Here are some tips and recommendations about travelling in Korea! You may or may not follow my advice, but I believe this will make your planning and travelling easier!
Booking through 3rd party websites
I am sure some of us may book through 3rd party websites like booking.com or hotels.com. Always email the hotel/hostel with confirmations prior to your departure to ensure they have received your reservations.
Sign up as a member
When booking airfare or making a car rental reservation, sign up as a member first before purchasing your ticket as they offer discounts to members! I received 75% discount for my car rental in Jeju!
Renting of car
I would recommend renting a car in Jeju. There are no trains in Jeju and walking from bus stop to the attraction's entrance will be a very long distance (like 20 mins long). We rented a car for about $160+ for about 36 hours. It is affordable in Jeju, so if you have a driver with you, RENT A CAR! It really saved us a lot of time from waiting for buses and energy.
International Driving Licences
If you're renting a car in Jeju, please bring along your International Driving Licences. They will not rent it to you unless you have it. Making one in Singapore is easy, you just have to apply and pay for it online and send in the confirmation together with a passport sized photo.
Ask for English navigation
If you're renting a car, email the company to provide you with English navigation/GPS. It is based on first come first serve basis so you have to reserve it in advance. Most navigation comes complimentary with the car rental.
Bring a light jacket/windbreak along
If you happen to go during the shoulder period when Spring transits into Summer, please bring a light jacket/windbreaker along. Temperatures drop like crazy at night and you want to be prepared.
Language
Most Koreans in Seoul are able to speak a little bit of English, so do not worry. We only faced difficulty in Busan and Jeju and so, we just ordered what we knew like Ramyeon or Jajangmeyon or point at pictures.
Medicine & Hydration
This really shouldn't be a tip, but a necessity for all travelers around the world. I fell terribly sick in Jeju after several nights of Korean BBQ (sore throat) and when I climbed Mt. Hallasan, the cold wind blew against my shirt (drenched in sweat) and I caught a terrible cold! I had very bad flu and fever that evening.
iPhone Subway App
For iPhone users, there's a Korean Subway App for you to download. It has a white train logo with blue background and it's just called Subway. It is really good because it helps you plan your travel route and tells you the fastest or cheapest route to take, what time the train arrives and what time you will arrive at your destination. It has subway maps of the major cities in Korea like Seoul, Busan, Daegu, etc.
Dates of Travel: 23-28 May 2013 So, I shall split the post to two parts: Traditional Korea (23-25 May) & Modern Korea (25-28 May). Although we were in the same city, but because of the places we stayed at and visited was the old traditional houses of Korea and the modern one was, well, modern. Click the link if you want my planned itinerary. Or if you're interested to know my estimated costs. Remember, we did not follow the exact route planned as the trip should be open to new ideas and developments! Lee & No Guesthouse
Lee & No Guesthouse
Address: 561-29 Yeonnam-Dong, Mapo-Gu,
SEOUL, KOREA
Nearest Subway: Hongik Uni Station Lee & No Guesthouse is the coziest hostel I have ever stayed! Heather, the Manager only comes in between 8.30am-3pm, so we're pretty much on our own. Her job makes me want to look for a hostel for myself to run. Heather emailed me the pin-code for the main door a few days before my arrival so when I arrived at 6.30am, it wasn't a problem getting in. Even if you arrived after Heather left for the day, she will tape a letter with instructions addressed to you on the post box outside the guesthouse. It is not really a hostel, maybe more like a guesthouse or homestay, because the owner or boss of the guesthouse lives right above us with his family. They have a seperate stairway which is only accessible to them. Sometimes you'll see Mr. Lee wandering about the property. He's pretty nice guy, though we did not talk much to him. What I really liked about Lee & No is that Heather will put up the names and country of everyone who will be staying at Lee & No for that night, so we pretty much knew everyone's name when they all appeared for breakfast in the morning. Everything just felt like my home, it was so cozy and warm. No wonder they won an award from TripAdvisor! The location is just right, with about 15mins by foot away from the Hongdae night scene and the university area. The first time, we arrived in a taxi at about 6.30am, it was quite difficult to find the place, because it was hidden in a quiet corner. We managed though, with the specific instructions and map given by Heather. I still feel they should have a bigger sign or attach some lightings to the sign, because at night, it was quite hard to see. Maybe that's the whole point, in keeping it as homely as possible. There are altogether 4 rooms in Lee & No. We stayed in Spring, which was a family room with a Queen bed and a double-decker bed. I believe Summer & Autum were rooms with 2 double-decker beds and Winter room is for single occupancy.
