iputthesouthinsouthkorea - Tumblr blog

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 16 : Staying Home

Our Airbnb host has church in her living room with her family so this Sunday we joined them. After church they all have lunch together so by the time it was over, it was already in the afternoon so instead of taking the subway into Seoul, we just took some time to rest

3 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 15 : Gangnam, Coex Mall, K-Star Road, Seoul Forest

Gangnam is a very modern area so we went there today and did some things around there. There was a huge book fair happening in Coex Mall so we went to that as well. Coex Mall is basically a ginormous mall, so big it has an aquarium and a movie theatre.

After that, we went to K-Star Road which has bear statues with Singer’s names on them.

After we walked down the street, we went to Seoul Forest to look around.

#gangnam #coex mall #kstar road #seoul forest #korea #korean #south korea #travel #traveling #travels #강남 #고엑스몰 #서울숲 #여행

1 note · View note

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 14 : Nowon

We really have only been in Nowon for sleeping at our Aribnb so today, after sleeping in for perhaps a bit too long, we decided to explore the area a bit. We were both surprised at how nice and popular it was. However, we also didn’t take any pictures :(

#nowon #korea #korean #travel #travels #traveling #travel blog #south korea #asia #travel to south korea #trip #vacation #노원 #여행 #여행스타그램 #한국 여행

1 note · View note

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 13 : Changdeokgung Palace and Seoullo

Changdeokgung Palace is a where we started our day. It was the biggest one we’ve went to so far and it was very beautiful. Looking around the palace and seeing the architecture was really awe-inspiring.

I’ve always wanted a camera to take nice photos, and seeing the ornate details of the palace halls made me want one just that much more. So I wanted to go look at cameras and see how the price compares to that of america. We found a canon store and they had the best camera for me and they also gave me a camera bag, an american charging cord, they put on a screen cover, a camera strap and more.

I was so happy to finally have one so we went to Seoullo so I could try it out. Seoullo used to be a highway, but they changed it into a decorated walkway.

4 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 12 : Haedong Yonggungsa, Haeundae, and the Largest Shopping Complex in the World

This was our last day in Busan and our flight didn't leave until 8 o'clock that night so we did some of the last things on our list.

The first place we went to was a temple called Haedong Yonggungsa which was much much easier to get to than the one we went to the day before. It's also nestled in right by the sea. But that also meant a lot more people were there.

They had these bowls that you tried to through coins in from the bridge up above and we both made it. Maybe not on the first try, but nonetheless.

After the temple we went to Haeundae, probably the most popular beach in Busan. While we were there, some type of sand sculpture festival was happening so there were big sculptures everywhere.

From the beach we had some time before our flight, but not a lot. So naturally we decided to go to Sinsegae, which is in the Guinness book of world records for the largest shopping complex in the world.

We had 30 minutes. So we went to each floor and then had to go all the way back down to head towards the airport. To give you an idea of the size, there are more than 14 floors, it has a connected subway system, a golf course, a movie theatre and plenty more.

Our flight left that night and we safely made it back to Seoul.

#busan #haedongyonggungsa #haeundae #south korea #travel #travels #traveling #sinsegae #Seoul #부산 #해동용궁사 #한국 #여행 #여행중 #여행스타그램

2 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 11 : Seokbulsa

Today was the day we set out for our hike and a hike it was. Our final destination was an Active Buddhist Temple in the stone of a mountain. To get there we started by hiking up the side of a mountain, but that was not the mountain with the temple. The way to reach the temple is to traverse down the mountain we just climbed up and climb up the neighboring mountain. It was a lot, but the views we got were more than rewarding. The hike was a little over 4 hours in total

After having to trek back down we decided to celebrate our accomplishment the best way we knew how, eating!

The restaurant was really close to the apartment so after our filling meal we went home and fell asleep as soon as we could.

#seokbulsa #busan #temple #seokbulsa temple #hike #hiking #korea #korean #south korea #travel #traveling #travels #석불사 #한국 #보산 #여행 #여행중 #한국 여행

6 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 10 : Gamcheon Culture Village, BIFF Square, Gukje Market, and Gwangalli Beach and Bridge

Quote of the Day : “The Octopus is escaping!”

We started out the morning going to Gamcheon Culture Village, which used to be considered the slums.

After that we headed towards BIFF Square, which also had Gukje Market and Jagalchi Fish Market

After we got back home, the sun was going to set in about an hour and a half. So we spent an hour resting our legs from a full day of walking and then headed to the beach that was a two minute walk from our apartment.

After seeing the bridge light up,

We explored a bit of the surrounding area before heading back home.

5 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 9 : Flight to Busan, Oryukdo, and a Concert

Quote of the Day : “Dangit, I should have tripped and fell in front of that pilot”

Our flight left for busan in the morning, it was very short and we arrived 55 minutes later. It was around 10 and we didn't check into our airbnb until 3 so we put our luggage in a locker at the subway station and went to Oryukdo.

