Korea Day 5 (Mt Seorak, & Hotspring)

Itz been almost a week of snow and dae 5 也不例外!!

The dae started with every1 headed for Mt Seorak which is the 3rd highest mountain in South Korea, after Hallasan (refer to entries on Jeju) and Jirisan (not covered). The peak is bout 1708m high

The tour coach was able to bring tourists up (though not the peak!!) and wow!! The snowy mountain scenery was soooooo soothing and picturesque~~The snow-covered frozen river under the walk bridge... Bcos itz a touristy place & also bcos itz cold, therez vendors selling hot snacks such as roasted chestnuts and Marpigz fav escargoes!! (though they don really 102% resemble the snails... hmmm)

Moving on, Marpig came to the entrance of Shinheungsa Temple, believed to be the worldz oldest Zen temple, being 1st built in 653. It was subsequently burnt down twice
And ttz the statue of the Buddha!! How big is it... ah!! Marpig should had taken smth tog with it so tt one could tell the scale... hmm... think itz bout 3/4 size of the Buddha in Po Lam in HK?

With abit of free time, Marpig went trotting to the inner temple along a calm route with thick snow...Nearing the end of the route, Marpig was greeted with the templez pavilion
Ah~~ snow-capped 亭子 against a backdrop of mountains with a lonesome path... 诗情画意的宁静~~ :PGetting a closer look at the architectural style so typical of Korean structures...

As it was, Marpig loves to leave her trails bhind and watz better to leave her trails on?! The soft thick snow!!And so Marpig trots right into the foot-deep snow!! Argh!! It was fun at 1st but Marpig soon realised she was being silly!! :P Cos shez wearing jeans and it bcame wet!! But!! Itz fun!! Cant miss doing smth silly like tt since youth is always a gd xcuse for doing silly ths :P

After a light workout on the snowy mountains, every1 checked in at Hanwah Hotspring Resort for a night of relaxing onsen!! Marpig had been to the onsens in Hokkaido with Marpigz dad and sis. 1st time seeing the naked body of Marpigz sis!! 超 pai seh (for the 1st 5 sec!!)

But this time, Marpig did not try the Korean onsen since shez having her period. Didnt want to 血流成河!! ahahahahaha And so, Marpig noe naught if one would also be 102% naked. But reckon itz not in Korea 吧? Wat say u Ding?!

Anyw, the room at the hotspring resort was soooooo cosy!!
With itz own kitchen!! Yeah!!
Tatami style of beddings!! Save space and gd for the back!! BTW, although Marpig did not join Ding and her mom and sis for onsen, she did have a wonderful, pte time having "onsen" in the bathroom!! So much so tt she almost fainted bcos itz so warm!! hahahahahaha

And~~ watz the best after onsen?! Supper and Soju (燒酒 aka 소주)!!真是的!! Despite not being a gd drinker, Marpig just want to try 소주 (like everynight!!) Poor Ding who prefers beer (& recently wines?) got to 应酬 Marpig :P BTW, the cuppa noodles were gd!! Think itz bcos Marpig am hungry + MSG wor, 怎么可能不好吃?!

Korea Day 4 (Everland & Skiing in Yongpyong Resort)

After the 1st night in Korea, the 2nd dae proved to be more xxxciting becos of~~ more snow!! But 1st, itz impt to begin the (freezing) dae with a scrumptious and filling bf!!
Bf was really delicious!! Everyth is Marpigz fav (wat isnt?!) Therez soul-warming noodles in hot soup, side dishes, dumplings and 馒头!! :D__
Once again, no waste!!

So watz the 1st stop? Itz~~ Everland!!Therez the Taj and... looks like the clock tower in Venice bside San Marco...
Everland is South Koreaz largest theme park and was ranked 10th in the world for amusement park attendance. Similarly with quite alot of companies, itz operated by Samsung Group. As shown in the pics, Everland is often compared to Disneyland bcos of their size, architecture, theme and atmosphere. Therez even a "Global Village" as opposed to Disneyz "Itz a Small World"!! Everland, like Disneyland, is also divided into 5 theme areas namely, Global Fair, European Adventure, American Adventure, Magic Land and Zoo-Topia
Like Singaporez night safari (just tt itz in the dae), pple can take a (safe) enclosed bus to xplore the "wilderness" in style!!BTW, the above is a "liger"; a x btw a male lion and a tigress. Itz the largest of all cats and similarly to "tigon"; a x btw a male tiger and lioness, it has a short life span and tend to suffer mutations of the genes. These sorta x only happens in captivity since lions and tigers will not mate in the wild!!A couple of snowmen singing carols :D
B4 Marpig move on to an activity which she tried and sooooooo lurves, herez one of the many roller coasters in Everland called the Rolling X-train. It was built to celebrate the 1988 Olympics in Seoul

And NOW!! For smth Marpig lurves!!
Sledging!!!!!!! Therez simply so many children (and adults) Q-ing for this!! Although 1 has to carry the "sledge" (a float) up a travelator, itz still worth it!! Marpig went for 2 or 3 rounds of it!! Yeah!!
Get ready~~!!Go~~!! WHEEEEEEE~~!!

