Lasts...

Sorry for the delay! I've been busy enjoying the sunshine :) Now, I'm a few shades darker. Funny how in Korea, my legs were quite dark compared to other girls on the subway... but here, people look at my legs and go "why are they so white??"

Fact: I have not had Korean food since I've arrived home. I found out that my favourite Korean restaurant downtown Vancouver serves Gamjatang for approximately 17,000won (if I were to convert)......... instead of the 6,000won I'm used to paying... nooooo!!

Fact: I had my first shift back at work today after a 5 month hiatus (I'm a server @ a Japanese Sukiyaki restaurant called Posh) and served a couple of Korean girls. I understood 80% of what they were saying (it was really simple, though).... but so neat! I didn't mention that I knew, but I ended up surprising one of them (the one who didn't know very much English) at the end when they were paying, asking them if she wanted to put everything on her debit card... "ta gachi?" kk

Fact: When someone who doesn't speak (much) English does something for me, I (still!) automatically say "kamsahamnida" (thank you), or "dae" (yes) when I reply... even if it's Chinese!

Last time riding the subway :(((

Speed Limit: Zero

Last time visiting Cafe Slow haha (sangria + good service)... :( Gosh I love that cafe.. and I don't know why I do, really.
It was kind of funny.. we asked the server to get the sangria to our table really fast (bbali bbali!) @ Cafe Slow lol... but they did it! We had to get to Eden.
I'm eating the fruit~

Then we went to Club Eden (said Ed-en.. not Eeee-den).

Located next to the Ritz Carlton (if you take a taxi from somewhere in Kangnam, just tell the driver to take you to the Ritz because it's hard to explain and most of them won't know where Eden is). Electronic music. Free cover before 11 if you become a member of the U.N.O Entertainment group on Facebook and are on the guestlist... you might need to be invited though, I just realized. (FYI - you used to be able to bring one guest per person on guestlist, but now they've changed it so I highly recommend you get your friends/SO to sign up... or they might give you a hard time or not even let your friend in). Even if it's for one night, it sure beats having to pay 30,000 for cover!! Plus, you'll get invited to the latest + exclusive events @ Club Eden if you do. Fergie is the special guest on Sept 5th... and it's "Model's Night" every Friday night. If you want to see where a lot of "beautiful people" hang out on the weekends, Eden (and Club Answer) are the places to be. People tell me that 80% of the girls who party there have had some sort of face alteration (plastic surgery... nose/eye/jaw) which is no wonder how they look kind of perfect. I often see them looking at themselves in the mirror, pinching the bridge of their nose haha VIP is upstairs... and also a hotspot for celebrities if you're interested in that sort of thing. Dress code in effect... but it seems much more strict for guys.
They have a huge washroom with seats where girls smoke and primp.
Tiiiiiiffffffffff -- if you read this, I miss you!!!!

Busan: Seomyeon Station

Oooo what a wet day! So wet, we decided to spend it indoors so we took the subway to Seomyeon Station to check out its underground shopping complex. Seomyeon also has a little district called First Street where all the young people hang out. It's sort of like a typical downtown in Korea with bars, restaurants, karaoke bars, cafes, shops, markets, game rooms, movie theatres, and nightclubs. They also have an eating street. The subway is connected to the underground mall (teeming with people) and Lotte Department store so you didn't really have to walk up and out but we did anyway. Actually, it was a bit confusing for me to get around.

Underground mall - waste no space~
The underground shopping mall was quite massive, but not the largest one I've been to. The shops sold mainly clothes, but they also sold typical Korean cosmetics (Tony Moly, The Face Shop, Etude House, Skinfood, Nature Republic) and accessories such as bags, hats, jewelry, and glasses. It would be nice to browse around over the course of a couple days and actually dig through all the random clothes in the smaller shops. We stopped by a cafe as per usual -- want some?
It was a neat cafe where each table was enclosed by curtains so you really did have privacy! And if you wanted service, you just had to press that button almost all Korean restaurants have that rings and lets servers know who needs something.
Despite my "happiness" in that picture, it was an absolutely miserable day because of the rain, unfortunately.
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Korean television has a whole channel dedicated to solving math problems...
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yea ............................................................
My Boys Over Flowers poster I got (and couldn't bring home) from buying the F4 Special Edition CD @ Hot Tracks, Kyobo.
This was a cute ad on the subway:
It says "Mommy, daddy, I love you."

'Old Tea Shop'

After almost 7 consecutive days of nonstop go-go-go, we finally took a day of rest (which happened to be a Sunday). Today, we planned on having a more cultural day, but our plans changed a bit because of the weather and we only ended up going to a traditional tea shop, packing and dropping our suitcases off at Tiff's apartment, and eating a highly-missed meal near KU.

