Korea Winter Discovery --- Day 7

Day 07 - Seoul City

Temp: -3 to 9c

Breakfast on a river

Day 7 of 8. Today was totally a shopping day. Minimal sight-seeing(which results in low photo count) but maximum shopping.

Before all the shopping begins, we went to have breakfast, which was held at a scenic spot, yes, on a stationary ship. Thanks to the high cost of buffet breakfast in Seoul 5-star hotels, all tour groups usually eat out. Anyway, the breakfast was buffet style as well, and there was someone to fry an egg on the spot, yes, we kinda missed that thing quite for a long time. Overall, quite a good breakfast, expecially the special brew of tea that they served. One thing we noticed, all the other passengers in the tour group always finish their meal faster than us, it is as if they are at Raffles Place, having their a very short lunch break...come on, theres good scenery out there!

fry on the spot

daybreak

enjoying but prolly too cold to stay out for a long period.

taking photo

After breakfast, we drove pass the Presidential House and stopped at our first shopping point, a souvenir store near the Blue House. Of course, we tried to balance between photo taking and shopping, both of which are the main motive for today. The historical talk was rather quick as most Singaporeans are apatheic and only have shopping in their minds. Moreover, the temperature was kinda unbearable to stand in the cold for long. No criticisms, but Singaporeans do love shopping than an educational talk.


FYI:The symbol of Cheong Wa Dae (known to westerners as the Blue House or the presidential residence), is the blue tiles.The first thing that catches your eye when you arrive at Cheong Wa Dae are the blue tiles of the main building. The blue tiles and the smooth roof are in beautiful harmony with Mt. Bugaksan behind it. As the Blue House represents Korea, the blue tiles and the smooth curve of the roof represents the beauty of Korea.The unique buildings Cheong Wa Dae are comprised of the Main Office, Yeongbingwan (Guest House), Chunchugwan (Spring and Autumn Pavilion), Nokjiwon (Green grass), the Mugunghwa (Rose of Sharon) Valley, and the Seven Palaces. It is interesting to see that these buildings have special shapes. They are unique and beautifully designed, built in the Korean traditional style. The blue tiles and the smooth curve shape of the main office roofs are elegantly built. Approximately 150 thousand tiles compose the roof of the Blue House. Each were baked individually which make them strong enough to be used for hundreds of years. If you turn to the right you will see Chunchugwan. The roof of Chunchugwan was made of earthen tiles. This is where the president's press conferences are held. On the left side of the main office, there is the Yeongbingwan. It was designed to hold large conferences and official events for foreign guests. It looks luxurious with 18 pillars.You can walk along the Nokjiwon and the Mugunghwa Valley. At Nokjiwon a succession of presidents planted trees on memorial occasions. There is one famous tree which is 310 years old.The Mugunghwa Valley has the flowers, a fountain, and a phoenix statue, which makes it perfect for taking pictures. It is best to visit here between July and October when the Mugunghwa flowers bloom. There are many places to go to in Hyoja-dong Sarangbang. Presents given from around the world to the president are displayed here. You can tour for free and buy Cheong Wa Dae souvenirs. One place you should not miss is "the Seven Palaces." The area has seven palaces with traditional houses and yards from the Joseon Dynasty. After opening in November 2001, many tourists have visited.A walk around the paths just outside the the Blue House grounds is a pleasure as the surroundings are peaceful and beautiful. The paths follow Gyeongbokgung Palace to Blue House and to Samcheong-dong Park. The walk from the East Gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace to the Blue House is the most beautiful part. With the road in the middle, there is the Gyeongbokgung Palace stone wall on the left and galleries and old buildings on the right. The stone wall of Gyeongbokgung Palace is scattered with beautiful old trees that will comfort you. With their colorful leaves, the path is a romantic course to walk through during the fall season. Across the street are Hyundai Gallery, Geumho Gallery and other famous galleries and stylish cafes. Of the many nice cafes and restaurants, there is "The Restaurant." Its interior is modern and one side of the building is a glass wall where you can enjoy viewing the scenery and the stonewall alley while dining. After you pass this area, and before you reach the Blue House, turn to the right and you will reach Samcheong-dong Park. There are many famous restaurants and galleries. In particular, on the way to Samcheong Park, there is a restaurant called 'Sancheong-dong Sujaebi' which is the most renowned in Samcheong-dong. If you walk pass the restaurant, you will find Samcheong-dong Park at the end of the road. There are many trees, a mineral spring, and another famous walking path. When you visit the Blue House, don't forget to take a stroll on the quaint and narrow Samcheong-dong street. It is much quieter than Insa-dong and is popular among foreigners
The Blue House

