Part 2: Anniversary Trip to Seoul

The Wife Wrote:

After Busan, we spend 5 days in Seoul City. We took ground arrangement trip with IBC Tour (Malaysia).

Travel Date: 22th March 2016 - 26th March 2016
City : Seoul
Season: Early Spring

1. Kimchi Making at Kimchi Academy.
Meet our representative at Incheon Airport. We start our tour to Kimchihi school where we can learn to make traditional Kim Chi. We were so excited attending our very first culinary class. After watching the teacher's demonstration on making kimchi, it was our turn putting chili paste in between every piece of cabbages, and then wrapping it around. Then, we can take pictures while wearing a Han – Bok (Korean traditional costume).
 

Kiri: Hasil si isteri... Kanan: hasil si suami..

Dinner time... We've tried Tteokbokki. It is a popular Korean food made from soft rice cake, fish cake, and the sweet red chili sauce called gochujang. 'biasa2 je rasa, kenyal2 skit'

seaweed soup, tteokbokki, fish cake, scrambel egg.. T_T balik hotel makan megi lg best

2. Mt. Seorak

Sokcho City, in Gangwondo province, is the starting point for most people headed to Mt. Sorak from Seoul. There’s a cable-car that takes you some distance up the mountain so you can enjoy the views without needing to climb too much, making this a suitable place to bring children and the elderly. Of course, the more fit and energetic amongst us can reap further rewards if they do make the hike up.'Part yang best, bila sampai di puncak.. its snowing! Dapat la kami merasa pegang salji..haha.. jakun sekejap. Maklum la, peralihan musim sejuk ke bunga.. mmg akan ada salji di sesetengah tempat. Lagi2 atas gunung.. 

 

dapat gak pgg salji..haha tapi salji halus2 je. during winter, salji besar2

Subhanallah, cantik kan?

3. Everland Theme Park

Everland, which is located at the Everland Resort in Yongin happens to be South Korea’s largest theme park. The moment We stepped inside, we were immediately overwhelmed by the place.There’s just so much to see and explore.It seems like an entire day isn’t enough to truly experience everything that Everland offers.We absolutely enjoyed everything that Everland had to offer.One particular attraction we really enjoyed was the Amazing Safari where they tour you around a vast area using an amphibious bus showcasing a variety of cool animals.

Best oi, mcm ni la zoo msia ptt buat. Rasa dekat gn binatang2 ni.

Comey tak dia tido?? mcm nak peluk2

See, sampai kepala masuk dalam bus..

 

Continue Reading

Part 1: Anniversary Trip to Busan

The Wife Wrote:

If you've been reading our blog for awhile now, you'll know that this is our 2nd trip to South Korea. Why South Korea again? Cheaper flight ticket i guess..haha 

Travel Date: 20th March 2016 - 22th March 2016
City : Busan
Season: Early Spring
Hotel : Mirabell, Busan

Let's talk about Busan. Busan is the 2nd largest metropolitan area in South Korea. We could have easily spent a week exploring and relaxing in Busan, and we will no doubt return, but two days was a perfect getaway for the weekend.

We've arrived Incheon International airport at 3.05pm (local time). To get to Busan, we decided to ride the KTX express that made the five-hour trip via bus or regular train down to a little more than 2.5 hours. Honestly, it costs quite a lot, but I promise that it’s worth every Korean Won.
We've booked the KTX express ticket a week before the travel period via KORAIL website. Upon arriving at Seoul Station (Subway Line 1 or 4, Exit 1), we heading to the Information Center to exchange the voucher(e-ticket) for a real pass. Btw, the weather in Seoul was freaking cold! 

Enter to the train boarding area

 

Inside the KTX Express. Free WiFi!!

We arrived at Busan Station at 10.33pm. Find the hotel and rest! (penat, cuaca sejuk..Zzz).

What to do and see in Busan in 48 hours 

1. Gamcheon Cultural Village

Just outside of downtown Busan lies a curious village. Lego-like houses, painted in a rainbow of pastels hug the hillside and spill down in colorful chaos. The colorful scenery of houses reminds you of Santorini in Greece! We went there and spend the most time as we went around literally the whole village as there are a lot of photo zones (such as the little prince) which you can visit. Just a watchout though that you'll be extremely tired from all the walking especially going up and down the hill and you'll get lost going back as you need to take a different bus going back to the city (look for bus station). But definitely a must visit for you if you visit Busan.

Legoland.. comey je rumah2 di Gamcheon Village. Padat & BERSIH!

We bought a map at the village entrance for 2,000 won. In addition to guiding us around the town, it also served as a place to collect stamps from 9 featured locations around the village. We made our way through the labyrinth of narrow alleyways, past murals and obscure statues, exploring this charming and quirky little town. 

