Letters from Seoul: Bukchon Hanok Village, Insa-dong, and CheonggyeonStream - November 2014 Day 6
Sunday, January 4, 2015On our last night in Seoul, Joni and I stopped for a few minutes at Insa-dong in order to buy pasalubong for our loved ones. Then we hea...
Sunday, January 4, 2015
On our last night in Seoul, Joni and I stopped for a few minutes at Insa-dong in order to buy pasalubong for our loved ones. Then we headed to Bukchon Hanok Village to meet Ate Sen, Kuya Nono, Joei, and Baby Macy. Our itinerary for the night included Insa-dong, Cheonggyeon Stream, Gwanghwamun Plaza (unplanned), and Home Plus.
At Insa-dong, we watched how a traditional sweet Yong Su Yeom was made. We also bought one box to take home. The sellers who made it were so passionate and funny. You can watch in the video below and tell me if you agree with me. ((:
We also ate lunch at McDonalds nearby wherein we found a LOT of harabuhjis. Sorry, I had to emphasize that word. It was like their secret meeting place! We found it so surprising for them to be eating at a famous fast food chain that is ridiculously unhealthy. I thought they were supposed to watch out for their health, right? But I guess YOLO is their current theme. ^_^
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| Ordered fries and Bulgogi Burger |
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| Yummy Bulgogi Burger |
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| No difference with ours. It's so small. ((:< |
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| Two of the few youngsters were seating near us. Their eyes were absolutely glued to their phone screens. :O |
We were not able to go around Insa-dong that much. But we entered the stores that were important for us. Since a lot of make-up stores were everywhere, we completed our make-up shopping. We also passed by Starbucks in order to buy mugs for Joni's friend.
Next, we walked towards Bukchon Hanok Village. Bukchon Hanok Village was a little tricky to find in the map. We were stuck in a crossroad. We spent some time asking for directions until a small group of women told us to go to the right way.
When we arrived in the village, it was already nighttime. We even saw a sign saying visitors should give the residents of Bukchon a "quiet evening !" I was wondering what that really means. All I could say was, "Oh ganito pala dito." ((:
Fortunately, our phones suddenly connected to a Wi-Fi nearby and we were able to contact kuya JM and ate Sen. We left the village and met them at Starbucks which was located in the main street. I really loved how safe Seoul made me feel at night. It was similar to the feeling I had in Tokyo. I felt really safe.
Hanok describes Korean traditional houses. This architectural structure is used for houses of wealthy families. The houses the we saw did look as if owned by rich people. I wonder how much is a house in this village. Whether the price is for buying or renting, it must be high.
Fortunately, our phones suddenly connected to a Wi-Fi nearby and we were able to contact kuya JM and ate Sen. We left the village and met them at Starbucks which was located in the main street. I really loved how safe Seoul made me feel at night. It was similar to the feeling I had in Tokyo. I felt really safe.
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| Give me 5, Macy! |
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| Happy Baby with her favorite cookie (: |
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| Macy and Joni |
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| Daddy Nono's Kiss ((: |
We did an unexpected thing when we were heading to Insa-dong. Our friends already went to an Ukay-Ukay store nearby. Joei bought a beautiful pink jacket. We also wanted to check it out so we all ended up shopping at the store. The usual smell of Ukay-Ukay stores was in the room. But the store was a lot cleaner and safer. The clothes were also prettier. There were even household items and a lot of good shoes. I found a very nice navy blue coat worth P350. Sulit na! Joni, Joei, Kuya Nono, and ate Sen were also happy with their thrifty yet fabulous finds. Some clothes came from famous brands in Seoul. Sarap mag-ukay dito!
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| I love how they were arranged by color. ;) |
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| Ate Sen's cool sneakers |
At Insa-dong, ate Sen treated us for ice cream. The ice cream cone is J-shaped and the ice cream is available in five different flavors as you can see in the picture below. I chose my favorite: Vanilla. I also discovered that this ice cream cone is currently available in Manila malls too. I just didn't know the name of the store since I only saw a stranger eating it in the mall.
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| The cones looked like cute yellow worms hanging from the ceiling. |
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| Kamsahamnida, ate Sen!!! :-* |
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| Macy liked it too. ((: |
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| J for Joni and Joei |
While waking around Insa-dong, we ended up buying egg tarts in the streets. Si Kuya Nono kasi nagugutom na. Haha! At infairness, it was really yummy and smelled so good!
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| Egg tart <3 |
Kuya Nono also bought KFC before heading to Yongin. Kuya JM was left at home because he had to work for the whole day. So we allowed Kuya Nono to go and join him and we had our girls' night out.
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| Photo grabbed from kuya Nono Revilleza |
Actually, we did not really have a girls' night out because we were accompanied by Ron at Cheonggyeon Stream to view the Lantern Festival. The Lantern Festival showcased lanterns that represented different countries.
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| The Philippines' parol tree was loved by many. |
We also dropped by the Philippine Tourism booth. They even gave us cool plastic bags to promote our country. It's more fun in the Philippines!!! ^_^
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| A lantern diorama of Seoul showed its main gates. |
When we were heading back home, Joni, Ron, and I passed by Gwanghwamun Plaza since we missed it and it was only located a few blocks away.
The pictures below showed some prayers, wishes, poems, artworks written on big sheets of paper. They were all about the MV Sewol sinking ship tragedy that happened at sea last April 16, 2014. Many students boarded the ship on that day. It was truly heartbreaking.
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| King Sejong Monument |
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| U.S. Embassy |
Fortunately, we caught the last train going to Wolgok Station. We bought some groceries to take home at Home Plus. For the first time in my life, I had to do grocery shopping for only 15 minutes before closing. Too much pressure! But we made it! We were so thankful that Ron was with us.
Our day ended with packing our bags. Who would want to go home with a day like this?
Due to all the surprises we experienced and the quick yet fun tours we made in a day, my take-home was summarized in this quote written by Caroll Bryant, "No matter how many plans you make and how much in control you are, life is always winging it." So in life (and traveling), learn to let go of your plans and surrender them to God. He will never leave you. And His plans for your life are always greater.
Up Next: Shopping at Namdaemun Market and Myeongdong - Day 7
