I am back. Dorayaki is back from her Korean trip which lasted for 4 days and 3 nights. This is the first time I have travelled alone and I got so many things to deal with: visa, airplane ticket, hotels and places to visit. My dearest readers have no ideas what I have been through and when getting my footstep in Ho Chi Minh city on May 1st, I felt like a heroine accomplishing her missions. Everything is a completely new experience to me which I want to capture every single moment, so I will divide my Korean trip into 3 parts. Oh, I have not done trip series ever since my Dubai trip in 2015. Missing my old passionate days so much!
Before getting down to the Seoul trip, let me explain to you a bit why I chose to travel alone. After conducting several surveys which I would take as conversations with interviewees (friends), I categorised into main 3 theories:
Theory A: “Dorayaki has a secret boyfriend with whom she promised to meet in Seoul, Korea and they planned on going a trip together”
Theory B: “Dorayaki desperately needs a full package of a face job (nose job, jaw job and eye job, blah blah). She must go to Seoul, taking plastic surgery to save her face and even her future”
Theory C: “Dorayaki has become a psychopath recently. She is filled with hatred towards the world that she needs to leave to another country to find peace”
Which one do you think of among 3 theories? Let’s come to the answer of each one.
Theory A: “You overestimated me. Perhaps I get one once I finish my trip”
Theory B: “The only problem I have found with my face is my excessively unnecessarily disgustingly big eyes which are the result of my wearing thick glasses since secondary high school. If I can find a way on how to reduce it, I will do it, otherwise, no plastic surgery”
Theory C: “Hmmm… 50/50”
My loyal readers, I am trying not to make you feel like you are reading a blog of a mentally unstable but sometimes I just feel lost and even, broken. I had no ideas where negative emotions came, and they came like a flood that I just stood still, feeling helpless. I had a couple things in my life that went off track and felt nothing but tiredness. So I think of a way to get rid of it and that is travelling to another place, to feel “me” again. Now you have learnt that Dorayaki is much more complicated than you think she is!
As a matter of fact, Seoul is just an alternative plan after my plan to Tokyo failed. I am not going to mention it here though :D.
Day 1: Kimchi Museum – Insadong – COEX Aquarium – Han River Cruise – Gingseng centre – Jogyesa Temple
I got to Seoul around 7.00 AM and it took me around 1 hour and 30 minutes to get to my hotel, which is located near Insadong. Since I booked a half day tour starting at 12.15, I got a plenty of time visiting Insadong and some of the places I got to were Kimchi Museum and Ssamzigil. There was nothing spectacular about Kimchi Museum, except for free kimchi tasting samples which were put there in a refrigerator for you to try. I ate many and of course, kimchi’s sourness has exceptional effects on your digestive system, but in my case, it did not come on the right time. I had to stop it before feeling stomachache.
I left Kimchi Museum to get to Ssamzigil. This special place is a shopping complex featuring café galleries, stationery shops, handicraft stores and restaurants. I saw a lot of highschoolers there shopping and eating. So fun!
Lunch in a nearby restaurant:
Lena was my tourist guide on that day. She is so nice and her English is excellent. Before that, I heard a lot from friends that Korean people are not that good at English but I was surprised at how good they are actually. They speak pleasant English accent which is much clearer than Singaporean speaking English to me. So no language barrier here!!
Together in the tour were two brothers from Australia. Lena told me much about the Korea’s current situation now when it has to deal with many political issues that not only come from North Korea but also Japan and China. She mentioned the tension between China and Korea, which could not be left out the Lotte Mart’s being shut down in China. That’s why I did not see many Chinese tourists in Seoul.
But it remained a question for me that how come DMZ (the boundary between North Korea and South Korea) is still one of the most popular tours in Seoul haha.
COEX Aquarium
A huge number of cute sea creatures, including beavers. I had to show Cheese, that’s her haha.
Han River Cruise
Gingseng centre
This place was plain boring and I did not take any photos, not a single one. Oh, hold on, they do not allow taking photos either.
Jogyesa Temple
This temple is the last stop on the tour and it is also opposite my hotel. I came on the event of Korean’s celebrating the birth of Buddha. So they hang colourful lanterns on the tree with wishing papers attached to each. As far as I remember in Jogyesa temple, there are two black and white pine trees which represent Chinese ying yang (“balance”).
Inside the hall are 3 giant Buddha statues and they even have a section dedicated to spirits tablets of people who have recently passed away. People come there, reading Buddha scripts and praying. In Vietnam, we have similar things. It is not my interest so pardon me for skipping this one.
Highlight of the day
Meeting unnie after almost 10 years.
Minkyung sshi was my friend and we went to the same English class together in around 2009 ~ 2010. When I got to Seoul, I wanted to meet her so had her contact through a mutual friend of us. Our meeting point is Jamsil so from Jogyesa temple, I took a train there to meet unnie. After all these times, unnie is still so nice, and even aging backwards. She just got married last month and has a happy life. Unnie took me around Jamsil where I saw Lotter World park and Lotte World Tower, which was inaugurated in April, 2017 and recorded as the tallest building in Seoul. We got a pleasant strolling around the part and stopped by a mall nearby to have dinner. I even got a cute gift from unnie.
I was genuinely happy to see unnie again, but somehow, there was nostalgia in me that made me sad at the same time. Any possible way that I could turn back time to live in 2010 again, but I would not want to wear braces again
Unnie instructed me how to take a train to get back to Anguk station which is 10 minute walking to my hotel. But damn, I safely returned from Jamsil to Anguk station, but from Insadong I was unable to remember my way back to the hotel haha.
End of day 1
#photowithyourtourguide
Day 2: Nami Island – Petite France – Gingeng Centre
Day 3: Jogyesa Temple – Gyeongbokgung Palace – National Folklore Museum – Korean Folk Village