After that we went out for lunch at a place called Momo Steak

After exploring the area for a while it was time to check in at the airbnb. However we spent a little more time exploring than I thought because although we could check in at any time, the concert’s call time was at 4 and we didn't get to the apartment until like 4:30. It turned out fine though because the concert didn't actually start until 6:00. Check it was very easy and when we asked the host the best way to get to the concert hall he actually took us because it was close by to make sure we got to the right place. We got there maybe around 4:45 and once we found will call it was all downhill from there. But there were a few tiny little differences from american concerts.

1. You could bring in as many bags that you wanted

2. There was no security lines

3. We ripped our own tickets and just handed the other half to the person

Needless to say we were quite surprised.

The concert lasted for 3.5 hours and I was pretty much dead by the end. We stopped by a convenience store for some water and then headed back to the apartment

143 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 8 : Graduation, Chinese Food, and Sulbing

Quote : “I can’t say what I feel so I will rap it instead” -Salutatorian moments before the beat dropped

Today my friend was graduating from High School, so we went with her family to the army base to watch it. There ceremony was amazing. It was very different than mine, seeing that the salutatorian rapped in her speech and we were criticized on how we walked. Anyways when we were sitting with her parents, her dad mentioned that the principal and his wife graduated from Clemson. So we met and of course I had my tiger rag with me.

After graduation, we went back to their house so they could change into more comfortable clothes before going out to lunch. My mom and I did not have this luxury so we went to lunch in dressed with people in shorts and a t-shirt.

We went to this Korean-Chinese restaurant and shared a lot of different dishes. My favorite was Jjajangmyeon (짜장면) and Tangsuyuk (탕수육)

Afterwards we went to go get bingsoo for desert. We got Chocolate Brownie.

We said goodbye at the bingsoo place and we headed towards myeongdong because I was running out of foundation. We went home after we ate a little bit of street food

10 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 7 : Insadong, Picking up and Unpacking our luggage

Quote of the Day : “Do you think that bird knows he’s in Korea?”

This morning we wanted to do something before we got our bags because we didn't want to go all the way (its about 30 minutes to the hustle and bustle of the city) into Seoul to come all the way back just to do it again. So we went to Insadong after our host gave us black coffee and a chocolate muffin for breakfast. Fun fact, my mother does not drink coffee so I drank both of ours. Maybe I started to sweat, maybe I didn't, you'll never know. Anyways we took the train to Insadong to spend the day looking around.

In the subway station, I saw an older lady with a backpack with the world map on it. I love maps so of course I liked it. I pointed it out to my mom and said I wonder where she got it. As soon as we walked out of the subway station and took a turn there was a stall that had the backpack. Needless to say I now own that backpack. Also right outside the subway station was someone handpainting fans and personalizing them. I got one with my name (클레어) on it that also has a poem.

Once we were walking down the street, I told my mom that after we explore the immediate area for a bit then we can go find Ssamziegil. As soon as I said that we were right in front of it. We went inside and looked around, got some poop bread and continued exploring.

On our way back to the subway station we were interviewed by 3 different groups of teenagers for some school project. They asked why we were in Korea, what we wanted to do, our first impressions, and the foods we liked.

We went back to my friend’s apartment to pick up our luggage and headed back to the airbnb. After we finished unpacking it was pretty late so we just walked around the Nowon and Sanggye area and then headed back to go to sleep.

11 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 6 : Dragon Head Rock, Dongmun Market, Flight back to Seoul

Quote of the Day : “He said we went to sleep early last night, but it was already after 7″

We started our day early so we’d have time to do some things before our plane left at 2. We left the airbnb around 9:30 to head towards Dragon Head Rock (용두암). It’s bad to say this, but one word I would use to describe it would be underwhelming. The area was still beautiful but the rock was different than in pictures

After that we went to the Dongmun Traditional Market and had breakfast. We had fried and steamed dumplings, both amazing. We also got a Hallabong orange, something jeju is known for as well as orange juice made from the same orange.

There is a subtle difference from our oranges. These don't have the citrus-y bite at the end, the same goes for the juice.

After the market we headed to the car rental place to drop the car off and catch the shuttle to the airport.

The flight back went as usual and when we landed, we went to go get our luggage from our friends house. There were...extenuating circumstances, like unforeseen plans on their part so we waited for 4 hours until they came home, but then decided to leave at 8. However as soon as we got back on the train we got the text saying they were home. We decided to go back tomorrow.

When we arrived at the train station, our airbnb host was on her way to pick us up. She walked us back to the apartment, but on the way she asked us if we had dinner yet. Truthfully the only thing we ate that day was the dumplings. My mom said no so she took us to a chicken place where she paid for our dinner! We offered many times, but she refused. She said she wanted to buy it for us.

