Mul Naengmyeon

This is 'Mul Naeng Myeon', a summer delicacy here in Korea. It's made from buckwheat noodles and let me tell you that it's really chewy. The key ingredient here is the sour and salty broth topped with shaved ice. There's egg in it, some sliced veggies, and meat. I personally don't like eating Naeng Myeon. I find the cold sour broth not appealing, and the noodles are too damn chewy that sometimes I have difficulty in swallowing it. But it's a popular dish here in korea so I'm sure a lot of people like it. It costs about $6.50 per serving.

The Specialty Dinner

Yesterday, the water delivery person came and brought 24 bottles of water separated into two large boxes. Since I'm alone, I had to carry it and transfer it to another place by myself. I didn't think it was that heavy so I kind of hurt my back.. I think I might have a torn ligament or something cause it hurts like hell. Because of this 'injury', I wasn't able to cook dinner so I thought going to a restaurant is a good idea (just making a lame excuse!).


This is a specialty Naeng Myeon restaurant that also serves Galbitang, one of my personal favorite. I always order Galbitang whenever I visit here and since it has a very mild taste similar to 'nilagang baka', I ate this a lot the first time I came to Korea. Back then, I was less tolerable to spicy korean dishes that I always look for food that resemble ours.


The way to prepare Galbitang differs from place to place. But this 'style' appeals to my taste the most. It's served piping hot in a very big bowl; one reason why I like this place is because they have big servings unlike the other places scrimping on meat... The broth is mild and light, just exactly how I like it. They also put 'tteok' or rice cake along with a bunch of vermicelli noodles. Also a lot of scallions, jujube, gingko nut, ginseng (this is what makes it healthy and uber delicious!!!), and some mushrooms were added. It's best eaten with boiled rice... This Galbitang costs about $8 per serving.

Banchan

Here in Korea, it's customary to serve side-dishes called 'banchan' in restaurants. Kimchi must be the most popular banchan there is. There are many kinds of side dishes ranging from spicy, to sour, salty or sweet. Most restaurants serves between 2-4. Others serve more. But the most number of banchan I saw, served in one meal .. is in Cheolla province. One halmmoni served 13 side dishes!

"Gae Jang"

Ever heard of "Ge Jang" or Raw Crab in Sauce?

I haven't eaten a raw crab before, so this was my first. I was a bit adamant trying it but I was assured that it's perfectly safe to eat. Ge Jang is dish using fresh raw crabs marinated in spicy sauce. I heard that Ge Jang is a must-try so the last time I went to Homeplus, I got some. It's quite expensive for $10 a piece... But it was so delicious! It was so good with rice... I had anti-motility drug on stand-by just in case I get stomachache, but I was perfectly fine after eating it. Can't wait to try it again!

Marilyn Monroe Chocolate?

Got this "That's Hollywood Macadamia Nut Clusters" several weeks ago. This must be the most interesting sounding name of a chocolate I have ever heard of! The chocolate was ok but it's the box that caught my attention...

As you can see from the pic above, it shows a picture of Marilyn Monroe from her movie "The Seven Year Itch".

The back portion of the box says: "It was the Golden Age of Hollywood. James Dean rebelled. Marilyn Monroe flirted. And we all were beginning our long love affair with cinematic dreams, crowding into dark theaters to watch Gene Kelly kick up his heels, and Rhett Butler sweep Scarlett off her feet. It was a time when Hollywood nights were lit up by the starlets and the spotlights of movie premieres, and glamour adorned the Los Angeles landscape like so many palm trees. The glamour still lingers here, from the Hollywood sign nestled in the hills high above Tinsel Town, to the Walk of Fame where the stars have been honored. Even as classic movie scenes fade to black, the stars shining brightly in Hollywood."

Smilin'

I like posting my blogs here about my travels and other special happenings in my life. It's like my personal journal, my own diary... the only difference is, others might read it. I created this blog not out of boredom but to document events in my life that I would like to remember. With blogs come photos... a certain and distinct tangible thing to cap each entries that I write.

