From Japan With Love.

Chris recently came back from a three-day business trip to Japan. Before he left, I was really worried because he was running a fever, had terrible cough and ached all-over. He looked so sick that I thought he wouldn't get past the quarantine at Narita Airport! Good thing he did, because if he didn't, there's a very good chance his score will be greatly affected from blowing the company's resources just like that. In Chris's line of work, score is the most important thing. And times like this, I get to see how freakishly professional Korean people are when it comes to work. They could lose a leg and go to work the next day!

Anyway, when he came back he looked a little better. After a quick talk, I gave him a hug and went directly for his presents. These are the stuff he bought for me..

Some salty shrimp crackers...

And some chestnut-filled pastry. This one looks so cute! I got a lot of gift-packing ideas from this..

Chris is leaving for another business trip very soon. This time, he's going to China. I wonder what he's going to bring me..

Ode to Spring: More Than Just A Cup Of Tea.

Boseong is at it's most beautiful in Spring time, it's also their peak season. And since they're celebrating the festival also, finding a place to spend the night could be difficult as hell. Knowing this, we left the festival right after dinner to find a place to sleep. We went to the place where we stayed before, an inn right beside a beautiful lake, and luckily they have an available room for us. With the crazy number of tourists who came to see the festival that time, it's almost impossible to get a room.

During the festival, a standard room costs 100,000 won in Boseong, but it's half the price if you go there during the off-peak season. So what do you get in a room that expensive? Well, nothing really, just some basic stuff. No wifi, no whirlpool, not even free breakfast. But it has a balcony with a very good view. It's a good place to have wine in the evening... Stars, moonlight and crickets... Not so bad right?


I was looking forward to see the view when I woke up in the morning. And it didn't disappoint me.. It was beautiful and I love that crisp early morning air that smelled like freshly-mowed grass..

Visiting the green tea plantation was the first thing in our itenerary that day. Good thing the inn is not that far from the plantation.

Like I said in my previous post, Spring is the harvest season in Boseong. It's best to visit there in April, just before they harvest the leaves.. It looks spectacular then.

In Boseong, you just don't get to see postcard pretty places. There are also small villages at the foot of the mountain that will give you a glimpse of how people live in the countryside. I saw farmers toiling their field while their wives harvest the crops. During lunch time, they gather around at some shady spot to have lunch and drink makgeolli.

It's a very rural place and some villagers live in old houses like this.

I love how quiet and peaceful the village is. It's the exact opposite from the city where we live. There are also plenty of wildflowers like this.

Our last stop was Illimsan. The place is known for colorful azaleas that bloom in springtime covering almost every square foot of the mountain. But because the weather was still too cold, the flowers were still trapped in their buds. But flowers or no flowers, the mountain looks pretty amazing! Notice how colorful the trees are...

We couldn't leave Boseong and end our trip without tasting their local specialty. So for lunch I ordered Green Tea Mul Naengmyun. The essence of green tea is infused in this buckwheat noodle dish.

To eat it, just put a few drops of vinegar and mix. The noodle is really chewy and I could definitely taste the flavor of green tea in it. The color might seem a little weird, but I'm telling you.. it's sooo good! I haven't tasted anything quite like it.

This is the last part of my travelogue. I had fun narrating this wonderful, borderline quirky adventure to you guys. I hope you all enjoyed it!

*While writing this, it got me thinking.. I should totally work for Korea's Tourism Department.. I love to travel and share my adventure to the world anyway.. at least then I'll get paid for what I love doing. : )

Wish you all a great weekend!

Ode to Spring: Boseong Green Tea Festival.

Boseong is known as the birthplace of tea industry in Korea. And because of it's altitude and rich soil, teas grown in Boseong is the best you could ever taste in Korea. Spring is their most celebrated season as the harvest this time is the best when it comes to quality and market value. So every Spring, from May 1-5, a festival is being held in Boseong county to celebrate the year's finest harvest.

