V

White Day.

So in korea, they have a holiday called White Day. It's like Valentine's day where the guy gives the girl candy (not really chocolate but candy). yeah it sounds the same but it's not because Korea has Valentines day too. but the girl gives the guy chocolates.

so white day was on March 14 and i must say that it was the most miserable day of my trip here. koreans sell a lot of products on the streetsides as it is. and to see every single vendor sell candy specifically designed adorably for white day is a gruesome reminder to my single misery. hahah except i love the single life. haha.

anyways. Cafe's are a popular hang out spot in korea. for couples, friends, strangers meeting new people, kids trying to studying, people just creeping, anyone. so imagine how popular cafes are on white day. sighhh. everywhere i went it was just. COUPLES. AHHHHH.

instead of being a miserable little cookie, olivia and i decided to have our own date and go to dinner at Nolitas (nicer italian restaurant) and have some BANGING dessert. We also got a chance to check out a cute brunch like cafe where we splurged for a yummy american breakfast.
Eggs sunny side up with homemade pancakes (which were quite delish), grilled pineapple, bacon, and korean sausage (or lame excuse for an american sausage).

*Olivia's Dinner, My Dinner, Dessert

Nolita's i must say has quite delicious pasta. Olivia and I prefer another place called Spaghettini (which i'll mention later) but it was good food.

Dessert @Manoffin.... I got the strawberry tea with chocolate strawberry cupcake/muffin. the cupcake was really chocolatey and i wasn't prepared for it but it was still a good tasting dessert. the tea i must say needed some sweetness to it. i would probably not go there again.

This post chronologically should have been posted after couple posts but white day was so depressing but bittersweet that i needed to write about it.

Till the next one :)

IV

So continuing on with my journey...

Olivia and I scored a sweet free night at the Lotte World Hotel (which happens to be one of the nicer hotels in korea). This is the Disney world of korea where the hotel is connected to a huge mall, lotte world (disney world equiv), the hotel, and some other things. its just really big and grand.

the hotel was gorgeous and our stay was very satisfying. i must say that after sleeping on rock hard mattresses at school and at relatives having a nice fluffy soft comfy hotel bed is AMAZING.

me at the outdoor part of Lotte worl adventure park. like my hair bow? I wanted to live it like i did when i was really young so i bought a cute bow headband. which makes me also wanna add that souvenirs/food in korean themepark don't cost 20 dollars at minimum. its the same as outside of the park.
COMFY BEDS!

Purchases from the Lotte World Department Mall:

for being an awesome spectator at the MAC cosmetics Wonderwoman show i got free samples <3

anna sui lipstick. always wanted to try it.

so uniqlo sells big bang t shirts and since i couldnt get one at the concert i opted for a prettier cheaper one there!

So i seem to talk about this in every post but it's a really irritating

but someone look at this human being and tell me what gender they are.
guy. he was at the park with his girlfriend. soo feminine. i would rant but hoenslty that would turn into a manslaughter. but he had a purse too. just look at him. how does he have a girlfriend. honestly i'm so over feminine men. jersey shore has it right. GTL.

couples.

no one told me the disclaimer (so i will provide one for the future humans traveling to korea):

The country you are about to enter consists of a population with a relationship status (defined by Facebook): in a relationship. You will find that they like to dress in couple outfits consisting of matching shoes, purses, sweaters, shirts, jeans, head bands, accesories, cell phone charms, etc. You may find it overwhelming to hear the exchange of disgusting-cutesy-ish words between the two individuals. Often you will see that they try to hide their PDA by kissing behind a barrier that is supposed to hide their actions, when infact you really know what is going on behind the barrier.

so there it is. for now.

good night :)

III...

So I really suck at this blogging thing. but I swear that I will improve. the weather is improving, so I will improve with it.

A lot has been going on here in Korea. I have run into a lot of issues dealing with my visa/immigration status and it has just been a stressful journey. Thankfully through prayer and luck I have resolved all these issues. So i'll be making a safe return to the states without putting a $1000 dent in my bank account YAY!

Every time something "interesting/different" happens throughout my day I tell myself to make a mental note so I can blog about it. But apparently my mental sticky notes like to lose track of these memos.... fail. but here are the points that I do remember.

*Food:

Its a very popular thing to roam the streets of korea and see tents set up that sell "fast food". typically it has the spicy rice cake stuff and fried assortments. its great to fulfill any craving especially for fried food lovers.... ME.
Fruits in korea are soooooo much more delicious than in the states. the way they are packaged to be sold are so much more artistic than the states as well. but no joke so much more ripe, sweet, colorful and seriously these strawberries just taste more strawberry-y.
at baskin robbins enjoying some ice cream fondue. MMMMMMM. btw. note that there is tomatoes. who eats tomatoes with fondue?
this is beef bone stew? but this place has the best and its pure deliciousness.

i didn't realize how late it is. but i have class in the morning so I will update this tomorrow with the rest!

