So I know its been awhile since I've updated this blog and for that matter - Merry Christmas to you all! - but I have a decent excuse: I dropped my laptop (from couch level) and apparently damaged the motherboard so have been without one for the past few weeks. Who knew laptops were that fragile?! In the meantime I have been packing to get as ready as I can for....2-and-a-half months' worth of travel!!
First stop is Seoul, Korea.
When in Korea do as the locals do? Dressing up in
the traditional hanbok for sticker photos!
For those shopaholics out there, you know you're in the right place when someone tells you that not only are there designated "shopping towns" (Dongdaemun) but that malls in these towns close at 3 in the morning (some actually close at 0430) - how crazy!! But that is how the Koreans roll - they love their shopping - even the guys! Dongdaemun is a bit like The Strip in Vegas, only that shopping malls have replaced the casinos. There are high end department stores and malls where you can bargain. Walking out at 1am, the lights are still as bright and crowds still unrelenting and it feels more like 9pm. Needless to say after my 10hour flight from Sydney you can guess where I was at.
Koreans also love their food. They are in love with chilli paste and kimchi, rice cakes (which I have eaten in soups, in bread and in meat), salads, sauces (and yes you bet chilli paste is what's normally mixed in the sauces) and SPAM! My favourite from the foods tasted must be the homemade dukguk made by a friend's grandmother. This is a traditional rice cake and beef soup but mine also had egg, seaweed, prawn dumplings as well as kimchi dumplings.
Halmoni's dukguk with some typical korean side-dishes 
A year's supply of spam and more!
One green tea latte - served in cute Christmas mugs.
Waffles for lunch - hope this doesn't mean I've been naughty for Christmas.
We walk and browse through nearby Ssam ji gil where we find this stall selling interestingly shaped snacks:
But of course you cannot come to Korea without having a korean BBQ. I catch up with some Korean friends I met on the other side of Asia earlier this year for a medical student convention. The location is Hongde, a university town (aka clubbing town) also known for its great karaoke joints. However we behave tonight and head to a cafe after our Korean BBQ dinner.
One korean BBQ in all its glory - BBQing some pork cheeks.
On the topic of universities, interestingly there exists "ladies' universities" and a prime example would be Ewha's women's university. This is essentially a university only for women. (It's known for the female students to all stare at any male walking through its grounds). What's more, one of Seoul's food chains was recently advertising a new product - "The Lady Burger".
But of course korean BBQ isn't the same without some soju...
The rows and rows of soju being sold at the local grocery shop.
And yes I did my research - the price of soju is comparable to water, only varying by several extra hundred won (~AUD0.50) for your 2L bottles.
We also went to Gyeongbokgung Palace - another thing I love about Seoul is how it has UNESCO world heritage listed palaces juxtaposed on a background of high rise buildings and construction sites. Lotte World is a theme park (Korea's equivalent of Disneyland) and not a world full of Lotte food products. It has both an indoor as well as an outdoor section making it still an excellent place to have fun in Winter. Its indoor section is situated in a multi-level building with an ice rink at ground level where Kim Yu-na used to practice before moving to the States.
Overall I loved Korea and its culture of shopping, eating and going out. It's a wonderful place for the young as well as the old and especially for couples (with couples wearing the same clothes, restaurants and theme parks offerring couple menus and passes, shops selling couple rings). It also helped immensely to have a local friend be my guide and translator. Will be planning my next trip after I've learnt a bit more Korean!
