I'm blogging from a PC 방 in Incheon Airport New town right now. I just sent my family off at the airport having spent the past week with my family on a package tour in Korea. I'll say its a good closure because I was able to share some of my experience with my family, snacking at the roadside stalls, sightseeing etc. It was just a pity that they couldn't get to see the snow in Seoul this time round.
There's some kid having Jang Woo Hyuk's song on the repeat mode while playing Starcraft.
I suspect this song will be replaying in my head as I leave Korea tomorrow. If it is able to beat Wondergirls' infectious "Tell me".
I guess good things must always come to an end. This 4 months hiatus from the hectic NTU life was an enjoyable and memorable one. It is with a tinge of sadness that I type this post.
There are lots of thing that I will miss from Korea.
Drinking. Singing. Dotaing.
Food. Jajangmyeon. Rapoggi. Samgyupsal. Bibimmyeon. Gimbab. Kimchi maybe. hah.
Sights. Autumn maple leaves. Naechangshan. Pusan. Yonsei. Snow. Seoul. Sinchon. Ewha. Myeongdong.
People.
Liwei, Crystal, Ariyo. Travelling, meal, drinking, shopping, sightseeing buddies.
The i-house people, my roommate, Andrew.
Korean friends, Edward, many thanks for allowing me to put up at your house and lending me the handphone. Not to mention all the advice regarding getting around places and where to find stuff.
My language exchange buddy, Hyeong Chan, I'll remember that last karaoke night, that was good time although it was the first time we sang together. It was an indescribable feeling to be able to sing Fly to the Skys' songs with someone, especially with a pro :). Shiok!
Ok, enough of reminscing, or rather documenting for the purpose of reminscing in the future.
I'd better head to look for a 찜질방 (sauna) around this unfamiliar area, I pray my navigation skills and my half fucked Korean will me able to secure me one, if not I would have to spend my night at a lubsub Love motel, or some sleazy nightclub.
Aww. The Jang Woo Hyuk song is still playing in the background.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Most exchange student will tend to miss home after a while. Family, friends. Food. The clean streets. The Singlish, the 'F U la and the "chao CB". Other than that I wouldn't say I missed home very much, maybe cos I skype pretty often and hearing my mum's voice helps to assuage most of my worries and homesickness.
I don't have the dying urge within me to get back to Singapore. Maybe because I have become accustomed to the Korean culture. Or perhaps, love the people that are here with me now. Sometimes I wished I could transfer my family and friends from Singapore using an UFO catcher machine and let them join in the fun.
The two things that exchange students dread would be failing their courses here and leaving.
Theres a high possibility that the former might come true for me, considering how hard I played even during the exam period. Out of 5 papers, for 4 of them I drank the night before and for 1 i had a terrible hangover that I had to resort to circle random MCQ answers.
I think I set out one of my objective as 'play hard study hard'
In Korea, I learnt to play hard..as for the study hard part, hahaha I guessed it never happened.
Packing luggage can be an annoying thing, when you are faced with the knick-knacks that have some bizarre sentimental value like stolen soju cups, expired tickets, used admission tickets, "Lust, Caution" ticket, unused condom (that my roommate gave me).
Anyway, those stuff can be still be packed...given a big enough luggage or a big enough wallet to afford courier service to deliver back home. Just because its Ko-rea, it doesn't mean that cou-rier is cheap, its not. hurhur. And I am sorry for the terrible pun, i just couldn't resist it.
After several hours of packing, I managed to get most of my stuff into my huge luggage. What I couldn't sort out was my emotional baggage. I hate having baggage, emotional or physical. In fact, I think the two are linked. Sure, luggage is a sign of worldliness, but too much luggage is a sign of neediness.
We all have baggage. I think it’s impossible to experience life without collecting baggage along the way. Baggage full of countless events we’d never forget, memories that stretched beyond the memory sticks of our cameras or even stolen camera. And we have baggage that we wish we could leave unclaimed with the hope that someone else will know what to do with it. With a little work, we can all take the baggage that we’ve crumpled into little balls and shoved into spaces that are too small out of hiding, examine it a little to see if it’s worth holding on to, and if it is, neatly fold it and decide if it is worth pursuing.
I think I’ve done a pretty good job of organizing the piles. I’ve started to neatly pack most of mental duffle bags of memories here in Korea. Hai..
I should be out drinking but I guess not, maybe I will leave that to tomorrow night.
My last night as a Yonsei exchange student before I depart from this place which filled me with priceless moments and precious memories.
I don't have the dying urge within me to get back to Singapore. Maybe because I have become accustomed to the Korean culture. Or perhaps, love the people that are here with me now. Sometimes I wished I could transfer my family and friends from Singapore using an UFO catcher machine and let them join in the fun.
