Haiya heck lah

Its been 5 days since I came back from my second home. My post-vacation blues seem to be more severe than ever ㅎㅎㅎ  I still cannot get used to standing on my left whenever I take the escalator. I craved so much for Korean food especially 재육 볶음 and 볶음밥.  I don't know why I am craving so much for these two dishes.  Probably becos I bought a lot of kimchi back ㄱㄱㄱ.  I think I will cook these two dishes by this weekend! 

And...most importantly, I miss Korea and a friend a lot. Someone whom I cherish very much.  When I tell you I miss you, it means I really do cos "I miss you" doesn't come easy from me.  

Looking forward to dinner tomorrow with my friends at 왕대박 ^^ Yeah...my friends asked me out for dinner and I said,"Only Korean food." ㅎㅎㅎ   I think they have expected me to say this!

8th April 2013 - 전복 죽 for breakfast

The itinerary for the day was 정방폭포 Jeongbang waterfall, 천지연폭포 Cheonjiyeon waterfall, 설록차 뮤지엄 오설록 O’sulloc,  산방산 Sanbangsan and 용머리해안 Yongmeori Cliffs.  I took my breakfast at the restaurant opposite the hotel. The restaurant is just 2 steps across the road.

Took my breakfast here.

Woww...lots of testimonials..

I ordered the local specialty of course ^^

전복 죽 Abalone Porridge ^^

I tried abalone porridge many years ago when I was on a package tour.  The yummy taste still linger in my head till now. Perhaps, my expectation was too high. This bowl of porridge did not live up to my expectation. Kinda disappointed becos I was looking forward to it for so long. This bowl of porridge was a bit bland compared to the one I had years ago. The one I had years ago was very tasty but definitely not flavoured with artificial flavourings. Whereas this bowl of porridge was light and easy for the stomach, and complimented very well with the 반찬 banchan. Except for ice cream and cakes, I do not really like cold food but the broccoli salad was nice .

7th April 2013 - 고기국수 for dinner

Guess what? I didn't make it to Jeju National University cos I thought I missed the stop when in fact I didn't! I got off the bus too early.  I don't really feel disappointed that I did not make it to the university becos the weather was simply too cold for me to go anywhere. Jeju was known for its strong wind, so that made it even colder. I took the return bus(bus no.502) back to my hotel by crossing to the opposite side of the road. This time, I got off at the bus stop, 한라 병원 Halla Hospital instead of 남녕고 Namyeong High School becos its nearer to the hotel. I didn't went back to the hotel immediately but bought a jacket at one of the nearby shop.  Oh, I happened to see E Mart from a distance and decided to walk over. E Mart is about 15 mins walk from my hotel. From E Mart, I saw Lottemart nearby so I went to Lottemart as well!  I loveeeeee supermarkets ㅋㅋㅋ

The blue arrow is pointing to E Mart and the red arrow is pointing to Lotte Mart.
They are about 5 mins walking distance apart.

I love Lotte Mart  ^^

Jeju Post Office is located diagonally opposite Lotte Mart.
Oh yes, post office is one of my favourite place in Korea as well ㅎㅎㅎ

I spotted an eatery selling 고기국수 so I thought of having my dinner there. Yes! Pork noodle is one of Jeju specialty ^^  As shown in the picture, cross the road, walked against the flow of traffic for 3 mins and you will reach the place. It took about 5 mins to reach the eatery from Lotte Mart.

This is the eatery and it is opposite Lotte Mart.

Menu comes with English and Mandarin translations ^^

I was very hungry and wanted to order 고기국수 (Pork noodle) and a small serving of 물 만두(Water dumplings).  The lady was very kind.  She told me that it would be a big bowl of noodle and ordering the dumplings will be too much for me.  That was so kind of her, isn't it?

Free flow of seaweed is available in a container on the table. I love seaweed so that made me very happy ㅎㅎㅎ Many people ordered 고기국수.  I thought it will be oily becos of the pork belly but it was not. The broth was light and nice.  The noodle is like ramen noodle.  Well, I still dare not eat the fatty parts of the pork unless it is grilled ㅎㅎㅎ  And yes, it was a pretty big serving but I finished the whole bowl ^^  Hey, I thought this noodle was nice but I tried 고기국수 again in another eatery few days later. That 고기국수 was even better!  

