South Korea Trip, August 25

 Good morning Gangnam!  Today will be cloudy with some rain.  The temperature high will be 24°C (76°F).  I am glad that the temperature is going down, but I hope that there won't be much rain today.

Today's Agenda

I won't have any grand adventures today, but that doesn't mean that today won't be busy.  Still, I hope to take it easy after yesterday's mountain climbing.

Here's what I have planned for today:

• Exchange more money.
• Buy 다인 (Da-in) a gift.
• Work on LEGGO News fansite.

It should be a full day, but there will be less physical exertion than usual.

Today's Experiences

Today was mostly about food with a little bit of shopping and walking.  There was a lot of food though.

I'll start with the shopping because that's what I did first after finishing my fansite work.

Buying a Gift

Gift giving is a very popular custom here.  I have received many gifts from my friends in the fandom over the years, and all of them have been very good and well thought out.  I don't know if that is also part of the custom or if I just have good friends in this fandom.

I decided to give a gift to a special person while I am here in Korea.  다인 (Da-In) helped in planning my trip, she is answering my many questions, and she found a language tutor to hire when I asked for one.  I want to show her my appreciation and give her a good gift.

I have a specific gift in mind (but I can't share what it is on here), and I think that I know exactly where to go to buy it.  I return to the massive Lotte Department Store.

I find the specific shop within the department store that I am looking for.  There are communication issues, and I have to resort to using a translator app to clear up a misunderstanding.  Finally expressing my desire to buy a certain item from a picture, the employee shows me one that is very similar to the one that I want.

I am shocked at the price.  The version that I want is much cheaper, but I have no way of buying that one, because it is only for sale online and I can't easily purchase things online without citizenship.  This similar one seems like it is my only option.  I decide to buy it.

I'm a little anxious about the unexpected cost of the gift.  My friend and her efforts are worth it, and I can afford the gift without stress, but I'm worried about how it will be received.  I will give my friend the gift on Saturday when I next see her.  I hope that she will like it.  :)

Waffle Topped with Icecream Lunch

For lunch, I want to try a restaurant near my home.  I walk past it often and see the pictures of their delicious-looking waffles with icecream.  (There is a specific name for the dessert, but I forget it.)

I find the restaurant easily, but it takes me several minutes to figure out how to order my lunch.  The layout is very confusing with each floor serving a different type of food.  I finally find the desserts on the third floor of the restaurant.

I order the waffle and icecream with brown cheese.

Mmm!  The cheese tastes like cheesecake, and the rest are just as one would expect: also delicious!

The view from this floor is also really good.  I can sit and watch the passersby for a while, and I do just that.

After my dessert lunch, which I could not finish since it is enough to fill two people, I walk back to my apartment and stay there for a while.

Apgujeong Rodeo

Around 5pm, it's time for supper.  I ask 다인 (Da-In) for suggestions because I have already gone to everything nearby that I wanted to go to.  She suggests that I check out Apgujeong Rodeo Street.

It is a street filled with fashion stores and fancy restaurants!

I get the feeling that 다인 has realized that I set a comfortable budget for my trip.  However... I'm not rich enough for this street!  Haha!

I am also uncomfortable about eating at an expensive restaurant because of my recent big purchase.  I think that I will stick with a 100,000원 limit for the rest of my trip.

I decide not to eat on Apgujeong Rodeo Street, but it is still a neat street.  I enjoy exploring it and window shopping for the next hour.

Pizza for Supper

I decide to head back home and find a restaurant near my apartment.  I walk around the block then eventually decide on a pizza restaurant.  I forget the name of it, but it was not very special.

It was average.

Really, if you're going to get pizza, go to the restaurant that I visited the other day, the one that Hyelin suggested.  Actually, just go to the restaurants on Hyelin's list.  I've realized that is the thing to do.