Goodnight folks!

II

Finally. Week 2 has gone by and it's gone by really fast.

I think that I have officially settled in and I am starting to adjust to the korean culture and lifestyle.

it's been a busy week with lots of errands here and there and walking all around seoul. I am the worst at taking pictures these days which is very odd considering i used to be quite the camera/picture-taking fiend.

*Big bang concert.

For those of you who are not familiar with who Big Bang is. They are a Korean Pop band, almost to the equivalent of BSBoys but more.. they are like the justin bieber but since there is 5 of them, you can imagine the degree girls drool for them. but i'm not going to lie, i've never been a kpop fan, or even korean music, and i simply went to the concert for Olivia's interest. and i do enjoy any performing arts type of thing. Let me just say that I fell in love. The more i talk about them, the more my heart stops. so i will leave it here.

*Mike's Cabin.

Mike's cabin is a bar in Sinchon, Seoul by our school. and it's where foreigners like to go and drink b/c of the more americanized/less korean vibe of the area. Me and Judy (new friend) decided to check the scene out on a very slow night, but slowly became in love with the place (mainly because of the awesome bartender there). but it's nothign fancy but it's a good highlight.

*Book Stores.

Korea has a lot of book stores and stationary stores. and boy do they have some cute and nifty things. I die whenever i am in one of these stores, especially because i have to prepare myself of overexcitement and a possible heart attack from the amount of money i will end up spending. overall, book stores are a little hobby of mine. i love going to them and looking around and just browsing, but it's a fun thing that sounds lame but don't judge. most of you will understand this obsession based on my over obsessiveness for pens/pencils/office supplies. 'nuff said.

*guys?

the reason to the question mark is simply because guys here are very feminine. and i question whether or not they are a male or female most of the time. some(most) actually wear makeup (eyeliner and foundation) which contribute to a more feminine appeal. ew. and i just wanna say that men here need to bulk up. i don't like seeing guys with legs skinnier than me. it's gross.

*food.

i'll probably mention food almost every blog. but I LOVE korean food and that doesnt even explain my love for korean food. not to mention the fact that i love food from the beginning so the 2 combined is like my dirty little sin. anyways. i've been trying the school cafeteria this week and i must say for the amount you pay, it is very worth it. i can have a meal usually averaging 2-4 dollars. sometimes cheaper sometimes more expensive.

also. i've been venturing out to try new food/restuarants and tonight i fell in love with this homey restuarant that served food just as good as my mom. never have i ever eaten so much in my life. the restauarant was called 행복식당 (happiness/joy restaurant). and honestly the food was so good that you do feel such joy and happiness after you each. i'm almost positive that i will be a frequent customer.

overall it wasn't much of a week, i'm hoping to spice things up a bit soon. but until next week. enjoy.

I

Finally.
After lots of stress and a long wait I have reached Korea. It's officially been one week since my departure and I am slowly adjusting to the lifestyle.

I've decided to keep it simple that I will only discuss the highlights of my trip on this blog. For those who actually would like to know more about my trip, I am keeping a detailed (or as detailed as I can be---spite my laziness) electronic journal. Without further ado...

korean market: fishies ish

typical korean market: fruit

fast eat: egg stuff and side dishes

pretty shoes: korea really puts an art into little childrens feet. i think these are the cutest things ever. i would so wear this....

hello kitty. korea has hello kitty everything. it's alex dorais' heaven

some good ol' korean bbq. smaller dishes are side dishes very standard.

a building at Yonsei University. my host university has some buildings that seem to be very old, but i love the antiqueish look.

stores in korea are cuter. they have nifty little things and i thought this was very humorous.

@ Hongdik university area. at the Hello Kitty Cafe. the cutest little cafe ever. It's very common to go to cafe's in korea, not to mention how freakign adorable they are.




cute restaurant by our school/dorm. very nice and delicious food. expensive, but highly recommend if you're ever in the area.

big bang is back. big bang is a very popular kpop group in korea. they would be the equivalent of justin bieber or more. i'm not a kpop person, but i fell in love last night. they have talent and it showed. honestly though, korean performers can put on a damn good concert and it was worth every bit and some.

italian name nicholas, out with a bunch of yonsei exchange students and we ended up at the Karaoke rooms (noraebangs) and chilled.

Not a very detailed blog, my apologies.

But I promise to do better after this post.

Carpe diem.

-e