After the xxxciting moments and going ard the theme park, itz time for a bit o lunch at 1 of the many themed rests. Marpig had seafood kimchi udon!! *slurps!!*After lunch, itz time to check in for the nightz hotel which was another "dramatic" place, being featured in Winter Sonata (again); the Yongpyong ResortAbove is said (by guide) to be the fireplace where the male lead put his hand on... dont even rem wat scene the guide said...

Really, having not watched Winter Sonata b4, Marpig am abs clueless as to all the places which are associated with the drama but since every1 seems to go googoo and gaga over them, Marpig just plays her part to bring on the laughter. So she went on and did a "compromising" pose with the male lead...Muahahahahahahahaha!!

Of cos, Marpig also had her virgin go at skiing!!
Marpig did not go to the proz slope but rather, she had a very short beginners' skiing lesson with the pple at the ski resort, learning bout balance, safe falling, gniwols down and stopping. However, the person did not teach bout changing directions... ...

Anyw, taking the ski cable up to the top (albeit not skiing down!!), 1 could tell the sheer height of it all by the teeny weeny pple at the bottom!!
And ttz the top of the highest ski slope with the ski cable
Like wat Marpig said, she did not ski down from the slope but rather, just going up to enjoy the Alpine-like scenery as well as having a bit of snowball fights with Ding and her sis!! :D

Although Marpig learnt snowboarding in the UK (been only on 2 lessons, learnt snowboarding down and backwards!!), Marpig had chosen skiing since every1 else was skiing too (and hey, skiing is easier than snowboarding!!) But!! seeing a snowboard lying on the ground, Marpig just couldnt resist the temptation for yet another pose!! :P
Noticed tt the brown ski-wear tt Marpig wore was puffy?! Well, itz rented which was why it isnt a perfect fit. But oh well, itz fit for purpose!! :D

Korea Day 3 (Nami Island, Lotte World, Ginseng Chicken & The Face Shop )

Backed from a tornado-style trip home for MWz wedding, Marpig took sm time to catch up on her sleep b4 ploughing on her last yrz Korea trip!! Really, catching up on 1z life through writing requires so much time and dedication!! Chop chop!!

Right, waking up in 제주 (Jeju) to have a filling bf of porridge, eggie, toast and 반찬 (ban chan, side dishes), itz time to take a domestic flight back to Seoul!!
Arriving in Incheon Airport, one sees the familiar Korea Tourist Promotion icon "dancing away"!!1st dae in Korea and itz already jam packed with 节目!! Yeah!! 1st, itz the ever-so-impt (for sm) filming site of Winter Sonata, Nami Island!!Huh?! But how come itz All-In?! hahahahahaha Well, this was also one of the places where the Korean drama, "All-In" was filmed, hence the name. Itz a rest near the jetty where pple would take the ferry to Nami Island and ttz where Marpig had lunch of hot plate chicken with 年糕!! Gosh!! The fresh chilli and garlic are brilliant!! :D~
After!! No waste!! *beaming with satisfaction*
After lunch, itz ferry ride to Nami Island!!
A little bit bout Nami Island or Namisum aka 남이섬. Shez an imaginary country, declaring herself independent in 2006. She has her own currency, passport, stamp and even telephone card. Being formed bcos of the rising of the Han River due to the construction of the Cheongpyeong Dam in 1944, shez named after General Nami, who was wrongly accused of treason when hez only 28 yrs old. The island has an area of 400,000 sq metres and is shaped like a crescent moon, with average circumference of 6km. There arent mountains on the island, just trees, pebbles and sand