South Korea Trip, August 24

Good morning Gangnam!  There are clouds in the sky, but the visibility below is clearer than usual.  I think that this implies that there is a good breeze today that has swept away the usual dust that fogs the view.  The forecast is also good: cloudy with a high of 27°C (80°F).

Today's Agenda

I will finally climb 불곡산 today.  It will be a very difficult climb, but today's weather is on my side.

After the climb, I want to find 성북 돈가스 and eat there, if I'm not too exhausted or dirty.

This is my agenda:

• Climb 불곡산. (inspiration)
• Eat at 성북 돈까스. (inspiration)

Both of these are inspired by Hyelin -- really, what would this trip have been without her?

Let's go!

Today's Experiences

I am dead tired tonight.  I will sleep very well.

Today's adventures were inspired by Hyelin's YouTube vlog about her hiking 불곡산, a mountain about two hours North of where I'm staying.  It was the third and final mountain that I wanted to reach the top of on my trip, so I have succeeded in that goal now!

Trip to 불곡산

I woke up this morning with plenty of time to get ready for my mountain climbing trip.  I took my time.  I didn't want to leave until around 10am or 11am so that I could skip all of the rush hour traffic.

When it was time to go, I hopped on the long-distance bus and relaxed for the next couple of hours.

The bus ride finally ended in Yangju close to the mountain.  This area seemed very rural compared to Seoul, though I have seen much more rural areas back home.

Climbing the Mountain

I wasn't exactly sure where to go to find the mountain trail that I wanted.  Instead of Googling it like a smart person would, I just walked in the general direction of the mountain.

Eventually, the road turned narrow and steep.  As I walked the couple of miles along the steep and narrow road, I wondered if it would have been possible to drive to the top of the mountain.  It wouldn't have been, and I soon found out where this road leads.

Near the base of the mountain, just before the slope becomes steep, is a Buddhist temple (I think).  This is where the road ended.

With the road ending here, I was not sure where to go next.  The people around the temple completely ignored me, so I figured it must be common for hikers to come past here.  I walked around behind the temple to search for the trail that must be there.  I found it!

The trail was surprisingly not maintained very well and was very steep.  I found out later that this was not the trail that I was looking for.  I just found a shortcut, a direct path from the temple to the mountaintop.

This path eventually connected to the main trail beneath a walk-bridge.  The main trail was much cleaner and had more assisting tools such as handrails and ladders, but it was still very steep.

In record time -- thanks to my temple shortcut -- I reached the top!

Here are few pictures of the view from the top and from near the top:

Also near the top was the penguin rock.  I have to include a shot of this to complete my mission.  It was also included in Hyelin's vlog.

It's just a rock that looks like a penguin.

Dinner at 성북 돈까스

After Hyelin climbed the mountain, she at at 성북 돈까스.  Because I'm copying her for this adventure, I go to eat there too.  I take the easier main trail back down.  Then I walk to the restaurant near the bottom.

Hyelin was with friends on her trip, so she could order a variety of food.  I could not have eaten all of that alone, so I just picked one item on the menu: cheese filled fried pig slices.  (I don't know what it's actually called, but it looked so good!)

After dinner, I rode the bus the two hours back home.  Then I got cleaned up, did some light grocery shopping at 7-11, and updated this blog post.  Now I am ready to say "goodnight".

Goodnight!

South Korea Trip, August 23

Good morning Gangnam!  Today will be hot and cloudy like most of the days here.  The temperature will be around the usual with a maximum of 31°C (88°F).

It looks like I won't be rained on today, so I should be active!

Today's Agenda

I have plans tonight with a friend.  Her name is 은재 (Eunjae).  I redacted her name last week when I talked about her, but now I realize that wasn't necessary, and most people wouldn't know her under her real name anyways.  Anyways, I have plans to eat Korean BBQ tonight with her.

Until dinner, I want to do something active and fun.  I may not have time to visit the next mountain that I want to climb (which is 불곡산), so I think that I will settle for something simpler.

Here is my agenda:

• Visit the Rose Park in Seoul.
• Eat dinner with 은재.

