Journey in Asia: Seoul Searching

Here comes the end of my Journey in Asia trilogy. If you're reading this, thank you! It means a lot! If you also read the last two, thank you! It also means a lot!

This trip to Korea was another walk down memory lane. My first trip to South Korea was two years ago during my first year of university. But now, there I was, in Korea, and this time, I was by myself. It was my first solo trip overseas and I was ecstatic! There were so many places I wanted to visit, and also wanted to have a chance to interact with the locals.

1. Prayers at Jogyesa Temple

After dropping my belongings at the hotel, I immediately set out for my adventure for the night. The first stop I went to was at the Jogyesa Temple, which was just three minutes away from my hotel!

At this time of night, I saw some monks praying inside. The temple is not open for the public to go into, but the architecture was authentic to look at, and walking around the area was an enriching experience for me.

2. Night stroll at Ikseondong Hanok Village

I ended my first night at the beautiful Ikseondong Hanok Village. It had plenty of mouth-watering cafes and restaurants, and some jewelry and accessory stores, which was why I wanted to stroll around the whole village before I made my decision for dinner.

The village shops were in the design of traditional hanoks, though the interior has become modernized and tailored to the shop's theme. It was easy for you to get lost in the village as almost every alley had a different theme and experience!

When I began to search for a dessert place I could eat at, my eyes landed on a sign that just showed a logo of bread. No name, no slogan whatsoever. Just bread. And I don't know why, that was just so funny to me. So I went in. I was sold. The end.

When I entered, the smell was so sweet (just like bread). And the menu items looked delectable, and I decided to try sugared toast with blueberry cheesecake, as well as a lemon sorbet drink! It looked pleasing to the eye, but even more to the taste buds.

3. Neighbourhood run at the Fortress Wall of Seoul

My last trip of the day was at the Fortress Wall of Seoul. It was a long and exhausting way up, with no one but me in the streets leading up to the wall. Honestly, there's not so much to see, especially if you go there at night, but it was a location used in this Netflix series I've been addicted to called Itaewon Class!

It was also fun exploring the neighbourhood near the fortress wall. There were a lot of houses in different colors, some having their own artwork as well. It made me realize how artistic of a country South Korea is.

4. Adventures in Nami Island

And thus, the official first day started, with the first stop being: Nami Island! I heard a lot of people talk about this place and said that it was a must-see destination. It was a 2-hour travel from Seoul to Gapyeong, and I pretty much just slept throughout the whole train ride.

But once I got there, my heart dropped. The first thing I saw was a gate that said Immigration. So I thought to myself, Oh no. Do I need my passport? I looked all over my bag but I knew that I didn't bring it. So I casually went to the customer booth acting as if nothing happened. But turns out I didn't have to act, since the gate was already acting for me. It's. Just. Decoration.

So needless to say, I was delighted and relieved to know that Nami Island was just a five-minute ferry ride, so no passport was needed. The ferry was really cute, with a lot of flag decorations from different countries.

And voilà! Welcome to Naminara Republic! It was already an adorable sight to behold, with a lot of cute statues and decorations that came out of a storybook. They also played music that fit perfectly with different sights around the island!

One of my favourite parts in the island was (of course) the ostrich pen. I don't know why, but I always find it funny when the ostriches turn their heads so suddenly at me.

There were a lot of themes around Nami Island, with some areas representing different countries. They even made a replica of the Merlion Statue of Singapore! Sadly, the flowers in the river were dead, and so were a lot of trees, but still, the music and other non-living decorations made up for it.

I also had this challenge to take my own photos. (Sometimes, it was hard because I didn't have my glasses and I wouldn't know how much left was there on the timer, or I would run too fast and fall. Just rookie self-photographer things.)

But here is one of the better photos I took of myself in the Nami Island railway!

I also realized that Nami Island is known for a filming of one of the scenes in Winter Sonata, which is a famous South Korean movie that played a big part in the Korean Wave phenomenon. To be honest, I was surprised at how many scenes are filmed in different places of Seoul! I went to a lot!

To end my time there, I had a nice beef bulgogi meal. Nami Island has a wide variety of Asian cuisine and restaurants, where they served other food like seafood bibimbap, ramen, and even Pad Thai, but I decided to try a classic Korean meal for my lunch.

5. Bienvenue à Petite France!

My next stop after Nami Island was Petite France inspired by the storybook Le Petit Prince! They designed this little attraction with inspiration from actual places, like Alsace. It had a cozy feeling and cute music that just makes you smile as you walk around.

This cute, vibrant theme park had a lot of eccentric yet fantasy-like look to it. They had paintings of different classic stories, such as The Wizard of Oz, and a small, but magical version of the Eiffel tower. I especially liked looking at the various 'shops' that showed eccentric items, such as pottery, statues, plates, and music boxes. Although these shops don't really sell anything except for food, drinks and snacks, one of the shops have musical items in it. You can play the piano and get to know people roaming around the area, and even jam with them!

Most of the houses did not have any interior, however, so you can look only from the outside. It had a Christmas feeling to it too, with their mistletoe and Christmas trees everywhere. I warn you, though, if you do come here, do NOT go to the bridge. Petite France has an extension of the theme park, where you can go walk up a wooden bridge through the trees. Walking on the first floor of the bridge is good enough, but I suggest you not to go at the top of the bridge. The view is... less than flattering.

6. Seoulmates in the Garden of Morning Calm

Finally, the last stop of the day in Gapyeong was at the Garden of Morning Calm. This garden had a lot of beautiful plants, flowers and trees, all with different themes. There was an area with more of a magical touch to it, with large electric flowers, mushrooms and neon statues.