Chris and I both love drinking tea. At home, we have a cabinet full of teas from different countries bought during Chris's business trips abroad, but our all-time favorite remains to be the one from Boseong. We love it so much that a festival named after it is just too hard to miss. We didn't mind the back-breaking ride of tunnels, mountain roads and zig-zag paths just to be there. *FYI, Boseong is at the Southwestern tip of South Korea and about 6 hour drive away from Seoul.

The festival started around 10 in the morning. Buddhists who took part in the festival started the day with worship and giving thanks at the temple.

Visitors can sample green tea and delicious rice cake served by these friendly hanbok-wearing ajummas. Their hair are all uniformly curled in distinct ajumma fashion. : )

They also show brewing techniques and teach you proper drinking etiquette.

And this is the fun part - the "Hands-on Experience Program". At a small fee, you can experience harvesting the leaves and drying them in large roasting pots. This is especially popular among families and small groups. You could bring home the finished product to brew at home.

For those who are interested to learn the processes and methods of making green tea, there are classes like this that you can attend.

One of the main attraction in the festival is the Exhibition Center. Here you can see different ceremonial tea drinking attires on display, fine tea cups from around the world and photo exhibits of different plantation and produce. There's also an audio-visual area where you can watch and learn about tea making.

There are plenty of things to see and learn that kept us occupied all throughout the day. At night, I got to see a different side of the festival - a celebration of food unique in Cheolla province that is.

People swarm these tents where different foods and delicacies are sold.

It was hard to decide on the menu, but as soon as I saw the roasted pig, I immediately knew what I'm gonna have. This is Korea's version of lechon, and one look at it made my mouth water... and the smell... damn that succulent smell of pig roasted to perfection... it made me forget all about dieting!

Here's what we have for dinner.

Dinner in a place as beautiful as Boseong can't be complete without a kick of alcohol. That milky liquid thing from the left is called Dongdongju (8,000 won) - a mild liquor made from brewing rice and wheat. The dish in the middle is called Nakji Bokkeum (20,000 won) or stir-fried octopus in spicy sauce. The third one is the roasted pig served without the skin (30,000 won). In traditional Cheolla fashion, it's served together with Hong Oh Hui - fermented raw skate that smells like dirty gas station restrooms.. BLOODY eeew! It's a specialty food that only a few Koreans can eat, and Chris being the adventurous type decided to try it. You eat it with a thick slice of pork and kimchi all piled together. I waited till I was drunk before I tried it, and even in that state I can't get past the very strong ammonia smell. It stings the mouth like acid, and it makes your breath smelling like dirty toilet. But it's hell of fun trying all those menu, we could hardly walk after. An experience like this is definitely worth all the hassle.

More adventures coming up!

Ode to Spring: Gokseong Train Village, Revisited.

Nothing peeves me more than listening to metal music. I absolutely abhor it's screechy sound - it reminds me of a cat in labor. During our 1,200 kilometer driving feat, it was Chris's music of choice (he digs it for reasons I could never fathom). Chris probably has the weirdest music collection. From 90's Metal, to Ace of Base, down to Michael Bolton... It's like he's stuck in a totally different era - an era before my first menstruation that is. Hearing that, I bet no one's gonna believe he just turned 30. I would love to educate his ears you know. Give him something current from the likes of Jimmy Eat World, Breaking Benjamin, even Paramore, but we don't have a jack for my mp3 player yet. Till then, my ears will bleed to the sound of screechy Rock Metal and Michael Grandfather Bolton when we travel.

So hours of driving led us to a place called Gokseong - a train village South of Cheolla province. No matter how many times we visit this place, it never gets old and there's always new things to see. Right now they have rail bikes but we skipped that. Our legs were way too tired to pedal anyway. Cheolla being in the Southern part of Korea is warmer by several degrees. I like that it's so much warmer there than Suwon. It kind of reminds me about Manila sans the humidity.

Here's the train that you could ride to tour the neighboring villages. I haven't tried riding this thing though...