I'm not as comfortable in front of the camera as the others... that's why some of my pictures which I posted here might seem a little odd to some cause I tend not to smile. I'm not comfortable smiling at all. I think I look horrendous in my braces.. How many people are there in their late 20's wearing braces?! A lot in Manila perhaps... like my sister. Not here in Korea. It's hideous here... I got teased a lot saying it's ugly or something. Pre-braces, I used to smile a lot. But right now, I get so freakingly shy I tend to close my mouth in front of the camera.

It's a lonely day today. I think I need to smile a little bit just to remind myself that everythings gonna be alright...

Homebound

Yup... I'm homebound in a matter of days. I don't know what I'm feeling right now. Kind of mixed emotions really... I'm excited and sad at the same time. I would get to see my loved ones alright.. but I somehow feel I dont have a life in Manila anymore.

Sunday at Outback's

As the barbecued 'moksal' reminded me a lot about steak, I decided to spend the next day, Sunday, at Outback's... kiddin', it was actually planned for the last two weeks. I was supposed to go to Outback two weeks ago but I was down with a flu that I had to cancel. I didn't want my messed up tastebuds meddling with that juicy steak so I thought I had to wait a little bit longer.

It's about 20-minute walk from the house. Quite far I should say, but I do enjoy walking in lazy Sunday afternoons. We arrived 10 minutes late from our reservation time. The waitress gladly escorted us to a nice and quiet table as soon as we arrived.


After getting our orders, the waitress served Bushman bread as always... I was hungry at that time (didn't eat anything till 2 pm!) so I kept on eating the warm bread and the waitress kept it coming just before she served the mushroom soup. It was good although, I prefer broccoli and cheese which they aren't serving that day (BUMMER!). They were only serving pumpkin soup and mushroom so the only logical choice was the latter. The soup was delicious and it was gone in an instant!

Then my Rockhampton Ribeye (my personal favorite!) came in perfect medium. It was so good! It got those perfect fat marbling oozing with juices. I like my steak scorched on the outside but still rare on the inside. There was 'bokkeumbap' and some vegetables on the side too but it wasn't so good, disappointing I should say. I should have chosen baked potatoes instead. Still, the steak was perfect that we made plans on coming back to try the steak again this Wednesday...

After having 2 cups of brewed coffee and finishing the left over bread, we decided to go. As always, they gave 3 wrapped Bushman Bread to take home...

We went to Homeplus right after to buy some red wine and walnuts before heading home and calling it a day

River-side

The last destination in Pocheon was this big and beautiful river. We were actually getting out of Pocheon-si when I saw this beautiful river below the bridge. Instinctively, I blurted "stop the car", I wanna see the river up close. I tend to say that whenever I see a beautiful spot while we're driving.

There was no decent way towards the riverside so it was such a pain trying to go down in a bunk of soil without falling down. Luckily, I was able to get down safely to the river... I walked there a little bit, feeling the warm water in my feet. There were small fishes... at first I thought they were tadpoles but when I looked closely I was sure they were fishes. Some people were there, mostly ajussi's eating 'samgyeopsal' and drinking soju. They were annoyingly noisy and more people kept on coming so we decided to just leave the place.

A Valley in Pocheon

Pocheon is a small town in Gyeonggi province about 3 hours away from Seoul. It happens to be near the border of North and South Korea so you can see a lot of soldiers hanging around the area. Some scenic places are also restricted to be entered by ordinary citizen because they are military 'hot-spots'... well, I just coined that term. The good thing about being near the border is that the town wasn't developed and as a result, the nature is at it's pristine form.

Every summer, I make it a point to go to Pocheon to cool down and breathe some fresh air away from the city. There's this memorable pension house which I really like visiting... It's located in a secluded place just beside a beautiful valley. Unlike many other camping places which is crowded with tourists, the place is quiet and serene. It's different in so many ways, here's why...

When I was about go out from the car after getting my things, I saw a wild rabbit munching on my left-over 'omma-son pie' which I accidentally dropped minutes before. I don't know if the rabbit is wild or owned by the owner but it didn't budge when I went closer, seconds later... the rabbit hopped towards the bushes... Then I saw this small man-made lake where ducks swam freely with some chickens and ostrich looking around. I don't know why they were there but it was fun goofin around with them. If I wasn't mistaken, I even saw a racoon or possibly a beaver near the stream close to the pension but it ran away just when I was about to snap a picture. I saw creatures like grasshoppers, moths, beetles, mantis, dragonflies (and lots of 'em), even frogs... which are rare to find in the city. Korea developed so rapidly that normal teenagers wouldn't even have chance to see or touch these creatures in the city.

