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jerrisdiction · 5 years

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SeoulSearching: Chapter 01

Long story short, the perfectionist in me considered this trip a complete failure. But I'll accept that with gratitude- after all, there's a first time for everything.

One of these "first times" was using automated check-in, which did not work for us anyway, since there were other procedures we were to complete in person. Nonetheless, the staff were all relaxed and helpful.

And yes, more surprisingly, it was the first time we used McDonald's automated ordering kiosks to order light supper, for the counters were closed that night.

I've had better spicy nuggets than these.

Another 'first': being on a late night flight, which we all regretted. Even Mum, who's usually a heavy sleeper, complained of being sleep deprived. As for me, it goes without saying that I disembarked in the morning half-disoriented.

I did look forward to witnessing the sunrise on the plane though. It wasn't crisp clear, and I couldn't take a shot of the crimson horizon from my seat. But a beautiful 5am view, it was.

In-flight meals were served shortly before 7am, but I suppose most of us were just tired and indifferent towards the food by then. The three of us opted for stir fried noodles with fried fish fillet, which surprised me a little as I thought Dad would prefer having porridge. Then again, Korean style porridge is likely very different from what we're used to.

｡･:*:･ﾟ

Upon arrival, Dad was amused that the immigration there, like Taiwan, used index fingerprints instead of thumbprints. I couldn't care less, so long the process was smooth. It did take slightly shorter than clearing the Taiwanese customs.

The next step was to purchase our T-money cards - also the first time I spoke Korean to a local there. As expected, it failed quite miserably. My mind already went blank when the GS25 staff told us that they did not sell normal 2,500won T-money cards. Thank goodness another staff came in and intercepted the awkwardness with some English.

Along the way I learnt that it's okay to speak a little bit of simple English. In fact, much better than struggling to be understood in Korean, only in vain. Fast forward to our arrival at Hongdae, where we deposited our luggage with Safex, their staff was pretty relaxed with conversing in English. (I think it's me who needs to relax LOL.)

Hongdae was a place with inexplicably good vibes that afternoon, even though most recommend going in the evening. We settled at a random restaurant, and it turned out to be our favourite meal in the entire trip. Each of us got this huge portion of bibimbap at just 6,500won.

At this point I probably figured out the distinction between traditional bibimbap and the more 'modern' ones like this. Traditional vegetable toppings typically include mushrooms, carrots, spinach, soybean sprouts, and cucumbers. But I don't recall much of those in this bowl- instead, alfafa sprouts, chopped yellow radish and cabbage were among the highlights. Making a wild guess right here that these modern variations are more widely seen in areas like Hongdae to appeal to youths and tourists. Not saying that traditional bibimbap tastes worse, but it had become a tad boring for our family overtime.

We later ventured down the smaller streets of Hongdae, passing by several stores and cafés- each with their own character. I recall being in awe with one of the many accessory stores; its rustic industrial design was well complemented with its scent, probably from a diffuser. Almost felt like stepping into an unfamiliar realm, even though earrings were its highlight.

We also visited Market A, but somehow none of us had a thing for their pieces. They just felt like elegant vibes I couldn't carry. Mum also commented that their pieces are mostly in 'plain' colours. Yes, precisely that- there isn't really a colour the locals can't manage, given their fair skin. In subsequent days, I also observed that they mostly wore such neutral, muted colours to work, especially black and cream.

Meanwhile, Dad had been sitting outside the store, coughing non-stop still. He was obviously displeased with all the walking, and the lack of sleep was taking a toll on him. Surprisingly though, he suggested to find a café nearby to recharge (he was never the type to visit cafés). So we gradually tried to find our way out.

The parents were doubtful when I started going underneath one of the bridges, but wow it turned out to be a really nice spot with shade. 책거리, or what I'd interpret as "Book Street" is such an apt name for a path leading students from the subway station exits towards the university. The afternoon breeze blowing under the bridge also came refreshing after a long walk in the sun. And witnessing some elderly folks reading together in the shade simply completed the picture.

Hongdae is, indeed, definitely more than its nightclubs, restaurants and fashion trends.

Thanks stranger for making this picture even more perfect. Really love the lines and warm vibes in this shot.

That street also had me noticing all the gorgeous flowers Seoul had to offer. I don't have good shots of them up close, for they were better admired in abundance.

Lots of white daisies in this city... I guess the more you avoid something, the more often you see them.

｡･:*:･ﾟ

This café (located in a mall near Exit 4) caught our attention so after some mindless shopping there, we picked a few items for afternoon coffee.

Their coffee (forgot which one Mum ordered for us) wasn't really something I'd fancy. It was our first time trying an beurre - seemingly just bread with cream and red bean filling but, of course, more sophisticated.

I picked up a chocolate financier as well, for I hadn't had one in years. Dad did not think much of it, but I never expected a financier to be the highlight anyway. But it's decently rich (damn, is this a pun HAHA) for me.

｡･:*:･ﾟ

Little did we know that the real challenge was to come after we collected our luggage and headed to Seoul Station. Mum suggested visiting Lotte Mart before checking into our apartment, but it was a really long walk from the airport line. Hell, if the walk within Dhoby Ghaut station was already a chore, I bet this was way, way worse especially with us lugging our baggage around.

