Finally to Seoul too!
Last year I went to Seoul too, but it didn’t take up to three hours because it was only a transit to Jeju Island.
This time riding Garuda Indonesia. Departs at 11 pm, and arrives around 8 Seoul time. Seoul is 2 hours faster than Jakarta. Same with eastern Indonesia time. Btw, I prefer Korean Air food to Garuda. The bibimbap is delicious!
Arriving at Incheon Airport, my friends and I were picked up by Oh Jin Yung, our guide from KTO (Korea Tourism Organization).
“Just call me Jenny,” he said. deg. Last year when I went to Jeju, our guide also asked to be called Jenny! Is this the code name for the tour guide for the Indonesians there? hihi.
The fun of blogging made me forget to bring my suitcase on the bus. Luckily it was brought by Om Bolang and Kadek. Whoops! :))
Incheon Airport to Seoul is quite far. About 45 minutes drive. The AREX line (Airport railroad express) is the fastest option. You can take public transportation such as buses and taxis (don’t take taxis, they’re really expensive, hihi).
Luckily, we were picked up by bus with seats that feel like business class airplanes. You can sleep spoiled and enjoy the long toll road.
We are very hungry. Because breakfast on the plane is a seven hour trip from Jakarta to Seoul at 3 am Jakarta time. So we decided to have a snack before we made our own lunch. Yes, we are going to take a Korean cooking class!
The bus entered the city of Seoul and the road was getting uphill. We headed to Seoul Tower. Because underneath there are several places to eat. At the same time we can go up to the top of the Seoul Tower on Mount Namsan.
Along the uphill track a lot of local residents are enjoying the weekend. In Seoul I noticed a lot of ahjumma and ahjusii (old people) who wear complete trekking equipment. Mountain shoes, trekking poles, colorful windproof jackets and a very sporty bag. Seoul is surrounded by mountains, so people here really like to climb mountains.
Another thing I noticed: WHY ARE NO FAT PEOPLE HERE? :)))
I’m not surprised. People here really like to walk. Subway can also be up to five levels underground. Like it or not, you have to move.
Food factors also have an effect. When we ate one of these fastfoods under Seoul Tower, it tasted almost no salt! Jenny said Koreans don’t really like strong flavors. Unlike the tongues of Indonesians who have been given MSG since birth, hihi.
After filling up a bit, I took a short tour around Seoul Tower. There is a love padlock style where young people make love. So the story is that you can write your name on the padlock, then lock it here. One person may have several locks with different names huh? hihi.
To go up to the top of the Seoul Tower we have to pay around 10,000 won (about 100 thousand rupiah). The Seoul tower is like a Monas in Jakarta. You can see the city of Seoul from up here.
After that, we headed to the K-Style Hub near Cheonggyecheon Stream. This place is actually a Tourist Information Center. But it seems KTO made it more than just a tourist looking for information. There are Korean Food Exhibition Hall, Korean Food Experience Hall, and Art Market Hall.
You know where I’m going right? Of course its the Food Experience hall! Haha.
Here we can take short cooking courses for Korean dishes such as Chiljeolpan, Bibimbap, Kimchi, Japchae, and various local Korean cuisines. For this class the price starts from 30,000 Won (price depends on the type of food and class, please visit their website for complete info).
We chose the simplest dish that is the easiest to make: Japchae & Shrimp Vegetable Pancake.
The name sounds cool. Japchae. But this is actually Korean-style fried vermicelli. If Shrimp vegetable pancakes are translated into Indonesian it is BAKWAN stuffed with corn and shrimp, aka BALA-BALA!
I might come home from Korea and I’ll even be a fry baker haha.
Anyway, the Korean Cuisine Cultural Center’s kitchen is really cool. Kind of like a Masterchef kitchen. We also have a tutor who seems to be a real masterchef. His name is Lee Jong Im. These women seem to be a kind of Korean Sisca Soewitomo. Or maybe he was like Gordon Ramsey. You can shout this if you enter the wrong spices.
And seriously, our cooking has really simple ingredients. Nothing strange. What I notice the most is that Koreans really like to use sesame oil in cooking.
“Noo nooo, too muchh, too mucchh,” said one of our tutors when I sprinkled too much salt.
Maybe he will be shocked if I put BON CABE in his cooking, right?
This japchae vermicelli is more chewy than ordinary vermicelli because it is made from sweet potatoes. That’s why it tastes a little sweet.
After a few days in Korea, I became accustomed to minimalist spice dishes. So the tongue is a bit sensitive when you eat food that is mostly flavored. Maybe if I stay a few months in Korea I can be slimmer huh?
After cooking that healthy but full of carbs. I’m sleepy too. Then after this I had to sit down to watch a show called FIREMAN. I don’t know what it is.
But for sure, make my eyes literate again!
So, this fireman is a show that combines dance, parkour, and skit. With the background story of several people who are training at a training camp to become a firefighter.
They jump around very agile and pleasing to the eye. The dance is also good, not inferior to KPOP artists. If you want to see a snippet, you can look at the vlog. *promotion*
It’s a non-verbal show. So they won’t speak Korean. Just body language in the style of a slapstick comedy. You can find them at Cecil Theater, Jeong-dong.
RECOMMENDED this is the fireman show!
After the show, the sky was already dark. Since our hotel is in the Myeongdong area, it’s really suitable for those who like shopping and eating. For me, I just bought a mask for some fruit and just had something to eat. If the girls bring a large suitcase and it’s only a quarter of it filled, don’t be surprised when they get home they still leave it to you because they have over luggage.
Tonight we try like a local hobby. Eat fried chicken and beer! Or also called ‘Chimaek’. If you are a fan of Korean dramas, you will often see scenes of eating Chimaek. It sure looks very endes right?
In an alley next to the main Myeongdong street, there are rows of Chimaek restaurants that you can choose from. The location is near KFC. From the restaurant to the roadside there are. Unfortunately, I don’t drink beer, so I don’t know what the combination of these two flavors is like. My friend said that the one who tried it really fits really well.
DON’T FORGET TO WATCH THE VLOG VERSION GAESS!
Continue to the Sori International Festival in part 2, okay?
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