Today was a very special day to me as since the opening of Hybe Insight, it has been on my bucket list of places to go. In order to book a spot in their tours, you will need to go onto the Hybe Insight website and make a Weverse account, if you don't have one already. From there, you will be able to choose your time slot and pay ($23).
This visit was very special as for only 2 days, Hybe had decided to display the diplomatic passports BTS received as they represented South Korea as diplomatic envoys at the UN General Assembly. Overall, the museum itself was very cool as it showcased works related BTS, TXT, Seventeen, and NU'EST. From interactive activities, special videos/interviews, and a display of all the trophies and albums, it was intriguing to see all the effort that is put in not only by the group but also the producers. When everything is displayed, it honestly amazed me to see everything that each of these groups have done since their debut. It also made me realize the huge impact kpop has had on the world, especially over the past couple of years. You'll definitely have to see it for yourself to feel the amazement of the museum! Even if you are not a super fan of these groups, I think it is still worth it to visit the museum!
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Third, related to drivers is the intense driving. Usually I don't get car sick but the couple times I had to ride a taxi, I felt so nauseous and had a headache after finishing my ride. The drivers drive pretty roughly (with several brake jolts) which probably caused the nauseous feeling (which has also transferred slightly to buses as well). Lastly, the issue regarding foreign vaccines. Although my friends and I have been fully vaccinated in the US, some restaurants have told us we can't dine in as our group (the limit of 4 people after 6pm if 2 people are fully vaccinated) because we haven't been vaccinated in Korea (even with proof of our vaccine cards). It is kind of saddening as there are places we would like to try but can't because of those limits. As for my classes, I'm pretty bummed that all my classes are pre-recorded lectures that are uploaded onto Ewha's class website, Cyber Campus. The professors set a deadline to watch the lectures, usually around 72 hours - 1 week since it's been posted. The pros of having pre-recorded lectures is definitely being able to make your own schedule but the cons is that I don't get the opportunity to meet my classmates. Majority of the classes are individual work and only one of my classes have group work but unfortunately won't be happening till later on the semester. On top of my four classes at Ewha (Int'l Business Law 35688, Managing Organization Behavior 30818, The Korean Economy 35731, and The Foundation of R Programming for Social Problem Solving 11367), I am also taking 2 classes at UH Manoa (HRM 453 and POLS 307B). At first I thought it would be difficult to balance all my classes but with my very flexible schedule, I am glad that I have been able to manage everything!
Chuseok (추석)! This week in South Korea, it was 추석, also known as Korean Thanksgiving! The holiday is officially observed from September 20th-22nd (Monday - Wednesday) but like many holidays, many began celebrating from the weekend. It was wonderful getting to experience a traditional holiday unique to Korea. For my friends and I, the week was very eventful as we got to go to various sites and activities as our workload was a little less due to the holidays! Kdrama site visit: Geumga Plaza If you've seen the popular kdrama Vincenzo, you'll know the Geumga Plaza is a prominent part of the show. I had a great time visiting the site and being able to see the building in person, even if it's the outside! It definitely made me think about all the scenes of Vincenzo walking around the building :) N Seoul Tower ✨ Being out and about in Seoul for about a month now, it was about time my friends and I went to visit one of the main tourist attractions, N Seoul Tower. If you prefer to not walk up a hill, I would highly recommend taking the bus and several stops away from the bottom of the road to the tower. This is because the bus does get crowded and there will be no seats available (standing is possible but it's definitely better to be sitting as Seoul bus drivers are a little rough already and driving up a hill does not help at all). When we got to the top, the view was super nice as we decided to go there closer to sunset! The main look out is nice but difficult to take pictures with the numerous people, therefore I recommend taking photos in the other sections where we still got equally (or maybe even better) photos! We decided to not go to the top this time but looking forward to going to the observatory one day! Trick Eye Museum The Trick Eye Museum was pretty interesting to me as it was the first time I've ever been to one! There were a lot of