Gigih Makcik ni terang Map kat aku..Ckp Korea lak tu..Angguk2 Geleng2 je la..haha

Entrance

How to get there?

Ride subway and alight at Toseong Line 1 Exit 6. Upon alighting, go to the intersection and turn right at the corner. Walk straight for about 5 mins until you reach the hospital on your right. There will be a bus stop located and take bus 2 or 2-2 until you reach the village. The bus ride will take 15-20 mins and it will be very uphill ride as you'll go up until the top of the mountain.

2. Jagalchi Market

If there’s a photogenic grit or raw edge to Busan, the wharf area of Jalgachi Fish Market hits a memorable note. Key word- rubber rain boots! (You’ll see a lot of them here)  Ajummas and ajosshis are the working population here and you’ll see fish in a way you’ve never seen them before.  Whether dried and hanging, toothpick splayed, skinned or live, I’m convinced there’s an art and pride to the fishes on display.

Variety of Kimchi.. Musim sejuk belum abes lg.. Kimchi wajib ada. (maap, tekak kami laki bini mmg takleh terima) T_T

Mcm2 jenis ikan... yang tak penah tgk pun ada..

Other than marveling at the vast array of seafood sold here, visitors can choose their fresh seafood and have it cooked and served at the many restaurants on the first floor of the market. The market opens from morning till night, but come early to get your hands on the freshest catch.

3. BIFF (Busan International Film festival) Square

BIFF Square is the place where all the film festival in Korea is held. It's an area with all the Korea movie stars' hand printing, and during movie festivals, all Korean stars will fly to Busan to attend the event at BIFF. When there is no festival, the place is basically a street surrounded with hundreds of stores and cart food. We love how clean the street is and how the air is so fresh with no pollution!

Food Must Try: Hotteok (Pronounce.. Hot-tok (Hotak ang!...haha saja tambah)

If you would ask me what to eat in Busan, it would be the Busan famous hotteok. I know that Busan is famous for its seafood but this hotteok was the best one we’ve had. So what is a Hotteok? It’s a filled fried korean pancake, a popular street food usually eaten in the winter. This version in Busan had a variation of sunflower seed, nuts, honey and a bit of cinnamon as filling. We actually just paid for one at first but I was like maybe we should get more since we’re already here. So we decided to get another one each. It was so good though. It is perfect for the cold weather. "Sedap baq ang.. En. Husband mula2 tamau, skali pekena, mau lagi..hihi'

 

Kena beratur...panjang lak tu..

 

Nila Hotteok.. Bapak sedap..serius, aku mmg teringat2 sampai kt Malaysia.

Continue Reading

Throwback 2013!

These past 3 years certainly created a lot of memorable moments that we will forever remember, or at least for a very long time.  These memorable moments are not all positive.  Some came from “negative” experiences, but even these negative moments had something that made them as memorable as they are. We're taking a look back at the most notable events of 2013.

March 23rd 

Our big day! Officially Husband & Wife :)

"Belanja Sikit Gambar Kahwin"

June 17th - 24th/25th 

 The wife wrote: When I was in college, I was so obsessed with K-Pop, Korean TV series and movies that my mom once told me that I’d probably get married to a Korean. (Masin mulut mak, dpt la menantu ala2 Korean - Chinese look pn ok what?, muahaha)

The husband wrote: Our dream to go to K-Pop country finally came true!  Honeymoon to Seoul & Jeju Island, South Korea. Here, We’ve rounded up some travel tips for first-time tourists in Seoul for a successful budget trip to K-Pop country.

"Bukti, kome dah ke Korea"

Travel tips!

1- Don’t be ambitious with your itinerary 

Trust us on this. After 9 days in Korea with each day having an average of 3 destinations/activities squeezed in, we never felt so exhausted in our entire life. We know you want to make the most out of your Seoul trip, but we're telling you, you’ll want to be a smart traveler by NOT following every schedule of activities in our ambitious itinerary. "korg klik link to utk view itinerary ktorg di Korea".

2. The Subway will be your bff
Every place is conveniently reachable by their subway. I recommend that you print out the subway mapor. "map tu mungkin mengelirukan anda, tp percayalah, lepas study betul2, tak keliru pun okay...korg akan rasa kagum. Bertingkat-tingkat subway diorg bawah tanah tu. Malaysia ptt buat mcm ni, takla jammed tak tentu psl dengan kete bagai. Ye dok??" You’ll realize how much of a genius its planner is when you experience it. Another thing, most subway stations are just a few blocks away from each other, just walk if you don’t mind stretching your legs and doing more sightseeing. "Dalam subway ni, korg akan tgk Korean ni membaca je. Tak kira la baca buku apa, janji baca. Camtu la kot diorg nak abeskan masa dalam train. Bagus sungguh..."