Yeongbingwan, the guest house

Ra and Eugene

Kel and Aaron

Jay and Swee Leong

group photo, near the Presidential House

Next stop for us is the ginseng shop, which of course, specialise in selling ginseng. No photography was allowed at this shop, it was like they were promoting some secret drug in the shop. That place gave us a very China feeling, it was as if we were transport to China, most probably due to all the Chinese-speaking shop assistants. It was amazing to see a wide array of ginseng products, from tablets, powder to cosmetics and ALL these do not come cheap, they were priced in US$. It was an exorbitant, time-wasting event, but nonetheless, it brought extra comission to davidgan & sean, all thanks to mdm show-off.

FYI:While six or seven types of ginseng are known worldwide, the most common types are the Asian Ginseng (Panax Ginseng) grown in Korea and North-East Asia, the American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolium L.) grown in the U.S. and Canada, and the Siberian Ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosis) grown in China. The Asian ginseng root, whose shape resembles the human body, is categorized as a different species from the American or Siberian types. To distinguish it from other ginseng grown in the world, all of the ginseng cultivated in Korea is referred to as Goryeo ginseng. Goryeo ginseng is a perennial, shade loving plant, and as mentioned, the root forms “legs” and a “trunk” like a human body. A cultivated ginseng plant can take from four to six years to grow, from selecting the seeds to harvesting, and the more attention given to cultivation, the greater its medicinal effect. Korea has the optimal conditions for ginseng, whose cultivation requires the right natural environment. It is particularly sensitive to climate, to the amount of sunlight, and to soil. Considered a cure for various illnesses even in modern times, Goryeo ginseng has more effectiveness than any other type of ginseng and is effective towards prevention and treatment of most diseases. Because of this, Goryeo ginseng is more expensive than other kinds of ginseng. Sometimes ginseng produced in other countries is remade into Goryeo ginseng.

Due to the beautifiying effects of ginseng, most of the women in the tour group were very excited, especially at the cosmetics section. Mr. Sour Plum's wife(aka The Cash-eater) even demanded that he hand over his credit cards as she(supposedly) had spent most of her Won in the first 6 days already.

2 important lessons we learnt at the shop: 1)Never set your credit card limit to a very low value(such as 200 dollars) in case you need to purchase some thing that is way above that value, especially when you are going oversea. 2)Jay's advice:" No matter what you do, do not marry a Cash-eater..."

After the ginseng shop, we went to The Face Shop, which was just a few steps away. Davidgan was sooooo excited while at the exit of Ginseng shop, that he sprinted down the stairs, while mumbling the greatness of Faceshop products. He was like a mobile ambassador, promoting it so well, and not to forget, his knowledge tells alot about his shopping habits. Of course, the women nonetheless excited as David, as the face mask were way cheaper as compare to the FaceShop in Singapore, almost half-priced. The group made huge purchases at the Face Shop as it truly was much cheaper, though according to Jay, all the exotic face masks were MIA from the shop(only three types of masks were available, collagen, pearl and Q10). The ladies just grabbed a few packets of tens, as though it was some clearance closing-down sale. It is kinda obvious Collagen became the top-seller, as everyone fears wrinkles since it devalues your faces, esp for those concerned people like mdm cash.

Then, we went to the amethyst factory for some jewellery shopping, purchasing of purple colour rocks. Again no photo taking (Arggh!!!)... It brought some curiousity to mdm cash & gang, but what a disappointment, their purchases did not match the status they will trying to potray. Their puny small purchases gave black faces to the shop assistants who were convinced that the VISA cards they were holding could go for more credit transactions. Of course, mdm cash and show-off HAD to buy something and not to forget, to ask a few passer-bys (we) about our opinions of which pendants are better, just to "announce" that "im buying". We should have pointed that big rock to her and see whether she can swallow her pride and give sparkling faces to the shop assistants.

amethyst factory

Finally, it was lunch time, and for today, we had a 'special' meal, ginseng chicken. Once again, the special meal was not so special, the soup was bland and the chicken was dry from overcooking. It was like some rubbery 50year old chicken. The only saving grace was the wine they provided to be added inside the soup and the noodles(which is like a thicker version of mee sua).

ginseng chicken soup

wine

ginseng chicken noodle soup

group photo, ginseng chicken restaurant

After lunch, it was time for us to exprience some Korean culture, thus, we went to the Korea Cultural Center.

