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Annyeong Haseyo Seoul!

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Happy Friday ladies! 😀

We had a long weekend here in Malaysia last week thanks to Labour Day, so I took advantage of it by going to Seoul 😀 It was just a quick trip and it was really quite tiring because I walked so much, but it was fun.

hi seoul!

Don’t I look quite quite Korean here? 😛 I didn’t pay to wear the Hanbok – its too expensive. But in the grounds of the Gyeongbokgung Palace were these cut-outs that you can stick your face into so yeah. Inexpensive way to see how you’d look wearing the Hanbok! 😀

hanbok

Traditional Hanbok in a store window at Insadong

Here are some beautiful Hanbok (Korean traditional dress) that I saw in a window on my way to Insadong. Aren’t they beautiful? I was told that in Korea, its now strictly kept for formal functions like weddings, and many people may not own one because its very expensive. So people sometimes rent them if they need a Hanbok.

I’ve got some more photos below if you are interested. Its quite a picture heavy post so do be warned!

Whilst visiting Deoksugung (Deoksu Palace) which was just opposite the hotel I stayed in, I managed to catch the Changing of the Royal Guard which was a very colourful and interesting event carried out in the square in front of the main gate of the palace. I was there at about 3.30pm and they have this about 3 times a day (roughly). All palaces are closed on Monday so do be warned if you are planning to go.

 

palace guard

Royal Guard in Traditional Korean uniform

And after the show and pagentry, you get to take pictures with the guards! There were 3 of them, but I chose this one because he was the most “leng chai” (good looking) of the lot and he was sweet to pose for a few shots and bid me “Annyeong Haseyo” LOL! 😀

I must say that my favourite parts of Seoul are the palaces because I absolutely loved all the gardens I walked through. It was Spring although there was still a chill in the air, and flowers were in bloom and trees were green and it was just so calm, relaxing and beautiful.

cherry blossoms in bloom

Cherry blossoms in bloom

Cherry blossoms were still in bloom although many had already fallen off for the green leaves to appear but I managed to catch some good shots in the Gyeongbokgung palace. This is the main palace and is about 20 minutes walk from Deoksugung which was fine by me 😀

zero mile

Its just 4,600km to Kuala Lumpur from the 0 Mile!

Along the way I passed the Zero Mile stone, a point from which the distances are measured and tada! There’s Kuala Lumpur at 4,600km away from the middle of Seoul city! 😀

toilet controls

Here’s something I just had to show you – the toilet controls in my hotel bathroom. I stayed at the Plaza Hotel and I will be telling you about it separately because its really nice! But just look at the array of controls you can use to operate the toilet! It has a warm seat (ahhh!) and auto-flush and you really have to play around with the controls to fully enjoy it LOL!

traditional carrier

This is a traditional carrier I tried on at Namsangol Hanok Village, which is a traditional Korean village in Seoul city where the buildings had been preserved and/or reconstructed to ancient times. Namsangol Hanok Village is open to the public and its free which is really awesome. These traditional carriers were used to carrying things and its really heavy. Incidentally, I spotted these still in use in the Namdaemun market where I saw some traders carrying their stock on their backs using one of these!

And really, what is travel if not to sample the local food!

bibimbap

My first meal in Seoul was Bibimbap (mixed rice) with barbequeued meat at Myeongdong, served in a large metal bowl. It was delicious although I have to say that it did taste pretty much as Bibimbap tastes at Korean restaurants here in KL. The meal was 5,000 won (about US$5) which was one of the cheapest I had. Food is pricey in Korea.

I was very lucky to have a friend in Seoul who with his family took us around by car, showed us the sights, fed us very well and even invited us back to their home and served us lunch! Because of that, I had the chance to go to the Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market which I thoroughly enjoyed! I love visiting markets 😀

korean shellfish

Strange shellfish at Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market (meongge)

Here’s a very strange shellfish that I cannot remember its name. If you can read Korean or if you know what that is, please let me know 🙂 You peel off the outer skin and eat the inside which you see on the plate. My hosts bought a bag of it, and it was eaten raw with homemade kochujang sauce. I wouldn’t say it was delicious but it wasn’t awful and it was interesting. (Update: Thank you Andrea! Its meongge or sea pineapple or sea squirts)

korean food part 1

Here is a selection of food I had. From the top left clockwise here’s what they are:

  • The unknown shellfish as shown in the previous photo, served raw with fresh vegetables
  • Homemade fish soup and rice – so good on a cold wet rainy day!
  • Tteokbokki or Ddeokbokki – rice cakes in spicy sauce
  • O Gyub sal – five layered pork on a grill
  • Kimchi Jjigae – Spicy kimchi soup

And wait. There’s more food! 😀

korea food part 2

Clockwise from Top left:-

  • Sausages on a stick – street food
  • Kimbap – Rice and filling rolled in seaweed (like sushi but not)
  • Pa Jeon – Seafood pancake late night snack
  • Makgeolli – Korean rice wine which is delicious and has very low alcohol content
  • Kimchi Cold Noodles – Literally cold noodles. There were chunks of ice in there. Delicious actually.

I went to the usual shopping spots – Dongdaemun market which is open 24 hours and is a clothes mecca; Namdaemun market which sells clothes and jewellery wholesale, Myeongdong which is a shopping area and where you can get every single cosmetic brand in the Korean market (but I’ll tell you about it in another post), Insadong where there were old buildings in the alleys between the newer buildings and cafes. I even went to the Bukchon Hanok Village which is really far away and where people still live in the traditional Korean houses which are preserved to look just like they did in days of yore. That was however due to a mistake on our part and I wouldn’t recommend you go there unless you have a lot of time on your hands.