After dinner, we got ready for bed with our little carryons from jeju and went to sleep.

8 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 5 : Sangumburi Crater, Oedolgae Rock, Jusanjeolli Cliff, FIFA U-20 World Cup, E-mart, and Paris Baguette

We checked out of our airbnb and headed straight for the Sangumburi Crater. It is remnants of an old volcano that erupted and built a mountain.

After walking around and making Jurassic Park (Jurassic World to all you youngins) jokes we headed towards Oedolgae Rock which has been carved by volcanic lava flow leaving a large pillar off the coast.

This was quite possibly one of my favorite spots in Jeju. Not because of the rock, but because of the such blue water and the lush greenery surrounding it.

We continued along the path around the cliff and we found a cafe called 60 beans. It was a cute cafe nestled in some palm trees with a calm beachy feel

While there, we needed to find a place to have lunch and I found that there was a nice bbq place near by that had 흑돼지 (Black Pig, Something Jeju is famous for) We decided to splurge a bit and go.

I’m glad we did because I’m still thinking about how good it was. After the amazing lunch we went to Jusanjeolli Cliff, however we ended up at the bottom looking up, but that was fine because it was one more ocean that I could put my feet into. (East China Sea)

The Cliff was the last thing we had planned before we headed to our airbnb. When we checked in it was still kind of early so we decided to walk around the area a bit. When we step out onto the road, the first thing we find is this huge stadium. It turned out to be the stadium for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. We looked around a bit because there wasn't a game in the near future and it was empty.

Right next door was an E-Mart so we went in there too (totally not because Gong Yoo was on the front) We got some snacks and a t-shirt with interesting English.

After the savory lunch we were kind of craving something sweet so we went to the Paris Baguette that was on the corner. We got a slice of chocolate cake, a sweet potato churro, and a slice of apple pie.

Afterwards, we picked up a drink at the convenience store and headed back to the apartment.

8 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 4 : Hamdeok Beach, Manjanggul Caves, Woljeongri Beach, and a Hedge Maze

Quote of the Day : “I got water in my shoe, gross lava cave water”

Preface : It rained all day

The first thing we did was go to Hamdeok Beach and have breakfast at Cafe Del Moondo (Mundo for us Spanish speakers) on the pier.

We had chocolate bread with warm ganache inside, a potato quesadilla, and a strawberry juice.

After breakfast we explored the beach area put our feet in freezing cold water

Then we went to Manjanggul Lava Caves. Caves that were carved out by lava flowing through

The ground was really uneven which made walking fun, I never fell, but I did see one guy slip and fall, but he was on the wooden boardwalk.

We were supposed to go to Seopjikoji and Seongsan Ichulbong Peak, but we decided it wouldn't be much because it was so foggy and rainy. We were also supposed to have lunch at a cafe on Woljeongri Beach, but the wind was blowing really hard and no shops seemed to be open so instead we found a hedge maze!

It was a small one that was only supposed to take 30 minutes but we finished it early. Also side note, there were cats everywhere.

After we finished, we were cold and wet so we went to check into our airbnb. Technically we got there the first time, but it was hidden so we kept driving around following different navigation systems that all brought us to the same spot. The Sinsan Mart. I was about to text the Hostess when my mom asked me to read the sign of the building catty corner to the mart, I sighed and said that I found the airbnb. We decided it would be a good day for a night in so we headed up to the convenience store, bought some ramen, snacks, and drinks and curled up in bed.

7 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 3 : Namsan Tower and Flight to Jeju

This morning we had McDonald’s for breakfast. I wanted to see the difference of Korean McDonalds to American McDonalds. Verdict : The hashbrowns are basically the same, there are no biscuits, and a there is a whole lot of mayonnaise.

We also went to McDonalds because it was a bigger restaurant and we had to carry our huge luggage before we could drop it off at a friend’s apartment so we could only bring our carry-ons to Jeju.

After we dropped our big luggage at a friend’s apartment, her mom drove us to the cable car boarding area for Namsan Tower. We took the cable car up and walked down, thinking that it would be just a slope down the mountain, but no. It was all stairs. I mean it’s better than walking up all those stairs, but man, that’s a lot of stairs.

In the observation deck there was a gift shop, a cafe, and a candy store that sold a lot of jelly beans named “Weeny Beeny” Hmm, Familiar.

At the gift shop, I bought this clear little cube that sits on the corner and each time you turn it, a new picture pops up.

After the walk down, or shall I say the steps down, we went to Gimpo Airport to catch our flight to Jeju Island. Once we arrived and picked up our rental car, we headed towards out first airbnb, using the English GPS provided by the rental company. Long story short, we probably won't be using the GPS anymore. It took us to the middle of nowhere on a road that doesn't exist surrounded by horses. That was a fun time. But then I used my phone GPS and we finally arrived. Glad to inform you that it was in fact, on a road that exists, near civilization, with no horses.

