Korea Winter Trip Part 2

The trip to Korea was really fun - the food, travelling between different cities and enjoying the winter season (even though we were too early for the snow).

Day 1: Flight from Singapore to Korea (Overnight)

This was a shot taken during our flight. Overall, it took us about 2 hours from SG to Vietnam, followed by a 3 hours transit before another flight to Korea for ~4.5hours. 

It was really exciting to be on a free & easy trip in a non-English-friendly country to be independent and taking charge of the itinerary planning. The subway lines are little complicated so it will be good to have a map of the different lines. One thing to note is that the Koreans are very fast-paced in the subway and there are designated (unspoken) seats in each cabin specially reserved for the elderly.

Day 2 - Arriving in Korea, Dongdaemun, Samcheongdong & Noryangjin Wet Market

After arriving Korea, we took the AREX train followed by the subway to where we were staying - Ramada Hotel Dongdaemun- which was convenient as it was near the Dongdaemun Culture & History Park station, with easy accessibility to the rest of Seoul. Some things to do at Dongdaemun would be the street food, shopping malls (can't remember the name), the shoe market & Cheonggyecheon river. 

 Cheonggyecheon River

Dongdaemun Shoe Market 

We then wanted to visit Gyeongbukgung in the afternoon but it was closed due to the protest for S.Korea's President Park Geun Hye to step down. It was quite exciting to see because when will you ever get the chance to be in the middle of a protest, even though it was just a peaceful protest? We then changed our plans to go to the Innis Free Cafe at Samcheongdong for lunch. The cafe sells only deserts and drinks but it was photo-worthy & filling. These cost us 48000 won on this. We tried their carrot cake, green tea cake and yam cake, as well as jeju hallabong bingsu. All were good! 

We then went back to the streets in the evening, and it was largely filled with many protesters with the peaceful protests starting. We were literally walking on the roads because it was cordoned off for the protest to take place.

                                     

Not a good idea to be out because it was super crowded everywhere and even in the subway as we were on our way to Noryangjin Wet Market for dinner. It was relatively expensive but we got to eat the King Crab, raw fish & salmon, live octopus and abalone. We spent about 110,000 won for the 4 of us. Waiting time at the restaurant took around 45 mins-1 hour, but it was really worth the wait. The king crab was really fresh and for someone who did not like raw fish, I really liked the raw fish and it changed my perspective; I ended up eating the most 😂. Overall, it was a really satisfying dinner & this is a place that one should visit! :) 

 At Noryangjin Wet Market

 Raw fish

 King Crab

And us waiting for almost an hour...

Day 3 - Skiing @ Vivaldi Ski Resort & dinner at Myeong Dong 
We went to Vivaldi Ski Resort on our 2nd day by the resort shuttle bus. The package costs us around $120/person. It was on promotion from Chan Brothers. Honestly, it'll be better if you purchase the ski package from a Korean travel agent because it'll be easier to contact them.

Nevertheless it was really fun although I fell down multiple times and had some bruises here and there. Its definitely not as easy as it seems & although we had a 30 mins introductory lesson, it was definitely not sufficient! The ski gears and the jacket were part of the package. Helmets would require additional costs but we did without the helmets and were fine. Overall experience was good but I wished I had more time to learn before I went downslope on my own!

 Me after falling several times...

After a long day spent at the ski resort, we headed back to Myeong Dong by the shuttle bus. We then had Dakgalbi for dinner before doing some insane shopping at Myeong Dong Shopping Street. 

We also discovered a secret hideout place - 3CE Style Nanda Rooftop cafe, amidst the cold winter night. Really miss there!!!

Day 4: 1-day Busan Trip 

Busan is S.Korea's 2nd largest city, with many attractions to visit. Honestly, a 1-day trip is insufficient but we still managed to visit 3 highlights of Busan. For optimal travelling time, 2-3days would be good!

Timeline:
0730-1000: KTX to Busan 
1000-1100: Obtaining return tickets & traveling from Busan Station to Haeundae Beach Station 
1100-1200: Lunch
1200-1300: Haeundae Beach 
1300-1330: Travelling to Haedong Yonggungsa Temple (By taxi - to save some travelling time)
1330-1430: Haedong Yonggungsa Temple
1430-1600: Travelling to Oryukdo Skywalk (By Bus & Subway)
1600-1800: Orykudo Skywalk 
1800-1815: Bus to Kyungsun Uni., Pukyong Univ Station 
1815-1900: Dinner
1900-1930: Kyungsun Uni., Pukyong Univ Station --> Busan Station 
1930-2000: Chill and hop onto the KTX
2000-2200: Arrived back at Seoul 

Here are some photos!!!

At Haeundae Beach:

At Haedong Yonggungsa Temple:

 

 At Oryukdo Skywalk:

Definitely, there are other places to visit in Busan such as Gamcheon Arts Culture Village (a place to get good photos), Jagalchi Market, and Taejongdae Park.

Day 5: Seoul Tour & Shopping

The original plan was to go to Seoul Fortress Wall on that day but because my friend wasn't feeling well, only the 2 of us decided to explore it on our own. Unfortunately, we got lost and couldn't find the entrance of the Fortress. We were disappointed because we were really looking forward to it but we still managed to take a few photos outside the wall.

We then spent the rest of the day at Myeong Dong Shopping Street shopping and had dinner before retiring for the day.

Day 6: Suwon Fortress Tour

Modes of transport to get there would be either the Subway (about 1200 won for ~1hr) or the KTX (about 3000won - 30 mins). The view was breathtaking and needless to say, its a must-visit attraction. The whole walk took up almost half the day, and for those who enjoying hiking/walking, the Suwon Fortress would be a good place to go!!!

Day 7: Gapyeong Rail Bike & Petite France
During winter, Gapyeong is so much colder than Seoul. The temperature did drop to near zero degrees, and I wasn't really prepared for the temperature. It was definitely the coldest day out of the 8 days I've been there. I could feel my face, fingers and toes cracking from the intense cold. The temperature didn't even drop to negative. GOSH.... But the Gapyeong Rail Bike was really awesome, out of the 4 main attractions in Chuncheon/Gapyeong. The whole ride probably took 1-1.5 hours, depending on the speed. Nevertheless, its definitely a place to visit, and getting to enjoy Mother Nature along the rails.

Next up, we headed over to Petite France. Honestly, we only went there for the photos but there isn't really much to look at there, apart from a few fixed shows and the beautiful view. Here are some of the photos we took:

We didn't had the time to go to Nami Island and the Garden of the Morning Calm because we were rather tired by then, and 1 day is not enough to cover all 4 places. It would be too rush. So, a recommendation would be to stick to 3 out of the 4 main attractions. I think 3 would suffice. 

Day 8: Seoul & Incheon
On the last travelling day, we were rather broke by then but we manged to visit a cafe in Seoul and try Samgyetang before leaving Incheon. We went to the Osulloc Cafe, and it was really awesome. There are also many goodies that you are able to buy and bring back to Singapore, especially if you love Green Tea flavours.

Apologies for the late post but Korea is really awesome! Been to there during summer as well, so feel free to drop any questions, and I'll try my best to answer them! :) In the meantime, I'll do up a post on my trip to Chiang Mai during April! :)

Cheers everyone!!!