different types of art to take pictures and interact with, even some that used VR! It's very interesting how depending on the perspective, everything looks so different. The funniest one was definitely the one where Michelle and I are different sizes! From a photo perspective we look completely different sizes, although in reality we are about the same 😅! New food findings and Din Tai Fung :> Missing some Vietnamese food, Michelle and I heard that 63prov is a great Vietnamese restaurant located near Ewha! Upon trying their food, I would definitely recommend it! I had the bun bo hue, which is the spicy noodles with beef and it instantly satisfied my Vietnamese food cravings I had. I can't wait to come back and try the banh mi along with the regular pho! The second discovery of the week was 마있는순두부앤김치찜 신촌점 (Soft Tofu Stew Steamed Kimchi). Hands down, one of the best deals for a fulfilling meal. Not only is the soondubu 7500 won, it also comes with the healthy purple rice with a variety of banchan. Initially it looks like a normal bowl of soondubu but the bowl is packed with tofu along with the type of protien, in our case, we got the beef soondubu and the mix (beef and seafood) soondubu. Once the weather get cold, we'll definitely be coming here often! Seeing that this is near Yonsei, it was definitely crowded with both locals but also foreigners! This week Michelle and I (my second time this month hehe) went to Din Tai Fung where we ended up getting the shrimp set meal as it was the seasonal option! The meal was definitely worth it but was also very shrimpy. The set came with shrimp xiaolongbaos, fried spicy noodles with shrimp & vegetables, fried rice with eggs, spicy shrimp & pork wontons, fried spring rolls with shrimp & vegetables, and sweet sour soup. They were all flavorful and amazing dishes I would definitely eat again (especially since we cleared all our dishes)! Trying out new cafes :) Studying in cafes are very common here that many people spend the entire day working at one cafe (which is what I ended up doing). This week, I went to Blanc, one of the cafes in Hongdae! Not only do they have a great selection of bread, their coffee is pretty good as well! I got the sweet potato croque monsieur which was very filling and only 2400 won. In Korea, not only are there numerous coffee shops in general, there are plenty of Starbucks stores as well as Starbucks Reserves. One day we decided to check out the Starbucks Reserve at Ewha, which we found out was the first Starbucks Reserve to open in Korea! Not only do they have special lattes/cold brews, they also have their items only available at this store! Upon ordering a drink, they also give you chocolate with it, which was also very good and not too sweet. I ended up going to another Starbucks this week but I was happy that I got to try the green glazed cream frappucino, a drink not available back home. As the name suggests, the frappucino had a creamy flavor but with the green glaze (which I believe is matcha), the sweetness balanced out and I throughly enjoyed it! Squid Game display at Itaewon Station
With the new kdrama Squid Game becoming popular, the Netflix show created a display right inside the Itaewon station. Although I haven't seen the drama myself, it was very intriguing to see all the hype and promotion that is going around the show! It was so popular that people lined up to take photos with the display. (ultimately the display got shut down due to covid regulations :( but glad I got to see it before all the caution tape wrapped) Food around Hongdae! It's been about three weeks since we have lived in Hongdae and everyday I continue to be amazed by the food discoveries I experience. On our way to way the train station, Michelle and I always see one specific restaurant always crowded with people waiting outside. This week, we finally got to try 연하동 (Yeonhadong) along with one of our friends who live in the same building as us! We got the two dishes they're well known for, which is the chicken bowl and the salmon roll. They were both so delicious and definitely worth the wait (I would recommend going in pairs as their seating is majority pair seating and have only one area to seat 3 people, which is why we also had to wait a little extra to get seated)! Another popular spot in Hongdae we were able to visit for brunch is called Colline. They are known for growing their own fruits and vegetables but also their aesthetic cafe vibes. Additionally, the cafe has is very popular as the location has been used in multiple cafe scenes in kdramas. Although a little on the pricier side, the food portions and quality did not disappoint. I had their plate meal and persimmon juice! I have always loved persimmons and never would I have ever thought I would get to try persimmons juiced. The juice wasn't that sweet while still maintaining that persimmon flavor, a great balance if you ask me! The