We were very fortunate that we stayed through on Sunday, because every Sunday, Heather will cook something for breakfast and that particular Sunday, Heather cooked us Kimchi Fried Rice with Tuna. YUMMILICIOUS!!!! Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)
DMZ Tour
My dearest boyfriend, Gilbert's ONLY intention to visit South Korea was for this DMZ Tour. He was so excited, he couldn't contain himself sometimes. Like a very big boy. We took the DMZ + JSA package, so it was one whole day. Although it was a lot of expensive, it was really worth it, as the JSA tour brought us to the Blue Meeting Room/House where the North & South would meet.
DMZ
To prevent any 'accidental' fighting between the North & the South, the United Nations came up with this Demeliterized Zone where, no militeray personnel or anyone actually, could come inside the 4km wide zone. So it's 2km from the North and another 2km from the South.
Basically, they brought us to various spots near the DMZ line, if not into the DMZ area. For the first half, we went to the tunnels. The North tried to dig tunnels to the South (copying the style and techniques from the Vietnamese) most probably for invasion or attacks. From what the guide said, one of the tunnel was big enough that North Korean Troops could reach Seoul within an hour! Of cos, when the tunnels were found out, the North denied everything and said that it was coal mines (by smearing coal on the tunnel walls), not tunnels dug by them. Whatever the reason or excuse, I don't really care nor want to start any debate.
We also went to the observatory, where we were able to use binoculars and view North Korean terrain and buildings. According to the guide, the buildings and houses built along the border were dummy buildings and houses as they were 'for show' to the South as those buildings had no windows nor door, which obviously meant no one lives there.
The next stop was Dorasan Station. It is a train station built to link the North & South one day. A lot of Koreans dream of unification and I could really feel a lot of emotion at this train station, even though it was abandoned. If North Korea opened up, and Dorasan Station were to be utilized, it could link South Korea to Europe. South Koreans could travel to London within a week!
JSA
After lunch, we visited the Freedom Bridge & JSA (Joint Security Area). In the JSA, we went to the (in)famous blue building - Freedom House, where the North & South would meet for talks. The blue meeting rooms were located equally over North & South Korean soil. So when we walked to the far end of the room, we were technically on North Korean soil. It was pretty interesting and intense at the same time. While waiting for the other tour members to come out, we saw North Korean soldiers taking photos of us from the entrance of their building over at the North Korean side. Yes, we were being monitored. After that, we hopped on the bus, for a tour around the JSA compound. One of the site we stopped at was at a tree stump (or more like a memorial stone) where The Axe Murder Incident took place. Long story short, two UN soldiers were killed because they wanted to chop down a tree, which the North disagreed with. Hongdae Area
Jamming at the playground
After returning to Seoul, we went to the Hongdae area for some happening scene. From what I've heard, the Hongdae neighbourhood was built for the Hongik University. There are a lot of cafes, shops and restaurants around and mostly are at affordable prices! Mostly the young crowd hangs around there, and we passed by this playground where there were two bands jamming and a guy spinning music. That's so cool!
later on in the evening, we even went clubbing! We arrive at about 10-10.30pm, thinking it was a little too early, but, boy were we wrong! We went to NB2 (Noise Basement), which is a Hip-Hop club, and it was super packed! They played a lot of hip-hop songs and a row of dancers will dance in a line with the same actions to the song. It kind of reminds me of Mambo Nights in Zouk Singapore. The entrance fee is only 10,000 Won!
We left the club at about 11.30-11.45pm, and outside felt like it was only 8pm! I felt like everyone was out on the streets having a good time! None of the shops or restaurants were closed!
Cat Cafe
The following night, we visited a cat cafe in Hongdae area too. They had like about 20+ cats in the cafe roaming about doing their thang. They were so adorable, and they had all sorts of breeds, even a Grumpy Cat and a Surprise Cat look-a-like (you'll know if you follow 9gag). We had to pay entrance fee of 8,000 Won and it includes a free drink! I was in heaven petting and playing with all the cats! Yuldong Park Bungee Jump
Yuldong Park
We wanted to Bungee Jump really badly, and so I researched and found this Bungee Jump! They only open from 10-12pm, and 1.30pm-5pm. They also only allow 50 jumpers per day and do not take reservations via phone or online either. It's based purely on first come first served basis. We arrived at 12.30pm and not knowing their opening times, we just went for a walk, as we realized that they were on lunch break. There was a sign that said 'Sold Out', but we assumed that they didn't mean it, and that it might be a wrong translation of something like 'Closed'. Yes, they were really sold out when we went back at 1.30pm. We were really disappointed because we really traveled quite far to this location. Maybe next time in Australia or New Zealand! Two Two Fried Chicken
Before heading up to the N Seoul Tower, we had Two Two Fried Chicken for lunch! I can't quite remember how much it costs, but it seemed pretty cheap at that point in time. & yes, everything was fried.. This chain of restaurant seemed pretty popular among the Koreans. I've see this outlet a few times throughout my trip. N Seoul Tower
N Seoul Tower
We took a cable car up N Seoul Tower. There's no way in hell you're making me climb all the way up the mountain to visit the Tower! We paid 8,000 Won for the two-way ticket, and the cable car moved pretty fast surprisingly! We also bought a 11,000 Won lock to lock our love and throw away the key. Cheesy as it may sound, there were over a million locks, and I am not exaggerating!
