Memorable Moments from Christmas Trip in Seoul

My friend and I have been to Seoul many times together.  This time, we decided to visit Seoul during Christmas holiday.  Because we went there practically every year, we haven't done much sightseeing anymore.  So, for this post, I will only point out some highlight we had from this latest trip in no particular order.

1. Christmas Lighting at Cheonnggyecheon
This was what we actually went to Seoul during the period for.  We wanted to see light decoration.  We heard that from mid December to early January, Cheonggyecheon stream will be decorated with light to celebrate the festivity.  We really like Cheonggyecheon already so, seeing the lights would be added bonus. 
Getting to Cheonggyecheon is very easy.  Just get on subway line 2 and get off at City Hall.  It's only a short walk from there.
We arrived at Cheonggyecheon around 6:30PM, just after dark.  There were already a huge crowd.  Most of them were at the beginning of the stream.  The crowd thinned out a we walked further.

 

They seemed to separate the decoration into sections with different themes and colors tone.

We walked for awhile and made a U-turn and went back the same way.  There were also Christmas decorations around the City Hall area.  They set up a temporary ice ring as well as Christmas market.

We look around a bit before taking the subway to another destination.

2. Visit to Noryangjin Fish market
My friend and I LOVE seafood.  Our friends used to tease us that we are addicted to iodine hehehe.  So, we got to seek out seafood place.  We have heard about the fish market for some times but, haven't gotten a chance to go.  Since, we were staying longer than usual, we had time to check it out. 
To get to Noryangjin Fish market, take subway line 9 and get off at, well, Noryangjin station.  From the platform, walk up the stairs and to the exit to the right.  Walk to the overpass and turn right.  There is a large sign pointing the way to Fish Market. 
From the overpass, I really could smell fish and grilled fish.  I remembered reading a review on the internet and it mentioned to follow the smell.  We followed to the end of overpass, turned right and went down the stairs.  We arrived at the 2nd floor where we could look down and get an overview of the market.  There were rows of stall selling all kinds of seafood.

We have seen the pictures before but, it couldn't compare.  On the ground floor, we first walked down the front row.  There were large variety of seafood; fish, crabs, prawns, shells and more that we couldn't identify.  There were many that we have never seen before or known that it was edible.

The second row and more inside were mostly fish.

After browsing around, we have decided on our lunch menu.  Too bad, there were only two of us so, we couldn't choose many dishes.  We went for fresh oyster, fish sashimi and grilled fish.  We got oysters and sashimi from one of the stalls on the first row.  Then, we bought fresh fish from the inner row. 

The owner of the stall where we bought sashimi offered to take us to a restaurant that would cook our food so, we went.

At the restaurant which actually was more like a tent along the side of the market, we could bring any kind of seafood and they would cook according to our specification.  We paid for service and beverages.  The seafood was really fresh even the oysters which were shucked before we bought.  I have seen from Korean variety show that they ate raw fish and oysters with chili sauce instead of soy sauce or vinegar/ lemon.  I was wondering whether the flavors would go together or the chili would overpower the seafood taste.  So, I really wanted to try.  Well, it was different but goooood.  I think it was very refreshing.  Just don't put too much sauce on it.  We definitely will have to come back to this market again next time.

3. Browsed at LINE FRIENDS STORE
We are all familiar with Line stickers and its characters.  We heard that about the store but, have never been there.  There are many branches.  There was one in the basement of department store in Dongdaemun (area that we stayed).  However, that one was quite small.  It was the Myeongdong branch that Wow us. It was a bit difficult to find.  We actually stumbled there by accident.  It was a two stories shop with huge Brown the bear doll in front.

Arriving there, we saw a long queue out front and thought that it was a line to get into the store.  We soon realized that it was a line to take picture with Brown.
Inside there were large varieties of Line merchandise, many more than I thought.  They thought of everything!!  There was a sign in the store said "Food No, Photo Yes".  Most stores would not allow taking picture but, not this one,  They actually encouraged it.  It was so cute.  We wanted everything but, got to remind ourselves that, we probably would have any use for them.

So, we only took pictures and looked around.
Well, we did buy Line merchandises for our friends but, from another branch in Dongdaemun.

4.  A very trusting Porridge Restaurant in Dongdaemun
On the last day of our trip, I got indigestion and stomachache so, we decided to have Korean porridge for a light lunch.  We were staying in Dongdaemun area and have seen this restaurant before but, have never eaten there.  Since this place was only a couple mins walk from our hotel and we had to return to hotel to catch the airport limousine bus soon, we thought it was time for us to visit.  The restaurant was close to the intersection between Eulji-ro and Jangchangdan-ro (Line 2 Dongdaemun History & Culture Park stop exit 13 and walk straight).  Sorry, I do not know the restaurant name.
Anyway, it was a very local and small restaurant with only 8 seats.  When we got there, there were only 2 customers.  The owner, an Ajumma (Auntie in Korean), who couldn't speak English was only one to take order and prepare the porridge for us.  

