KTX ride was very smooth and you can't really tell that the train has already been up to full speed at around 300km/h.

I reached Busan station on time and found that I had left my international charger at host Eunjin's house back in Noksapyeong. Fortunately there is a convenient store at Busan station that I managed to get hold of a phone charger. Using the directions given by Sooyoung, I reached her apartment at around 11.45am at Mora. Eunjin messaged me that we should meet at 2pm instead. I thought that it is much better too because I would have some time to rest.

However, when I rang the bell, there was no one home! I tried to call Sooyoung's mobile but there was no network. I got panicked as I couldn't check in and wonder whether they had moved out or something. Fortunately, their neighbour came out of the house and I asked them about Sooyoung's house. The guy who was bringing his parents out was really kind to help me. He brought me to the guardhouse and asked the guard about Sooyoung.'s house. Apparently Sooyoung's dad owns a red ginseng shop nearby and they had gone to church. He asked me to wait by the shop until 12:30pm as Sooyoung's dad would be back by then. Indeed, Sooyoung's dad Mr. Park greeted me at around 12:40pm and brought me in his shop and gave me free red ginseng tea. It was good because Busan is much colder and windier and the warm red ginseng tea was very comforting. He explained that Sooyoung's mom would be back from the market soon and would bring me to check in while Sooyoung was at work in the hospital.

With Mrs. Park's help, I managed to check in. The house was very big and clean. I took a shower and quickly left the house to meet Eunjin at Sasang. It only took fifteen minutes to reach Sasang and I reached on time. She wanted to meet at an Apple shop. But I couldn't find her as the Apple shop was quite big. I took a screenshot of my location and finally she found me. Her English was better than I thought. I think she had really improved a lot in her English grammar. She then brought me to a Jjukumi restaurant for lunch. Jjukumi is a spicy tiny octopus dish. As I love spicy food, I loved Jjukumi too.

Jjukumi Before and After

We chatted a little and she said that I looked younger. I was a bit anxious about whether it would be awkward to meet for the first time especially this was my first time meeting someone that I knew online. She was my first friend from Hellotalk. But soon, we broke the ice and started to talk freely. After lunch, Eunjin recommended me a canola flower sight at Gangseo near Gimhae since cherry blossom has ended in Busan. When we reached the site, I was taken aback by the sheer beauty of the yellow sea of canola flowers. It was really breathtaking and the closer to walk towards the site, you can smell the fragrance of the flowers. It was like aromatherapy.

Beautiful Canola Flowers at Gimhae

The site was also not crowded, allowing us to fully enjoy the view and the fragrance. We took many pictures together. Eunjin said it was her first time to come here too. It is difficult to describe the sceneary without pictures. We spent about one and a half hour there before heading to a cafe in Gimhae. As I would like to experience local lifestyle, Eunjin recommended this cafe which was a local cafe in Gimhae.

As we were on our way to the cafe, we were already getting along with each other really well. At the cafe, Eunjin ordered a baked bread ice cream. the bread was very freshly baked and taste really good with the ice cream. We were chatting about various things like working life, our view about life, Korean culture, Singapore culture, plastic surgery, our Hellotalk experience, and so much more. We both felt relieved that we were able to chat about things beyond the superficial. I thought that her thinking was quite matured for her age. We sat at the cafe for almost two and a half hours. That's the longest time I had spent with someone in a cafe. It was sad that we had to bid farewell as we headed back home.

When I reached home at Mora, I was surprised to find that Mrs. Park was still awake and watching TV at the living room. It was already around 11:30pm and usually elderly sleeps early. We then sat at the living room and chatted for some time. She could only speak basic English while I could only speak basic Korean. It was amazing that she liked to talk to me, in Korean with some help of translation app. I could understand maybe 60% of her conversation, most were like guessing work. She told me that she had two daughters. Sooyoung was working on shift in a hospital while another daughter was a lead vocal in a jazz band. She had taken some time off from her studies and touring around the world doing performance. She also made some red ginseng tea for me as I had a little cough.

The next day would be my solo tour around Busan. I didn't really had a solid plan in mind yet. Maybe I would visit Beomeosa Temple and visit Oncheoncheon and Geumjong Mountain as they are all nearby each other. It was a memorable day with Eunjin today although we didn't visit many places. I kinda like this kind of feeling because I didn't feel like a tourist. Just like a local, hanging out with friends at a cafe chatting away.

Korea Trip 2015 Day 2: Yeouido Cherry Blossom

11 April 2015                                                
Saturday                                                                        

Today is the day of cherry blossom viewing! I had promised to meet Heejung at Gwangheungchang station at 9:30am and we will have breakfast before heading to Yeouido. Before I left the guesthouse, my host had cooked breakfast and asked whether I'd like to try. I accepted her offer and had a little of her simple cooking before setting off. She told me the way to the nearest subway station (Noksapyeong Station). She said I should take the bus for around 4 minutes and get off at the bus stop to go to Noksapyeong station. I timed carefully and observed whether there is any subway station nearby while I was on the bus. On the 3rd minute mark, I made up my mind to alight at the next stop. However, the next thing I knew was that the bus was crossing Han River! Knowing that I had missed the right stop, I quickly pressed the bell and alighted at the nearest bus stop after Han River. I checked the map and had to detour through Banpo Station to Gwangheungchang. In the end, I was late for one hour!

Anyway, Heejung still greeted me with a bright smile and brought me to this "Mandu" restaurant called "Mapo Mandu". They sell all sorts of mandu (dumplings) and the best was Kalbi Mandu.


                                    

Mapo Mandu Stall

We ordered about thirty mandus and we finished them all. Later she brought me to this awesome bingsu dessert restaurant called Okrumong. It sells the best red bean bingsu that I have ever had in my life! The blended ice was so soft and tender, with some milk flavour. Not to mention the red bean paste which was just as tender and sweet. I really miss this bingsu.

