Hotel Nafore (Seoul)

Hotel Nafore was one of the cheaper hotels that we saw with a pretty good location and did not look too cramped. 

1) Location 

Finding this hotel was a slight nightmare for me. The taxi driver dropped us off at some random building and while after walking around for some time, we could see the hotel but could not figure which alleys to take to reach the hotel. Do yourself a favour and download the directions from their webpage and/or the instructions given. 

Other than the fact that I reached the hotel with a fever which contributed to my irritation of finding out that cars cannot drop passengers off in front of the hotel (and that you have to navigate alleys to reach the hotel), the location of the hotel was good. It was a 5 -7 min walk away from Jongo 3(sam)-ga Station and a 10 min walk from Euljiro 3(sam)-ga Station, both of which connect to 2 lines each (Line Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 5). It's pretty much in the city so you can easily reach the attractions (e.g. you can walk to Myeongdong in around 20 minutes). It is also one minute away from Cheonggyecheon, a stream that looks particularly beautiful at night. 

2) Room

I thought that the room was slightly small but recalled that the floor area of similar hotels in Seoul was smaller. The room was clean and they had international channels available on TV. The beds and pillows were also comfortable.

The toilet was fine, nothing too fancy.

3) Amenities 

This is basically a no frills hotel with limited facilities. They have a simple rooftop garden. There is a restaurant and cafe but we didn't try the food there.

The staff are courteous.

Overall, if you are looking for somewhere which offers good value in Seoul and is not too small, with a good location, Hotel Nafore is a good choice.

Hotel Nafore 
17 Supyo-ro
18 ga-gil, Jongo-Gu
Seoul 

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Spirited Garden (Jeju)

Sung Bum-Young was born into a poor family in 1939. In 1963, he set foot on Jeju to visit a friend. He purchased land at Jeoji-ri and in 1968 started to develop the wasteland covered with stones, with no water or electricity supplied to the area. During those days, residents in his neighbourhood called him a "madman" as he developed this garden. And today the Spirited Garden is a well-maintained garden exuding a zen-like feel. Entrance fee is 12,000 won per adult and 10,000 won for seniors (65 years old and above). 

Even at the entrance, we spent some time there as my father-in-law was interested in the bonsai plants. There was also a guide on how to appreciate bonsai. Unlike how I usually just walk cursorily from plant to plant, according to the founder, you have to observe the tree, looking from the bottom to the top. There are also several etiquette to observe, including not asking the price the bonsai might sell for as beauty cannot be expressed in monetary terms.

There were nuggets of the founder's own wisdom at the signs next to the trees.

One example is this: "In spring, flowers bloom and leaves sprout. Before the blooming and sprouting comes the formation of a bud or germ. When does this germ form? Many assume that it must be either winter or spring. The correct answer is autumn... Trees prepare for the next spring as early as the previous summer or fall (mostly in June or July). And then against the cold winds of winter, they temper themselves. When spring arrives at last, they bloom their beautiful flowers. In human life, only those who prepare well for the future by enduring hardships seem to be able to enjoy the beautiful blooming season of life just like the trees that must withstand the cold winter before sprouting. It seems that resolutely enduring hardships are a prerequisite to all successes and achievements."

For a quick walk through the gardens, it will probably take around an hour. However, if you want to take a more leisurely walk through the gardens, give it around 2-3 hours.

As we completed our walk around the garden, we saw the founder and spoke to him. He was a kind-looking elderly gentleman and was happy to speak to us through his translator.

I did not have much expectations of this place but this place turned out to be rather thought provoking, and allows you to draw parallels between nature and how we should live our lives.

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Myeongjin Jeonbok (Jeju)

When tourists talk about the food that you must try in Jeju, the two items that will definitely surface are black pork and abalone. 

We asked our Airbnb host whether there was any place in particular she recommended for abalone. While she was happy to share the names of restaurants for other kinds of food, she said that locals usually typically did not eat abalone in restaurants as these abalones are farmed and they would rather buy the wild abalones from the market. 

We decided to try Myeongin Jeonbok in any case because we weren't about to head to the market to buy some abalones. When we reached, we were told by the lady at the counter that we were to return in 45 minutes. She then said, "One five!" We thought that she changed her mind and that we were now to return in 15 minutes. It turned out that she really meant five minutes past one.

There was a small hut next to the restaurant, where there was free water and coffee for the loads of people who were waiting for their turn to enter the restaurant. If you prefer, the restaurant is right next to the sea and you can take a stroll by the sea.