First up, we exprienced kimchi-making process... in fact, all the ingredients had been pre-prepared for us. We were just mixing the mixture with the vegetable. Of course, the so called exprience Korean culture was just another excuse and opportunity for them to promote more stuff for us to buy, in this case, it is... kimchi.

culture exprience

before

after..no we didnt ate them, it will be too horifying, it went to the bin.

FYI:
Since human beings began cultivating, they have enjoyed vegetables, which are rich in vitamins and minerals. However, the cold winter, when cultivation was practically unavailable, led naturally to the development of a storage method- pickling. As a kind of pickled vegetables, kimchi was born in Korea around the 7th century.
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At the earliest stage, kimchi was just salted vegetable, but during the 12th century they saw the appearance of a new type of kimchi with some spices and seasonings, and in the 18th century, hot red pepper finally became one of the major spices for kimchi. In particular, thanks to the introduction of cabbages in the 19th century, they witnessed the same type of kimchi as we know it today.
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It is suspected that the name kimchi originated from shimchae (salting of vegetable) which went through some phonetic changes: shimchae - dimchae - kimchae - kimchi.

group photo, after kimchi making

Second up, we tried on hanbok and of course, new costumes result in new photo taking moments. If not for the time constraints, we were had tried all the different backdrops available.

FYI:The women's hanbok is comprised of a wrap-around skirt and a jacket. It is often called chima-jeogori, 'chima' being the Korean word for skirt and 'jeogori' the word for jacket. The men's hanbok consists of a short jacket and pants, called 'baji', that are roomy and bound at the ankles. Both ensembles may be topped by a long coat of a similar cut called 'durumagi'. The Hanbok, worn today are patterned after those worn during the Confucian-oriented Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). The Yangban, a hereditary aristocratic class based on scholarship and official position rather than on wealth, wore brightly colored hanbok of plain and patterned silk in cold weather and closely woven ramie cloth or other high-grade, light weight materials in warm weather. Commoners, on the other hand, were restricted by law as well as finances to bleach hemp and cotton, and could only wear white, pale pink, light green, gray or charcoal colors.

raymond, eugene, jay

leong, aaron, kelvin

peace...

and quiet(not really...)..Ra is getting addicted to the whiff of tea aroma like some opium addict

group photo, Hanbok Fashion Show

After all the photo taking, we departed to watch Nanta Show, which is a highly entertaining performance, though no photography was allowed in the theatre, we enjoyed the show thoroughly.

FYI:Since first presented on stage in 1997, Nanta has been the must-see performance in Korea. 'NANTA' figuratively refers to reckless punching as in a slugfest at a boxing match. 'NANTA' is a non-verbal performance of reckless rhythms that dramatize customary Korean percussion in a strikingly comedic stage show. Integrating uniquely Korean traditional drumbeats with a western performance style, NANTA storms on stage into a huge kitchen where four capricious cooks are preparing a wedding banquet. While cooking, they turn all kinds of kitchen items - pots, pans, dishes, knives, chopping board, water bottles, even brooms and each other- into percussion instruments. The typical instruments used in Samulnori (Korean traditional percussions) have been replaced with diverse drums improvised from utensils commonly found in kitchens. Going back and forth from cooking to pounding out their rhythmic cadences, from cheerful banter to playful animosity, the kitchen crew creates visual humor and aural fun that irresistibly entice the audience to participate. As they complete the best dishes of the day, the performance culminates in a feast that is shared with the audience to both highlight and celebrate the communal bond found in a traditional Samulnori performance. Rhythm rules and audiences are swept along in the primitive sound explosion and actions on stage. Though the performance is built primarily on captivating rhythms and has very few spoken words, audiences of all ages and nationalities can easily enjoy the plot and dramas. Currently, Nanta is presented in two exclusive theaters, Cookin' Theater in the northern part of Seoul and PMC Theater in the southern part of Seoul. Cookin' Theater is near Jeongdongno Street which is excellent for strolls.