All righty, shall start with the Metasequoia path aka Lovers' path in Nami Island, featured in Winter Sonata!!Therez nth much bout this path, being faymoss bcos of the dramas but itz true tt the long line of trees are quite nice and artistic. However, bcos of the sheer amt of xxxcited pple, one cant really feel the romantic atmosphere. But since itz 哈韩, so... ho hum
The island also hosts an annual childrenz booksz xhibition which introduces childrens' books from all over the world. Above is Singaporez childrens' fav stories!! The idea of it all is to promote understanding and xchange of different countries' cultures and wat children from all over the world read/like
Itz often good to trot on a less trotten path such as the railroad bside the Lovers' path :P
Marpig relaxing by the lake with the early setting winter sun. FYI, the sand was wet and frozen!! Think Marpig slipped when she tried to sit and pose for the pic above :P hahahhahaha *ooops!!*As usual, Marpigz 背影 amongst the tall trees and snowy ground... ah~~~ snowprints!! *trot trot trot*

After a "dramatic" time in Nami Island, Marpig moved on to Lotte World (which was also featured in Korean dramas like Full House, Biscuit Teacher and Sugar Candy, etc)... another "dramatic" time!!
Itz quite a small-sized city themepark and according to the tour guide, lotsa rich kids go there bcos itz near to posh residential areas and schs
The themepark has both outdoor and indoor attractions but since itz winter, every1 just stay indoor. Itz quite a fantasy place (all themeparks are!!) and therez lotsa rides which Marpig would love to try, just tt therez no time :(
This indoor roller coaster looks scary but really... after Marpig went to take tt slide in Wild Wild Wet (will blog bout it later), wat else can be more scary?! Aiyo!!
The ride above looks fun too!!

Therez also a small folk museum within the themepark & Marpigz fav miniatures!! Cool!!
*admiring in awe and imagination runs wild!!*
In addition, therez also Marpigz fav themepark junk food, the churros!! yumyumyumyum!!
Finally, therez the ice skating rink featured in Full House!! Rem the romantic scene where Rain and Song Hye Kyo ice skate?! Yup!! TTz there!! Hmm... if therez 1 th Marpig dont noe, itz ice skating!! Still rem she did try learning it back in sec sch but shez more pro in the games arcade than she ever was in ice skating!! hahahahaha But she will try again this Xmas at the Somerset House!! *winked at Ding*

Night fell quickly since itz winter. To warm 1z soul, Marpig had Korean ginseng chicken for dinner!! Oh boy oh boy!!
The restz xterior...
And bottles of ginseng!! They are all for sale and gosh... they arent cheap!! Careful!! Dont knock them over!! *keep away* :P
Yeah!! Ginseng chicken!! Therez also ginseng wine which tasted bitter(sweet) with the strong ginseng aroma. Marpig added quite abit into the ginseng chicken soup and hey, not too bad!! Overall, itz gd and Marpig took a biz card from the rest... :P One never noes if one will revisit the place again!! :D___

After a 超补 dinner, Marpig watched a fantastic play, "Jump" which was internationally acclaimed. This Korean comedy action play did a world tour and was in Singapore quite sm time ago as well as in the UK. Itz great to be able to catch them in their home soil!! A very enjoyable and entertaining play!! :D Must catch it if therez a chance!!

Needless to say, after dinner and play, itz back to the hotel for sm rest....... nope!! Wait!! There needs to be sm shopping right?! Indeed!! Guide brought every1 to Dongdaemun Market (동대문시장 aka 東大門 市場) for sm "light" shopping b4 snoozing time!!
Eh... as every1 noes, Marpig arent the shopping type unless she has smth in mind to buy (she can be a careful shopper or a totally mad one, depending on watz shez buying. The time she cannot make up her mind is when shez buying her jap miniature toys!!)

BTW, Marpig did splurge on facial thingy bcos of recommendations from Ding. Didnt noe why she bought them but guess shez just bored and thought, "oh well, might as well get sm for sis too" Plus... ALL ladies went mad in The Face Shop
Marpig did not even noe therez such a brand until then... The shop was jam packed with pple!! Majiam like the ths are FOC!! Still rem Marpig went out of the shop and walked ard a few streets b4 going back into the shop to find pple still buying... Anyw, in the end, Marpig bought lotsa masks (x20) and eye pads or smth like tt (x10) but itz been 1+ yr and she hasnt fin using any of those... omg!!

The interesting thing was, Marpig gave 1/2 of them to Marpigz sis;

Marpigz sis: Dont want lah... how do u use the masks?
Marpig: *silent* Dont noe... I have never used 1 b4...
Marpigz sis: Then why give me?!
Marpig: I bought so many of them!! Use lah, it will hydrate yr face!! (Hard-selling to Marpigz sis) Try reading the instructions!!
Marpigz sis: ... ... The instructions are in Korean!!
Marpig: Is it?! (Geniunely dont noe either)

Luckily Marpig asked Ding how to use the masks and "taught" Marpigz sis how to use them... hahahahahaha 真是搞笑行动!!