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Published: February 4th 2017
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Korea was the last destination we ventured to in 2016 (after Yogya, Bali, BKK). And we loved it so much! Across the 9 days well spent in Jeju, Busan and Seoul, we shared many "first" experiences, refreshed ourselves emotionally and rested our minds away from the stresses in life and work. The emotions on the road in Jeju were a mix of carefree, enjoyable, with a tinge of wildness... where we'd sing X'mas carols with the music in the car, laughing at jokes we poke at each other, and doing silly things together. Whereas in Busan and Seoul, we recollected experiences of going on day trips just like we did in Europe more than 3 years ago. I'll attempt to reminisce 9 favourite memories we shared:
1) "First" Experiences We shared many "first" experiences during the trip, including first time in a tea plantation, making soap bars together, galloping on a horse (separately), picking mandarin oranges at the farm, donning the traditional Korean Hanbok, sliding off a snow sled, etc. My personal pick was the horse riding, being my maiden try. I felt on tenterhooks initially, though it felt more comfortable as I rode on... under the horse started
galloping round the arena! Thankfully for the guide, he taught us simple ways to control the horses and we managed to get out of the horse riding session unscathed.
2) The beauty in Jeju Having a soft spot for nature, I really enjoyed the first 3 days doing round island exploration of beautiful Jeju. From the sunrise at Seongsan to the amazing Jeongbang waterfalls, from driving through the snow-laden mountain roads to enjoying the sea breeze at the coast side monsant cafe, from enjoying takeaway food at the comfort of our Accom to feasting on the famously good black pork BBQ; from chilling at Osulloc cafe 1 day to picking mandarin oranges the other; Jeju offered us a truly wholesome experience of travelling at our own pace, seeing sights and doing activities we wish to.
3) Exploring Gamcheon Cultural Village Wondered how it felt like to be in a picturesque scene that you see online or on tv? That's exactly how it was when we were in Gamcheon Cultural Village, in Busan! Even though the place was full of tourists, we managed to walk through and explored the many arrays of colourful houses perched across different
levels. We got our late lunch at one of the many cafes along the main street, some more finger food, and as usual, looked out for the best spots for that most charming photo of Gamcheon. Different spots offered vastly different angled views and it's definitely recommended to do at least a half round exploration of the place before leaving.
4) Claw machine hunting in Nampo-dong Another of our favourite activity in Korea was getting the kick from catching soft toys from claw machines that are aplenty in Nampo-dong. This place is hugely popular with locals and tourists alike, with shops and restaurants getting packed especially during evening hours. We tried some of the uniquely korean streetfood, such as the "Topokki" (Korea rice cake), grilled pork and squid. Aside from eating and window shopping, we spend most of the time here at the various arcades littered with claw machines. We managed to get Jibang (a korean cartoon character) on only our 2nd try! Of course, we were lured into playing many more times after that with no success... The thrill and excitement of playing was worth it nonetheless! We are kid-dults through and through :D
5) Going back in time at Bukchon
We took a late night train from Busan to Seoul and settled in a really comfortable Hanok homestay (Hanok 24). It mimics a traditional Korean house yet provides the comfort for a modern lifestyle, and the hosts were immaculately friendly and helpful. That was only the tip of the iceberg. The next day, we headed to Bukchon Cultural Village and it made me fall in love with these traditional houses and Korean architecture. Coupled with the entire area being nestled on hilly ground, the peaceful feel of the place makes it hard for anyone to not appreciate the incredibly beautiful structural landscape.
6) Trying on the Korean Hanbok at Insadong Of course, with Korean culture comes the famous Korean Hanbok, the traditional Korean attire, made popular with the Korean dramas filmed in palaces. It was more of Steph's idea to make it a must-do during this trip, and we tried on the Hanbok, not once but twice at Insa-dong! The first we took it at the Neo-print shop where we could instantly print our photos taken by the machine and the second time was at the Hanok Cultural Centre where we got
to choose the customs to wear. They all look similar to me (I can't appreciate these attires for nuts!). For a good 15 mins, we managed to take quite a couple of fun shots decked in the most outrageous outfit and headwear we could find!
7) Making the most of overhyped Nami Island and Petite France The 2nd full day was planned for a day trip to Nami Island and Petite France. Nami island was on our list due to its popularity from the Winter Sonata show (not that I watched it :p) and the primary reason to go there is to experience being in paths laid by endless Metasequoia trees and take the iconic photo(s) there. To be honest, the horde of tourists and over-marketed scenery resulted in a pretty stark gap between our expectations of Nami and its reality. That said, we still enjoyed our time there playing with fallen leaves, trying on the phone's macro mode for portrait shots and getting away from the crowd as much as we could! The same could be said for Petite France which tried to mimic the entirety of well, France. Though, its mini Eiffel fell well short, and
the row of miniature houses a far cry from the actual architecture in Paris. All in all, we joked that it was a "scam" day for us!
8) Shopping... for cosmetics in Myeongdong, Seoul From all that i can remember from Seoul, 1 thing stands out, and that's shopping in Myeongdong! Here, chains of cosmetics shops bombard the shopping district, where it's not uncommon to find e.g. a Innisfree outlet at 1 street and when you turn the corner to another lane, there lies another Innisfree! Sometimes we get confused on where we are within Myeongdong, hahaha. Of course, the experience being here wouldn't be complete if we didn't fall victim to the cosmetic industry. As the trip draws to an end, we chalked up close to 1 full bag of nonsense (for our family/friends)!
9) Being a kid all over again at Everland! We can't stop being kids, can we?! Right from the start of planning, we already incorporated 1 day of theme park and we were glad for that as we had an enjoyable time taking the rides and feeling like teens all over again! In total, we took 10 different rides, with the
last one, on T-express, a crazily fast wooden roller coaster, taking our breaths (and thankfully not our lives) away. And Steph made me take it TWICE. Lol. I almost died. Not all rides were scary though, as we tried almost all on offer, including the carousel and the ever-so-fun bumper cars. To more theme parks and trips in the future together!
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