You enter the garden through a long wooden bridge. The person taking my photo here also happened to become my friend for the day! He wore a yellow shirt, which was coincidental. We talked for a while as we walked around the garden and later, he mentioned that his friend was proposing there! There was something precious about exchanging happy moments in a garden in a foreign country.

The garden, after Nami Island, was my favorite destination. It had a lot of different themes and experiences in different parts of the garden. There was this one Japanese-themed garden, but when you walk further in, you pass by what looks like a mythical forest, with its tiny houses, floating umbrellas, giant vines and flowers, and even deers!

But what makes the experience magical is when you wait long enough and evening approaches, the lights turn on! And you're greeted with a much more vibrant and amazing sight.

Alas, my friend showed me his friend's proposal and gave me a small gift! He gave me a bag of chocolates, which was another coincidence because I was starving, and a little card which was written in Korean and I had to translate it using Google Translate.

It said:

We, the bride and groom, are about to get married!

We hope you can join us in this celebration and enjoy these snacks!

It was a heartwarming moment between a loving couple, and somehow, also a moment between strangers who come together to celebrate something special!

7. Street food in Myeongdong

After my trip around Gapyeong, I went back to Myeongdong which was near my hotel. They had a lot of food stands over there, where they sell egg bread, churros, Tornado Potato, and seafood! They also sold strawberry treats when I was there, since the strawberries in Korea were in season.

There's also a lot of traditional Korean cuisine that you could try. Unfortunately for me, some of the restaurants require you to have at least two people together. I guess that's one of the downfalls of a solo trip :')

8. Reuniting with an old friend!

I got to reunite with my high school friend, Jasmine! It haven't seen her in two years so it was such a blast to see her again after all this time! I was so grateful to have a friend in Korea, 'cause we were able to go around to a lot of places in one day!

For our first destination, we went to Yonsei University, where Jasmine studied, and where I was supposed to have my winter exchange program. In spring, the leaves on the buildings would have been freshly green, but sadly, all the leaves were dead (lol). But it was still a beautiful and huge place to go around, and it reminded me of some buildings at UC Berkeley and HKUST.

For lunch, we went to a bread store called Onion. It had a rather classy and traditional Hanok theme incorporated to its design. There were seats both inside and out of the store, I could tell that they put a lot of thought into its design. Before you enter the seating area, you have to remove your shoes. They had a wide collection of different types of bread, both salty and sweet.

We ordered a strawberry tart called Strawberry Flower, a sesame-powdered mochi bun, and Pandoro which is Italian-styled bread covered in powdered sugar.

Afterwards, we went to the Bukchon Hanok Village. This is a famous Korean traditional and historical village with a lot of picturesque alleyways right next to Gyeongbokgung Palace. This is actually a residence area for Korean citizens! Yet, almost everywhere you look is someone taking pictures, sometimes in hanboks, which is a traditional Korean dress.

Next, we went to a place called Green Mile Coffee, where they serve some unique drinks! My friend and I ordered some fruit teas, one being a type of berry soda, and a Bangkok Soda. That intrigued the both of us so we just bought it out of curiosity, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who goes there! It has passion fruit, lemon, and I believe also mango!

The cafe also has a rooftop where customers can relax and enjoy the view. I especially liked it because you have a great view of the hanoks and Gyeongbokgung Palace!

For our next meal break, Jasmine showed me one of the usual hangout spots in Seoul which is the Han River. Usually, friends and couples go here to watch the sunset together with a bowl of ramen that you could get in a nearby convenience store.

We got instant ramen and poured hot water using a machine right outside the store, which is why ramen is a go-to meal when you hang out at the Han River. We could also get different ingredients, such as cheese and soft-boiled egg. The weather that day was really cold so eating ramen was certainly a good choice. It was just too bad that we couldn't see the sunset.

After the sun (supposedly) set, we went to Yeonnam-dong! A lot of cute photo booths were there with colorful wallpapers. It was a great memento to keep for my adventure here!

Finally, we went to Hongdae which was our last stop in the trip. It's a popular hangout spot for young people in Seoul. There were a lot of fun things to do there, with a wide variety of restaurants, convenience stores, clothing shops, and more!

When we went down the street, we passed by some street performers. They performed really close to one another, but they were different groups or solo dancers. It was funny to see the audience, because a lot of girls concentrated over to the male dance group, while it was the other way around for the female dance group. It had a Mong Kok vibe to it when I listened to the loud music and cheering.

I was particularly amazed with the accessory store there! It just had rows and rows of shelves with different kinds of earrings and necklaces, and I was just so captivated! It's such eye candy to people who are in love with wearing them (aka me).

For dinner, we went to a popular Korean BBQ restaurant called Saemaeul Sikdang. Thanks to Jasmine, I finally learnt how to properly use the side dishes in a KBBQ :p This was the perfect dinner to wrap up the entire Seoul experience! So thank you so much, Jasmine! ;)

There really is a different feeling when you travel alone. You take your time embracing the view around you, and it's just more challenging and freeing!

Travelling solo gives you a lot of new perspective compared to travelling in a group. It makes people more comfortable in approaching you and having a longer and more meaningful conversation. It was interesting how much more approachable I was during my trip. I had conversations in the restaurant, when I help people take pictures, when they help me take pictures, in the metro station and in the train. I met students, adults, friends, and families.

It makes you realize that one trip can already give you tens or hundreds or even thousands of insights if you just take that step to talk with the locals. If they refuse to talk with you, then fine, just go on with your travels. But I can say that more often than not, they would be interested to have a conversation with you, even if it's for a few seconds.