In the subway to Gimpo Airport

I think this is one of the jackpot in my life, having a tour to South Korea for FREE! Yes, after trying so many times on Korea events and competitions, finally I won the BIG one! Me, as a representative from Indonesia, with 9 others from 8 different countries (Ece from Turky, Verina from Egypt, Rajesh from India, Clarisse from Philippine, Toan from Vietnam, Nat from Thailand, Ling from Malaysia, Yyann and Lidya from Singapore), did a travel in south korea that organized by WOW KOREA and supported by Korea Tourism Organization. (along with Max and Sunny as our manager, also Jaehwi and Jiyoung form KTO, Helen eonni as the tour guide, and PD-nim).

Busan view

(baca versi bahasa Indonesia di sini, sini,sini, sini, dan di sini)

Monday, 12 December at midnight, I took a flight from Jakarta to Seoul, for about 7 hours with Asiana Airlines. Arround 8am korean time, finally I welcomed by Max, our idol manager, and met another friends that already arrived before me at Incheon airport. Then we moved to Gimpo airport by Arex. It’s so easy to move from one to another airport by train, you just need to buy the ticket in the machine. In Gimpo, we take a day flight to Gimhae airport (Busan) with Korean air for about 1 hour.

We had our lunch in Gimhae airport area. I choose Odeng Udon to warm my body with the broth. Since it’s winter already, I start to feel cool with Korea weather. And who can resist that delicious fishcake, my favourite one!

Our first destination is Gamcheon Cultural village, a refugee village from the war with north korea, that preserved by culture and arts (such as painting colorful building, put some artistic street furniture) to improve the living condition in this village. Well known as Korean Santorini that located in the up hill side, makes you can enjoy 360 degree of beautiful view, contains hills, houses, and sea, from the highest part of this village.

Artistic street furniture at Gamcheon Cultural Village

Colorful Gamcheon Cultural Village from top - With Ling from Malaysia

Our next destination is Jagalchi fish market. You can find a lot of sea products here. Any kind of fish, squid, crab, clam, seaweed, etc.

Jagalchi Fish Market

Side to side from Jagalchi, there’s a market in Busan International Film Festival area. So you can move from one to other place by walk only, no need other transportation. There’s a lot of shop that sold many products here. Long line of street food, bakery, restaurant, cosmetic shop, clothing store, department store, stationery, arcade, and even fortune teller. What makes this area special is the theme of this area is ‘film’. So you can find some furniture or streetscape related to film and movie things.

After that, we go to The bay 101, where you can relax while see flickering lamp of highrise building in bay area.

Busan Night View at The Bay 101

Busan view from Marianne hotel

We ended up our first day in Paradise Hotel that have a nice room.

Wednesday, 14 December morning, weather getting colder (mean temperature 10 degree celsius). We’re moving to Geoje to having a tour to Oedobotania.

I think Oedobotania tour is such a compact packaging of tour. We can have all kind of tourism activities. Start from Island touring with ferry cruise. You can also go to the upper deck to see the exotic rocky island, wide sea, blue sky and seagull clearly, along with the waving boat and quiet strong wind. Once you arrived in Oedo Island, you can enjoy a lot of plants while having light hiking into the upper side of the island. On the up hill, you can also seeing beautiful garden. I believe that this island would be really wonderful with the colorful of flowers in spring season. And the most magnificent one is seeing natural scenery of wide ocean down there in front of your eyes.

Haegeumgang Island Tour

For lunch, we have marinated crab (Gejang Jongsik). They said that this Sing Sing Restaurant is one of the most famous restaurant for crab dishes. The authentic one is soy sauce marinated crab.  To make the deep delicious taste, the crab need to marinated for night. They also have chili paste marinated crab. The way to eat this dish is, take one of the crab, put a spoon of rice into the crab shell until all the sauce soak in the rice. Pull out the rice and the crab meat from inside the crab shell with spoon. Place dry seaweed on that sauced rice and crab. Open your mouth widely, then put it all together into your mouth. Masitketda~

 

Ganjang Gejang Jongsik

From Geoje, we move to Tongyeong, a coastal port city, that famous from their history. The tour guide said that this area is used as a command post back then by Admiral Lee Shun Shin. Located in the hill that overlooking to the bay, makes such an ideal area to watching the japan military who want to cross the Korea land to go further to China. To preserve this valuable area, there’s Dongpirang village that have a lot of Mural. A lot of themed paint on the wall of countered houses. You can take a lot of picture with many poses as you like. If you feel quiet tired walking around this village, just have a rest in one of the café, enjoying a cup of coffee with their famous snack, honey bread (kkulbang), a small sweet bread filled with beans or red bean and coating with honey/sugar. At that time, we visit Coffee-rang (Coffee with) café, and the kind ssajangnim give us their authentic macaroon ice cream desert for free.

