korea adventures
Weekly updates about the things I'm up to. Mainly so my grandma doesn't worry too much about me.
This weekend was my last weekend in Korea. I'm going to miss it here, but I am excited to go home and see my friends! This week was also the first week of finals. Because I don't have much time left, I've been eating at all the places I wanted to eat at and bought lots of omiyage to bring home.
On Monday, I was still on a mission to find my sister her Korean spoon. She didn't really care for the spoon that I bought her last week, so I've been thinking of places to buy it from. I decided to go down by SNU station. Although I wasn't able to find a spoon for her, I did get to walk around a market. There were lots of vendors selling fish and produce. On my walk back, I stopped at Krispy Kreme for a donut and CU for another bagged drink, which was the matcha latte. There was also a new restaurant that opened near me called Amazing-O. I don't know if it's because of COVID, but businesses are constantly opening and closing. There's even a Gong Cha that's going to open nearby! I got a mushroom salad from Amazing-O. On Tuesday, I went to get dinner in Sharosu-gil. The COVID restrictions are changing quickly because of Omicron, so my friend from Japan left at the end of the week. For our last dinner together, we were originally going to eat at a tonkatsu place, but it was closed. Some of the businesses in Sharosu-gil remind me of Ice Garden back at home. Their hours aren't super consistent, so you just have to guess when it's going to be open. We ended up getting pizza instead. We shared a marinara and formaggi pizza, and both were delicious! It was a wood-fired pizza, so of course the crust was perfect. For dessert, I picked up a mini cup of oreo tiramisu. My first final of the semester was due on Wednesday. It was a take home final, and we were given the whole week to do it. To reward myself, I ate a stone pot bibimbap from a restaurant inside the department store down the road. I had this meal during one of my first weeks here, and I've been meaning to go back. I love the crispy rice from the stone pot. I also got a sparkling grapefruit tea from a cafe across the street. This was another place that I've been wanting to try. I picked up a sweet cheese macaron, and honestly, it tasted weird. But what did I expect when that was the flavor? On Thursday, I took a quick walk to the CU to pick up a bagged drink. I decided to try the Shikhye flavor, which is a Korean sweet rice drink. It was something different, but I liked it. I also picked up my favorite ricotta cheese salad from Salady. For dinner, I went to the restaurant located in the basement of my goshiwon called Doozari Kitchen. I got a cheese filled tonkatsu with sweet potato paste. All of the food was under $9! I've never had sweet potato paste on tonkatsu before, but it added a nice touch. On Friday, I went to lunch at Grain in Hongdae. I had an avocado toast and souffle pancake. Both were so delicious! I went to a cafe after and had a grapefruit lavender tea with a pastry. Grapefruit drinks are very popular in Korea, so that is the drink that I get when I am indecisive. I also discovered a sauce version of the carbonara ramen noodles. I bought a bunch of bottles to give to my friends. Saturday was my final shopping day. I attempted to eat at Plant, a vegan restaurant, but was denied entry because my vaccine was "too old." Earlier this week, Korea tightened restrictions, so restaurants are required to check for your vaccination card. I'm not sure what the exact rules are though. Since I was vaccinated in February, my vaccine was more than 6 months ago, so I was unable to dine in at Plant. However, there was a steak place in a basement in Hongdae that allowed me to eat there. The texture of meat was perfect, and it was only $9! After lunch, I headed to Namdaemun Market to do some shopping. I first bought a carry on suitcase for 35,000 won to carry all of the stuff I bought. I was on the hunt for my sisters spoon once again. There are people in red jackets that are there to help tourists find directions. The market can be quite overwhelming, so it is always good to ask them for help. The person guided me to an entire floor of kitchen goods, where I was able to find a spoon that my sister liked. My mom likes those really soft Korean sponges, and I think they are great gifts. I bought 20 sponges, and I think I made the vendors day. I think she was confused at first when I told her I wanted 20, but I think she was very happy that I bought so much! After Namdaemun, I walked over to Myeongdong. One of the department stores had a KBake, so I tried the raspberry tart. I also went to Osulloc to have a red papaya black tea and rest my feet from all the shopping. Honey Butter Almonds are a popular item in Korea, and they sell much more flavors than Palama/H-mart at home. There's a store selling bigger bags (120-130g) at a store in Myeong-dong (5 bags for 20,000 won), and Daiso also sells mini bags (40g) for 1,500 won. I bought a bunch of almonds, and that concluded my shopping for this trip. For dinner, I ate at No Brand Burger. When I got back to my goshiwon, I spent the night strategically arranging my suitcase to maximize the 50lb limit. Sunday was my study day because I have a final on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday next week, as well as a presentation on Tuesday. I needed to go for a walk, so I went to this shop for a yogurt smoothie in Sharosu-gil. I also got a garlic naan from my favorite bakery, and a light bibimbap from LaBab. The bibimbap was only $3.40! I am definitely going to miss the convenience and price of food when I go back to Hawaii.