When asking for a seat, you also have to place your order. If it is easier, you can just tell her "one", "two", "three" and "four". These are set out on the wall.

(1) Abalone Sizzling Stone Pot Rice

(2) Rice Porridge with Abalone

(3) Grilled Abalone

(4) Slices of Raw Abalone

We ordered Grilled Abalones (30,000 won). This was the first time I ate abalone in its shell instead of eating it out of a can. The piping hot abalones were thick and chewy.

If you order both the porridge and the stone pot rice, I think you would have a preference for either by the end of the meal. I preferred the Abalone Sizzling Stone Pot Rice (15,000 won) as the rice was flavourful with more ingredients (such as pumpkin) and there were always the crispy bits of rice that you can always scrap off. The Koreans next to us poured some water into the pot, covered the pot for a while, then finished the rest of the rice.

The Rice Porridge with Abalone (12,000 won) was comforting to the hungry stomach, but was otherwise rather unexciting.

We also got a complimentary fish which was nicely crisped and had a delicious smoky taste to it (but plenty of bones).

If possible, do check the opening hours. While some websites state that they are open until 9 p.m. at night, other websites say that they open till 6:30 p.m. only. You don't want to be making a wasted trip! It is also supposedly closed on Tuesdays.

Myeongjin Jeonbok 
128 Haemajhaean-ro
Gujwa-eup
Jeju 

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Wangbijib Restaurant (Seoul)

When I was young, I used to play a computer game where I would barbecue meat and try not to char it. It was a game that I could play, day in day out. I probably enjoyed playing the game because in my era, a lot of my friends enjoyed Seoul Garden and playing the game was probably a substitute for not eating it often. 

Wangbijib is like a well-oiled korean BBQ factory where everything is done efficiently. Their staff can also speak many languages. 

Although we were looking forward to a BBQ experience, we didn't do the barbecuing by ourselves in the end (not necessarily a bad thing) because the set we wanted was grilled before it was served.

I could eat all these Korean appetisers forever. The Grilled Pork (13,000 won per person) was sweet, well marinated and juicy. I am not sure whether it was because it tastes so good because I'm in Seoul, or whether, well because it's really that good! It also comes with rice, noodles and a soup and we were so full by the end of the meal.

Despite the rushed affair here, service was surprisingly decent. For that amount of food we are eating, I would pay this amount any time.

When we left the restaurant at around 7 p.m., there was already a long queue. Do yourself a favour by going earlier so that you can use the time to shop / sight see instead of being in the queue!

Wangbijib Restaurant
26 Meyonedong 8ga-gil
Jung-gu, Seoul

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School Food (Seoul)

One cold night, we decided to venture out to the places nearby. Too many places were ruled out as we couldn't understand anything in the menu (with no pictures).

Suddenly, the words "School Food" jumped out at us and we decided, yes, if the name of the restaurant is in English, there should be something that we would be able to understand in there. 

We settled down comfortably and realised that with the exception of the words "School Food", everything in the menu was Korean. 

Pointing, we asked the waitress what ingredients were there in the dish below. Looking helpless, she got another colleague to help and the only word we understood was "spam". In the end, we decided we would just go with the 스페셜마리2. So one of them was clearly spam, the other was fish and the last one was squid. They all had a crunchy piece of pickle in it. I would think that if I were a secondary school student, this place would be one of my favourite hangouts- simple, large portions and good for sharing.

Since we haven't got our dose of Topokki yet, we decided to get the 쟁반국물떡볶이 which was essentially rice cake in soup. The first bite was mild but the spice started to build up. The rice cakes were chewy and what was interesting was the vermicelli encased in flour then deep fried.

Both of us were very full by the time we finished eating. Friendly service here and pictures to aid you in choosing, if you do not know how to speak Korean. Average fare but good enough for the price we are paying.

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53rd Jinhae Gunhangje (Jinhae, Korea)

The sole purpose of going to Korea this time was to view cherry blossoms. And if we were going Korea to see cherry blossoms, we might as well go to the most popular festival- the one at Jinhae.

We took the 1 a.m. bus from Express Bus Terminal to Masan (64,000 won for round trip, price depends on timing.) Barely recovering from the red eye flight the previous night, here we were taking the train at ungodly hours, hoping that we might fight the crowds expected at the festival. The seats on the bus were very spacious and comfortable (more comfortable than the economy class flight seats in any event).

We reached Masan bus terminal at 4+ a.m.