Tongyeong from the to hill of Dongpiirang

Kkulbbang - Macaron ice cream - Coffee-rang Cafe

At night, we have seafood stew (haemul ttukbaegi). Wow, I really love this!. Prawns, crabs, and clams all together in one hot pot with the soup.

Haemul ttukbaegi

Yeosu

Next day, we depart to Yeosu, about 1,5 hours by bus. Yeosu located in Jeolla province, which different from Tongyeong that located in Gyeongsang province. From the story I heard, this two province is having clash each other because of their different dynasty kingdom back then. But now is better, no hate anymore.

In Yeosu, we visiting Yeosu Expo complex. It’s kind of compact area. They have Yeosu station, where you depart or dropped by train from/to another big cities in Korea. They also have Sky Tower with café on 20^th floor, where you can see the view of this complex that placed in bay area. There’s also BIG and WIDE exhibition. But too bad, since it’s not the day of exhibition, I can’t find much there. We also go to memorial hall to watch 4d, and see such an education museum about ocean.

Yeosu expo complex

Abalone vegetable barbaque beef for our lunch at Yeosu

For lunch, we have Abalone Vegetable Barbaqued Beef (Jeonbok Yachae Bulgogi). The Abalone still moving and life inside the hot pot, right before it cooked and stired together with another kind of seafood. But too bad, because I strict my halal standard recently, so I can’t eat this dishes because it contains beef. As the substitude, I have special Bibimbab for my lunch. Btw, I really love the seaweed side dishes here.

In the afternoon, we visit Odong Island. You can walk through the bridge to reach this Island. We have light hiking again. It’s so cold and wind hard there (mean temperature 6 degree celsius). there're a lot of trees besides the tracks in this island. Too bad, the famous Camellia flowers still not bloom yet at that time. Once we arrived at the top, we can see beautiful wide ocean. I’m so satisfied! If you’re tired, you can ride car/train to go back to the mainland.

Hiking at Odongdo

Our next destination is Hanhwa Aqua Planet. There’re a lot of Sea creatures here, such as Penguin, Beluga, Seal, Piranha, Shark, Stingray, Jellyfish (the most beautiful one), and many other fishes. Not only small aquarium, they also have BIG and TUNEL aquarium with so MANY fish swim freely. And this location is the one used by K-drama stared by Lee Minho and Jun Jihyun, The legend of Blue Sea.

 

Braised fish for dinner at Yeosu

At night, we, have three kind of braised fish as our main dishes. Ah, they also have quail eggs as one of the side dishes. I like it.

Friday, 16 December, is the coldest day I’ve experienced. I even added one more layer for my clothes, but still freeze. We visit Sunchon today, a bigger city that have a good quality of education.

Our first destination is Sunchon Drama Set. Actually, I really curios about this place, because I want to know what’s old korea fells like. Back then, it used as a military camp, but then, later, change into drama set. They have a lot of buildings that set as an old one. I think the most setting is in 80’s. They also have a setting of Old Cheonggyeheon that really different with nowdays. They also have crowded settlements in hill side. It’s so much fun enjoying every scene of this Drama set.

Western food for lunch at Ashley Suncheon

On the day, we have lunch in Ashely western restaurant. They have pasta, pizza, salad, ice cream, and also some Korean dishes. This restaurant located in one of the department store. So, after having meals, you can also buy something, such as clothes, shoes, make up, etc. They also have big supermarket, Home plus, where you can buy a lot of food products here. Of course, we bought many of Korean snacks here. And I bought canned Bondegi!

Walking around Suncheon national garden

Next destination is Suncheon National Garden. This place is soooooo spacious, consist of many kind of gardens. They have country themed garden, such as Japan garden, Thailand garden with elephant and king-queen statue, Turkey garden with their courtyard, Netherland garden with their famous windwheel, Italy garden with their patio, England garden with their roses. Since it’s winter already, most of the plants is in treatment (for example, the palm trees in Thailand garden was wraped by such a hay to prevent from the extreme cold) and not have much leafs leave. But you can see some greens in the warm greenhouse/glasshouse, typically plants that I found easily in my home country. The most famous place here is the Hills. What makes this hills so special is, the path is different with the up and down way even they are same rounding the hills.

 

We can't stay that long in here because we should go to Seoul. It takes around 5 hours by bus. In the middle of our way, we visited rest area to have dinner. I eat Tempura Udon to warm my body.

Tempura udon for my dinner at rest area

At 8pm, finally we arrived at A First Hotel Myeongdong. Even it’s so cold that night, can’t resist my willingness to go outside and check Cheonggyecheon. I go there with Nat, taking some pictures with the background of kinda light festival, so pretty. But unfortunately, after not long time, the lamp turning off, because it’s start to getting too late night.