We brought meat so we prepared the barbecue grill right away... The meat which is called 'mok-sal' here tasted so much like steak. It was delicious with sangchu, garlic, kimchi, and ssamjjang and the taste was much better than the ones we order at restaurants. We drank beer while we were grilling our meat and enjoying the scenery. There were plenty of stars that night which I almost never see in the city.

The next day, we went to enjoy the water of the stream... We walked a little bit till we reach a nice place to hang around. The water is cool and clean that it's safe to drink it. I found a nice rock to sit, and I drenched my feet in the cool running water of the stream...

I didn't notice the time while I was there. The place was so serene and relaxing that I just wanna stay there the whole day.

Time flew so fast that I hardly noticed that it's time to go. I just love this place so much that I made a promise to myself that next summer, I will be back...

"The Garden of the morning calm"

No, it's not some cheesy title I just made up. Believe me, it's the real name of a place I visited in Gapyeong... "The Garden of the morning calm"...

The garden is situated high atop a mountain. There were not so many people... blame the intense summer heat at that time. The place was beautiful with so many unique looking trees, flowers, bushes and a whole lot more. SBS was shooting a show at that time so it kind of hampered the way going to some of the places in the garden.

The place was huge! It needs at least a couple of hours just to go around... Not bad for a trip that wasn't planned. It just showed up in our navigation while going to Pocheon and I thought why don't we check it out and it turned out well worth it.

Summer-ender

Today marks the end of the summer season here in Korea and it's now officially Autumn in my calendar! Sigh... summer was unbelievable! It was indescribable... I had a lot of fun, created a lot of good memories that'll last me a lifetime worth of good chuckle.

Lets see... I consider this a 'coming-out-kinda-season' and no I'm not a lesbian or anything. It's just that I realized so many things this season. I did things I never thought I could, and I'm very happy and thankful about it. On top of it all, I learned so much that I think I've become a much better person than before.

I've visited so many places and saw so many sights in such a short period! I've experience so much that it felt like a roller-coaster ride! You know the part where in you have to hold your breath before plunging really fast from the top all the way down and you can't stop wriggling and writhing the whole time cause you feel something 'funny' in your gut and you can't stop laughing?!

I'm a bit tired from going to so many places but I wouldn't trade that for the world! My last stop was Pocheon-si, just last Friday, I embarked on a very cool trip to a place somewhere in Gyeonggi-do. Yet again, not my first time... but the place is still a charm. Went to this cool pension house in an isolated place, just beside a valley with cool water running through a stream, surrounded by beautiful pine trees and other colorful bushes. We had barbecued 'moksal' on the terrace that night. There were grilled frankfurters on the side, chips, wine and beer that lasted us till midnight. It was cold so I had to wear my training clothes and I wanted something warm so we cooked soup while watching the stars and fireflies flying nearby... At daybreak, we trekked towards the mountain where there are so many beautiful wild flowers (and insects). Saw several inhabited log cabins in the middle of the forest... I imagined myself staying in a quiet place like that, in the middle of nowhere with just a fireplace to keep me warm. We drove around the city before bidding goodbye to the place.

It was good till it lasted. And as for those who are going to ask me 'how was my summer', I would say... I ended it with a BANG!

The Blue Crush Phenomenon

Remember the movie "Blue Crush" starring Kate Bosworth?! I watched this surfing movie so many years before... but why is it included in my post? Well, East Sea reminds me a lot about this movie. Here's why..