7th April 2013 - First bus ride in Jeju

My initial plan was to check out Jeju National University for cherry blossoms and the area around Jeju Sports Complex after I checked in. 춘희언니 told me Jeju city has better places for appreciating the beauties of the cherry blossom trees than Seogwipo does. The famous places in Jeju-si for cherry blossom are Jeonnong Road Cherry Blossom Street, Jeju Sports Complex and its whole neighbourhood, and the entryway of Jeju National University. These places are easily accessible by public transportation. However, due to the sudden rise in temperature, the 'King Cherry Blossom Festival' on April 5th~7th April in Jeju Sports Complex was brought forward to 29th ~31th March...

I knew I will be late to catch the flowers in full bloom by the time I reached Jeju becos they bloomed about 6 days earlier this year ㅠㅠ  Sigh......I was so sad when I knew the cherry blossom festival in Jeju will be brought forward. Moreover when I visited 춘희언니, she told me the flowers might be gone due to bad weather on the day before my arrival in Jeju.  아....괜찮아요. On a brighter note, my purpose of this trip to Jeju was to catch the rapeflowers aka canola flowers.

It was very cold when I reached Jeju and I felt sleepy as I didn't really sleep on the plane. I thought I should just rest for the day. In the end, I decided to try taking the bus to Jeju National University and checked out the neighbourhood.

From the hotel entrance, I turned to my left and walked down to the main road.

Saw this road after walking for 2 mins from hotel and I turned left from here.

Next, I saw Caffe Ti-amo across the road. To get to the bus stop for Jeju National University and Jeju Bus Terminal, I need not cross the main road.  I turned left again as  shown by the red arrows.  The blue arrow indicates the bus stop across the main road and that bus stop is called 한라 병원 Halla Hospital.  

Follow the red arrow to get to the bus stop for Jeju National University and Jeju Bus Terminal.  

That's the bus stop.  It took about 3 mins from the hotel to reach this bus stop.

This bus stop is called 남녕고 Namyeong High School.

Ermm...if its of any help to anyone...

I didn't expect to see this in Jeju ^^
I can take bus no. 500 or 502 to Jeju National University.

Here comes my bus.  Board bus no. 502 at 2.56pm. You can use T money in Jeju.  If I did not remember wrongly, I need not tap my T money again when I alight. 

7th April 2013 - My accomodation in Jeju ~ 늘송파크텔 Nulsong ParkTel

I have to thank 춘희언니 for her patience and advice given to me for my Jeju trip. 춘희언니 is from KTO(Jeju) and she was located at the Tourist Infomation Center of Jeju Int'l Airport. 언니 has been a great help and I am very grateful to her. I wanted to thank her personally, so I gave her a surprise visit the moment I reached Jeju Airport.  We met for the first time.  Of course, she was so surprised to see me.  정말 감사합니다 언니 ^^

My boarding pass to take Jeju Air.

보고 싶어...
*Aeroplane mode on of course 

Made my way to take a taxi to my hotel ie 늘송파크텔 Nulsong ParkTel.  I chose to stay in Jeju si becos it seems more accessible than Seoqwipo since I will be taking public buses. However, the main reason why I chose this hotel was becos of the good online reviews of the hotel owner, Mr Park. Btw, Mr Park told me Nulsong Parktel is located in Shin-Jeju area.

The hotel is very near the airport, about 5-10 mins taxi ride from the airport.  
미안 해요 I could not remember how much I paid for the taxi fare. 

The TV was the biggest I have encountered so far in all my previous hotel stays.
The length of the TV was longer than my hand.
I like my room not becos of the TV but becos it feels nice  ^^

And I love my bed!!
This is the Princess 1 room.  Ermmm....okay, I will be a princess for 5 nights ㅎㅎㅎ

Yup! I brought along my favourite essential oil  ^^

I got a copy of the bus route guide from the information counter at Jeju airport.

늘송파크텔 Nulsong ParkTel :

Website : http://www.nepark.co.kr/ 

Email : pnh9909@hanmail.net.

