South Korea: Seoul

I wanna write this while everything is still fresh from memory. So first things first.

Flight
We booked our flight (Manila to Incheon) via Air Asia during one of the seat sales. Round trip ticket costs around PHP6000. It's my first time to fly with Air Asia and it won't be my last. The plane for Manila to Incheon was a bit cramped but the plane on the way back was better. They changed the flight schedule twice but they gave an option for refund or free re-booking so it was okay. Our flight and landing was pretty smooth too more than I can say for Cebu Pac. Check-In counters were not crowded and they didn't weigh our hand carry bags.

Visa
We then prepared and applied for the visa one month before our flight. You can check my blog about visa application for more details.

Itinerary
After our visa got approved, I started researching and preparing our itinerary. You can get travel agencies to arrange for everything from accommodation to tours and transfers but we're on a budget and we prefer to follow our own schedule at our own phase so this was a DIY trip. :) You can view a copy of our itinerary here. You can open it via Google Drive or Google Sheets. It's the one we used to navigate around Seoul along with the Subway Navigation app.

Money Changers
We exchanged half our money (PHP to KWR) at NAIA airport which was probably not a good idea. I think BDO has the best exchange rate but you should have an account with them to exchange to KWR directly. We exchanged half our money (PHP to KWR) at a money changer near our guesthouse in Hongdae where we got better rates.

Korean Won

Accommodation
My friend suggested Ann's Guesthouse. It is located just outside Exit 1 of Hong-Ik University Station which is directly connected to the AREX Incheon Int'l Airport station. The room was spacious and clean and has it's own bathroom. It has a mini kitchen so you can buy groceries and cook if you're on a tight budget. It also has a washing machine for your laundry. When you go out, there are a lot of street food vendors and food joints. In fact the area is famous for it's night life. Check their site for more details: http://annguesthouse.co.kr.

Transportation
We got around the city using only the subway stations and lots and lots of walking. We bought the T-Money (subway card) at the airport and loaded it at the station. Their subway system is a bit complex compared to other countries I've been to so it can get overwhelming but you'll get used to it eventually. There are a lot of apps available to guide you on the subway. I used the one call Subway Navigation for android. It allows you to choose your departure and destination stations and gives you the quickest route. It also shows when you need to transfer lines, how much the fare costs and real time information on when the trains will arrive.

T-Money

Loading machines

Food
I don't like eating vegetables and healthy stuff so korean food doesn't really satisfy my tastes well except for the korean barbeque which was really good. I don't like eating kimchi as well but their kimchi was really good I give them that. The rest was either too spicy or too bland for me so when we got home I was really craving for something salty and unhealthy. XD

Bibimbap

 

Korean BBQ

Tokpoki

Fish and Squid

Attractions
1. Trick Eye Museum - This is just walking distance from our place so this was the first place we visited. It was fun going around and taking pictures of cool and crazy art. The ticket also includes entrance to the Ice museum which was of course freezing cold.

2. Hongdae - Another term for Hong-Ik University was the night life capital of the city. At night there are live performances on the streets around the corners. There are a lot of street foods and barbeque joints as well. There are a lot of bars too if you're into clubbing.

3. Hanbok Wearing - We really enjoyed this part wearing Korea's national costume and taking crazy pictures while at it. I expected the outfit to be uncomfortable but it was surprisingly light and breezy.

4. Cheonggye Stream/Plaza - This stream was once polluted now turned into a tourist attraction. I hope we can also do the same with Pasig river. We enjoyed taking pictures here as well.

 

5. Changdeokgung Palace and Huwon - We chose the tour for secret garden which was named one of the UNESCO sites. The place was built as a place for relaxation and indeed the aura of the place was really comforting and relaxing. If only we didn't have to walk for 3km for the tour XD.

6. Bukchon Hanok Village - From Changdeokgung Palace we walked to Bukchon Hanok village which was not easy I tell you. There were at least 2 uphills you have to get passed to get there. And finding the place was not easy as well.

7. Gyeongbokgung Palace - As if the 3km walk and uphills to Bokchon village was not enough, we also walked to Gyeongbokgung palace. We were lucky enough to get in time with the changing of guards ceremony.

8. Jogyesa Temple - We had enough of the palaces for one day so we didn't continue on to the Jogyesa temple.

9. Insadong Street - Here you can buy your "pasalubong" from keychains to t-shirts, beanies and scarfs.

10. Rainbow Fountain Bridge - This wasn't really part of our itinerary but we had some extra time so we decided to go. Unfortunately the fountain was not operational that day. When you get off the station it gets really confusing because there are a lot of bridges in the area. From Exit 8 walk to your right for about 10 minutes to get to Banpo Bridge.

11. Nami Island - It was around 8:30 am when we got off at Gapyeong station and was surprised with the foggy and freezing atmosphere.Note that we were only wearing shorts and t-shirts and we didn't have our jackets with us. While the others we saw even wear gloves. When we got off at Gapyeong Wharf you can see the smoking cold waters. Yes! it was that cold and we were wearing freaking shorts and t-shirts.

 Winter Sonata's First Kiss

When we got to Nami Island the sun worked it's way up and started to thaw our freezing skin. I allotted 1 whole day to Nami Island originally but we just stayed there half a day. Nothing much to do but take pictures on the walkway of trees. I was disappointed to see the leaves were still green but it was still a beautiful sight nonetheless.

12. Lotte World - I'm not into thrilling and breath-taking rides so I didn't get to make much of the ride all you can ticket. Though the guys really enjoyed this part.

13. Myeongdong - Now this is the highlight for girls of course. Shopping cosmetics!!! There were at least 5 branches of each store on each corner. The girls were like "Ang Saya!! \(^o^)/" and the guys were like "meh..(-_-)".

14. N Seoul Tower - I was quite disappointed with the cable car ride. I wasn't expecting the cable car to be packed luckily we were on the edges so we can see the view. The N Seoul Tower was really beautiful. The city scape was really captivating as well.

Tips
1. Invest on shoes. They take you to places. We walked from attraction 4 all the way to attraction 9. 3km for the Secret Garden tour alone. Uphills in the Bukchon Hanok village.. you get the point.

2. To save on time, I would have split the tour where the guys go to the amusement park while the girls go shopping.
3. I would have allotted more time to chill at the N Seoul tower. We went there around 7pm but didn't expect to be met with the long lines to ride the cable car. So we arrived at the tower around 8:30 and had to leave around 10pm since the cable car operation is only until 11pm and we don't want to be met with the long lines again.
4. I would have exchanged just enough money to get to the guesthouse and exchanged the rest of our money there for better rates.
5. Just exchange enough money for your trip otherwise you'll lose a lot from your money's value when you exchange it back again.
6. Prepare for your trip. I was thankful I made the itinerary beforehand otherwise we'll lose more time navigating than enjoying the trip.
7. Rent a pocket wifi. It will help you a lot.

Details of our trip can be found on our itinerary. It has been a fun and memorable trip. I'll try to come back next time trying out different seasons like cherry blossoms (spring), autumn and winter.