Beaches of Gangwon-do aren't good good for swimming although the water is clean and nice. Waves are too strong that swimming can be quite dangerous because it's the first land just outside the Pacific Ocean. Curious me, I tried going to a random beach which I happen to forget the name. Beach was nice, water is cold and blue.... There were a few people there too. I walked towards the beach not having an inkling how strong these waves are. I didn't plan on getting wet or anything, I just wanted to feel the sand and water with my barefeet just like what I usually do whenever I come across any beach. I was wearing shorts at that time so I didn't mind getting my ankles wet. A wave came in, didn't expect that it was 'that' strong and suddenly, the water reached my knees and upper thighs.. It was so strong that I almost lost my balance, then I felt I was sinking as the water goes back... I kept on laughing the whole time... then another wave came, bigger than before... suddenly I thought about running... I knew I will get wet so I ran but it was too late, a huge wave came and I felt the water reached my ears... I got totally wet that I had to change my clothes immediately! Whew...

I thought it was fun to play with the waves.. but it scared me a little. I've never experienced a wave like that in my lifetime. First thing the water is at my ankles, a couple of seconds later, it reached my thighs, and moments later it's right in my ears! Funny thing, I wasn't even moving. I was just standing still at one place. Everything happened so fast! But I thought if I don't experience it now, I may never have the chance in the future. It was a good experience for me! I wasn't able to get pictures of the beach as I was busy chasing the waves and having one hell of an experience but I was able to get pictures of other beaches nearby..


I saw huge waves which they call 'pipeline' in the movie blue crush. It's pretty amazing to see it forming in the middle of the sea as it gets taller and taller. Soon the huge wave will come crashing through creating this pipe-like scenario. I'm not a surfer but I can guess how cool it would be to get so close and play with huge waves like that.

One with the Sheeps...

I would say visiting Daegwallyong to see the sheep farm was the ultimate highlight of my recent trip to Gangwondo. I visited there twice before, but unfortunately I wasn't able to see the sheeps with my two previous visits.

The first time was Fall of last year, and I arrived there around 6:00 in the evening. The staff didn't sell us tickets to enter the place as we were already late. They explained to us that Daegwallyong is a really high place so it gets dark pretty early, and everything should be finished by 5:00 pm. Although I understood it completely, I was pretty upset. I told myself that I'm gonna visit there again, and I will make sure that next time, I could enter and see those sheeps.

Soon enough in winter, I was back just a couple of months after my first visit. I was so excited to enter, eventhough it was unbearably cold at that time. We arrived early but when we came to the ticket booth, they gave us the bad news that sheeps couldn't be outside in winter. I wasn't expecting that! I was so disappointed that Chris couldn't help but beg a guy who takes care of the ranch to just let me go near the sheeps and he'll pay even if it's double the price. Sadly, the caretaker still didn't allow but he mentioned I can look around the ranch for as long as I like for free... At that time, it was snowing heavily and it was so cold and dark so we left the place as quick as possible.

As many would say, third time's a charm.. so I was finally there. The place looked really good! Just as I expected...

The sun was a bit strong at that time, I think I burnt my skin a little...


Finally, I saw the cute sheeps... I enjoyed touching and feeding them so much... I wanna go back and see them again!

picky me..

I am when it comes to food. He said he always feel difficult to take me to restaurants cause I complain a lot about so many things. I've always thought that this person is just higly-opinionated but I have my reasons for being so...

I always get stomach-aches if I'm not careful with the food I eat here. Like for example... right now. Right after eating grilled meat I feel sick in my stomach that I feel nauseous.

On top of Mt. Seorak

I arrived at Seoraksan at 1 pm and it was raining incessantly. It has been raining non-stop even the night before and I even considered cancelling the trip. I'm glad I did not or I would have missed seeing the beautiful mountain scenery. Seoraksan is the most beautiful mountain in Korea and it offers different sceneries as the season changes. I was pretty excited as the cable car slowly reached the top. The view was magnificent as I expected... It would have been so much better if there was no fog. The fog was heavy at that time and it was difficult to see the entire mountain... it also didn't help that it was raining non-stop and the ground was very slippery. Moreover, I didn't have an umbrella with me so I bought a raincoat from an ajumma that sells it for $2. Nevermind if I looked hilarious wearing that pink raincoat, it was all part of the experience! = )


Felt jittery the whole time I was standing still posing for the camera... the edges of the mountain didn't have any rope nor any barrier. A simple slip or slid can mean death in this kind of place so better be at guard the whole time.