outside the theatre

Synopsis:
A cross-tempered manager orders three chefs to cook a major wedding banquet within a strict time limit. On top of that, he brings his mischievous nephew to work with them. Even though cooks don't like his nephew, they need the assistance. While they are cooking, they show their mistakes and happenings with dance and music. The sexy man and woman chefs are too busy with their love affairs. The mischievous nephew has trouble with cooks. While making a big cream cake for the highlight of the wedding, they lack time and good ideas. Luckily the nephew has a great idea, and the chefs complete the big cake and other dishes on time. Then, a fantastic wedding party is held. The typical instruments used in Samulnori (farmers' percussion quartet) have been replaced with diverse drums improvised from common kitchen utensils. Going back and forth from cooking to pounding out their rhythmic cadences, from cheerful banter to playful animosity, the kitchen crew creates visual humor and aural fun that irresistibly entice the audience to participate. As they complete the best dishes of the day, the performance culminates in a feast that is shared with the audience to both highlight and celebrate the communal bond found in traditional Samulnori performance.

it's showtime...

after the show...

After taking a few hours break from shopping, we resumed once we reached Dongdaemun Market...more like the big highlight of all the shopping areas in Seoul.

FYI:
Ever since its opening in 1905, Dongdaemun Market has been one of the major markets in Korea. Specializing in wholesale clothing, the market has grown large, having more than 20 shopping malls. A full range of fashion items that cover from head to toe, are found in Dongdaemun Market at inexpensive prices. Just name it and you shall find it! No wonder that the market is always crowded with retailers, foreigners, customers and tourists.

The main street divides Dongdaemun Market into 2 sections
Section 1 - Retail Shops

Huge shopping malls in Section 1 basically sell wholesale and retail goods, but mostly deal with general customers and tourists at retail prices. Thus, they have convenient facilities like money exchanges and information desks with English speaking staff. Open hours are also aimed at general customers, opening from 10 am to 5 am of the next day. With a pleasant interior, and rhythmical music played all day long, shopping malls in Section 1 draw many young people everyday. Various events organized by these shopping malls (7 or 8 pm) are also delightful. Sometimes you will get to see the youth come up on the stage in front of the mall, dancing or singing. Major shopping malls are Doosan Tower, Migliore, Freya Town and Hello apM.
Section 2 - Wholesale Shops

Shopping malls in Section 2 sell goods both in wholesale and retail, but mainly sell in bulk. That is why shopping malls here usually open at about 8 pm and close at 8 am or 5 pm the next day for the convenience of wholesalers. The peak time comes late at night through early morning. Since most shops deal with the wholesalers, there is no dressing room. Refunds and exchanges are not guaranteed, so make sure to check the quality and size carefully. Major shopping malls in Section 2 are Designer's Club, Migliore Valley, Nuzzon, Gwanghee Fashion Mall, Jeil Pyeonghwa, and Heungin Stardom. Among them, Jeil Pyeonghwa and Heungin Stardom attract customers in their thirties or forties with items of simple and elegant design. The teens or youths in their twenties usually visit Designer's Club, Migliore Valley, Nuzzon and Gwanghee Fashion Mall. There is a variety of sporting goods shops around the Dongdaemun stadium.

There were so many places for us to shop but so little time. It was like Bugis Shopping Street multiplied by a dozen. In the end we decided to split up so it would increase our shopping efficiency. The goods available were very nice and there were a wide variety of designs available. Of course, pirated goods were also available there, but not up to the par of imitation due to restrictions maybe. In terms of prices, they also offered a wide range. Those who were looking for cheap stuff should visit the open space stalls near to the stadium where better bargains can be found. Of course, Ra was looking for rip-off branded belts trying to cheat his bro by telling him it's geniune.

Dongdaemun Market

the streets at night

fashion accessories

more available

satisfied

Too bad our divide and conquer stragegy did not prevent us from being the last group to board the bus as we were trying to cover the whole area to look for the best price and Aaron had to rush back to the last shopping mall we went to purchase some shoes and Raymond had to buy some pirated belt for his fashion-savy brother(lol... can't wait to see his brother reaction to the fake belt). Some of us even end up empty handed. 2 hours were definitely not enough.

After using much energy to walk around Dongdaemun, it was time to statisfy our hunger pangs. For dinner, it was another 'special' meal, Bibimbap. Of course, no decent dinner in Korea comes without hotpot/hotplate/steamboat. Thus, other than the bibimbap, we served with a hotpot with balck fungus, and other vegetables inside...with pork belly and side dishes to go with the bibimbap.