7th April 2013 - First meal in Korea

I still have some time before my flight to Jeju, so I decided to have my first meal in Korea here ^^

I ordered 된장삼겹비빔밥 Soybean Pork Belly Bibimbap and it was really delicious!

진짜 맛있다 ^^

7th April 2013 - Reach my second home ^^

Reached Incheon Airport at about 6am and made my way to take the AREX to Gimpo Airport.   Excited becos I am finally back again!!  Heading to Jeju for 5 nights, followed by 3 nights at Yeosu and thereafter 9 nights in Seoul.  Although I love the countryside but somehow, I wanted to be in Seoul as soon as I can.

Ermm...nothing...just find the word "long term parking" so familiar ㅋㅋㅋ 

I used my T money to take the Arex this time. 

I think it should be cheaper and faster to take the Arex than the airport bus to Gimpo Airport.  

A few bloggers mentioned that taking photos is not allowed in Gimpo Airport but there were still people taking photos and posting them online.  Hence, I asked the staff at the Information counter to clarify my doubts. She hesitated and said,"Yes". I was not convinced so I asked the counter staff when I checked in my luggage.  His English was rather fluent and he told me that photo taking in Gimpo airport is actually not allowed but people are still taking photos.  

Left my heart and soul in Seoul.

I am back and still in a daze. Mum asked what I want for breakfast but all that surfaced in my head was only Korean food.  So I am really back in Spore but I left my heart behind in Seoul.  I don't like the feeling of saying good bye but I cherish every moment being there, and being there with someone whom I miss badly. 

Anyway, this trip turns out to be more tiring than my previous trips.  I thought it will be a relaxing trip for shopping and revisiting some of the places in Seoul but it turns out to be a disaster to my pocket!  Hahahahaaa..

Yeah..I love "Made in Korea" hahahahahaahaa....I am very happy with all my purchases. Told myself I must go cycling along the Han river in my next trip this year  ^^

Every oversea trips make me feel that I am blessed and we are really pampered by our government.

I was at the tax refund counter at Incheon airport yesterday and witnessed something so familiar back home...

There was a long queue at the counter for tax refund and many people did not fill up their addresses on the receipts or forms. A Korean lady came out to check each individual documents as so to prevent unnecessary waiting time. She requested a man to show her the documents but the man said,"Where is Mr______?"  He repeated himself twice at least. The Korean lady did not replied him and only requested him for the documents. That man did not want to show his documents and demanded,"Where is your boss/manager?". She did not reply him and he told her that she was very rude...blah blah blah...*If you find this familiar

That man did not give up in lodging a complaint. He asked for the name of that Korean lady when he was being attended by the counter staff, and said he wanted to complaint about her becos she was very rude. My goodness.....must he be so persistent???  As if he was being polite in the first place...

I might be biased towards Koreans but seriously speaking, she wasn't rude in my opinion. Sometimes, we must understand that the Koreans do not mean to be rude but they just do not know how to express themselves in English.  At times, you may need to repeat a few times or use gestures etc to get your message across. Koreans are very helpful and friendly people. They will be most happy to help you when they know you are a foreigner.

Put yourself in their shoes. How does it feel when you want to express yourself but unable to communicate what you want.  I don't know about you but I will feel so helpless and lousy.

On many occasions, I will feel so helpless whenever a Korean especially an elderly approached me for directions in Korea.  I really wanted to help but it was either I'm not sure or I can't communicate.  It was the same for this trip. I encountered some elderly approaching me for directions.  I felt so bad becos they approached me with a smiling face but I can only apologise for not being able to communicate with them.

One regret for this trip, I did not manage to visit my favourite place in Seoul ie 반포대교 Banpo Bridge cos it holds a special meaning in my heart. Sigh....it was raining that night and it happened to be my last night in Seoul.  Morale of the story, never wait till last minute.  

Give me some time to update my trip cos I am still feeling kinda lost in momentum. Sob...I miss my second home ㅠㅠ

My second home ^^

A mad rush before heading out to the airport!  Yeap!  Its HOME SWEET HOME in a few hours ^^   May there be peace and no war. Not becos of my trip but for the sake of all beings.  Got to get ready! See ya ^^