Korean food coma!

Guess whattt? This post dedicates to my love for food. Specifically, my passion for Korean food culture. Korean food is quiet spicy in general. If I go with people who know Korean then that would not be a problem because they can speak with the waitress and order food with mild spicy level. Whereas, when I went with a group of people who know little to none Korean, that was the biggest challenge. However don't worry because there's a massive food option wherever you go that can satisfy your flavor. Stay here and I will show you what I tried during my stay in Korea. 

Jjimdak - chicken and vegetable marinated in ganjang soy sauce (I had this with rice - a perfect combination). You can get this dish at Sinchon or other places - a very must try dish 

"Seafood fried rice with fried onion" and "Italian seafood spaghetti" (I had stomach pain that day because of the high amount of spiciness I consumed previously, that was why I picked these two dishes near Seoul Children's Grand Park

I forgot what this is called but Yerim's family took me to this this restaurant outside of Seoul. It's similar to Jjimdak but way more spicy. I had this with kimchi and rice. Yummy

LOL this food was a killer... in a negative way. I had two spoons and that was it. This was some sort of Korean noodle I got at Ewha area. Don't even order this if you cannot eat spicy food. Look at the picture and avoid it whenever possible!

Bibimbap!!! This was not my first time eating this. I tried it in the states and I love it so I ordered it several times in Korea. Not spicy at all if you don't put spicy sauce in. This is generally served with different Korean small dishes. 

Spicy soft tofu stew with seafood - Sundubu jjigae (This is my most favorite Korean food. I ate this literally at least once every 2 or 3 days. I'm so in love with seafood so anything with seafood caught my eyes.)

Typical Korean seafood fried rice! Seaweed on the top. Easy to eat if you want a break from the spiciness

Rice with spicy squid. I got this right down the restaurant in front of the flower shop.

Omelette rice.....I'm literally drooling right now ;_; 

"Samgyetang - Ginseng chicken soup" and "Korean pancake" (I ate this on my way to Hanok village. Pretty sure you can find these dishes anywhere you go.)

A table of traditional Korean food. I got this set for three people. The restaurant was recommended online and it was in front of the main entrance of Ewha Women University. Not too far from Yonsei. 

This combo was my life saver on the days I had lots and lots of homework and didn't have time to go out of school at all. This store is located on the first floor of SK Global dorm next to the flower shop. I believe it is open everyday except for Sunday. Try it if you don't feel like grabbing something quick.  

Bulgogi soup - I ate this several times at Yonsei cafeteria for lunch before classes. Apparently, this soup is very sweet. If you don't like sweet beef, don't order this.  

7 types of Korean barbecue! I ate this with another friend and we finished all of them. Now looking at this, I had no idea how that was possible. 

I forgot to take an after picture when this chicken and added rice cake were entirely cooked. Again, this was supposed for 3 to 4 people but my friend and I ate them all lol. Now you got a hint of why I gained so much weight after 6 weeks :)

Bossam - I enjoyed eating this but this was kinda expensive. It was served for three but I weren't full at all. I had to give myself an ice-cream and patbingsu right after.

The best sundubu jjigae I tried. This restaurant was located at Sinchon, in the corner new Olive Young and on the same side as the huge red mirror in front of Sinchon station (you will know what I'm mentioning here). You must try it. My roommate and I went here together all the time.

Seafood fried rice hot pot.... A good choice on a chilly day

Another homework day lol. Many students dislike this restaurant but I think it tasted good and was affordable... A good restaurant to save some money right here ;)

Pho -  I missed my mom's Pho so much that I ordered this at the underground mall inside Sinchon station. Honestly, I wasted money on this. It was tasteless. A big no no!

Seafood fried rice - I ate this with Yerim at a cafeteria in Times Square mall. 

Japanese curry at a restaurant in front of SK Global. 

Crispy and fried chicken at Hoolala Chicken near Sinchon station. I ate here twice because it was delicious and so crunchy. Way better than typical fried chicken in the states. 

This big plate was what I got at Yonsei cafeteria.  Miss no good lol!

Japanese lunch special at Lotte duty free. It was a safe option if you want to try something different.

Barbecue duck.... was introduced by Yerim's family. It was excellent.

Jjimdak with cheese covered on top. I ate this on my last day in Korea as a farewell with one of my friends. 

Ready for some street food, snack, cafe...? Here we gooooo:

Yerim's mom spoiled me..She made Korean Tteokbokki the first time I visited her just because I said I wanted to try Tteokbokki. It was the most delicious and authentic Korean food ever. I tried so many Tteokbokki at different places on the streets but those were not even comparable to the one Yerim's mom cooked. It was made with love. What else would be better that this? 

I got skewered chicken at Insadong for 2000 won (~$2). It hit the right spicy level, was a little bit sour and sweet. The taste was hard to describe by words but it was super yummy. However, compared to other street food, this was quiet pricey for me. You can get this around Ewha and Hongdae at night. Depending on the places, it is sold at different prices. 