The two things that exchange students dread would be failing their courses here and leaving.
Theres a high possibility that the former might come true for me, considering how hard I played even during the exam period. Out of 5 papers, for 4 of them I drank the night before and for 1 i had a terrible hangover that I had to resort to circle random MCQ answers.
I think I set out one of my objective as 'play hard study hard'
In Korea, I learnt to play hard..as for the study hard part, hahaha I guessed it never happened.
Packing luggage can be an annoying thing, when you are faced with the knick-knacks that have some bizarre sentimental value like stolen soju cups, expired tickets, used admission tickets, "Lust, Caution" ticket, unused condom (that my roommate gave me).
Anyway, those stuff can be still be packed...given a big enough luggage or a big enough wallet to afford courier service to deliver back home. Just because its Ko-rea, it doesn't mean that cou-rier is cheap, its not. hurhur. And I am sorry for the terrible pun, i just couldn't resist it.
After several hours of packing, I managed to get most of my stuff into my huge luggage. What I couldn't sort out was my emotional baggage. I hate having baggage, emotional or physical. In fact, I think the two are linked. Sure, luggage is a sign of worldliness, but too much luggage is a sign of neediness.
We all have baggage. I think it’s impossible to experience life without collecting baggage along the way. Baggage full of countless events we’d never forget, memories that stretched beyond the memory sticks of our cameras or even stolen camera. And we have baggage that we wish we could leave unclaimed with the hope that someone else will know what to do with it. With a little work, we can all take the baggage that we’ve crumpled into little balls and shoved into spaces that are too small out of hiding, examine it a little to see if it’s worth holding on to, and if it is, neatly fold it and decide if it is worth pursuing.
I think I’ve done a pretty good job of organizing the piles. I’ve started to neatly pack most of mental duffle bags of memories here in Korea. Hai..
I should be out drinking but I guess not, maybe I will leave that to tomorrow night.
My last night as a Yonsei exchange student before I depart from this place which filled me with priceless moments and precious memories.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Hmm actually I've accumulated quite a lot of blogging materials but I am way too lazy to blog.
Come to think of it some stuff shouldnt be placed on blog/facebook..nights of decadence, drinking would be meaningless to anyone apart from myself. I can easily review my personal photos when I am trying to mug hard in Ntu next semester and relive those seoul crazy nights.
Sightseeing is also pretty meaningless when you go alone. Dongdaemun is dongdaemun. Ok shopping, what else? Its the people that you travel with that makes each trip special and unique. Same goes with drinking. If you ask me drinking beer/soju tastes like crap, but its the company that you are with and the entire atmosphere that makes its lively.
Shyt, I am in a pensive mood after coming back from a Tarot card/fortune telling session in a cafe in Sinchon. Hai.
Come to think of it some stuff shouldnt be placed on blog/facebook..nights of decadence, drinking would be meaningless to anyone apart from myself. I can easily review my personal photos when I am trying to mug hard in Ntu next semester and relive those seoul crazy nights.
Sightseeing is also pretty meaningless when you go alone. Dongdaemun is dongdaemun. Ok shopping, what else? Its the people that you travel with that makes each trip special and unique. Same goes with drinking. If you ask me drinking beer/soju tastes like crap, but its the company that you are with and the entire atmosphere that makes its lively.
Shyt, I am in a pensive mood after coming back from a Tarot card/fortune telling session in a cafe in Sinchon. Hai.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Winter Kimchi
Kimchi, the uniquely pungent mixture of fermented vegetables, is a superbly palate-pleasing kimchi to delight every taste. A global favorite, kimchi is a food that adds zest to all kinds of meals and its appeal cuts across all social, economic, ethnic and geographical boundaries. You see the poor and the rich consuming it in Korea, whether its Gwangju, Jeongju, Seoul or Pusan. Its everywhere. Kimchi adds zest to all goods. Kimchi is an excellent contributor to the human body. You just need to visit most male toilets to find out. People leave testament of unflushed long coils of sausages. The length is absolutely amazing.
Yonsei University collaborated with KT&G (Korea's one and only tobacco company) to organise a Gimjang (winter making) event to make kimchi to distribute to needy children and monks.
Cabbage and gochujang sauce in bags. Cabbage bags. The ajummas volunteers who are working on it. We got a hang of it after a while but our production speed was much slower than the ajummas.
So much blood. Haa our baby that we produced. The frills resemble the umbilical cord.
No points for guessing what we had for lunch. Kimchi with pork. Kimchi really goes well with anything..no matter how bad the main/side dish is. Look at Ariyo's painful expression, lol.
The international group. Well..actually we were the only students that were helping out. Btw the girl with the white cap is a looker. Shes thai and hotter than kimchi. Damn hard to concentrate on making kimchi. Ha.