I was admittedly in a bad mood due to a multitude of factors. I hadn't slept well on the bus (despite the comfortable seats). I hadn't recovered from the bad sleep the previous night on the flight. It was raining and cold.

Soldiering on (after getting lost by public transport), we reached the stream at 6+ a.m. Except for a few avid photographers and joggers, we were the only ones around. The city was slowly rousing from its sleep, while the pink cherry blossoms fluttered gently to the ground after a heavy rain.

The first stop was Yeojwa Stream. This, alone, was enough to convince me that my decision to visit Korea in April was correct. The thing with cherry blossoms is that you require a fair amount of fate to view them. These delicate blossoms usually last no more than 2 weeks. The stars were aligned and my cherry blossom dreams have come true.

It was a peaceful walk along the streams, a drastic contrast to the scene when the crowds started flooding in after 9 a.m. 

After walking along the streams, we proceeded to Jinhae Inland Water Eco Park. There were no signs of colour in the park yet as spring has just begun to make its entrance. Instead, what we saw was this rather dream-like image.

We then walked to Jehwangsan Park. There was the option of a monorail or you could just walk the 365 steps up.

While deciding whether to take the monorail or walk up the steps, we saw this. 

My friend and I are now at a stage of life where we are no longer blessed by this wonderful thing called high metabolic rate. To slow down the process of transforming from the person on the right into the person on the left, we decided to take the steps up.

It was a leisurely and quick walk up the 365 steps.

There were interesting sights on the way up, including cartoon characters made of what seems like tracing paper material. We then took the lift from Jinhae Tower (which symbolises a Korean naval warship) to the top floor where we had a bird eye's view of the city- for free. 

Aside from seeing the cherry blossoms, we went to the Naval Academy. The Naval Academy is only open during the festival and we had to pay a fee to enter. There was a long queue to get onto the ship but alas, it was a rather patronising walk around the ship. If you asked me, I would say don't waste your time here.

By the time we got back to the main activity ground, the tents were all set up and the area was bustling with life.

Our last stop before heading back to the terminal was Gyeonghwa Station. Apparently, that's where photographers would take pictures of cherry blossoms being swept up when the train slowly chugs in. We didn't see the train in the end but we saw hordes of people where the train will supposedly come through. Instead, it was the journey to Gyeonghwa Station that was more interesting- it's like walking on the Rail Corridor, with cherry blossoms to accompany you along the way. 

One lesson I took away from visiting the festival is,  the early bird gets the worm. Wherever we went (minus the Gyeonghwa Station), we were one of the few people around because it was still early.  In exchange, you get moments of peace and more opportunities to soak in the charm of the cherry blossoms. 

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73 Naesu-dong, Jongno-gu (Seoul)

Once upon a time, when we were poor students and didn't have much money to spend on accommodation, we looked at all the hostel websites for the best deals. Now that we are working and still don't want to spend so much money on accommodation, we resort to airbnb. And our experience has been pretty good so far. 

Click here for the link to this listing on Airbnb. $85 a night. 

(1) Location 

10 minutes away from Gyeongbokgung. 5 minutes away from Gyeongbokgung station. 1 hour away from Incheon Airport (where there is a bus that will drop you 5 minutes away from the apartment- 10,000.00 won) Around 7 minutes away to the famous Tosokchon. 7-11 right next door. Down the road, there is a bakery. Lots of food options along the street. Venture 5-8 minutes away and you have even more food options. Located in a business district. 

Here's a map of the subway. 

To get to the popular areas like Myeongdong, you need to change train and the journey is around 15-20 minutes. Around half an hour to Seoul Station (that's where Lotte Mart is- the place where people stock their trolleys with mountains of food.)

(2) Room 

The thing I like about apartments listed on Airbnbs is that these are places where actual people live. There are things in the room which are deemed unnecessary or unsightly in hotels, but which will appear in our everyday lives by virtue of their functionality. For example, a rack to dry our clothes. 

Cooking area and a washing machine are available as well. Fast and free internet access. No worries if you are coming in winter because the floor is heated. No worries if you are coming in summer because there is air con.

The toilet is clean and your basic bathing needs provided for. No trashy hotel-brand shampoo and conditioner that makes your hair entangle.

(3) Host 
We didn't get to meet the host but he was very prompt in responding to any queries. Prior to your arrival, he would also send you an online guide on how to use certain equipment in the house, how to get from the airport to his place etc.

(4) Conclusion 
We liked everything about this place (save that there was no television for the tv addict in me). Location wise, it is in a safe and peaceful area, though pretty far from the action in town. Value for money! 

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