What was a better way to calm a hot day than a cup of orange juice? That day I went to Gyeongbokgung Palace and it was so so hot. The bad news was I forgot my water bottle home. Saving attempt was an epic fail. As I were walking toward the palace, I spot on a coffee shop called Angel-in-us coffee. Even though you can find orange juice anywhere you go, this one was special because it was 100% made of oranges. Although it costed me nearly $7, it was worth the money I spent so NO REGRET here! :))

Another hot day! I always picked the hottest day among all to walk. Once again, a water bottle was not enough to hydrate my thirst so I had to stop by a coffee shop in Hanok village for 30 minutes on my way home. I ordered Macchiato because it seemed to be the best drink on the menu. Everything else was heavy in caffein which I didn't like. 

My first patbingsu in Korea.... I wished Florida had it so it would complete my life in the hot days.  Pattingsu ranges between 8000 and 13000 won depending on certain places (expensive for a bowl of flake ice haha). It comes in different flavors. I tried different patbingsu and Mango patbingsu was my most favorite.

Here is my Mango patbingsu.....It was melting in my mouth. I seriously miss this so much.  

Yummm.... My friends and I decorated this. 

You gotta try this out. Banana milk is amazing. It was 1200 won each at GS25 and other convenient stores. I couldn't remember the exact number of bottles I drank this summer. I were addicted :( 

One fact you need to know: Not all coffee shops in Korea have wifi. Yup, that sounds unrealistic but it is a truth. I got this drink at a coffee shop in Ewha and surprisingly the shop didn't provide wifi....so I went to another one near by and got a cake just to have wifi. Ridiculous!!

Patbingsu again hehe. I got these two at a very popular patbingsu place at Insadong. These costed ~2000 won less than those near Yonsei. 

This milk is my second favorite after banana milk. It comes in different flavors at GS25.  

Yoooo!! Korean instant ramen, my best option at midnight when I was hungry.

Different version of banana milk. I always got a lot of these when it was on buy 1 get 1 free promotion at GS25.

It tasted like those crunchy cereal with chocolate inside that is sold in states.

Strawberry milkshake at Sinchon (7500 won)

Ice-cream store in a department mall in Dongdaemun

Korean dumplings. These were served with soy sauce. Very fulfilling!

Macarons at Sinchon. These were way cheaper than those in states (900 won).

Gongcha bubble tea. This was originally from China but it is very popular among teens nowadays in Korea. 

Green tea frappuccino at Fika Swedish coffee bread shop at Coex Mall. 

Doughs, not so good in my preference! 

Bread in GS25. These types of bread have very short expiration day so be careful if you plan to purchase many of them at once.

I love this latte a lot. It even tasted better than so many other big coffee brands that I tried before. So good for only 600 won!  

Mango milkshake with Yerimmm <3 

Spicy fried chicken! The owner of this booth gave me a few additional pieces of chicken  because I said daebak lol. 

Another patbingsu

Favorite fried squid. This is recently very popular in Vietnam, my original country.

Farewell cake for my Korean language class

Yogurt cake at A Twosome Place Coffee

Another patbingsu :))

Mango smoothie.. I had a thing for mango :>

Lastly, boba tea at Sinchon on my last day in Korea :(

I had always been the most petite girl in my class. My weight had always been the same without moving up or down since I were in 8th grade. Yup, 8th grade! I have always been dreaming of gaining a few pounds and my dream came true (LOL). Thanks Korea for taking care of me so well! After my summer, I gained a total of 6 pounds (~3 kg). No longer an underweight girl because I have been able to maintain this weight ever since.  

Meet my Korean friend :) (Part 2)

3. Hanwha aqua planet Ilsan 

On one of my weekends at the end of July, Yerim and her dad came to Yonsei and picked me up for a whole Saturday trip with her family. In the morning, we went to Hanwha aqua planet Ilsan. This place initially was not on my “to go list” because Gyeonggi-do, the place where this aquarium is located is outside of Seoul. If I were to take the subway and bus there, I for sure would have gotten lost so it was a big no. Luckily, Yerim’s dad knows my deep passions for sea animals so he decided to offer me a ride there. After we found a parking spot for the longest time (since lots of families took their kids there on the weekend), I was so excited after realizing that one of the scenes from a popular Korean drama at that time called “The girl who sees smells” was filmed in this aquarium earlier this summer. The movie’s poster was still hung on the main entrance for advertising purposes that I think was super smart because it could catch attention from foreigners who don’t speak Korean language but had been watching the drama (like me haha). This aquarium was huge that all kinds of sea animals were featured in each and every corner that I ran into.