Okrumong Pat bingsu

After that, we headed to IFC mall, an underground mall in Yeouido. Finally I managed to fix my phone there after buying a Usim card earlier at GS25. We then headed to the much anticipated Yeouido Yunjungro cherry blossom festival. The weather was sunny today. However, it was so so crowded that we could barely move. Thanks to my selfie stick, I could still take photos despite the crowd.

Cherry blossom at Yunjungro

As seen from website pictures, the cherry blossom formed an arch over the street. When there is a strong breeze, the petals would fall like snow. When we were halfway through the street, we heard announcement about celebrity Haha's arrival at 4pm which was about 40 minutes from the time we heard the announcement. Disbelief, we double check again with the second announcement and indeed, Haha and Skull, the famous Reggae duo is coming to Yunjungro to perform! We felt as if we just struck the lottery.

We headed to the bay of Han river which was less crowded while waiting for Haha's arrival. When it was time, we managed to get a front "stand" from the side of the stage. The performance began with another duo warming up the stage before Haha and Skull took centre stage. The crowd went wild and I couldn't take much photo because it was too squeezy. The performance lasted for an hour and the climax was when they sang "Busan Vacance". That was the only song I knew from Haha and Skull and it was really fun jumping to the upbeat song, especially tomorrow I will be going to Busan!

Haha and Skull at Yunjungro Cherry Blossom Festival

Heejung and I actually planned to ride a bicycle and have a picnic around Han River, However, it was just too crowded and we decided that it wouldn't be much fun to do that. Hence, we headed out from Yeouido and went to Yeonnamdong, a quiet neighbourhood area with traditional stalls. I was surprised that there were many chinese restaurants there. We found that at Yeonnamdong there were also cherry blossom trees and it was much quiet here so we could enjoy the view and peaceful atmosphere.

Peaceful Yeonnamdong

After having dinner at Yeonnamdong, Heejung recommended to go to Sokchon Lake which was near Jamsil station. Heejung said Jamsil ground is actually settling and there is still the construction of a skyscraper Lotte World 2 going on despite the settling ground conditions. We bought some snacks and beer for picnic at the lake.

Sokchon Lake was really beautiful at night and cherry blossom trees are all around the lake. And there was Lotte World theme park too! It was less crowded and not as many tourists here compared to Yunjungro. I like the atmosphere here much more that Yeouido.

Beautiful Cherry Blossom at Sokchon Lake

We found a place to sit down and had our snacks and beer. We chatted for quite awhile and Heejung suddenly asked me "What is the standard of friends in Singapore?" I was taken aback and asked her to clarify her question. Then she said, in Korea, friends are only relationship between two person of the same age. So she wondered if the culture in Singapore is the same. I told her that in our culture, we can treat someone senior as our friend and call him/her by name. She thought that this kind of culture is better because it brings people closer. I sort of agree with that.

It was quite late already and we ended our cherry blossom day parting at the subway station. It was really fun getting to meet Heejung again and she was very kind to bring me around till so late especially that her house is far from Seoul. I really appreciate her hospitality.

On my way home, I lost my way to Eunjin's house. I read the address that she gave me on a paper and was certain that I could find my way. But I couldn't. I had a screenshot of her house address in my phone but my phone had died. Fortunately, I brought along my powerbank. I recharged my phone and checked the screenshot. It was different from the one Eunjin had written. I found the street of the screenshot and managed to find my way back to Eunjin's house. It was already very late when I finally reached her house and everyone was asleep.

I will be going to Busan tomorrow morning and looking forward to my meeting with Eunjin!

Korea Trip 2015 Day 1: Hongdae

10 April 2015                                                                                                                             Friday

Touched down at Incheon Airport again at 4:45pm after 10 months. Similar scenes and recollected last year’s memories. However, this year’s trip is going to be different because I will be traveling alone and also meeting a few friends. I will be meeting Heejung, Haeun and Jinhwa at Seoul and Eunjin at Busan.

This trip schedule is Seoul (10^th to 11^th April), Busan (12^th – 14^th April) and Seoul (15^th – 18^th April). I will be staying at Mely’s friend’s, Eunjin’s house at Noksapyeong, Sooyoung’s place at Mora and Chloe’s HBC house at Haebangcheon. Because Eunjin needs to work, I could only check in to her house after 7:30pm. So after touching down on time at 4:45pm, I headed to Mely’s house to put my luggage and meet Heejung at Itaewon station. I would come back to Mely’s place at around 10pm to pick up my luggage and move over to Eunjin’s place. The weather by the way was breezy, slightly cold with a temperature of around 15 degrees. Very refreshing indeed!

Due to internet connection problems, it took awhile for me and Heejung to meet up because I could not connect to the internet and had to rely on roaming to text her. We finally met and headed to Hongdae to try Andong Jjimdalk. It was delicious, but a bit similar to Chinese black soysauce chicken. Heejung wanted to bring me to try a green tea dessert stall but it was closed down. So we went to a convenient store where Heejung recommended me lots of Korean snacks. She had already bought many snacks for me earlier!

By that time it was almost 10pm and Heejung asked me for Mely’s number. I gave her and she immediately picked up her phone and called Mely to tell her that we will be late. By the time I reached Mely’s place, it was already 10:45pm and Eunjin has been waiting there for almost 40 minutes. I felt really sorry for her. And we headed to her place immediately. We took a taxi there and it was uphill. Eunjin told me that I should use her room while she used the guestroom with no bed. Her house was new, clean and tidy.

I slept soundly that night and looking forward to next day’s cherry blossom schedule with Heejung.