Spring flowers are in full bloom in Gokseong. There are flowers everywhere exploding in so many different colors! It looks nice alright, but there are plenty of bugs too.. ^^;

A small crowd gathered while these boys are performing. I'm not sure if they're famous or anything but the crowd loved them. I saw several old people (halmmonis and halabojis mind you) dancing to their music. It's kind of odd since these boys are young and they played alternative music. :p

And here's what I had for lunch... It's a noodle dish in a very bland broth called Janchi Guksu. I only ate half of it...

As soon as I got inside the car, I switched on the radio. Chris didn't like it but Boseong is several hours away from Gokseong and I couldn't bear to hear another song from his collection.

Ode to Spring: 1,200 Kilometer Journey.

Koreans must have done something to please God as He has blessed this country with insurmountable beauty worthy of a thousand mile journey. Beautiful is one word befitting in describing this country I've grown to love. As each season unfolds, senses are titillated with so many different wonders. It doesn't matter how long you've lived here. One can never go weary of it's beauty and time doesn't weaken the anticipation of what the season would bring. The excitement and awe will always be there. It's hard to describe the feeling, but for the sake of being articulate and descriptive, I say it's like when Daddy buys you your first Barbie, and your head is in a dizzying spin thinking of the endless fun possibilities you could do to it.

And like I always say, Spring is my favorite season. It's what I call sugar and spice and everything nice. A time when flowers abound and trees are in their brightest shade of green. The contrast of colors it makes with the pale blue skies is wickedly bewildering! And while Spring is still in full throttle, I got the chance to experience it's full glory when we travelled to Cheolla - a province located Southwest of Korea. The 2-day trip has definitely left it's mark on us. Imagine a 1,200 kilometer drive with no snacks! Just the thought of it could make any sane person lose their sanity. My butt was sore from sitting, while Chris strained his leg muscles from stepping on the accelerator for far too long. But pain was the last thing that occupied our thoughts while driving as the roads there are literally brimming with flowers in so many hues! I can't even count how many times we stopped to take pictures.

And as the kilometers are counting and give-away tissues from gas stations are rapidly accumulating, I wondered... Why on earth don't we have Spring in the Philippines?! While we have beaches and rainforests, Korea has THIS... with maples, snow and cherry blossoms on the side.

Here are some photos taken at random roads in Cheolla province. I gotta say, how can you possibly not fall in love with this place?! And this perhaps would explain why my eyes are tinged with the deadliest shade of green.

This is the first installment of my Spring travelogue. And if for some reason, it didn't bore you and you decide to stick around for the next one, you're in for a wonderful ride. You'll get to see beautiful sights, great food, and lots and lots of quirky behavior courtesy of yours truly.

Have a happy Monday y'all!

Bespectacled!

It was Children's Day here yesterday - a well-celebrated holiday in Korea where parents dutifully take their kids out to have some fun. I planned to spend it at home enjoying some good, home-cooked meals, but Chris saw it as an opportunity to drag me to get my eyes checked. This check-up has long been overdue. For the longest time, I've been having problems with my sight. Sometimes I miss my stop because I can't see the places clearly, especially at night. Watching movies has also been a problem for me. When we watched "Iron Man 2" the other night, we were seated at the far end and I couldn't keep tabs of what was happening. I know I need to wear glasses to make my life easier, but I always thought it's gonna make me look old and ugly - the deadliest combo a girl could ever be subjected to. So like a pig refusing to be slaughtered, I begged, sobbed, gobbled and gave him a hundred different reasons not to bring me there. But then he started the whole 'be-logical-you-need-it' talk, I just had to give in.