Once we arrived and got our luggage inside, we walked around looking for dinner. Because it is an island, there is a lot of seafood, but we found a restaurant that had a big sign and said 치킨 (Chicken) so we thought, why not? I’m glad we did because it was really good. They gave us cole slaw, radishes, and a Pepsi. After we picked it up (we got it as takeout) we went back across the street because we saw a pharmacy and I’ve never ever had allergies in the states, but there must be something in Korea that I’m allergic to because now I feel the pain of everyone who has allergies every spring. I got a pack that will last me 10 days for only 3 dollars. We headed back to the house, had dinner and went to sleep.

5 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 2: Deoksugung and the Korean War Museum

For Breakfast today we went into a small restaurant that we saw yesterday. It was a kimbap place, but we saw dumplings on the outside so we went inside. We got Vegetable Kimbap (야채 김밥) and Pork Dumplings (고기만두). It was very filling and it was only $5

After Breakfast we headed to Deoksugung, a palace. We got there right as they started the changing of the guards ceremony

It was nice to walk around and see the stark difference of the modern skyscrapers and these palace halls

Also on the grounds is an art museum

After the palace, we made our way to the Korean War Memorial. I love museums and history and this one was huge! There were 3 different floors where you could have easily divided this place into three different days. We spent a total of 4 and a half hours there.

It was time for dinner by the time we finished the Memorial/Museum so we headed back towards Myeongdong to have an array of street food. We had Egg bread (계란빵)

Strawberry Mochi

Tornado Potato

Chicken and Rice Cake Cup

It was all very delicious and exceeded my expectations. Street food was one of the many things that I was looking forward to the most on this trip.

8 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

What did I Buy in Myeongdong?

The Saem

I was running out of concealer so I needed to pick some up and I’ve heard that the Saem has good concealer. They gave me the Snail Face mask for free

H&M

I found a striped shirt from H&M and a simple black and white halter dress. I know I know, We have H&M’s in America, but the style is different here so I wanted to check it out.

Etude House

Holika Holika didn't have what I was looking for so I got this red eyeliner pencil form Etude House Instead.

Skin Food

I got the Argan Oil Essence for my drier than a desert hair and I am desperate and my mom needed a nail clipper. I found the egg white nose strip at the counter and it was less than a dollar so I thought I would try it. The rest they gave to me for free. Two packs of Yuja Water Eye Serums and Moist Toner

Interpark

Vixx - 도원경 (Shangri-La) and Ravi R.EALIZE

9 notes · View notes

iputthesouthinsouthkorea · 7 years

Text

Day 1 : Myeongdong and a tiny mistake

Today we decided to use our first day to go to Myeongdong because it was only about a 3 minute walk from our Airbnb

We started off our day with Breakfast around 10 with Isaac Toast. I got the Hot Chicken and my mom got the Bacon. We split a Strawberry Juice that was really delicious, quite possibly one of the best that I’ve had

After breakfast we knew only some shops would be open because it was only 10 and most open at 11, so we just walked around the area. We went into Skin Food to look around and picked up 2 things

We continued to walk with no set destination and we ended up at Cheonggyecheon

We also passed the Seoul Metropolitan Library and City Hall

While at Cheonggyecheon, I got a text from my friend from the states that moved here a year ago saying that she was going to Myeongdong today. We decided to meet up at the big Nature Republic so we began our leisurely stroll back towards Myeongdong

On the way we found a section of the Berlin wall. Showing that unification can come peacefully. Hint taken.

Once we met up we just walked around and dodged people trying to push us into the store, the only store we went into was Interpark where I became that person and bought two albums

She left a little while later and now that all the shops were open, we walked around Myeongdong again. I went to the Saem, The Line Friends Store, Holika Holika, H&M, and Etude house

Then we decided it was time for lunch and because we didn’t have a set restaurant to eat at, we just walked around and looked at the menus the restaurants had on the outside. Every restaurant had some form of their menu outside so you could look and see if you wanted to eat there or not without actually having to go in. Once we decided on a restaurant, I ordered Bulgogi Stew (뚝배기불고기) and my mom got Bibimbap (돌솥비빔밥)

After lunch is where our tiny mistake came into play. We decided to go back to the airbnb to take a short nap before going to Namdaemun Market. We fell asleep at 3, hoping to wake up in an hour or so, but no, we woke up at 10 pm. I just hope that I can sleep through the night, but that shouldn’t be a problem because I’m still pretty tired.

Things I’ve Realized :

- A few Korean restaurant owners in Myeongdong will speak Japanese to you even if you are not asian or in Japan

- Don’t take a nap even if you don’t feel the jet lag

- People really want you to go into their store

4 notes · View notes