the meandering mind of a wannabe traveller: Seoul Subway

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Walking SEOUL Part 2

Since I don't want extremely long posts...Here's the 2nd part (Day 1 and 2) of my 3-part first Korea exploration! I hope that this will give you an idea on what things to look forward to on your own trip there!

DAY 1 (April 3)
Our flight from Manila was at 1:15am (Philippine time) and we arrived at Incheon at 6:15am (Korean time). It took us around 30-40 minutes before we got out of the airport since there were many people who arrived at that time. After getting our luggages, the airport was designed to cater to the convenience of the airport users and especially for tourists. The counters for transportation, money changers, food stalls (i.e., McDonald's, local restaurants, etc) are right outside the arrival area and there are also cell phones available for rent. All I can say is that Incheon International Airport deserves their title of being the best airport in the world for 6 consecutive years! Daebak!!

We rode Bus No. 6001 headed for the Myeongdong area. It took us approximately 1 1/2 hours before we reached our drop off point, which is the last drop off for that bus. We went down at Sejong Hotel and was forced to walk to our hotel even if it was drizzling/snowing because taxis wouldn't accept us since our hotel was really just walking distance from our drop off point. Upon confirming our booking to the hotel we decided to eat lunch already since our rooms were still not available. Haha this was really an adventure for us since we still do not know what restaurants or shops were near our hotel and it was extremely cold, so we entered the nearest store that we got to and apparently it was only a ramyun shop. So we had ramyun and kimbap for our first meal in Korea. The store owner was an ajumma and she was quite nice despite the language barrier that we had. (TIP: If ever you'll visit Korea it would really be helpful if you would know a little bit of their language.) We were not able to take pictures in the restaurant but below is a picture of what our lunch (점심식사) looked like.

Retrieved from: food.rasterboy.com

After lunch we decided to just stay in the hotel until the weather gets better. If you will be staying at Astoria Hotel or any hotel near that area, 2 of the tourist attractions in Seoul are very near, you can just walk to get there. These are:

KOREA HOUSE
Retrieved from: lifeinkorea.com

Korea House is an ancient building which now serves as a theater for traditional performances. It also offers various traditional classes such as Kimchi making, Korean arts and crafts, just everything about Korean traditional culture you can find it there.

NAMSANGOL HANOK VILLAGE
Retrieved from: asianlifestyle.info

The Namsangol Hanok Village portrays a traditional Korean village. I believe that this is a very good place to visit especially if you're also very interested in Korean culture like me. However, we were not able to visit these places since it was really hard to decide on where to go especially when traveling in a big group :( I will make sure to visit this on my next visit. My friend who also went there said that this was a really nice place! Another Daebak? haha

(NOTE: My previous post has a map with some points on what attractions, restaurants and convenience stores are near Astoria Hotel or the Jung-gu, Myeongdong area)

Going back to our trip...After the weather got better, around 4 pm, we decided to check out Myeongdong Shopping Area. It was a really really overwhelming place. There are super many stores, especially cosmetics stores. There are also malls you can check out such as Migliore, Shinsegae, Lotte Dept Store. The products sold in Myeongdong are really cheap and I think you can still haggle for the prices :) PLUS!! If you're a fan of Korean cosmetics, the prices are really really really cheap compared to those which can be bought in other countries, or at least in the Philippines.

teehee Jang Geun Seuk haha

*sorry for the face haha

Cute stores of Myeongdong

One of the many Etude Houses in the area

4-Storey F21 <3

After walking, going in and out of the different stores, and a little bit of shopping, we decided to search for a decent restaurant and eat a hearty dinner! We found a Japanese restaurant in the building beside F21 store.

After eating we continued with window shopping and found many street food carts. To end the day we tired out the sausage with ddeokbokki and it is very yummy! 오! 너무마시다! And of course, some fan-girling haha

Sausage with Ddeokbokki!!

DAY 2 (April 4)

a.k.a EVERLAND DAY!!

Wee~~ long awaited day haha too excited to see what Everland looked like since I've seen it many times in Korean dramas. Had our breakfast at a nearby Mister Donut and it was really different from the donuts in the Philippines and in the States. They were really cute donuts haha!

Right after breakfast we headed for Everland!! If you'll be staying in the Jung-gu, Myeongdong area here's how you can reach Everland.

Chungmuro Station

Chungmuro Station (Orange Line) to Seoul National University of Education Station
Transfer to the Green Line headed towards Gangnam. Alight at Gangnam Station and take Exit 7 since this would be nearer the pedestrian lane which would lead you to the bus station.
Take Bus 5002. This will drop you off directly to Everland ^__^

Gangnam Exit 7

If you'll be buying tickets, it's only available through the counters at the entrance but don't forget to print out the foreigner discount page found in their website. I also suggest that if you're a ride enthusiast like me and my brother, you should visit the rides first before going anywhere else since there is terribly long line for the thrilling rides. However, I must say that it's worth the wait ^^.

Rides to look forward to:
1. Double Rock Spin

2. Rolling X-Train

3. Let's Twist

4. Here are some other rides that we were not able to ride due to lack of time and some were closed >.<

Hurricane
Columbus Adventures
(The steepest wooden roller coaster! forgot the name though hihi)

(Disclaimer: Each ride takes about 45-60 mins waiting time but it really is worth the wait :) )

Also there are other places you can go to if you're not really a thrill seeker :)

Little Europe

Secret Garden

"The Ride" hahaha

At around 6 pm we left the park since it became very windy. We rode the shuttle and the same bus back to Gangnam. We decided to have dinner in the Gangnam area but our family friends were too afraid to try entering the different restaurants hihi sooo they ended up in Burger King and I, with authentic street Ddeokbokki!