So there we were at the optical shop and a doctor came to check my eyes. The first thing he asked is if I could understand Korean. I told him "a little", so he was forced to talk in broken English. Upon hearing his excruciatingly-hard-to-understand English, two guys came to assist him. They were younger and probably armed with more vocabulary than him. The older guy motioned me to position my face close to the machine, which I did. One of his assistants said "put your 'fit' here and 'close' your forehead.." Of course he was pertaining to my chin and my forehead should be close to the machine. They must have felt there's something wrong with the way they talked, so the next couple of exchanges were fairly simple. It went like this: "first time?", "dizzy?", "not dizzy?", "clear?", "unclear?" - all answerable by a simple yes or no. Chris should have acted as the interpreter but he was busy with the parking. When he came back and spoke to them, they all came to agreement that I really need to wear glasses. So we were led downstairs to choose the frame. There are frames in all shapes, sizes and colors and it was so damn hard to choose! The assistant must be fuming mad while waiting for me...^^ Among hundreds, I narrowed my choices down to three. * I know you guys are sick of seeing my face plastered on every post, but please keep your cool while staring at my photos stippled with a huge rash on the neck ok? (I had an allergic reaction from eating large amounts of seafood before this..)

So this was my first choice. The first time I wore it, I fell in love with it! Chris didn't like it. He kept on giving me unsolicited grandfather-ly advice that it looks too big on my face and that the black rim and plaid prints are too strong for my 'delicate' features (delicate daw oh..lols), so I had to give it up. Please don't tell me this one suits me better than the rest, I'm literally going to kill myself for not getting it!




This was my second choice. I love the funky neon pink and purple combo. I think I could pull this one off. I can imagine myself wearing it in pop concerts, shopping malls or doing household chores looking all cute and fabulous. However, Chris can't imagine me wearing it with a dress, so I had to give it up also.





And this frame was my third and last choice. It's the simplest, most basic of them all. Grandfather Chris loves the burgundy shade, he thinks it accentuates my light brown eyes. The assistant (who is awfully cute by the way) said it suits my face. So two votes against mine, there was no other choice but to get it.



It's a big, big move for me. From here on, I'm a different person - a bespectacled one, and I'm not sure if this new persona will suit me. So let me know what you guys think. Does it make me look smart? studious? or worse, old and ugly? But damn, if that's the case, I'm better off with a blurred vision for the rest of my life!

A Fusion Of Art, Culture and Food.

Whenever I travel, I make it a point to scour the area for some quaint, little restos that could offer something new to my palate. I just love tasting new dishes, especially the ones that are hard to find in the city. Sometimes, I go as far as asking the locals if they know some famous restaurant in the area. Other times, I rely on brochures given at Tourist Information Centers as to which menu to taste or restaurants to visit. Chris on the other hand, likes to do his research online. It's where he found a place called Anygol, and he brought me there during our trip to Ilsan.

Anygol is a small village/budding tourist destination filled with restaurants, cafes, and music bars all clustered together. Of all the restaurants there, we chose this place called "Dubu Han Jeong Sik", little did we know that there's more in store for us than a sumptuous meal.

The first thing that floored me upon entering are the hanbok-wearing waitresses. Next are the interesting pieces of art on display. There are so many cool things that caught my attention, so while waiting for our orders to arrive, I looked around and took pictures.

This is the walkway going towards the restroom.

Everywhere I look, there are amazing pieces of arts and crafts reminiscenct of their culture, tradition and long history.

We were surrounded by a huge collection of dolls wearing hanbok in different styles and colors.

There are private rooms for those who come in groups.

And this is the spot where we sat. Notice how the chopsticks and tea cups are arranged?

And this is what we ordered. The food was great! Their Gganjjang Gae-jang (raw crabs in soysauce) was exceptionally tasty.

For this meal, it costs 24,000 won for each person. But I'm telling you, the experience that goes with it is worth every penny!

Adieu.

The weather has not been pleasant lately. Mornings and afternoons are now burdened with heavy clouds and rain, while nights are saddled with icy winds and cold temperature. By now, most of the Cherry Blossom trees have withered, their petals covering the ground like carpet. If there's any consolation, it is seeing the new leaves sprouting in the brightest shade of green. It is amusing to see, but I'm surely gonna miss seeing the Cherry Blossoms in full bloom, standing under it and catching some petals falling leisurely like snow. Just before all the petals have fallen, I got the chance to see it one last time while we were in Ilsan.

It's gonna take many months before it blooms again, and when they do, I hope I'll be here to see it..