Thank you

[quote=divasweet_77,Mar 16 2011, 07:04 PM]
agreed.. the pics are mabless.. the hongik and ewha area had a lot of funny2 signboards and shops, it's a bit whimsical but that what makes it very different from other places..

Took Air Busan (budget airline) from Gimpo to Jeju island. From Jeju airport, take bus 600 to Seogwipo town. Bus fare 5000won; takes about 30min to reach. We stayed in Tae Gong Gak guesthouse.

However due to the early flight (755am) we were stoning and dozing off in the bus. Misheard the stop name and alighted early @ World Cup stadium stop. Thought it wouldn't take long to reach Seogwipo from there so we walked.. mana tau, after walking for 10min the GPS stated it would take us 2hrs to reach the destination (!!!) There wasn't any stops for bus 600 along the way so we walked on.. tried to flag taxi but all occupied.. walked from normal pavement to highway side path, up slope, down slope.. total distance 4.3km, that's like completing half of the Olle trail! T___T

Here are the pics taken during our torturous walk..




After we reached the guesthouse, we were recommended to try Jeju traditional set meal. The place is called (only sound like, cos hard to remember correctly) Anggurik Banggurik. According to locals, it's in Jeju dialect and it means "inside, outside". Only 7000won for set meal per pax, look at the amount of dishes provided! They're refillable as many times as you wish and best of all, all of them are super delicious! (am not exaggerating)

Note: One of the dishes is pork, to be wrapped in lettuce together with red pepper paste. The jeju snapper is fantastic!



The restaurant is located in a building next to Jeju Hiking Inn. They have a pet dog called "Shark" (always resting outside the restaurant) and most locals know the dog so if you ask around they will give you good directions (that is if you're not staying in Tae Gong Gak).



Went to Cheonjiyeon Falls and Lee Jung Seop street since both are near to the guesthouse..



Spotted two quaint cafes there!




Note: Apologies to muslims as most of the food posted are non-halal..
By guesthouse owner's recommendation, we went to the famous black pork restaurant which is located in Lee Jung Seop street - walk up the same way as shown in the photos and you'll see a restaurant that has white signboard with piggie face on it. It opens till 2am. Opposite of the restaurant is a nice cafe called Maya (next to cafe is florist shop).

Inner walls are plastered with old newspapers..



The meat was unbelievably juicy and the seafood soup was ridiculously good! Both types of meat (neck part and body area) with soju cost 29000won. For 2 pax, it's quite filling!



This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 17 2011, 12:49 AM

Room 101 from Tae Gong Gak Inn -



Rooftop view during daytime and nighttime -




A restaurant only 2min walk down the street from guesthouse serves delicious set meals too! Fried fish mackeral and Hairtail fish with pumpkin soup. 2 pax for 25000won.




After lunch we took a city bus to go to Sunrise Peak (Seongsan Ilchulbong). Bus fare 1500won.



While walking to the Peak's entrance we saw the women divers! One of them motioned us closer and asked us to buy from them. We bought 3 unknown shells and a fat sea cucumber for 20000won.. not cheap




We reached the entrance and started hiking up. The wind was so strong that at times I was pushed to left and right by it. It's only about 1km hike up but the climb was quite tedious with the cold wind blasting constantly. Fingers shaking and couldn't focus on taking photos..



Reached the peak.. was quite disappointed that it wasn't as beautiful as expected. Should visit it in Spring.. haih. The town view from top was quite spectacular though.




After that we went to King's Mart (Lee Jung Seop street) to buy dinner to makan together with the raw seafood bought from women diver I love the honey pancake-bun! So much that I bought a few packets back to Msia




We were told that Jeju makgeolli (rice wine) is nicer than other provinces; the Jeju soju in transparent bottle (there r two types in Jeju) is also widely known as one of the best soju cos they used Mt Halla water and strawberry to make it.. so we tried both. Compared to Seoul's, Jeju makgeolli & soju are purer, less strong and very refreshing. We tapau them back to Msia too.. lol

These are from Jeju -



This makgeolli was bought in Seoul -



This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 17 2011, 12:32 AM

Read your blog.. wow, you went to Mt Sorak national park! So nice!