We both order seafood porridge.  It came with some Korean condiments.  The porridge was very tasty in a homey kind of way.  I really like it.  Also, Ajumma was very generous with the amount of seafood she put in.  It was full of shrimp, squid, oyster, clam and abalone.  There was seafood with every mouthful. 

By the time, we got our steamy bowls of porridge, the other customers already finished and left the restaurant.  When we were about half way done, Ajumma came to us.  She spoke to us in Korean with some hand gestures (we only know some Korean words from Korean series) and we gathered that she wanted us to pay now because she had to go out.  So, we said ok and paid her.  Once she collected the money, she put on her jacket and said "bye bye" to us.  Then, she left the restaurant without saying anything further.  We were kind of shocked because there was nobody else with us.  Even when we finished with our porridges, she still hasn't come back.  We were kind of confused with what to do.  Obviously, she felt very safe and trusting that we wouldn't steal from her restaurant. 
We also saw similar things with customers in other restaurants.  There were many times that we saw the whole group of people got up and left the restaurant (maybe for smoke or restroom) with their belonging (mobile phone and bags) lying around.  And they would be gone for quite a long period that we thought they have forgot their things.  But, then they would returned and resumed their dining.  Shouldn't they worry that some people might snatch their belonging?  I don't think that I would be able to leave my stuff around.  So, they must feel very secure and trusting. 

Nature Trip to New Zealand Part 2

... Continue from Part 1

Day 6 -- I was very excited because we were going to Milford Sound!  I have heard a lot about the scenery of Milford Sounds and really wanted to see for myself.  We had to get up quite early because we booked the Nature Cruise at 10:30am and the journey from Lake Te Anau to Milford Sound was about 2.15 hours.  The drive was fairly simple but, the fog was pretty thick so, we had to drive very slowly and carefully.  We didn't stop anywhere because we were afraid that we wouldn't make it on time.  Also, our motel owner suggested that we should stop on the way back.  We got there about 15 mins before boarding.  Once we got to the parking, we again met with the Kea.  They were just hanging around in the parking lot.

One of the Kea, eyeing my breakfast banana : )

I couldn't resist taking pictures of them again.  Even though, I had already seen them up close on the first day, it was still a delight.  One of them actually hopped into our car when we looked away, again ... like a little dog.
We chose Real Journey cruise from the schedule, description and the appearance of the ship (searched in the internet).  The ship was well-kept, clean and had spacious outdoor deck.  Because of the wind and cold, not a lot of people were on the deck.  The scenery was really as beautiful as I expected.  Especially when we were returning.

I totally love it.  It was so serene and beautiful.  I just stayed on the top deck the whole time and couldn't get enough of it.  The 2 hours cruise passed very quickly.
We grabbed some lunch to be eaten in the car while driving back.  On the way, we stopped by the Mirror Lake.  One of my colleague has been there and she loved it so, I got to see it.  However, I think because we were there in the afternoon so, due to the lighting, we didn't get the mirror effect.  It was a bit disappointment but, couldn't be helped.

It was not just the Sound but, the view on route was also breath-taking.  We spent a lot of time stopping along the way back to admire the view. 

From there, we headed straight back to Queenstown once.  That was around 4.5 hours.  We arrived at Sherwood hotel around late afternoon.  We were pretty tired from early morning and long drive.  The room at Sherwood was very cozy with different feel from other standard hotel that we have been to.

Too bad that we didn't stay there long and didn't get a chance to hang out at their restaurant & bar.
That evening, we went into Queenstown and straight to a seafood restaurant called Fish Bone.  It was recommended by my family member and we actually had already checked it out the other day.  The menu consisted mostly of seafood and they were great especially the appetizers.

I would like to recommend fried calamari with chili.  It was so yummy, we actually had to order the second plate.
Day 7 -- We left Queenstown for Dunedin in the morning.  It was quite a long drive so, we tried to leave earlier than usual in order to have more time to explore the city.  The drive took around 4.5 hours.  We got to our hotel around 2pm which was not bad at all.  The Cablecourt Motel was only about 5 mins drive from the Octagon.  The room was clean and spacious at a very good price.
Because we already had some food along the way, we skipped lunch and went out to the Peninsular.  I wanted to see Larnach Castle which about 20 mins out on the Peninsular.  We took Portobello road and turned right at Castlewood road.  It was raining when we got there.  So, it was good that we were going to be inside.