I had a lovely time in Seoul and my hosts spoilt us silly. The weather was lovely barring the one day where it rained non stop the whole day, and I ate far too much (diet starts now!). Shopping was alright. I had lists of stuff to get for friends from cosmetics stores there but I personally did not end up with very much. Mostly some BB Creams, sheet masks and skincare, including the Tony Moly snail cream I showed you yesterday.

Another city crossed off my to-visit list and a lovely time had 😀

Paris B

58 Insightful comments ... Read or JOIN THE DISCUSSION

58 comments ... Read or JOIN THE DISCUSSION

  3. Ah, Korea! Frankly speaking, I don’t really like Korean food apart from the Ginseng Chicken, so my trip there when I was 12 was a hungry one! ^.^

    Reply

    • Aww… I love Korean food! I never used to, but its grown on me and I love all their sauces and kimchi and spicy fermented goodies LOL!

      Reply

  6. Hi PB,

    I just came back from my Korea trip too abt 3 weeks ago.. Weather was still pretty cold that time and very windy !! I think it is pretty hard to find halal food for Muslim in that country. Every time we were in Seoul, the tour guide had to bring us back to Itaewon area for dinner and lunch as it is the only place you can find halal food (but not Korean food though, it was Indian / Pakistani food).

    However we managed to eat Korean vegetarian dishes at places outside Seoul i.e.: Nami Island, Mount Sorak etc.. Not too bad !!

    I did not shop much too when I was there. Everything was super expensive.. the cheapest pair of shoes can cost up to RM300. I think Koreans already get used to that kind of crazy prices. However, design wise, everything (shoes, handbags, hair accessories, dresses) were very pretty !! I had a tough time restraining myself to shop when I was there

    Reply

    • Oh yeah! At the time you were there, it would have been much cooler. It was just starting to warm up as I was leaving. And looking around, I can imagine that it would be really hard to find Halal food there. I actually did not go to Itaewon (time constraint) because I went out of town to the hot springs LOL! I didn’t shop for clothes, shoes or accessories. Like you, I found them expensive even at “markets” but they were certainly attractive!

      Reply

  7. oo!..those strange looking things are called seasquirts generally…tat’s what they r translated to in korean variety shows 🙂

    Reply

      • oh..ur very welcome..eheh..wasn’t expecting credit for it..just wanted to share..coz i really find ur blog informative 🙂 keep up the good work..n i’m jealous that u got to go to Korea!

        Reply

        • And I have to depend on all of you for keeping the info coming – can’t know everything eh? 😉 Thanks anyway and I’m sure your turn will come 😉

          Reply

  9. Hi Paris!

    Your picture of the toilet controls reminded me of the time I stayed at Lotte Hotel. It was fun using the toilet cos I didnt even have to lift the lid cover. The control panel came equipped with it. LOL! Talk about being ultra cleanliness conscious 🙂

    Reply

  11. Omigosh Paris!

    Which airline were you on to Korea? Good deals?
    Can’t wait to see more photos. LOL You are indeed so Korean on that cut-out Hanbok! 😀

    Reply

    • I flew MAS the last time they had a special fare so it wasn’t as expensive as it normally was 🙂 It leaves here at around 11pm and arrives in Seoul at about 7am so you can immediately hit the streets! 😀 Interestingly, in Korea I was also mistaken for being Korean! 😀

      Reply

  12. Nice post, I think it’s time I include Korea to my list too 🙂 Glad you had an awesome holiday.

    Reply

  13. Wow, I had no idea you visited Korea!! How fabulous!! I am planning to go there next Feb though. 🙂 The food look delicious! Those Meongge are from ever famous Tong Young and I am adding them to my list-to-eat lol

    Reply

    • I was told that Feb would be cold but great for hitting the ski slopes! 😀 I was contemplating going just to try my hand at skiing again LOL!! You have to try Meongge when you go. Its very interesting (and doesn’t taste fishy or awful at all!)

      Reply

      • Yes I am only going in Feb, so I could try my favorite winter food! lol.. Plus I really miss snow 🙁 I am actually going to stay Tong Young, so I will definitely try those meongge!

        Reply

  14. How wonderful to be in Korea just for few days to escape the hot blazing weather in KL. I owned a Hanbok as souvenir which I had never had a chance to wear it. It cost about RM250, so I don’t think it is too expensive for any Korean to get one.

    Reply

    • Yes it was certainly fun to be in chilly weather for a change – the low humidity played havoc with my skin though. I think for Hanbok, its a lot like our cheongsam. The good ones of high quality silk and with embroidery etc can cost a lost, while there will also be more affordable ones. Other than for ceremonial purposes or at a wedding I happened to catch, no one else was wearing Hanbok. They were otherwise very well dressed though!

      Reply

  15. I am definitely going Korea!! The place is so nice and weather is so good. Not to mention those cosmetics and skincare like Innisfree~~

    Reply

    • I’m sure you’ll enjoy it 🙂 I saw all the cosmetics brands but ended up being quite underwhelmed. They all sell more or less the same things and everything got too confusing so I decided to just not buy anything! LOL I enjoyed the food and weather most of all 🙂

      Reply

  18. nice post.. rarely see your face with so much expression on this blog (normally just eyes or lips as I read your beauty product reviews). =D
    I hope I can go there soon!

    Reply

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