After a while, two broadcasting stations came and needed to grab some international students for their interviews, so Tomoyo and me was 'arrowed' to do the interviews.
However, if u watch the clip, you wouldn't see my interview because I think they cut my portion. -.- Wa lao. But I was featured in the other stations' broadcast just that I am unable to find any online clip. In this one, you can see me faking the kimchi making process for the camera though. Haha. Btw this post is super backdated, I'm getting lazier to blog...
Kimchi, the uniquely pungent mixture of fermented vegetables, is a superbly palate-pleasing kimchi to delight every taste. A global favorite, kimchi is a food that adds zest to all kinds of meals and its appeal cuts across all social, economic, ethnic and geographical boundaries. You see the poor and the rich consuming it in Korea, whether its Gwangju, Jeongju, Seoul or Pusan. Its everywhere. Kimchi adds zest to all goods. Kimchi is an excellent contributor to the human body. You just need to visit most male toilets to find out. People leave testament of unflushed long coils of sausages. The length is absolutely amazing.
Yonsei University collaborated with KT&G (Korea's one and only tobacco company) to organise a Gimjang (winter making) event to make kimchi to distribute to needy children and monks.
Cabbage and gochujang sauce in bags. Cabbage bags. The ajummas volunteers who are working on it. We got a hang of it after a while but our production speed was much slower than the ajummas.
So much blood. Haa our baby that we produced. The frills resemble the umbilical cord.
No points for guessing what we had for lunch. Kimchi with pork. Kimchi really goes well with anything..no matter how bad the main/side dish is. Look at Ariyo's painful expression, lol.
The international group. Well..actually we were the only students that were helping out. Btw the girl with the white cap is a looker. Shes thai and hotter than kimchi. Damn hard to concentrate on making kimchi. Ha.
After a while, two broadcasting stations came and needed to grab some international students for their interviews, so Tomoyo and me was 'arrowed' to do the interviews.
However, if u watch the clip, you wouldn't see my interview because I think they cut my portion. -.- Wa lao. But I was featured in the other stations' broadcast just that I am unable to find any online clip. In this one, you can see me faking the kimchi making process for the camera though. Haha. Btw this post is super backdated, I'm getting lazier to blog...
http://www.pixcow.com/empasv/yonhapnews/40235
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Gwangju
Gwangju is supposedly well known for its art and culture (paintings, traditional crafts). Unfortunately we just missed their art festival which ended a day before we arrived. And most of the stalls weren't open when we were there..which was a shame.
For our lunch, we went to a famous BBQ restaurant, which was recommended by the locals, for some barbequed pork.
We ordered a bottle of soju, which turned out to be complimentary (i love their 'service'). Our faces were still red when we boarded the taxi to the bus terminal. The taxi driver asked us if we drank soju and we just laughed it off.
The skyline as we boarded the bumpy bus ride back. Took us 5 hrs to get back to Seoul. It was so bad that I nearly puked on the bus...for anyone going there next time, I recommend taking an express train, KTX.
Gwangju is supposedly well known for its art and culture (paintings, traditional crafts). Unfortunately we just missed their art festival which ended a day before we arrived. And most of the stalls weren't open when we were there..which was a shame.
Works of budding artists on display at the subway station.
Works during their middle age.
Epic works produced at the peak of their artisan careers. I couldn't resist a caress.
Epic works produced at the peak of their artisan careers. I couldn't resist a caress.
For our lunch, we went to a famous BBQ restaurant, which was recommended by the locals, for some barbequed pork.
Pretty classy and good ambience for a BBQ place.
We ordered a bottle of soju, which turned out to be complimentary (i love their 'service'). Our faces were still red when we boarded the taxi to the bus terminal. The taxi driver asked us if we drank soju and we just laughed it off.
Cheers! Eh, wheres my cup?
The skyline as we boarded the bumpy bus ride back. Took us 5 hrs to get back to Seoul. It was so bad that I nearly puked on the bus...for anyone going there next time, I recommend taking an express train, KTX.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Cheongup, Naechangsan aka Maple Story
After our night in the motel, we grabbed some mandus (dumplings) for breakfast and squeezed our way up an awfully packed bus all eager to head for Naechangshan.
"Eh, nabei cheebye la, chao gina heng lui la!!"
"Ok uncle, relac la"
The best place to head to admire maple leaves in Korea was Mt Seorak but we had missed the period as we were having our mid terms. Therefore we decided to settle for the second best: -Naechangshan where lots of Koreans from different parts of Seoul flock here just to admire the maple leaves.
