Part II : Korean Adventure

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... Part I : Korean Adventure

Meanwhile, we were back in Seoul by six in the evening after another walking day in Nami Island. We went back to Sunshine Guesthouse to get Martin and Dell’s stuff and had dinner at a restaurant nearby. We have told the guys about our disappointing discovery re our next hostel HEY backpackers and gave them options, if they want to spend the night there anyway or look for another place to stay at. They opted for the latter, so after dinner we went to Hongdae Area and looked around for hostels. We eventually found one with friendlier owners and tidier environment, but then it also meant that Janet and I have to make a story up – yeah, lying was a better option for us during the time *evil mode*. After the boys settled at their hostel, we girls were back at our not so good hostel telling the owner that our friends went to Seorak Mountain and were not able to make it back today. It was apparent that the owner was disappointed and was sighing loudly and murmuring a lot making the environment a little stressful than it already was.

We met up with Martin and Dell later in the evening to stroll around the area and for a little shopping. The itinerary for the night was clubbing / bar hopping but we were really not dressed up enough for it, considering that Koreans are too fashionable already! Hongdae - entertainment area and clubbing district in the Mapo-gu district of northwest Seoul - the place was quite alive and people were dressed to impress. There were small groups at the streets playing music and dancing on the spot, eventually building up audiences. The place was jam-packed; we went from bars to bars before finding a spot at ‘BigMama’ bar. The boys had vodka, the girls had cocktails, and we did lots of talking. One of the bar tenders, Jeff, even gave us a complimentary ‘Welcome to Korea’ drink. We were all back at our respective hostels by midnight, all knackered for the day’s activity.

Sleep still wasn’t so good to me. It was time to check out again the next day and move to our next accommodation, Seoul Guesthouse, a traditional Hanok located at Bukchon Hanok Village. We were greeted by a lovely old lady who always had a nice smile on her face. She didn’t speak much English but she was very warm and pleasant. We had nice rooms with mattress and warm comforters on the floor.

Fifth day was intended to be spent at the world’s largest indoor them park ‘Lotte World’. Although I’m not a big fan of theme park rides and have to pass on most of those, it was still a very fun time. We also caught up with a Filipino band at the performance area so we stayed for a while to give some support; they actually recognized us from the crowd and gave us some shout out ‘kababayan!’ (fellow countrymen). They were actually good but they sang mostly Korean songs. Korean audience is definitely one of the most fun audience we’ve ever seen, there was absolutely proper audience participation, clapping, throwing hands in the air, and singing along all through out the band’s performance; it was contagious. There was a light show afterwards but the voice over was in Korean so we didn’t get much of what it was about…but the laser light display was pretty nice nonetheless.

We have done so much walking that it felt like I’ve torn my knee ligament which hurt pretty much. I’ve been limping my way around Korea since the second day with the knee pain and a sore / bruised left foot sole but I couldn’t be bothered anyway.

We were supposed to meet Sophia again the next day but she forgot about it so we had to miss her and went to look for gadgets stores instead. Our search brought us to Yeongsan I’Park Mall; it was gadgets haven with its rows and rows of competing gadgets shops. Then we were back at Myeongdong for more of ‘pasalubong’ shopping.

Back at our lovely Hanok by 09:00PM and decided that for our last night, we will roam around in our PJs, without jackets, and so we went. It was autumn and it apparently was too cold for us people from the tropics, especially after having a Popsicle, but we were having a very good laugh about the silliness. Oh, by the way, Korea has the best ice creams! Although I have to pay the price of enduring sore throat since day one, I just couldn’t keep myself away from ‘em. We eventually had some serious evening snack too consisting of fried rice, vegetables, and meat. Then we accompanied Dell to a wonderful adventure of withdrawing money from an ATM where we almost got locked up! We were not aware of it, but the doors of the ATM booth automatically locked and its lights turned off by midnight…luckily just right after we’ve gone out of the booth.

Dell’s friend’s Korean friend, Sam drove us to Ilsan and showed us around a bit more on our last day. He also took us to a traditional Korean lunch consisting of 20+ side dishes – I haven’t seen so much side dish served on a single meal in my whole life! Sam mentioned that our chopstick skills are almost as good as Koreans and that we eat a lot more than his Filipino friends. We probably just got excited seeing all the side dishes and wanted to taste and finish them all and really, we just love eating. After the sumptuous meal, we went to La Festa Mall at Ilsan; Martin and Dell did yet another shopping. Our baggages have increased significantly, we were having a hard time packing everything – I came with just one backpack, and am now going home with two.

After our last stop at Seoul World Cup Stadium, Sam drove us back to Bukchon.

I’m not sure if it’s because of watching too much Korean dramas that my mind seemed to have been pre-conditioned to love Korea instantly. We love Korea and it was sad to leave. Hopefully we will be able to get back again someday.

…back on the AREX train to Incheon International Airport.

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Guide to Seoul : Trip Itineraries ...

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Comments

[liliram]

You have to PM me more tips
Having read this, I am now inspired to bring the family and try some Korean guesthouse. You must PM me for more details : cost, contact numbers, distance from train stn. And where to bring the kids other than Lotte World. Nice blog, Tinnie. Keep traveling!

[The Travel Camel]

Thanks for writing about Lotte World, I didn't know this place existed. Looks a nice place to spend a few hours after a long day of sightseeing!