Speaking of a new experience, I literally was given a free ticket to watch a 15-minute mermaid show (obviously not real mermaids lol). I don’t swim so these mermaid ladies impressed me to the max. Their excellent swimming and dancing movements that perfectly aligned with the music gave me goose bump. I promised to myself that after getting back to the states, I would learn to swim no matter what. After the show, Yerim’s family and I had a walk along the aisle with different sizes of fish tanks. Of all the fishes and animals that I observed that day, I hadn’t seen more than 50% of them. I learned so many new things about sea creatures because of the detailed notes stick on the wall. I also recorded too many videos and took so many pictures that my phone’s storage got full a while later (my bad for forgetting to bring my spare camera). Below are some of the pictures that I took while on the discovery.

Say cheese :)

Doesn't it look scary?

The most pretty jellyfish I've ever seen

A sign with both Korean and English descriptions (Each type of creatures has its own)

I'm in loveeeee <3

Looks at its color!! Isn't it amazing?

It swam to me when my fingers touched the tank glass... So cute!!

Sexy body ;)

No words could be used to describe how pretty these fishes are.

Another picture!

Mermaids were about to appear.

After exploring the aquarium, we took a break in the aquarium cafeteria. Of course, we didn’t forget to get some Korean popular street food like Sundae (Korean blood sausage) and Dduknokgi (spicy rice cake). I had to say that this treat boosted up my energy and made me even more excited to explore something else.

4. Lake Park - Ilsan

Our next stop was Ilsan park. Ilsan park was located in the same area as the aquarium so it did not take Yerim’s dad too long to get there. The park is large and divides into different areas such as those for jogging, biking, and for families to have a weekend picnic together. I was in love with the environment and the fresh air of this park in the middle of the city. I wished my hometown had a park this big so I wouldn’t get bored. I honestly couldn’t explore the entire park just by walking. The first thing we did when entering the park was renting a couple bike. Yerim and I had so much fun biking around the park. We talked a lot and especially I got to watch the sun set from the park. It was the most beautiful thing ever.

Yerim's dad and her mom at the park. Happy couple! 

Sunset

Yerim and me with our couple bike!

Selfie time :)

Meet my Korean friend :) (Part 1)

Firstly, I sincerely apologize for being so slack of on this blog. All of my posts were to be updated frequently throughout my trip but I unfortunately would not make it. However while living in Korea, I recorded everything I did in a little notebook and took a lot of pictures wherever I went to so my remaining posts will be mainly based on these visible proofs (:p).

The person who I hung out most often was a Korean friend that I’ve known for years through my uncle’s connection. She is only a year older than me so we get along really well. Not only that, she invited me to visit her house multiple times on the weekends and taught me Korean culture and language all the time. Her family is extremely nice to me that when my program ended, I literally cried like a baby thinking I would leave them soon. This trip gave me so many emotions that I would never forget. For this reason, I decided to dedicate this post to my Yerim. Thanks Yerim for your precious time and for being the most interesting Korean tourist.

A flashback to what I and Yerim did when we were together. I met her right after I settled in my dorm. I think it would be a better idea to split this post into 2 parts so you won’t be overwhelmed with too many pictures. Here is part 1 of our adventure.

1. Insadong -  Ssamziegil 

LOL at my reaction :))

After taking the subway to Insadong, I and Yerim still could not figure out where exactly Ssamziegil is located so we ended up catching a taxi (It was an embarrassing moment when our ride was less than two-minute long and we both are college student so you know what I meant here haha). I would be completely lost if I went here all by myself (scary right?). But all of these negative feelings started fading away the moment I saw Ssamziegil street. It was full of small shops that sale traditional Korean items. I was amazed by how neat and old-fashion this entire street was but it still maintained a sleek and refreshing look. The most attracting place to me was Ssamziegil building where all the fun began. I and Yerim rented two Hanbok, which are Korean traditional clothings and took cute sticker pictures at a store on the top floor of the building. Then because of the extremely hot and humid weather that day, we went to a coffee shop that was decorated by “poop” images and stuffing (this sounds pretty disgusting, yeah?), but it was indeed very cute. Every corner I ran to in Ssamziegil was very artsy. A quick walk along this street reminded me of Korean dramas that I watched before. It was eye-opening to see something that I never did see in real life.

The entrance to Ssamziegil building

I and Yerim in Hanbok ($10 for 2 copies)

on the top floor of Ssamziegil

little shops along the street

A handmade store that I thought was pretty cute

2.     Namsan Tower

Such a beauty at night <3

Our next stop was Seoul Namsan Tower. Because I and Yerim both had summer classes so it was hard for us seeing each other on a daily basis. Plus, I wanted to make as many new friends at Yonsei summer program as possible so I tried to stay in school after class and hang out with my classmates/ roommate instead. One day, Yerim asked me out for a quick dinner and then brought up the idea of taking me to Seoul Namsan Tower right after. This plan happened so unexpected that I didn’t bring my camera. As a result, the pictures from my phone came out blurry. Because the total cost to observe Seoul from the highest spot of Namsan Tower was approximately $18, it was too pricey for me to have a second visit on another day. Nevertheless, I enjoy having a good time with Yerim so whether having good picture was no longer a problem.  