After some time the rain started to stop (what a relief!) but nevertheless, the rocks where we stand were still slippery. I wanted to stay longer but the fog got heavier by the minute, making it difficult to see the person standing right next to me so I decided to go down.

While waiting for the cable car, I bought delicious hotteok. I felt famished after ascending and descending the mountain. It was totally nerve-wracking that it seemed I lost all my strenght upon reaching the car...

Eastern Sunrise

'Twas a rare chance for me to watch the sun rise so I woke up at 5:00 am and headed out to the beach. The beach above is a popular sunrise viewing place so, quite a number of people were already there, anticipating the sunrise. Good thing, there was ample parking spot left. I took several pictures of the beach... while it was still dark and when the sun was about to rise like the photo above. It was a little foggy so it took longer than I expected... The skies weren't clear enough to get a perfect view but it still is beautiful.

Back to the city

I just got back from my Gangwon-do trip last night. Overall, the trip exceeded my expectation. It was my third time to visit Gangwon-do and it was just as amazing as the first one.

The first time I visited there was Autumn last year and the view was spectacular. The place explodes in so many different colors of trees like a painting that came to life. The sky was so clear and blue, I even had the chance to see stars at night which I never experienced in the city.

My next visit was Winter of last year and I took a lot of pictures at that time. Gangwondo is the coldest place in Korea so it snows a lot. There was so much snow that we got stucked and had to shovel the snow away from our tires. I played like a child, made snowman and had a snowball fight in a knee-deep snow. Rice fields became ice field, snow capped mountains everywhere, trees coated with ice and snow, frozen streams and rivers... It was a winter-wonderland surreal kind of experience!!! I can't ever forget that in my entire life...

My third visit was just last weekend. It was cold at that time and the place showed signs that Autumn has begun. I visited Seoraksan again and I was so-not disappointed! The cable car view was still spectacular. The top view was still breath-taking, although climbing it was nerve wracking cause one small slip can cause a person's life. I also went to Hwajinpo which became famous for the Autumn in my heart drama starring Song Seung Hoon and Song Hye Gyo. It's the beach where S.S.H. draw the face of S.H.G. in the sand. Beside that beach was a very big and beautiful lake. I saw a lot of different species of birds there. I went to Daegwallyong as well, where I had the chance to pet and feed lambs.. I visited so many places that it's difficult to mention it all here so I'm saving it for my next blog entries. So, till then...

Tea House Experience

Korea is one of the three biggest tea drinkers in the world, the other two being Japan and China. A typical korean household would never run out of tea because they drink it as much as they drink water. I know for a fact that in the Phil, people are not so crazy about tea because they prefer drinking coffee. The benefits of drinking tea is far more than there is in coffee so I choose to drink tea more than coffee.

On lazy Sunday afternoons, I like visiting Tea Houses to relax and drink tea. I usually order green tea, rose tea, or orange tea and I drink it while reading a book or magazine. Tea Houses are very relaxing for me... The ambiance is always cozy and warm, they also play traditional music which is soothing to the ears. As I enter the place, the fragrant aroma of the teas that they are concocting fills the air giving me a welcoming feeling. It can be quite expensive though but I don't mind... it's not just about paying for the cup of tea but the whole experience that goes with it.

Wood carvings and sculptures add a distinct 'authentic feel' to the place.

And using these unique ceramic cups heighten the whole experience..

I love visiting traditional tea houses like this. Not only can I enjoy a great cup of tea, but I also learn a lot from experiencing traditional culture.

One with the clouds

got a chance to visit the famous Mt. Jiri in Cheolla province. Jiri-san is one of the biggest mountain in Korea and though it's such a pain to climb it, it was so worth it. This was a totally different experience for me and I loved every second of it.

It was exhilirating! The clouds were literally at my fingertips. It was so high and steep that I felt I was one with the clouds. It drizzled from time to time. Cold gust of winds blew in every direction. Everything was blurry from the thing that seemed like a fog but is not! As I go higher, I noticed that my clothes were getting wetter and wetter. Clouds suck up all moisture from below so up there, we were all wet as if we just took a shower. I took pictures as I went along.