plate meal was also very flavorful with the french toast and savory bacon and sausage. This is one place I have bookmarked and will be back to! Lastly, if you're ever in an area with street food, definitely worth a try! By Hongik Station Exit 2, there is a food stall ran by an ajumma (local auntie), who sells typical street food such as odeng and tteokbokki! It's so cheap yet satisfying, it's my go to place when I have tteokbokki cravings :) Then after you're done with dinner, there's so many dessert places around, this week, Natalie, Michelle, and I chose to go to Soft Lab. We got their blueberry, brownie, and salted caramel soft. All of them were pretty good and would recommend depending on whether you're feeling fruity or sweet! When HKU/HSBC Case Comp brings friends together 💗 This past summer, I had the opportunity to participate in the HKU/HSBC Case Competition. During one of the networking rounds, I met Gabby, who was part of the Yonsei University team. Fast forward to this week, I had the wonderful opportunity of meeting her along with her friend and my friends. For lunch, we headed to 인사동마늘보쌈 (Insadong Maneul Bossam), where we had bossam among many other dishes. Everything was so delicious there, a definite recommendation to fulfill any bossam cravings! After lunch, we headed to onion, a very popular cafe with its traditional look. They had amazing unique pastries, which I wished I could try all of them (we ended up getting 3 to share to be reasonable and not eat with our eyes :)) The pastries we got were chocolate banana, chocolate scone, and their best seller injeolmi pandoro. Upon first taste, everything was even better than it looked! The coffee had great aroma and the pastries were not overly sweet, a great balance. From there, we walked around the Bukchon Hanok Village before we called it a day (we also had some snacks such as a croffin and bingsu because it was so hot)! Thank you so much to Gabby and Lisa for taking us around the area and planning the whole day! 💗 Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Let me begin by saying Shang-Chi was AMAZING! It truly is amazing to finally see Asian representation in blockbuster films. Not only did Simu Liu portray his character perfectly, it was also nice to see familiar faces such as Awkwafina, Michelle Yeoh, and Ronny Chieng (also all in Crazy Rich Asians lol). If you haven't seen it yet, don't wait any longer!! Aside from the film, the movie theater experience was great in itself. The ticketing machine was easy to navigate and they had decently affordable theater food (compared to the US; we also got some Gongcha to take with us :)). It was also great to see a small replica of platform 9 3/4 for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone's 20th anniversary!
The Hyundai Seoul One of the highlights of this week was definitely visiting The Hyundai Seoul, Seoul's newest and biggest department store. The mall opened earlier this year and is 15 floors and over 959,000 sq ft (89,000 sqm+). I would definitely say it is one of the nicest malls I have been to ever. From luxury to every day brands, there was everything there. The most amazing part was how aesthetic the mall was, especially the Sounds Forest, which was the perfect place to take photos! When in Seoul, it is definitely one of the must visit malls to experience! They also had a Christian Dior pop up store at the Sounds Forest so I *had* to take a photo with the gigantic bag they had displayed 😌 *The photos my friends and I got were definitely Instagrammable for those of you looking for an aesthetic place to take photos :)* I-Park Mall I-Park Mall is located at Yongsan station, which is a very popular area. Like many other malls, there are a variety of shops and eateries on multiple levels! This was a very special trip as Natalie and I got to see the Studio Ghibli pop up store! Since it is the 20th anniversary of the movie Spirited Away, there were many items from the movie ras well as other Studio Ghibli movies. Being the artist Natalie is, she even drew me with No-face (Kaonashi)! Additionally, around the area, there was also pop ups of anime stores. We also got to try Shake Shack, where they also had makgeolli shake! It was so creamy yet flavorful, we definitely enjoyed every sip of it. Yeonjun Cafe Visit Since Yeonjun's birthday was in a couple days, Natalie and I visited Cafe Bud, one of the cafes that was hosting a Yeongjun birthday event. They had a poster for him outside the store, which we took a photo with and got a set as well (the drink came with 2 cups and a card!) :) Since the cafe is around Hybe, their entertainment company, there were several other cafes that were decorated! It's definitely an interesting experience! With classes starting, this week was definitely a little slower than the previous weeks~ I will still try my best to update you all with all my adventures and experiences!