By this time, Dad was having the runs and displaying more discomfort, so he decided to rest outside Lotte Mart, giving us 30 minutes to shop. I'd thought this was a great place with variety, for I'd always liked shopping in supermarkets but... The crowd, the tourists, even the promoters enthusiastically drawing customers in with Mandarin were quite a turn-off for me. It really just felt like a place for tourists to sweep all those goodies away last minute before they head home. And seeing Mum almost turn into a child in a candy store got me thinking, this is a bad sign.

When we finally got out of Lotte Mart, somehow Kakao Map failed us and could not point us in a direction that seemed right. Some bickering and struggling later, we decided to lug all that baggage underground once again back to the airport line to find the other station exit, since the subway was our only hope with more visible signs.

And after what seemed like endless walking, we reached our apartment in sheer exhaustion.

｡･:*:･ﾟ

By the time we recharged ourselves enough to go out for dinner, it was yet another challenge to decide what to eat. There were several (probably family owned) restaurants near the estate, but after passing by the lots of them, we headed back to Lotte Mart - this time via a shorter route we'd found.

Lotte Mart isn't so bad after all, for there were a few stalls that sold really affordable and filling meals. We ordered one set of steamed dumplings and 2 sets of kimbap for 13,000won, and though that wasn't way too filling, at least we were able to finish it all - Dad didn't like the tuna kimbap while I didn't like the tonkatsu kimbap so we swapped LOL. Somehow the dumplings were the highlight for me, not sure if it was the filling or the soy sauce.

On our way back, we hopped into a minimart and bought some bread for breakfast the next day (though later on I ate none of it). Oh, and out of curiosity Mum and I tried a spicy vegetable kebab thingy, it kind of set my tongue on fire but felt super shiok (much better than Spicy McNuggets, huh).

Back at the apartment, the duo started generating more complaints of our humble home for the next 4 days. Again, I was the one to blame (who else?), but that didn't bother me much for we were all scrambling to catch up on sleep that night.

#jerringjourneys #jerringseoulsearching

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arvyllena · 7 years

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3rd Valentines to be single (SO WHAT?!)

As you can read on the title, I’ve been not-in-a-relationship since 2014 and it doesn’t matter! (yeah, it does..) No. Frankly speaking, I’m in the stage where I’m still focusing on my career (WEH). Yeah, well if I were to be honest, I do sometimes miss the feeling of having someone special with you especially on a days like this. There’s literally couples everywhere you look and there’s no way that you could avoid it unless you decided to lock yourself up at home. Haha! But I’m happy and contended for the love that I’ve been receiving from my friends and family and I do believe in God’s time when He decided to pair me up with my other half.

Anyway, this year I spent the day with my cousins. I definitely had no plans on this day rather than going straight at home right after my class will end. But suddenly my cousin, Sheena, called me and asked me whether I have a date for today and I answered her “Of course!… Wala, ano pa nga ba?”. Just then, she told me that her brother and his wife invited us to join them on their dinner date (mind you, my cousin has already a boyfriend good thing is her boyfriend was out of the country at that time and I didn’t have to be a 5th wheel for them. Hehe). And because I have nothing to do, I accepted the offer. After my class, I went straight to Trinoma and waited for Sheena to arrive for almost about an hour. While waiting for her, the battery of my phone is already on 5% and I’m starting to get worry that she wouldn’t be able to locate me so I decided to stay-put in Landmark. I sent my last text to her saying that I’d be waiting for her at the food court in Landmark. Moments later with a 2% on my phone, Sheena finally arrived. When we met, she told me that her brother and his wife are located in SM North so we immediately crossed to SM. While walking, my eyes were burning upon seeing tons of couples waking hand in hand. And from then, I redirect my attention to where we’re supposed to eat. I suggested that we should eat in Yabu but when we checked the place, there are a lot of people in queue and decided to eat somewhere similar as Yabu and that was Maisen.

MAISEN is a Japanese restaurant that features mainly on Tonkatsu dish. The restaurant has a Japanese minimalist ambiance, with the Maisen logo as highlight. Once you enter the place, the waiters and waitresses will immediately greet you in Japanese. It also has an open kitchen setup where you can see the Maisen chefs prepare your meal. The pricing is at par with other Tonkatsu restaurants. All the Katsu sets come with unlimited rice, cabbage, pickle set, fruits, and miso soup. Because it was a special day for couples, there was a Valentine’s Couple Set promo that consist of get any 2 selected katsu sets for only P799 with a free 2 potato salads, 2 ice creams and 2 glasses of wine. As we couldn’t decide what to order for ourselves, we considered the promo and ordered 2 couple sets for the 4 of us. After ordering, the waitress approached us and said that the potato salad is not available anymore so she suggested if they can replace the potato salad from a vegetable salad and we agreed on it. They first served us our salad followed by the katsu’s that we ordered. Upon looking the food, it was given in a gallant serving and looks really appetizing. The tonkatsu comes with the finest sauces that aren’t too thick and so flavorful. I started with the generous serving of cabbage with their own signature sesame sauce and followed by the delicious Tenderloin Katsu that I ordered.

Although the 4 of us were famished when we got into the place, we weren’t able to completely sweep off our plates as there were a lot of unlimited fruits, rice and cabbages, we exploited the moment. We then completely forgot about the ice creams and there’s almost no space for it in my tummy but I don’t want to waste food so I still manage to devour the dessert. Oh, and as for our red wines, we decided to replace it into a bottomless iced tea. We enjoyed the rest of our night as we go home.

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