At the end of the third week and for half of the fourth week of school, we were treated to a long six-day break for Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving). Although the actual day itself is on Monday, Sept. 24th, our classes were cancelled from Friday, Sept. 21 to Wednesday, Sept. 26. My friends and I decided to make the most of our break by taking a trip to Jeju Island, going to a theme park, and eating ~ fancy ~ beef. Jeju-do: We departed Seoul on Thursday night (Sept. 20) after classes. From the dorms, I decided to take the 601 bus straight to Gimpo Airport since the stop is right outside the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. You can also take the Line 2 metro from Sinchon Station → transfer at Hongik University Station to the Gimpo Airport Express. Either way, the trip should take about 40 min to one hour from Sinchon. Tips:
Once we arrived in Jeju, we immediately boarded a bus to go to the southern city of Seogwipo. The bus ride was only ~ 3,000 KRW and lasted an hour and a half. We decided to spend two days in Seogwipo and two days in Jeju City. Unfortunately, there was heavy rain pour in Seogwipo for a day and a half, so we did not get to do all the nature-related activities that we planned. Here are suggested places that we did visit: Seogwipo-si:
We also went to several cafes and they were wonderful. The prices were 4,000 - 6,000 KRW and better quality for the price than the places I went to in Seoul, so I highly recommend finding some cafes you like on MangoPlate and TripAdvisor. Next, we took the same bus back to Jeju City. We ended up doing a lot more in Jeju City because the weather cleared up. Here are my suggestions: Jeju-si:
My favorite part of the trip to Jeju were the wonderful accommodations we stayed at. Keri and I ended up scoring a boutique hostel/hotel in Seogwipo that had free coffee, a study lounge, and a pool table; as well as, a ritzy high-end hotel in Jeju City overlooking a Korean palace! Both were booked through Booking.com and costed us ~ 50,000 per room. Each room had two beds so the guys had their own room and us girls had our own, too. Accommodations: Seogwipo: Hotel Gaon J Stay - free coffee, pool table, foosball table, close to Food Street Jeju City: Hotel Robero - fancy hotel, sauna/spa downstairs, overlooking a Korean palace EverlandWe decided to go to Everland on Tuesday, Sept. 25, and we mistakenly thought that the park would not be crowded since Chuseok is traditionally celebrated with families gathering together in their hometowns - we were very wrong. The park was packed with people and we ended up not being able to ride the largest wooden roller coaster they had! Despite that, Everland is still one of my favorite theme parks ever! There is really something for everyone - rides, parades, food festivals, flower gardens, Halloween zombie fair (seasonal). It combined the thrills of Six Flags with the whimsicality of Disneyland. We got tickets for 28,500 KRW on Klook.com and had to take two buses to get there. The buses were crowded and we had to stand for majority of the two-hour ride. The parks allow food and drinks to be brought it, so if you want to save money, bring a reusable bottle and some snacks. The park was so big and so crowded that it was not worth it for us to stand in two-hour lines, but my friends and I did most of the rides and activities. My favorite thing to see was the electric parade of beautiful floats lit up by thousands of lights and dozens of dancing characters. My least favorite attraction was the zoo as the animals (especially the polar bear and tigers) were kept in less than desirable conditions. Nonetheless, I will try to come back to experience the rides that I missed out on the first time. Everland is thrill-seeking, family-friendly, and budget-friendly! Hanwoo Beef A.K.A. THE BEST BEEF EVER. PERIOD.To celebrate fellow Freeman Scholar (and Pearl City High School alumnus!) Pono’s 21st birthday, some friends and I went to Gangnam to eat at 마장동박현규 which is a restaurant that serves Hanwoo beef 1++ (Korea’s version of Kobe beef). Not to exaggerate, but this meal changed my life and look on food. Sure there is good food, sure there is great food, but I have never had food that made fireworks explode behind my eyeballs and orchestras play Beethoven’s 9th Symphony in my ears! For the not-so-friendly price of 45,000 KRW per person, I experienced a transcendent culinary experience through the form of buttery, marbleized meat. We had around five to six courses and each one was better than the next. I highly, highly recommend trying this place out at least once! The staff is so friendly and the food is truly out of this world. . . it’s worth me eating GS25 gimbaps for the next two weeks to save money. I am not even going to add a "Best of Bites" section in this week's post because it'll pale in comparison.
Address: 27 Gangnam-daero 128-gil, Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
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South KoreaSinchon, the bustling U-district in the center of Seoul, will be my current home for the next few months. This blog is a collection of adventures in and around Seoul from the eyes of an exchange student from Hawai`i. Archives
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