Impressions of Seoul

I really liked Seoul. Our friends said it reminded them of Montreal; we thought it was similar to Tokyo. It had great energy, and its people seemed friendly and sophisticated. But what struck me the most was the insane amount of coffee shops in the city. Every other storefront was a coffee joint, and not just Coffee Bean or Starbucks, but Korean chains like Holly's, Angel-in-Us, and Tom n Tom's (and several others with random names). Apparently I'm not alone in my observation.  

The majority of our first day in Seoul was spent at Changdeokgung Palace where we frolicked in the bitter cold (it was freezing, literally) -- photos here (along with a few taken in Dalian) -- and then ventured over to Insadong, a maze of small, pedestrian streets filled with shops and restaurants. We explored different neighborhoods, had beers in each, and went back to Gangnam (yes, Gangnam; cue Psy), known for its after-work drinks/dinner hangouts. 

The next few days were spent in the mountains. We had taken a $15 bus from Seoul to Yongpyong -- this all took a good amount of research, by the way, but we figured it out (and by we, I mean Mike). Remember, none of us speaks or reads Korean (and it's nothing like Chinese, in case you thought it might be). Yongpyong was the bigger mountain, but we stayed in Alpensia, at the Intercontinental, one of only two hotels we could find and book online. It was cold and the snow was pretty hard-packed, but overall the conditions were good and it was great fun to be in the mountains. 

We packed our last day in with more sight-seeing (the museum; see below) and shopping (though we didn't buy anything) and eating (which I think I covered in my last post) -- oh, and drinking (Soju is my new favorite beverage).    

Fatty Tuesday: BBQ and Bibimbap and More

We ate well in Korea, and although I can't say that it's my favorite cuisine (sorry, Rich!), it was fun being adventurous with food and trying new dishes. 

Our first night, while awaiting the arrival of our travel buddies, Mike and I went to a BBQ spot recommended by our hotel. Instead of BBQ, though, we got a Korean version of hot pot (= various ingredients cooked in boiling broth; the Chinese love it). By the way, this is a frequent occurrence in Asia -- when you don't read or speak the language, and you rely on pretty pictures for ordering, you get lots of surprises when the food comes out. Even though it may not have been exactly what we had expected, it was good! The meat was perfectly marinated and made for a delicious soup at the end of our meal. All of the side dishes were fun too, but, I must admit, I didn't love too many of them (cold soup and iced noodles, for example, and kimchi, of course -- which, I found, I'd prefer to handle in small doses).   

While exploring the city, we happened upon some awesome street food. Not sure what all of it was, but  what we did taste was fantastic -- a fried potato on a stick, some kind of donut with a sweet, nutty filling (not pictured; I was too distracted by its yumminess to photograph it), and kimchi fried rice (served from inside a small hut; bottom photos).

There was some tofu soup -- but I must admit, I like Tofuya's better (our spot in LA) -- and there was some bibimbap, but the highlight meal was our last one in Seoul. After some quick research, we decided on Gae Hwa Oak. It was an adventure finding the restaurant (and we only found it thanks to one very nice Korean cab driver), but when we did reach it, we stayed for hours. We were treated to nine courses (I think, 'cause we lost count after a while), made up of dishes with several ingredients I wasn't familiar with. There was some kind of crunchy root vegetable topped with seaweed and egg white (which rendered it somewhat slimy, but somehow, we couldn't stop eating it); abalone (which I'm not sure I'd order again); there were several different kinds of kimchi, served with thinly sliced pieces of beef and chunks of pork belly; perfectly grilled vegetables; and, marinated meats that could sway the strictest of vegetarians. It was fantastic, more so for the experience than the taste for me, but the perfect end to a great trip. 

First Stop: Dalian

We're back from our week-long vacation for the Chinese New Year holiday. It was a fun trip, but I wouldn't call it relaxing. We were on the go: Saturday, we traveled to Dalian; Monday, we flew to Seoul; Wednesday, we took a bus to Yongpyong/Alpensia, the mountains of South Korea; Saturday, we took a return bus back to Seoul; and, on Sunday, we took two planes back to Shanghai.

I'll get to Korea tomorrow. First up was Dalian where we celebrated the Year of the Snake with Mike's mom. You think there are fireworks for the Fourth of July? You ain't seen (or heard) nuthin'. I didn't get photo or video evidence myself, but my friend in Shanghai did --

Besides the fireworks, CNY traditions include fish for dinner, which, Mike's mom told us, you don't finish -- some must be left over for your ancestors -- and dumplings for breakfast. 

Other highlights of the Dalian leg: a few hours at Happy Snow World, two bunny skiing/snowboarding slopes that warmed us up (slightly) for the trip to the South Korean mountains; and, Teddi, my mother-in-law's dog, who knows how to give high fives, and when you hold her front paws and count to three, lifts her hind legs to be picked up and carried like a baby.

As a side note, I really liked Dalian. It was nice to see the ocean and a couple of mountains (nature!), and I'm looking forward to going back in the summer and enjoying some beach time, Chinese style (minus the face mask). 

Zhoumo kuaile!

What's everyone up to this weekend?  I feel as if this is my first real weekend back considering I was knocked out by 8:00 p.m. both nights last weekend (so much for Jet Lag Rooster). We'll be hosting a friend who's in town (yay for business trips to China!), which means lots of eating and drinking (again).  

In the meantime, preparations for Chinese New Year (CNY) are under way. It's as if no one told shopkeepers here that Christmas is over -- lights are still up, decorations haven't been taken down, and sales are in full swing. Now among expats, "where are you going for CNY?" replaces "are you going home for the holidays?" Many of us are taking advantage of the week off to travel. With some friends, Mike and I will be venturing to... wait for it... South Korea! And for those of you who know Mike, yes, there is snowboarding in Korea. In fact, we'll be heading to the home of the 2018 Winter Olympics. Cool, huh? Much more to come on the trip. For now, I leave you with the image below taken at Carrefour this week. Apparently, CNY is celebrated with dried ducks (I think those are ducks). And lots of them.