Highest post office in Seoul
We finally went up the tower, but because Seoul is rather hazy/dusty, we didn't manage to see far. Perhaps the view might be a little nicer in the evening with all the city lights on. Maybe it will be advisable to go in the evening and wait till after sunset and you can enjoy both scenery! There's also a small 'post office' in the tower where you'll able to purchase postcards and send them back home. I sent one back for my fatty sister!
Myeon-Dong
Myeon Dong
This area has so many beauty shops, my head started to spin. It's like every street had a FaceShop and Skin Food. I basically went crazy buying all my facial products. If you need to get a lot of facial and skin care products, I would suggest coming to Myeon Dong, because every Korean Skincare brand you can think of, will be in Myeon Dong, if not more. I think there were at least 10 Faceshop there. Lotte World
Lotte World
On our last day in Seoul, we wanted to visit Everland, but it started raining and it became really cold! Everyone dissuaded us from visiting Everland! Even the owner, Mr, Lee. He advised us to visit Lotte World instead! The weather forecast in Korea is super accurate! Unlike the predictable ones in Singapore. Sometimes, it rain, sometimes it doesn't and sometimes the sky can't decide if it wants to rain or not. For Lotte World, they have an outdoor and indoor theme park. Sadly, we only stayed in the indoors one because of the sucky weather. I am super sad about this.
The indoor theme park can be quite stuffy at certain areas, and like Disneyland, there are tickets in which you can take for your 'Express Queue'. You take the ticket and come back at a certain hour (sometimes it's an hour or 2 later) and you get to skip the queue. Some rides, you have to pay an additional 3,000 Won!
Boyband: Impact
There was a free concert by a debuting boyband called Impact. We said that our trip wouldn't be complete if we didn't see a boyband (or a girlband), and we did! We obviously didn't understand a single word they said, but cheered nonetheless.
Korean BBQ
Pork Collar
After Lotte World, my friend, Kenneth invited his Korean friend for dinner! She brought us to her favourite Korean BBQ restaurant for dinner. She ordered Pork Collar for us. I swear, it's like the best part of pork! We're been eating and ordering Pork Belly, which was just plain fatty and oily. Pork collar is well marbled and super yummy and juicy! If you have the chance, please do try Pork Collar! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Check out my posts to other parts of South Korea here:
So, I shall split the post to two parts: Traditional Korea (23-25 May) & Modern Korea (25-28 May). Although we were in the same city, but because of the places we stayed at and visited was the old traditional houses of Korea and the modern one was, well, modern.
Click the link if you want my planned itinerary. Or if you're interested to know my estimated costs. Remember, we did not follow the exact route planned as the trip should be open to new ideas and developments!
I wanted to stay in a Hanok house to experience how the Koreans in the old days lived. It is a nice and cozy traditional Hanok style guesthouse and we got the Family room for 4 pax! It's a little squeezy because once you lay out the tatami (not sure what Koreans call them), you only have a little space in front of the TV area for your luggages and bags. There are only 2 bathrooms which everyone has to share, so during peak hours like in the mornings and evenings, everyone is rushing to have a shower, and you may have to wait quite some time for your turn.
The floor was heated as well, which surprised me. The weather was not that cold (it was just nice), yet the floor heating was on. We wanted to turn it off as it got a little too hot in the night when we were sleeping, but we could not figure out how.
The owner even has a pet puppy which loved to play tug of war with his toys!
Lunch
It is quite a distance from Anguk Subway Station, though it is just a straight road down. I think we had to walk about 500m from the station to our guesthouse. Along the straight road, there were plenty of Cafes and small restaurants. As I was sick, I only had dumpling soup.
There's this rameyon dish which is served with ice. I can't quite remember the name of that bowl of noodles, but it's a summer dish and it's so refreshing!
Doo Guesthouse is located in between two palaces, after lunch, we visited one. It is walking distance from Doo guesthouse, and we arrived at about 5pm. They stopped selling tickets 1 hour before closing time at 6pm. But over 5 days, the palace will open after 6.30pm. So, we went out and walked around, visited the museum below this entry, and came back at about 7pm.
We got the shock of our lives! There were long queues (some proper, some not) snaking from the ticketing office! We really didn't expect so many people to visit the palace after sunset! In the picture below, the top picture is when we arrived at 5pm, and there's not much people. The bottom picture is at about 7pm, where suddenly, hordes of people just started pouring into the palace! This was still alright, as at about 8.30pm, when we were leaving, the crowd in the bottom picture, multiplied by about 4 times!