Today my friends and I headed to the In the Soop pop-up store located at the Hyundai Seoul. In the Soop is a mini show series where BTS and Seventeen went to a secluded area as with their band mates to enjoy a relaxing week of being able to do whatever they wanted. Like many things, their company decided to come up with special merch to commemorate the show and even create a pop-up store to allow fans to be able to purchase the merch! Luckily, my friends and I went a couple days after the pop-up store opened and on a weekday, therefore, there was no line to get into the store (unlike where we heard from some people that they waited 2 hours to get into the store). The store was very aesthetically decorated and the staff were very nice that they even took a picture for us! i had a great time looking and shopping as normally I would only be able to see these special pop-up stores online since they are mainly held in locations such as Seoul, Singapore, LA, etc! Knowing that this is only the beginning of many kpop adventures to come, I can't wait to see what lies ahead in the future :)
Let the semester begin Classes officially started on September 1st! It's kind of unfortunate that all my lectures are pre-recorded so they're all asynchronous. On the other hand, I'm telling myself that it'll hopefully give me more opportunities to explore Korea! I'll provide a more in depth update at the end of the month :) This week's food guide My two food highlights of this week was being able to go to Din Tai Fung (myeongdong location) and Ikea! At Din Tai Fung, Natalie and I ended up getting the xiao long bao sampler which had five different flavors (crab, chicken, pork, shrimp, and mushroom), fried rice with eggs & crab meat in xo sauce, sautéed green beans & beef with oyster sauce, and spicy vegetable and pork wonton. We ended up clearing all of our dishes and were very satisfied with our meal. On my trip to Ikea with Michelle, I was so happy to be able to eat the popular Ikea meatball again! It's pretty interesting to see that Ikea's in different countries have their own unique speciality. Being in Korea, the Ikea here had kimchee fried rice but we didn't get it as we went there for the famous meatballs. They were good as expected! They also had their special hej twist cone, which was a banana and blueberry flavored twist! It was an interesting combination of flavors but fairly enjoyable, especially for only 1000 won. I thought it was also amazing how they also had an ice cream bar where you could make your own sundae! Other places I went this week were 무아국수집 (located in Anam, near Korea University) and 구미마을 bbq village (in sinchon)! Exploring Gangnam During one of our free days, we (Michelle, JJ, Dakota, and I) decided to take a trip out to Gangnam, a popular shopping, food, nightlife area in Seoul. We started our day at 유정식당 Yoojung Sikdang, a restaurant that BTS frequently went to during their trainee days. Not only is this a great place for BTS fans but they also had great food! They're known for their pork wrapped in vegetables, which Dakota and JJ got and looked amazing. Michelle and I got the bibimbap, which was equally as amazing with the stir fried pork and hot stone pot. We were also very lucky that we went around Jungkook's (one of the BTS members) birthday so they gave us photo cards and cup sleeves (a popular item provided for idols)! From there, we explored around Gangnam, where we went down the Gangnam Star Road, Seolleung/Jeongneung Royal Tomb, and the famous Gangnam Style hands outside COEX. It was most definitely an eventful and amazing day to be able to see all of these kpop related and historical locations in person. My two favorite m's: matcha & mango
With my love for matcha, I had to find a matcha place in South Korea. I was very happy when I found out about Osulloc Tea (오설록), a popular tea shop from Jeju. The main store is located in Jeju but they do have multiple locations around South Korea! I tried the matcha einspanner, which was so creamy yet rich with the matcha taste! They had a variety of drinks so you'll definitely be able to try a new drink every time you go back! There were also a variety of tea leaves and other items to buy to satisfy any tea cravings! As for my mango cravings, I was able to find Go Mango (I went to the Hongdae location but there are several around Seoul)! I got a strawberry mango smoothie and it was only 2900 won! The drink was very flavorful and it even came with frozen strawberries and mango on the top! They have about 5 different drinks to try, so I definitely can't wait to try them all while I'm here! Happy Birthday Jungkook! Today, September 1st is JK's birthday so my friends and I decided to go around Seoul and find things that were set up in honor of his birthday. Our first stop was going to the Yongsan area as we heard that around HYBE (entertainment company of BTS) there will be displays and cafes! To our surprise, we found a well decorated cafe, a 35 meter wall with just Jungkook, and street poles decorated with his banners! After checking out the area, we headed to I-Park Mall, which is located at Yongsan station, where we saw a decoration dedicated to one of his singles Still with You. The statue was 7 m tall and was so pretty to see in person! After exploring the Yongsan area, we headed toward Gangnam, an area we heard that would have plenty of billboards. Not only was there one but there were multiple in one area! Since COEX mall was near the area, we also stopped by there, where to our surprise practically all the billboards would show Jungkook on every other ad! It honestly amazes me to see how much effort fans put in to celebrate their favorite idols. *Fun fact: Jungkook is one of the most celebrated idols! He also set the new record for 'most birthday hashtags' with 1 million mentions and a total of 10 trending hashtags :0* As we wrapped up the night, I was very impressed with everything I've seen to celebrate his birthday and barely could fathom everything that was happening. What amazed me the most was that these celebrations were happening around the world in countries such as the US, Japan, Singapore, and UK to name a few.
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kelsFrom traveling to tips, I hope to share my experiences with you all and motivate you to explore your kuriosities :) Archives
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