Its such a big event in Korea that They even had helicopters from SBS and KBS (Korean Tv companies) to cover this. We tried to wave but they think we must have appeared pretty idiotic. But it turns out that, the rest of the people saw us and stared up to the sky to wave to them, Lol.
Makeshift Roadside stalls selling food, snacks : persimmons, grapes, corn, candies, honey products, dong dong ju (another traditional rice wine). Check out the huge pig on the grill.
They even sell birds. I have no idea what species they belong to but they sure don't look like chicken, judging from the size. Two poor birds with their legs spread-eagle. I bet they were caught while they were mating.
Along the way the trees were tinged with brightly coloured leaves.
At the entrance to the park, we were discussing and figuring out the price of the admission fee, when we were approached by this Korean girl who asked us, " 你们是中国人吗？"
To which, we vehemently answered 'No' and proudly replied that we were Singaporean, Taiwanese and Hong Konger. Her face lit up and asked us to follow her. It was a warm feeling, having people bringing you around, especially if you are a stranger in this foreign place, haha.
She and two of her friends were studying Chinese in Jingang University and she was the most proficient in Chinese, having studied the language for 3 years.
The bunch of us walked and talked, engaging in halting Korean and Chinese dialogue and occasionally posing for pictures and taking snapshots.
After having a great time admiring the autumn tintage, we decided to head to Gwangju. It was already 9 plus when we reached there. We had this crazy idea of buying a bottle of Dong Dong Ju (a different version of rice wine) and spend our night on the streets drinking it to keep us warm.
However, our innate need to find a proper shelter was so strong that we decided to scout for a decent accommodation. Slightly tipsy and weary from an entire day of walking, we walked along the streets and stumbled into a sleazy part...which happens to part of Gwangju's red light district. And there were pretty looking girls tugging our sleeves and calling us 'Oppa', they were saying that they will throw in 'service', Lol. Due to our budget constraints and moral conscience, but more of the former, we didn't manage to experience that bit of Korea. Aww.
We finally found our lodging.
Yet another motel.
Cheongup, early in the morning.
After our night in the motel, we grabbed some mandus (dumplings) for breakfast and squeezed our way up an awfully packed bus all eager to head for Naechangshan.
"Eh, nabei cheebye la, chao gina heng lui la!!"
"Ok uncle, relac la"
The best place to head to admire maple leaves in Korea was Mt Seorak but we had missed the period as we were having our mid terms. Therefore we decided to settle for the second best: -Naechangshan where lots of Koreans from different parts of Seoul flock here just to admire the maple leaves.
Its such a big event in Korea that They even had helicopters from SBS and KBS (Korean Tv companies) to cover this. We tried to wave but they think we must have appeared pretty idiotic. But it turns out that, the rest of the people saw us and stared up to the sky to wave to them, Lol.
Makeshift Roadside stalls selling food, snacks : persimmons, grapes, corn, candies, honey products, dong dong ju (another traditional rice wine). Check out the huge pig on the grill.
They even sell birds. I have no idea what species they belong to but they sure don't look like chicken, judging from the size. Two poor birds with their legs spread-eagle. I bet they were caught while they were mating.
Along the way the trees were tinged with brightly coloured leaves.
At the entrance to the park, we were discussing and figuring out the price of the admission fee, when we were approached by this Korean girl who asked us, " 你们是中国人吗？"
To which, we vehemently answered 'No' and proudly replied that we were Singaporean, Taiwanese and Hong Konger. Her face lit up and asked us to follow her. It was a warm feeling, having people bringing you around, especially if you are a stranger in this foreign place, haha.
She and two of her friends were studying Chinese in Jingang University and she was the most proficient in Chinese, having studied the language for 3 years.
The bunch of us walked and talked, engaging in halting Korean and Chinese dialogue and occasionally posing for pictures and taking snapshots.
Canopy turning brilliant crimson with the autumn leaves.
Lovely.
Lovely.
Oh fall. Thats what I came Korea for.
Ok I think I'll skip the comments.
After having a great time admiring the autumn tintage, we decided to head to Gwangju. It was already 9 plus when we reached there. We had this crazy idea of buying a bottle of Dong Dong Ju (a different version of rice wine) and spend our night on the streets drinking it to keep us warm.
However, our innate need to find a proper shelter was so strong that we decided to scout for a decent accommodation. Slightly tipsy and weary from an entire day of walking, we walked along the streets and stumbled into a sleazy part...which happens to part of Gwangju's red light district. And there were pretty looking girls tugging our sleeves and calling us 'Oppa', they were saying that they will throw in 'service', Lol. Due to our budget constraints and moral conscience, but more of the former, we didn't manage to experience that bit of Korea. Aww.
We finally found our lodging.
Yet another motel.
VHS collection somemore. Haha. So retro.
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