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I can't believe it's already December! Places are starting to put up their festive decorations. Finals are beginning next week, and for me, I have exams from the 8th until the 16th. Unlike UH, finals do not have a designated week. Professors are recommended to have 14 weeks of class throughout the semester, so depending on holidays, the date of a final varies from class to class. COVID has a new Omicron variant, so restrictions and travel are changing quickly. I decided to move my flight home a week earlier, and I am now required to take a test within 1 day of my departure (it was previously 3 days). I've done pretty much everything I've wanted to do in Korea, but since I moved my flight a week earlier, I am eating at the places I haven't yet tried and buying omiyage.
On Monday, I went for a short walk to the convenience store and bakery. There was this custard dessert from the bakery that I've had my eyes on, and it was so good! I'm also trying to drink as many of the convenience store bagged drinks as possible before I leave. My creation was blue lemonade + milkis. The weather on Tuesday was absolutely horrible, but I still went on a walk to pick up some gifts from Daiso. Dollar stores are dangerous.. You always end up buying more than you intended to! What was supposed to be a 5 item trip turned into a 15 item trip. For dinner, I mastered the art of ramen. I realized that I don't really drink the broth of ramen. My secret is to pour just a little bit of the boiling water into the bowl, add a little bit of sauce, and add the cooked noodles. I also like to add an egg! It creates perfectly flavored noodles. Wednesday was a very cold night, but I grabbed dinner in Sharosu-gil. We ate at a restaurant with 2.5 stars on Naver but only realized the bad rating after sitting down. I had a mushroom cream pasta, and I would have to give it a 4/5 stars. There were fried potatoes on top, and overall, everything was delicious. Despite it being under 30 degrees outside, we still went to grab bingsu. I also bought a creme brulee macaron! Another place that I've been wanting to try was the potato dog on a stick. I've always told myself that I'll go there when I'm feeling lazy, but with only 2 weeks left in Korea, I decided I had to try it. I got the one with potatoes on the outside and the inside was filled with cheese. It hit the spot. I also bought macarons from the convenience store. The quality of desserts at convenience stores is unreal! On Friday, I went for a walk to the campus bookstore. I spent quite a lot of time in there trying to decide what souvenir I wanted to bring back home. I know the varsity jackets are super popular, but I thought it would be impractical to wear in Hawaii. I just bought a t-shirt and reusable bag. I think the last time I came to campus was about a month ago, and it has changed so much! The trees are all naked, but campus was still beautiful. On my way back, I stopped at the convenience store to try and find tiramisu. I couldn't find it, so I ended up buying a chocolate strawberry cake with cream. On Saturday, I went to Itaewon to eat at Jihal, a halal place. I was smart this time and asked them to make my wrap without the spicy sauce. The last time I ate halal food, I was dying from the spice. After Itaewon, I rode the train to the main Kyobo Bookstore because my friend needed a gift. Since I was somewhat in close proximity, I went to Namdaemun Market to find a spoon for my sister. She asked for a spoon because she loves the length and weight of Korean spoons. On my walk to Namdaemun, I passed the Cheonggyecheong Stream, City Hall, and a Starbucks with a traditional design. It was a beautiful walk in perfect weather. After, I walked to Myeongdong to see some pretty cool light decorations and ate mushroom porridge from the Lotte Department Store. I also ate a strawberry mochi! On Sunday, I went to Costco to look for omiyage. I felt that there wasn't anything that would be worth bringing home, and everything was too big, which was expected because it's Costco. After Costco, I went to a cafe nearby. It's strawberry season, so I got a strawberry cream croissant, as well as a pesto cheese vegetable toast. This was probably some of the best food I've had in Korea. |
AuthorStudying abroad at Seoul National University! Archives
December 2021
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