One of the most relaxing things to do in Korea is to visit a traditional tea house. Insadong is known to house a few of these and each is unique in its own way. These are very charming, quaint rooms mainly lit by oil candles and lamps which gives the space a very intimate, harmonious, and warm feeling. The walls are filled with traditional Korean crafts and ornaments, Korean printed calligraphy on aged paper, and notes written by various visitors. They have a mini waterfall in the front and a few small caged birds set up around the shop that tweet cutely. I heard that in some of the shops, they allow the birds to fly around freely. Some establishments even have parrots that speak random Korean phrases! We visited 'Old Tea Shop' in a somewhat narrow alleyway in Insadong.
I ordered a jujube drink and Melanie ordered a Pear tea. I have no idea what mine is supposed to have in it, but it tasted a lot like one of my Grandma's soup except with a twist. We were also given a generous bowl of different traditional Korean treats. Sipping~
Some notes in the drawer --
It was lovely and relaxing, though, I can't say I'm a fan of the traditional rice treats. Next time, I want to try the Sujeonggwa which is a sort of delicious persimmon-cinnamon- ginger punch that is served cold at the end of many of my traditional Korean meals in Insadong.

"Wake up and live." Bob Marley

So why is it that every time exam week rolls by, my desk is suddenly super tidy, my room gets so clean, all my clothes are folded and hung properly, my laundry hamper is empty, and that walk down to the convenience store just to buy water suddenly feels like no hassle? haha ^^

As you can probably tell, traveling is one of my utmost favourite things to do. It's a curiosity that can and never will be satiated. Earlier today, I was reading all the quotes in the travel journal Bern got me as part of my going away gift. That book has gained a lot of weight from all the ticket stubs, business cards, and random flat things I've kept!
They have some inspiring quotes on every 2nd page -- here are a few I enjoyed:

You have brains in your head, and feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own and you know what you know. And you are the one who'll decide where to go. Dr. Seuss

While you are upon the earth, enjoy the good things that are here. John Selden

Without experience, there is little wisdom. Apocrypha

Seek and you will find. Don't be willing to accept an ordinary life. Salle Merrill Redfield

Discoveries are often made by not following instructions, by going off the main road, by trying the untried. Frank Tyger

A man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life. Muhammad Ali

An original life is unexplored territory. You don't get there by taking a taxi - you get there by carrying a canoe. Alan Alda

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the tradewinds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. Mark Twain

My Day

All I did today was hop from cafe to cafe (needed a change of scenery after every hour), eat, and study on Anam street down the hill from my dorm.

Lunch:
Bibimbap ($4CDN)
Cafe #1: Ediya - I can always count on them for playing the latest Kpop releases!
Cafe #2: Holly's Coffee: I really enjoyed the new Yuza (Pomelo) Iced Tea.
Across the street is a new store that just opened yesterday. I believe it took just 1.5 weeks for them to totally gut and renovate the whole shop! That's Korea's (notorious) "bbali-bbali" (translates to: hurry hurry) culture for ya! They believe "the quicker the better" (they talk fast, eat fast, and drive fast, but... why do they walk so slowly???) and this belief has allowed them to become one of the world's most advanced nations. It's very impressive, but I think sometimes quality is sacrificed a bit too much... not in the craftsmenship, really, but in training their employees (for example). Butchea, I've even seen whole (previously burned down) restaurants get up and running in 2 weeks!
I had McDonalds for dinner. McDonalds here is a bit cheaper than home, I think... I got a shrimp burger set for 4,800won ($4.30CDN). It basically tasted like the inside of a ha gaow (of Chinese dim sum) in burger form - very different from the Ebi (shrimp) burger I had in Japan. All sets come with Coke unless you tell them you want something else. Their ketchup isn't as flavourful as the ones at home (less sugar, maybe). You are charged extra for sweet and sour sauce. Their Bulgogi Burger is good! I mentioned that there's such thing as McDonald's delivery, right? It's free and McDonalds is open 24 hours. I see the little yellow and red scooter zip up my hill very often.