Tickets to Namsan ($10 to enter + $8 to get to the highest spot of Namsan tower)

Sorry all of my pictures came out like this :(

B1A4 visited Namsan once and this is what I captured..... on the canvas

To be continued...

Yonsei Housing

Yonsei has to be one of the greenest campuses I've ever seen in my life. Although it has gone under some constructions this summer and some paths are blocked, the beauty of this campus still remains. As I've walked to this spot multiple times for classes, I sometimes still stop in front this building to look at "Mr. Famous", Mr. Yonsei for a bit before I go. He's attractive, handsome, and smart ;). He has definitely made me proud of being a student at Yonsei.

Mr. Yonsei statue

Now, let's move on to the main topic of this post: SK GLOBAL HOUSE :D. Yonsei gives students a specific date of when they are able to move in. When I checked in at the front desk of SK Global, I got to know what room number I'm in and whom my roommate is. In addition, one of many Yonsei staffs gave me my room key and this check-in and out sheet and requested to have it by the end of the day. They wanted to make sure that everything in the room is in the same condition as it is on the check-in day. Easy cheesy! It took me 5 mins.

Check in and out sheet

Students have their own key to get accessed to the building and to their rooms. If you lose it, you must pay 5000 Won (~$5) to get a new one. I keep it in my wallet/ purse at all time because I need it to check in and out of the scanning machine on the second basement (B2). Otherwise, I have to jump over which would ruin my reputation :)) 

Room key

My room is on the 6th floor by the way.

My floor's hallway

After I scan my key on the door to have it opened, I put my key in this card holder to turn the electronic power on. When I take the key off, the power will be completely off. 

Insert room key in this card pocket to turn the power on 

Woohooo! Welcome to my room! My roommate didn't arrive till two days later so I owned this double room myself for 2 days. The room is symmetrically divided into two parts. I have my own bed, closet, shoe storage, desk, and chair and so does my roommate. 

SK double room 

The only thing that we get to share is the bathroom. My room was in good condition so I'm satisfied :p

Bath room

Closet

Bed and desk are right next to each other 

In the second basement of SK Global, there're some coffee shops, some restaurants, and a convenient store called GS 25. If I need something in urgent or am lazy to walk out of campus for meals, I can always get/ eat something downstairs. Overall, I must say that SK Global is a safe and convenient place for students to stay. 

After settling in and cleaning my room for a bit, I decided to go out and have a walk around Yonsei campus. 

Seoul transportation

Traffic jams in Seoul were unexpectedly horrible everyday for car drivers. For this reason, Seoul citizens often use public transportation to ease the craziness of the traffic and save time. As soon as I arrived to Incheon airport, the first thing I did was to purchase a T-money card. I believe everyone who lives in South Korea has this card. It costs approximately 2000 ~ 4000 won for each ($2). With this card, my transportation process has gone by quicker. T-money card can be used if I take a taxi, subway, or buses. Scan the card when you enter and scan it again when you leave. The card can be charged and recharged at anytime at any charging machine in any subway station. There's always an English option for the convenience of foreigners. Although the cost for riding buses and subway is almost the same here (~1000 ~ 4000 Won depending on my traveling distances) , I prefer using subway over buses because all the routes are much clearer with English description. With a subway map in my hand, I literally can go anywhere myself without being afraid of getting lost. To sum up, I'm most pleased with the Seoul subway system. It has definitely made my trip easier. 

My T-money card....Carried this with me the whole time in Korea

Here's some tips for you, Seoul travelers: 

• Download "subway" app

The subway app looks like this! If I was not mistaken, this app is accessible to any phone brand :)

• If you study abroad at Yonsei, Ewha, or Hongik Universities, green line (#2) on subway map is the route that you're gonna use the most.

* You should bring a paper copy of Korean subway map with you wherever you go the first few days in Korea just to get used to the system and some common locations. Here is the link of the most up to date subway map: http://metropoliphone.com/img/sub_seoul.pdf. You can find a pdf file on a lot of websites, not necessarily only the one I provided)

• Take the right exit when you get out of the station. You may not want to take the longest path of all to get out of the subway when you want to walk back to Yonsei.

*Google the direction before you go. 

• Subway is close around 12am/ 1am so always keep a physical address of Yonsei dorm or wherever you stay for the night with you. 
• If you forget your T-money card home, don't freak out. You can always purchase a one-round trip ticket at the charging/ticket machine in the station. 

That's everything I could think of right now. I bet you will enjoy Seoul subway as much as I do :p