Cheonggyecheon

Riding public bus in Seoul

On our last mission day, I go with Gangnam team (with Ece, Clarisse, Jiyoung, Sayeem and Sena from Bangladesh, Gibs from Philippine, Anita from Indonesia). I choose this place instead of Gyeongbok and Myeongdong because I’ve never visit Gangnam before except K-star road (and it’s already night back then, not much activity). What I like about this time of travel is, for the first time of my life, riding Korean public bus.! Well, I really like doing something just like local did.

This day, I worn a rent jacket from Seinustar. The jacket it self is really nice. And the important thing is it keep me warm. Maybe if I have another chance to visit korea again, I would like to rent one! It’s such a great choice for tropical people like me, who think that this kind of thick jacket is not that necessary to wear in my country, but it’s really important in winter season.

global wow korea supporters 2016 wearing Seainustar rent jacket

Little France village at Gangnam, Seoul, Sout Korea

In Gangnam, we visited Little France Village, a place that suggested by Ece. But since I’ve never visited France or even Europe before, I don’t know how close is the taste of this area than the real france one. But it still interesting to enjoy the street view.

Over there, we go to one of the café to have some sandwich, slices of cake, cups of coffee and other baverages. This Merci café is really pretty with their flowery themed interior decoration. They even sell some of cute little things as an element decoration for interiors with themed kind of pretty princes and shabby chic like that.

After that, we go to Itaewon. Wow, I’ve never visited Itaewon before. I think I’m so lucky to joining this team!

Anita suggest us to go to Sinsheon space gallery, because they have really GREAT design for their stairs area. I think this Shinseon space is talk more about women. On the third floor, they have such a cinema room that played a movie about Korean slave girl. On second and basement, they have some pictures and mannequin that showed beautiful dress with Hanbok as the main themed. In ground floor they also have small café to relax a bit.

Sinsheon Space Gallery

Our next place is Passion 5, such an elegant café from outside, that sold pretty cake and baverages inside.

Elegant Passion 5 cafe at Itaewon

Then we go to Hummus Kitchen restaurant to have a lunch. Actually, they specially choose Itaewon and this restaurant because they think about me who consider a lot about halal food. (thank you sooooo much guys! I’m realllyyyy appreciate it A LOT. *kiss). According to some website, this middle eastern restaurant is one of moslem friendly (need to check their halal certification first). As the name, we choose Hummus as our main dishes. It’s my first time trying hummus (another first experience). We also order grilled chicken and shrimp along with the salad, pitta bread, olive pizza, and seafood stew. What I fell lucky about is, the price here is quiet expensive. So, once again, thanks to KTO who paid our casual lunch.

Lunch meaddle-eastern food at Hummus Kitchen Itaewon

Our last stop in Itaewon is Line friends store, that sold a lot of things and souvenir with line character. Well, I didn’t buy anything, because I can’t find the impressive one with lower price. Kkkk.

Line Friends Store at Itaewon

Crowded Myeongdong in afternoon

Finally we go back to Myeongdong. Max specially takes me there to see what myeongdong is. And it’s very cowded by peoples and shops.

Then we arrived at K-style hub. On their third foor, they have such an experiencing area. Of course our favourite one is the K-star zone. You can take a virtual photo with world star Korean idol, named it Bigbang, 2ne1, Psy, etc. They also have 360 degree virtual tour. You can also consult your face skin and other kind of your health in Medical Tourism Information, to get further treatment in Korea. They even give you tea herbs for free. They also have praying room for moslem here. So for my moslem family, pay a visit here to take a look on some and did praying. At 4^th floor, there’s such a museum that informed more about Korean food and culture. And the most anticipated place is, the kitchen on the upper floor. Yes, we’ll made our own dinner tonight. There’s a lot of kitchen bench that we can used to cooking after the seonsaengnim give the demo about step by step of cooking process. For me, I cook Japchae at that time. But since I don’t know much, seonsaengnim helped me a lot. So that my dish can taste delicious~

A lot of experiences in K-style hub

Namdaemun

At night, Me and Nat planned to go to Namdaemun. After long walking, finally we arrive at dark namdaemun. I don’t know, there’s not much activity there, kind of closed already. So we decided to go back to myeongdong by subway. Well, at  least I know, Find, and see that famous historicalI Nadaemun gate. Myeongdong I bought some Korean souvenir in Daiso and in one of the stall that you can found easily there. I also buy an egg bread (gyerang bbang). Well it can make my body warm enough. Accidentally, we meet other member who have shopping here too, in this crowded myeongdong. What a coincidence. Maybe we’re meant to be together. Then we ended up go back to hotel together. And having last party in Rajesh and Toan’s room.

Crowded Myeongdong nght market - Myeongdong christmas tree - Gyerang bbang