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Added on March 17, 2011, 10:24 amIt's about RM202 for flights going from Gimpo to Jeju and same price for Jeju to Busan. We wanted to take ferry but changed to flights since we cancelled out Suncheon at the last minute.

When Sylvia heard about our "ordeal" she encouraged us to take the Olle trail.. I was like, eh, after that 4.3km walk I dun think I have the energy to walk any further.. somemore with our street boots.. it was quite painful!

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Added on March 17, 2011, 10:27 amWah same room!!

Am jealous of you now.. wish I'm still in Jeju! Room 101 is nice but then the view from room is nothing much.. basically you'll only see the area outside the inn. But then it was the most luxurious one compared to my stay in Seoul and Gyeongju..

This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 17 2011, 10:27 AM

Took Air Busan from Jeju to Busan, then take intracity express bus to travel from Busan to Gyeongju.
9000won for the bus ticket, can be bought just outside the airport. Boarding place is just outside the ticket office.




It only took 2hrs to reach Gyeongju.. and we walked for 30 min from bus terminal to Gyeongju Guesthouse (quite far, literally from one end of the street to the other).




Went to Tourist Information Center to know more about the city tour bus. They have 3 routes available daily (12000won for each route) but we decided to go on our own..




We also took the Stamp Tour form from the Center - you can get a stamp on every place you visit. The stamp is at the white kiosk next to ticket office but some places like Seoguram Grotto, the kiosk is inside so you can't get the stamp without going in..




Evening shot near Cheongseomdae -




Cheongseomdae -




Anapji -




Most of the places are within walking distance (except for Bulguksa & Seokguram Grotto), say, range from 10min to 1hr. Since weather is warmer than Seoul's, it's easier to walk without feeling cold all the time. Phew.

We had dinner at this restaurant (orange signboard), 5000-6000won range. Rice cake soup (not hangover soup rite?) and bibimbap. How shall I describe.. hmm, both are really delicious, home-cooked style... the ingredients used for bibimbap is different!



This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 17 2011, 11:05 AM

We took AREX to Hongik station. You can change subway line from AREX to reach your destination..

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Added on March 17, 2011, 1:49 pmLooking at the pics made me wanna go to Korea again!! Lemme load Gyeongju part 2!

This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 17 2011, 01:49 PM

Gyeongju Part II - Bulguksa & Seokguram Grotto.

Before my trip, I was wondering why Stimix had kimbap so many times during his stay there. Only when we were in South Korea, this cheap kimbap was a vital role in our daily meals. We had them for breakfast, supper, dinner.. and they're easy to bring around when sightseeing, travelling etc. Not only they're tasty, they're cheap, they're also hearty enough to fill up empty stomachs.

So on the 2nd day in Gyeongju, we bought delicious kimbap and coffee from a small shop near to Bulguksa bus stop and had our lunch break there. Looks yummy rite? Cos they're really yummyyyyyyyyy!

*pardon my winter nails..*




After lunch we walked up to reach Bulguksa temple. Admission 4000won -



Even though there wasn't any snow, weather was nice and sunny, the pond was still frozen -



The famous photo-taking spot in the temple




To go to Bulguksa from town, take bus 10, 11 or 700. 1500won bus fare. For Seokguram Grotto, which is further up from Bulguksa, you can either hike up from Bulguksa or take bus 12 from temple.

We think that paying 1500won for 5min drive up was not worth it so we hiked up. The walk up to Grotto parking is 2.2km, then from there have to walk another 600m to reach. Since we had experienced 4.3km walk, we didn't think it would be tat bad. Well we overestimated ourselves again. I would say both are about the same.. the hike up to Grotto was up slope all the time, rough rocky pathway, stairs after stairs, sharp incline 50% of the time.. suddenly 2.2km seemed to be very far. Being unfit we had to stop few times to catch our breaths. Moreover we were wearing street boots, my toes were squeezed and squashed for every step I made; whereas for my bf's boots are 1kg heavy, required effort to bring himself up the incline. Sigh.. so please wear comfy hiking shoes if you plan to visit these places!



Reached Grotto's entrance (admission 4000won).