Subway Metro Map

Nampak tak? Membaca dlm train menjadi satu budaya di Korea

3. Research you destinations
If you can see in our itinerary, we included the directions for every destination: which subway lines to take and which exit number to get out of. Take the wrong exit and you’re gonna waste a lot of time trying to find the place you want to go to. Korea has a very detailed website for how to get to tourist destinations by bus or subway. But we highly suggest you take the subway when going around the city. Signages in Korea have english translations so don’t worry if you don’t know how to read Korean. Make sure the place you want to go to still exists or is open. "sebelum pegi, ktorg research & buka blog traveller2 yg pernah ke Korea, dari situ ktorg senaraikan tempat2, jarak perjalanan dll."

Persembahan diraja di Istana Lama. Mcm ni la kot entertainment dolu2

4. Get a Hostel/Apartment/ Hotel Near Subway Stations

See that Line 1 in blue in the subway map? That’s the main subway line that is connected to almost every other subway line. Moreover, you can easily get to the main tourists spots such as Myeongdong, Seoul station, Gyeongbokgung Palace(Gwanghwamun), Insadong, etc.

Guesthouse yg comel. Mcm dlm drama Korea tuu..haha (di Jeju Island)

Check-in at Robero Hotel. Booking thru Agoda. Time ni ktorg bertuah, dapat bilik super besar dgn harga murah!

5. Don't exchange all your money at the airport
Foreign exchange centers are available in every busy corner especially in shopping areas, so don’t exchange all your money at the airport (you’ll get better rates in the city). Exchange money just enough for your train or bus ride to your hostel.

6. Get T-Money! 

The Korean T-Money is similar to Malaysia's Touch N Go card. You can get a T-Money card at the airport  and load more credit at convenience stores. This is the card that you will be flashing when riding the subway or buses or taxi around Seoul & Jeju Island. "taxi tak semua boleh guna T-Money, korg boleh tgk sticker T-Money di taxi tu maksudnya boleh guna. T-Money boleh jgk guna beli brg2 makanan di convenience store tau".

Cth T-Money Card

7. Get Connected Anywhere with wi-fi

From coffee shops, fast food restaurants, to the subway, your device will detect Wi-Fi hotspots. "Boleh dikatakan semua tempat/jalan ada wi-fi, tayah duk menangis tak dpt update blog/fb/twitter bagai..haha." Is Internet in Korea really that fast? Haha, YES IT IS!!  

8. NO English!
We have A LOT of funny No English moments in Korea. Asking locals for directions or what food they’re eating so you can order it too, is unavoidable especially when you’re in Korea. Majority don’t speak English so asking around can take a lot of time because of finding someone who can understand you and can talk to you. Don’t be surprised if they run away, it happens. HAHA! "punya la takut sbb tak pandai ckp omputih". Download korean translator apps or prepare a list of phrases in Korean that you can use when asking around. "sebelum pegi korang ptt tgk movie/drama Korea tau. Bagi lidah tu lembut sket.haha". You can also ask your hostel/hotel front desk (who understands english) to write down in Hangul the place you’re going to or the food you want to eat. You can also put photos of tourist destinations in your phone that you can show to people that you ask for directions from. "satu tempat yg Korean boleh ckp omputih adalah di bandar Itaewon. Situ ramai tourist melepak dan org Korea yg stok2 duk obersea, kaya-kaya sket dan boleh ckp omputih. Byk makanan HALAL boleh dpt even satu-satunya masjid di Seoul ada di situ."

8. Sorry, but you won't bump into your favorite Korean singers or actors
"Korg jgn mimpi di siang hari la nak jumpa retis-retis K-Pop nih. But you will see a lot of them in the city if they’re really famous at the moment, well not the real them, but in billboards or cardboard standups. muahaha
 
9. Set a budget for shopping
Night markets, malls, and shopping areas are included in our itinerary. Though we just wanted to check them out, it was hard to fight the temptation! If you’re a big fan of Korean cosmetics, better get ready for A LOT of shopping. Cosmetic shops are all over Seoul, you can even find them in subway stations! You won’t be able resist it."betul tak tipu, skin food bagai semua ada, murah pn murah. Patut la retis diorg lawa2 (plastic surgery) haha. Korg jgn terpedaya tgk dlm tv org Korea cantik2. Hakikatnya Melayu kita lagi cantik okehh".

Korea pn ada bazaar okay.. tp, bkn di atas, bawah tanah .. Lbh krg 1.5km. Amazing!

Cukup dulu sampai sini. If you guys would like to ask us anything, boleh je pm or e-mail ktorg di ordinary2awesome@gmail.com .Till Then!

 

 

Continue Reading