This ends Day 1 and 2 please see my next post for Days 3 and 4.

Friday, April 13, 2012

Walking SEOUL Part 1

안녕 서울!

Since my trip for Korea scheduled last year was cancelled due to ASMPH TransSum, my mom re-scheduled it right after our last examinations this year. Right in time for the Holy Week.

It really was a "semi"-dream come true for me. It wasn't how I imagined my Korea trip would be but it was still very fun for me!

This post and my following post would basically outline some tips on your future trip to Korea! I based it on the things that I should have done but was not able to do. I hope this would give you some ideas on where to go on your own trip there!!

Schedule: April 3-7 ("Spring" Season)

So here are the things you should check up on prior to going there:

LOCATION and TRANSPORTATION
After asking my friends on where is a good place to stay in Seoul, they all suggested that we stay in the Myeong-dong area since it is very near the shopping places.

My mom booked at Astoria Hotel. It is a VERY affordable yet a nice hotel. Below is the map with some notes ^^

From Incheon Airport we took Bus No 6001 which will bring you to the Myeongdong Area. However, there is no bus which can directly drop you off on Astoria Hotel. The last drop off of this bus is at Sejong Hotel (brown circle in the map). Astoria Hotel is just walking distance from Sejong Hotel. However, when we arrived (April 3) the weather was not really good and it even started to snow so it was really hard for us @__@.

Important places near the hotel (directions are based on the map above; Italicized are the spots which you might want to check out ^_^):

Family Mart (24-hour convenience store) right beside the hotel on the right side
Seoul City Tour Bus Stop on the right side of the hotel before the subway station. This stop is for the Namsanggol Traditional Korean Village and Korea House which is just walking distance from the hotel.
Chungmuro Station Exit 6 on the right side of the hotel as well.
Woori Bank, in case you need to change your money into KRW, is also located on the right side of the hotel.
There are many coffee shops, small restaurants, and bakeries nearby. [Right side]: Chinese restaurant, Korean restaurants, Paris Baguette, Caffe Bene, Mister Donut, Holly's Coffee, etc. [Left side]: Domino's Pizza, Outback Steakhouse, etc. If you have just arrived and are really hungry, I suggest that you just go to the right side since there are many nearer restaurants
If you go to the left from the hotel, this will lead you to the many many cute stores of Myeongdong :) You can walk to the shopping areas in about 10 mins :) The Myeongdong Cathedral is situated within the shopping area of Myeongdong.

ASTORIA HOTEL
13-2 Namhak-dong Jung-gu, Seoul 100-260, South Korea

Business Center ONLY place where WiFi is available. They also have two computers on the left which are not shown in this picture

As for transportation, the subway is a really nice choice. There is an app for Android and Apple which would give you the whole subway map. You would find that there are stations which would connect you different bus stations if ever your destination would be in a province (i.e., Everland which is in Gyeonggi-do). It would be more convenient if you would get the T-money so that you wouldn't have to line up for tickets every time you need to use the subway. This can be reloaded in machines in the station and I think in convenience stores as well. Also, you can use this T-money for any other form of transportation and in convenience stores :) Here's the link for the Seoul Subway Map:http://metropoliphone.com/img/sub_seoul.pdf

Chungmuro Station Line 3 (Orange Line)

To and from Incheon Airport here are the options for transportation: Limousine buses (aiport buses), Taxi, ARex. If your flight is not extremely early or extremely late and do not have many luggages, I suggest that you take the ARex since this is faster and cheaper. (If you'll be staying in Astoria Hotel, it would be more convenient since Chungmuro Station is nearer compared to Sejong Hotel, where the airport bus will drop you off). Here's a link for more information on this mode of transportation http://www.airport.kr/iiacms/pageWork.iia?_scode=C0104070000

The Seoul City Tour Bus is also a nice option if ever you would like to see what Seoul can offer. Here's a link for more options on the Seoul City Tour Bus http://www.seoulstopover.com/program/citytour.asp?code=W. Regular circulation buses are also plenty, however, I think it is better for tourists to the subway :) Taxis are also an option however, they refuse passengers whose destination is near. Another transportation option would be to reserve a vehicle which you could use for certain time intervals. Information on this option can be seen in one of the brochures in the hotel.

LANGUAGE
I've learned very basic Hangul back in College but I found out that it would be better if I had pursued further studies on it. On my next visit I should be more conversant in Korean! Here are some phrases that may be useful during your trip:

안녕하세요! (Annyeong haseyo!) = Hello! (used for greeting people esp. in stores and restaurants)
감사합니다 (Kamsa-ham-nida) / 고맙습니다 (Komap-sum-nida) = Thank you!

이거 얼마에요? (Igo eolmaeyo?) = How much is this?

화장실 어디에요? (Hwajangsil eodieyo?) = Where is the toilet

네 / 예 (Ne / Ye) = Yes

아니요 (Ani-yo) = No

WEATHER and Appropriate CLOTHING
It is a must to know the weather forecast to whatever destination you have and that you keep this information in mind no matter what!! This was a lesson we learned the hard way haha. My mom and I already checked that it will be rainy on the day that we will arrive. Despite this knowledge, we did not bring umbrellas and wore very minimal warm clothes (coming from a tropical country, I only had a wardrobe fit for our climate hahaha). Lo and behold after we got out of the airport it started to rain and the rain slowly became snow haha.