Onion truck
Cat (ko-yang-ee)
Stopped by Aritaum (a Korean cosmetics store that specializes in 5 or 6 brands including a house brand) during my break. That store was so empty it was nice to have the whole store to myself and take my time to test everything out but I really don't enjoy being stared at by SA's - especially ones in tailored, baby pink outfits that look like they should be working on a plane who stand less than a meter away, watching my every move. I did end up with a few gifts and a couple things for myself, though:
Laneige single eyeshadow in G769 - Deep Kakhi (very pigmented and almost creamy, I really like this shade) and Aritaum's house brand single e/s in GR201. It's also a shade of dark green (hard to tell) that compliments the Laneige. I seem to have a thing for green these past few months. For being so affordable, I think Aritaum's e/s are great! I will be going back to pick up a few more colours. I just wish they would make more with less sparkles. Good service, as usual. I got quite a few generously sized samples (a lot of moisture and whitening ahha are they trying to hint something?) from IOPE (a popular Korean skincare brand and sister company of Laneige) that will last anyone at least a month, an Aritaum tote, and some free gift wrapping service. A nice touch~

Time to sleep -- Marketing final tomorrow! I know it will be difficult, but I feel much more ready for it than I did for the midterm.

"today, forever & always, you drive me crazy"

Currently giving myself "another" consecutive 20 minute break before I tackle putting together the first 15 pager. It was amazingly humid today. I wore shorts and belted an over-sized cardigan which was just enough when I was walking down the hill to discuss the project with my group, but by the time we were finished the meeting, I was so sticky, my hair curled and clung onto my neck for dear life, and my face almost glowed... and all I did was sit in a semi-ACed room for 2.5 hours! Then when I stepped outside, I saw a bunch of students just standing at the edge of the stairs undercover, looking out at the rain. Of course, I, along with all those other students didn't have an umbrella. Why would we? It was sunny. It was still very sunny when it was raining. Warm rain... smells. It was actually warm enough to take a shower in. So, feeling impatient, I decided to suck it up and walk back to the dorm. haha I bet the crowd thought I was michoso (crazy) for doing so. It sure was a quiet walk back!

I spent the last 2 hours trying to figure out how to set up Nate-On (Korean version of MSN that's connected to Cyworld) for my 11PM online meeting tonight with my OM group (ended up having to use my friend's dad's ID lol.. just temporarily), researching a possible new netbook (Korean brand MIS U100 or Samsung NC10), updating myself with my favourite Chictopian outfits, and online shopping on Gmarket.

Oh yea - I forgot to show you the pictures from when Bern, Tiff, and I went to visit the Coffee Prince Cafe in Hongdae! The cafe was created for the popular romantic comedy Korean drama, The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince (2007) and since then, it has turned into an actual cafe + tourist spot.
The menu that listed the most expensive coffee I've ever had.
I'm the next "Waffle Sun Ki"! hahaha
Butchea... go to visit - it's just like the drama but unfortunately, I don't recommend their coffee at all, especially for that price.

Aw so sweet - the Taiwanese girls just invited me to have some homemade bubble tea! Ciao~

The Big Picture

Cafe Pascucci in Myeong Dong! I love this cafe and its Green Tea Lattes.

People-watching on a Tuesday on the 4th floor of the cafe:
A typical street food vendor selling dukkbokki (rice cake), some sort of fish cake, a dark sausage, and some animal liver of some sort I have yet to try.
A couple more pictures from Cheonggyecheon w/ KUBA
Lotte Department store restaurant (11th floor) @ Myeong Dong. Really tasty food (and reasonable, too) and a chic atmosphere!
Mexican food on Thursday in Itaewon.
Itaewon is basically a district where foreigners hang out. It's teeming with foreigners - I felt as though I was at home.
Thursday = ladies night at BricX = free drinks. BricX is a popular hookah bar.
Sports Day with KUBA buddies was canceled because of the rain, but some people played games anyway.
On Sat, T and I met Bern at Dangsan and we got her settled in a bit at her office tel type apartment (it's really small but I can imagine myself living there)! Then we cabbed to Kangnam where we ate BBQ and then cabbed again to Club Eden at the Ritz Carlton. Great atmosphere and people - it was absolutely packed. We spotted a few actors and singers. If it wasn't electronic/house music, it would have been perfect.
Lotte World on Sunday ~ (no picture)

I had a class yesterday. My other two classes were canceled because it was called Sandwich Day -- in between two holidays (Buddhist + Children's Day) but after, we made a pit stop to Myeong Dong to exchange and deposit money and then cabbed to COEX (a metropolitan shopping mall + entertainment centre) to meet my friend Jessica from my Japanese class last semester @ SFU. She's now teaching English in Daejeon and came up to Seoul for the weekend. So happy to have gotten to see her! We ate dinner, shopped around COEX for a bit, took sticker pictures, and sang at Everysing in Apgujeong.
For any DBSK fans -- Yunho + Yoochun took pics @ this sticker picture place in COEX.After Everysing, we went to Dongdaemun and shopped until 4AM haha

Fun fun fun~ ^^