FYI:Dolsot bibimbap is a variation of the bibimbap (minced meat, veggies, eggs, sesame oil, and hot bean paste mixed with rice) served in a heated stone pot. The stone pot works to retain the heat inside the dish while it is being eaten. The pots are hot enough to sizzle while the bibimbap is being mixed!

the hot pot

pork belly and other side dishes

Bibimbap

start to....

enjoy

Due to the myriad of shopping locations covered today, we reached our hotel rather late and not much time was available for us to venture out like yesterday, so we decided to visit Lotte Mart, which is just located next to our hotel.

FYI:Lotte Mart offers fresh groceries, high quality goods as well as famous fashion brands. You can also relax while shopping in fast food restaurants such as Lotteria and Popeyes, a music cafe or food court. Lotte Mart is located in Jamsil, where there are various leisure sites such as Lotte Department Store, Lotte Hotel, Lotte World amusement park, Folk Museum and a gym.

6F- Six Banquet Halls

5F- Four Wedding Halls

4F- Home Appliances, Sports, Golf, Children’s Wear, Food Court, Stationary, Toys

3F- Men’s & Women’s Wear, Women’s Suits, Casual Wear, Shoes

2F- Young Casual Wear, Denim, Watches, Shoes, Music Café, Leather goods, Other goods,

1F- Underwear, Cosmetics, Daily Supplies, Car Supplies, Handicrafts, Lotteria, Popeyes, Uno, Photo Atelier, Flower Shop

B1F- Groceries, Liquor, Snacks, Bakery

B2F~B3F- Parking Lot

Since our main motive is to stock up on food items to bring back to Singapore, we visited B1 which is somehow similar to our Fairprice, though they offer a much wider variety of goods.

Lotte Mart

Ra 'fired' up with the grabbing of seaweeds.

well-preserved

dried fishes

different variety of kimchi

Of course, Raymond, being the Shopping King(aka Resident Slut) was very excited when we were in the hypermart and would not allow anyone to stop him in his quest to buy the whole mart(..hmmm..). His policy:" If you never see it before, that means it is foreign, just grab it!". Basically our shopping cart was heavily loaded with lots of goods, almost like a month's worth of groceries.

Korea is a very environmental friendly country, so no plastic bags was provided for us to bring our harvest back to the hotel, however, they do have recycled boxes for us to pack our stuff in.(Bravo!)

packing our goodies

When we had packed our goodies, it was three full boxes. Luckily for us, there were 6 of us to share the load.

let's take a break

While we were walking back to the hotel, some of us got seduced into the Krispy Creme donuts shop located at the basement. OMG!!! They were giving out one whole donut as sample for FREE... even our group's food critics were very amazed at the quality of the donuts offered there. We were glad we stood there infront of the donut showcase dumbfounded as it provided us the opportunity to have some free samples. If Dunkin had put Singapore's donut to shame, Krispy Creme had banished them to the hall of shame totally.

Krispy Creme

Aaron and Swee Leong(who missed the opportunity to go to Krispy Creme) went to explore around the hotel as it was our last night in Korea. Thankfully for us, the other brought back Krispy Creme donuts for us and Eugene(who was resting in his room after the shopping spree at Lotte Mart). Aaron immediately shifted his loyalties from Dunkin to Krispy and was disappointed to find out that the shop had closed for the day. Hearing about the news was like losing loved ones as you can see the sadness in his eyes.

After savouring the donuts, we started to pack our luggage as we need to check out early in the morning tomorrow. Here comes the problem, due to the all the purchases we had made throughout the tour(especially Raymond), most of us had a hard time squeeze everything into our barang barang. In case of letting our luggage overshoot the weight limit, we even use the bathroom scale of the hotel to weigh our luggage, Raymond even had to go over to Jay's room in his long john only to borrow the scale as according to him, his weighing scale was spoilt. Lol... Raymond had a Kodak moment when he saw the weight of his luggage(which surprisingly, was below the weight limit). He yelled "Yesssssss! Yesssss!!!" His yes could prolly be heard miles away as the sound travelled through unlocked doors & drifted to the corridor.

After the big hoooo-haaaaa of packing our luggage, the group retired into the comfortable bed in Lotte World Hotel. The final night in Seoul... the final day in Korea will soon arrive... Meanwhile, Kim Myung-Ja, our chamber maid gave the prediction of the weather forecasts on a piece of paper placed near the table-lamp. Ra feeling cheated, as the temp has been hovering around the same interval & rather inaccurate, placed a "LIAR" word on the piece of paper. We just wondered how will Ms Myung-Ja faced the supervisor, it was both hilarious & evilness. Haha.