By then we were sweating despite the weather. But had to put our coat back on again cos it was colder while walking the remaining 600m to Grotto..



Would say it was really worth the sweat, the pain.. The Buddha statue is really magnificent!

(pic courtesy of visitkorea)

Last day in Gyeongju, going back to Seoul on the same day..

Went to Daereung-won (quite near to Cheongseomdae). Admission, I think about 1500won.



Cheonmachong is in the same area as Daereung-won (two different entrances but same place) -



While walking to the exit, we saw cute squirrels who were not afraid of humans. Even the squirrels there look different



From Cheonmachong's exit, we saw a lot of restaurants and souvenir shops. Opposite the street is a huge burial mound field. The interesting part is the locals gathered there to fly kites and lepaking there. I suppose this is their Sunday pastime? At that moment we wished we're one of them, soaking in the sun, enjoying the gentle winter and spending time with family, friends..



After that we went to buy Gyeongju famous bread located at the same street as the bus terminal (ticket office)..



And saw a cute cat!



Bought the bus tickets, 29000won to return to Seoul. 4hrs ride. Taking the train (no direct train - have to transfer) costs about 45000won..




Finally reached Seoul at night.. too tired to find food so we makan cup noodles again. I had the black bean paste noodles




That concludes our winter experience in South Korea, 27Feb-10Mar!

This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 17 2011, 03:11 PM

I thought Jeju Hiking Inn is cheaper? About 30,000won per night..

Yes you can use T-Money for AREX. From AREX you need to change subway line from Seoul station (the most central) to your destination. We stayed in Hongik area so we used AREX direct train from Incheon to Hongik,

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Added on March 17, 2011, 5:36 pmNo leh, mine is Canon G12. Some pics taken from EOS 500D (my bf's). We aren't good photographers.. so photos not so nice..

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Added on March 17, 2011, 5:38 pmWow nice place.. somemore daily beer
I checked the website.. but not sure where the place is. Which subway line is that?

This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 18 2011, 12:36 AM

From the website, 55,000won is the cheapest - room 105. But TGG is always full house so it's difficult to secure booking within short period..

U're most welcome
Enjoy your stay there!

According to a Seoulite, it seems to be safe for now - read the last entry by Westinhan:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g2941...last-Seoul.html

I agree!
But where is the place? Which subway station is near to the hostel?

Wow thanks for the info! It's only 30000won for twin bedroom with private bathroom. CHEAP! Except the location is a bit far - as in, I have to carry my backpack and change from AREX to line 4.. hmmm.. still, it's tempting. If I can go to South Korea again this year I will consider Bong House. Relaxing @ the bar is just at the basement, so convenient!

Hello!

We took Air Asia X.. the airfare is RM950. We bought the tickets late so it will be much cheaper if you can get them early. Of course if you prefer major airlines like MAS or SIA the fares will be higher.

There's free shuttle bus for tourists, you can read the details here - http://www.korea.net/detail.do?guid=53380

RM3000 for 1 month? Possible if you survive on kimbap, instant noodles and just stay in Busan without exploring anywhere, add to the fact that you need to use this money to pay for airfare too.

Laneige is cheap..

I took Air Busan to Jeju. Compared to Eastar, it's cheaper.

I saw a lot of Dior products there too but their local products are cheaper by wider margin If you prefer higher range and local ones, I recommend Laneige. I bought their toner there in Ewha area, of cos other place will sell too. I got 5% discount and tax refund direct from the shop @ 29,700won. Not only that the shop gave me a lot a lot of samples too, without me asking

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Added on March 28, 2011, 11:51 pmAgreed! I brought too many clothes to layer up resulted in my backpack so heavy that I had problem carrying it. Better to only bring 1 set of thick clothing and buy extra there if you feel cold. It's definitely cheaper there. I bought a thick knitted scarf for 7000won only!

This post has been edited by sophistafunk: Mar 28 2011, 11:51 PM

Hello Listiani,

Maybe you already know but for the sake of others who don't, if you are sleeping the ondol style, remember not to put any plastic and electronic equipments on the heated floor.

Also, always place a glass of water on the table when you're sleeping so you won't be dehydrated.