Today's Experiences

Today is Hyelin's birthday, so my morning was spent on a project related to that.  I woke up at 6am, but I was not ready to leave my apartment until 10:30 because I was busy.

I have been excited about climbing a specific mountain named 불곡산 today, but leaving my apartment late, I cannot do that.  It takes two hours to get to that mountain, then the hike lasts over four hours.  I had plans for dinner in Gangnam at 7pm, so I had to cancel my mountain climbing plans.  Instead, I decided to visit a pretty park in Seoul.

Rose Park

The Rose Park is on the Southeastern side of Seoul.  The bus trip is almost an hour, but the price is a cheap 1,950완 ($1.45), and the seats on the long-distance buses are comfortable.  I really don't get why anybody drives in this city.

I arrive at Rose Park.  I am quickly disappointed and underwhelmed.

I visited the park at the wrong time of year.  There were almost no flowers.

I walked around the park anyways because I had come so far, and I did find a few pretty sights there.  At least the long trip here was worth something now.

I especially enjoyed the cool breeze that flowed down the river with the water.  Underneath the bridges were seats that would have been very nice to relax in if I had been tired.

I explored the Rose Park for a little while longer, but soon its pretty sights were exhausted, and it was time for me to move on to another adventure.

Seoul Children's Grand Park

I texted my friend 다인 (Da-In) about the Rose Park failure and asked for recommendations.  She gave me a list of three special places, and I chose the Seoul Children's Grand Park from among them.  I got on the metro and headed back towards the center of Seoul to find it.

Inside, I was quickly spoiled with green vegetation sprinkled with bright flowers!  This was a definite improvement over the Rose Garden!  :)

There was even an indoor botanical garden with sections of different climates.  Some sections were closed for cleaning when I visited, but I did get to see about half of it.  It was really neat.

I personally liked the outdoor flora better.  This area was neat, but I felt happier when I went back outside.

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Inside the park is also a zoo!  It isn't as great as most of the zoos that I have been to, but it is a neat little place that kids seem to really enjoy.  It's a nice zoo to walk through if you only have an hour to spare.

I especially liked the Silvery Gibbon in the last picture.  He came out of the shade to see me then followed me around the bend when I eventually had to say goodbye.

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I actually visited the zoo first then the botanical garden.  (I wrote it in the reverse order just for the sake of flowing the topic from Rose Park flowers to Grand Park flowers.)  Whatever the order that I visited the attractions, I was hungry after everything so far today.  I saw a food stand outside of the botanical garden.

I don't know what this is called or even what it is exactly, but I have seen it at many street food places.  It's pieces of hotdogs and mystery bread on a stick.  The bread is sweet but not sugary sweet, filling but very light, and doughy.  I enjoyed my lunch with a Pepsi to drink.

While I rested and ate my lunch, I discovered my favorite part of this park adventure:

It is a simple butterfly.  And it's something more than a simple butterfly.

When I walked the Cheonggyecheon Stream, there was a white butterfly that followed me the seven miles to the end.  When I climbed 검단산, there was a white butterfly that joined me on that hike.  I never mentioned the butterfly before in my blog because I could never capture a clear picture of it.  Today I could snap a picture as it rested with me at lunch.

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After lunch, I had seen almost all of the free areas of the park -- oh, have I mentioned that almost all museums, zoos, and parks in Seoul are free?  The only non-free part of the park was the amusement rides, but those aren't really my thing anyways.  So, I start meandering towards the exit.

I saw a really sweet sculpture on my way out of the park.  It looks cool on its own, but its story made me love it even more.  It is very sweet.

The stones inside the statue were contributed by citizens of Seoul who wrote their wishes on them.  The stones were stacked inside the structure which lifts a golden egg.  It symbolizes rising up and overcoming our challenges to make a better tomorrow.  It feels very special because each of the stones represents a different person and their hopes.