Difference between day and night
We didn't manage to get much photos nor read any informative signs because it was just too crowded! One of our friends, Sock got separated from us here as well. To get out the palace, you have to squeeze with 1000 people through the exit. What's more, another 1000 people are coming in the opposite direction and trying to squeeze INTO the palace. I was so afraid that if I fell, people are not going to care and just stomp on me! I could not move, but to just let the crowd push me towards the exit and out of the palace. If you've been to Singapore's IT fair, it's about 10 times worst!
Beef Satay/kebab
Outside the palace, there were many mobile street stalls selling all sorts of things. From corn, to sausages, to this beef satay/kebab thingy. The beef was so tender and soft, it just peeled away from the stick! It was fantastic!
Museum
How Korean alphabets came about
Opposite the palace, there's actually an underground museum about how one of the emperors created the Korean Alphabet. It was super educational! There were even some puzzles and games for everyone to play! One of the game was a paddling oar, and you have to paddle and steer your ship away from oncoming ships and boats.
We also tried our hand at writing the Korean Language. We were given some quotes and phrases, and we tried copying it down using the traditional brush and ink.
What's more, this museum is FREE!
Insa-Dong
Baseball Batting Cage
We went to Insa-Dong after the horrifying experience in the Palace to have dinner and take a walk around. We were able to walk to Insa-dong as it is about 10-15 mins away by foot. By night time, the weather became very pleasant to walk... Anywhere! We found this baseball batting cage where the ball travels at different speed like 90&100 km/h! All you have to do is insert two 500 Won into the machine, pick up the baseball bat and start hitting!
I tried this before in Japan, and I missed every single shot! This time round, I managed to hit about 3 out of 10 tries.
Street Food - TwistyPotato
Insa-Dong is supposedly filled with cafes and galleries, but by the time I reached there, only the cafes were open, there wasn't must to see or buy, just FOOD FOOD FOOD! One of my favorite Korean snacks I could get in Singapore was the Twisty potato, where they slice the potato into rings, skewer it on a stick, lather it with batter, and deep fry it! The doughnut shop in Kallang Leisure Park sells fantastic Twisty Potato and Chicken Thigh!
When I saw this stand, I didn't care if I had a sore throat, I wanted one stick! It was SUUUUUUUUUPER yummy!
The next day we visited the Changdeokgung Palace. There are free tours in which the palace provides and in various languages like English, Mandarin, Japanese, Etc. We joined the 10.30am English tour and the 11.30am tour for the Secret Garden. If we went without any guidance, we would be taking photos without any meaning! The guide was really informative and knowledgeable.
If you're unable to catch the tours, there're guide books provided at the entrance with all sort of information! you could use that as a guide and walk around yourself. For me, I would rather someone told me all the information than reading it.
After the palace, we walked to Jongmyo Shrine, which is about 10mins away by foot. This shrine is the place where the King come and worship their ancestors (previous Kings) of the Josen Dynasty. We arrived just in time for the free English tour as well! I felt that the shrine tour was more interesting than the Palace history.
Kwangjang Market
Kwangjang Market
Address: 6-1 Yeji-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul,
South Korea
After that, we walked over to Kwangjang Market which is about 10-15mins away by foot. It is similar to a wet market here in Singapore, and the stalls sells all sorts of fresh produce and even textile things. There's also an area where they sold food like fried pancakes, kimchi, noodles, etc. So, if you're around the area, I would advice you to visit this market for some really good and authentic food and snacks!
Dongdaemuns Shopping District
Dongdaemun
Dongdaemun is actually a shopping distric with about 26 malls, not inclusive of the many underground shops and outdoor stalls. It's similar to Orchard Road in Singapore, where along the whole stretch of shopping district, there's ION orchard, Taka, etc. So, Dongdaemun is a whole area of shops!
I had the misconception that Dongdaemun was like Platinum Fashion Mall of Thailand. Just a big building with many levels of wholesale stuff! Boy, was I wrong. At first we walking to DDM and found ourselves in a building that had levels and levels of... TEXTILES. I don't want cloths! I want ready made clothes! We got quite lost until we asked around and searched on the net through our mobile phones (WiFi is everywhere!), the places or malls to go. We started with Doota! mall which was wayyyyy to pricy for me.
I only visited one shop which was on sale, and I was a little disappointed with the shopping. Then, we went to the basement and found an underground link to another mall, which was the best decision I made, because the next mall was about half the price of whatever I found in Doota!
So, if you don't know where to start, you could start with Doota, and from there, walk around to the other malls. Obviously, I didn't finish all the malls in DDM, I only covered three malls before I waved the white flag! My legs could not carry me any further!