Dinner with 은재

After our dinner last week, 은재 (Eunjae) and I decided to schedule another dinner tonight.

I forget the name of the place that we ate at.  It was somehow related to EXID .

The menu was k-bbq.

I have had k-bbq in USA, but this is an entirely different (and authentic) experience.

This restaurant specializes in pork.  The pork and other seasonings is wrapped in a perilla leaf or a lettuce leafe, and the entire thing is eaten at once.  It's rather delicious.

My friend also introduced me to somaek, which is soju and beer mixed.  It's actually really smooth and a really efficient way to get drunk.

Ah, it was such a great dinner!  I'm very glad that I have this friend because she is very good at introducing me to delicious and authentic Korean dinners.

After dinner, I expressed an interest in having a little bit more to drink.  We went to a nearby place that she recommended, and we had a couple more beers.

The "Jeju" beer was surprisingly good with a floral flavor.  Based on this one beer, I extrapolate that Korean beer is better.  I will need further investigation to confirm however.  ;)

It was time to say goodbye after a couple of beers.  I did not want to say goodbye because I was enjoying our outing so much, but my friend had to wake up to work tomorrow.

Now I am at home, and it is time for me to say "goodnight".  Goodnight!

South Korea Trip, August 22

Good morning Gangnam! Today will be mostly cloudy with rain likely in the evening.  The temperature will be cooler than yesterday, reaching a high of 31°C (87°F).

Today's Agenda

I have been looking forward to today because I get to spend time with one of my new friends.  For dinner, we are going to eat at a very special restaurant.  We are both excited.  Dinner isn't until later in the day, so I will find other activities for the meantime.

• Work on LEGGO News fansite.
• Enjoy a stroll around a park.
• Eat dinner with 수진.

Today's Experiences

After working on the fansite this morning and publishing an article about Solji's new song, it was time to go out on the town and explore!

I looked up the park that I saw from Namsan Tower last night only to find out that I had explored that park already.  I looked up more parks that were interesting, but I have explored many of them in the many times that I have gotten pleasantly lost in the city.  After a few hours, I got sleepy and took a nap.

When I awoke from my nap, I still had a few hours until my dinner with 수진 (Soojin).  I decided to take a walk around the block.

Walking Around the Block

I exited my apartment and went left.  In my mind, I thought I would stop at a dessert place for a snack if I found a new one.  I would walk entirely around the block.

My plans did not pan out.  I got very much lost after I took a wrong turn onto a back alley.  I did not circle the block like I had planned.  I have no idea where I went.  It was fun.  :)

Eventually, the time got late.  I finally had to pull out a map and get home.

Cucciolo with 수진

I met 수진 my first week in South Korea when we went to volunteer at a daycare center in honor of Hyelin's birthday.  Her phone background was almost exactly like mine.  It was the same scene but from a different year.  We were instant friends, and it was awesome!

수진's favorite EXID member is 솔지 (Solji).  I just happened to want to eat at the restaurant that Solji's brother owns, and I thought that my new friend 수진 would also enjoy it.  So I asked her!

We met at the metro station close to the restaurant.  I am still kicking myself for not greeting her enthusiastically enough.  I was taken off guard by her sudden appearance, so the greeting was awkward.  Maybe it wasn't so bad, maybe it was just important to me to greet my friend well.

We left together to find the restaurant.  We had a little trouble finding it, but eventually we did find it.  Reservations are required, but they made an exception since they were not busy.

We ordered a pasta and a steak from the menu.  I normally drink wine with a steak, but we decided not to go overboard with the pricetag.  We had lemon water to drink.

I think that the food was really good, and I felt happy supporting the 허 family.

I paid the bill for dinner, and 수진 agreed to pay the bill for the dessert.  We went to Paris Baguette to have coffee and bread.  I was surprised by the garlic bread with sugar instead of salt, which was unexpectedly good.

Sadly, it was time to say goodbye after dessert.  I never like saying goodbye.