Entering the Larnach Castle ground, we had to pay the entry fee at the entrance of the driveway.  We thought that the security guy was going to give us the parking ticket.  Instead, he was collecting the entry fee which was new for us.  The security guy must have radioed ahead because when we ringed the bell at the castle, the staff already knew that we were party of three from Thailand. 
There were three levels in the castle.  There was an exhibition and video presentation about the castle.  The first floor was the living room while the living quarters were on the second floor.  The dressing room was a bit spooky with the mannequin in wedding dress and another one on the ceiling.

From the second floor, there was a very narrow spiral staircase up to the top of tower.  It was quite windy but, it provided a 360 view of the sea and peninsular.

I think we were lucky that, by that time, the rain has stopped.  So, we got a chance to look around the castle garden which was full of so many types of flowers.  Actually, I think we enjoyed strolling in the garden more than in the castle.

From Larnach Castle, we took the same road back to Portobello road and continue heading towards the tip of peninsular.  Our destination was the Harington Point and the Royal Albratross Centre.  On the way, we noticed the Penguin Place where we would be coming for a tour the next morning.  As for the Royal Albatross Centre, we didn't book a tour, didn't plan to be on a tour actually.  We just wanted to check it out, see some wildlife and, was a bit hopeful that we might get a chance to see albatross gliding by.  Well, unfortunately, we didn't see any albatross but, we did visit the Centre and its exhibition.  Outside, there were hundreds if not thousand of red billed gulls. 

There were so many of them that we were afraid that we would get their poops on our head and one of us did got poops on his hat!!!  Apart from the gulls, we also saw a couple of seals on the rocks below and in the water. 
When we left, the weather was getting worse, the rain was coming back again.  So, we drove back to the city and dinner.  We picked a restaurant & bar close to the Octagon (because we didn't know where else to go).  Because we bypassed lunch, we were starving.  So, we ordered ... quite a lot hahaha.  2 pizzas, 1 full rack BBQ ribs and 3 chicken wings for 3 people.

Day 8 -- Today, we were going to see Penguins!!!  We have booked a tour at Penguin Place in advance.  It was called the Ultimate Combo tour because, we not only got to see Penguins at their nests, the staff would take us through the small patch of forest, explained to us about the ecosystem, the problems that the native wildlife faces and at the end, we got to help them by planting trees.  The tour took longer time than the regular penguin tour, about 2 hours.  I think it was totally worth it.

The guide took us to see Mrs. Meggie, the only penguin with egg.  It was terrible and alarming that the mating couples kept disappearing due to various reason; habitat lose, predators, climate change and over fishing.  Hopefully, there will be more couples elsewhere.  For today, we would only see Mrs. Meggie. 

We had to go into a tunnel which would bring us at eye level with the penguin.  When we got in front of Mrs Meggie nest, she was sitting on her egg and looked to be sleeping.  After a few mins, he ushered us further to show us the area that Penguin Place created to simulate the natural habitat.  He mentioned that we would come back to see if she might get up later on.

While we were looking at the habitat with ponds and newly planted tree, the staff was telling us about the life of penguins in the area.  He told us in such a way that it sounded like soap opera...like Mr.A was with Mrs. B for several years then, he showed up with Mrs. C and he stayed with her for a couple year.  Then, later Mr. A got back with Mrs. B while Mr. D was sneaking in to steal Mrs. B back.  It was entertaining but, we all knew that there was a long research and observation time behind the soap opera kind of story.
When we walked back, we were very lucky because Meggie decided to get up and stretch a bit.  So, we got a glimpse of her egg. Yeah!!

Once Meggie sat back down, we left her to tend to her eggs in peace.  There were other penguins around as well.  We saw couple of male penguins as well as little blue in their nest boxes. 
The beach surrounding the Penguin Place was reserved and off-limit to people.  So, the wildlife could come and go without being disturbed.  Close to the beach, we also saw several seals lying around, basking in the sun without caring that there were people around.

Last on the agenda, we each planted a native tree so that the wildlife and penguin would have place to live.  By the way, penguins not only live in the ocean and on the beach, they do nest in a forest.  So, hopefully, our trees will grow big and strong to shelter the wildlife.
After the tour, we were back in the city center for a quick lunch as we had another 4 hours drive to our next pit stop, Lake Tekapo.  The drive wasn't so bad and we got there in late afternoon. 
We checked into Godley Hotel.  Honestly, this wasn't the place I intended to stay.  We first booked a room in Twizel but, my friend would like to stay at Lake Tekapo instead.  We had to change the reservation within a week or two prior to our trip.  With limited budget, we didn't have many choices so, we picked this hotel.  The lobby was ok but, the room as not well-maintained with peel tires and stains.  When I took shower, it reminded me of old horror movie.  My friends also felt the same.
He had dinner in town.  The restaurant we chose offer stone grilled dinner.  It was pretty good.  We could choose 3 types of meat and it came with the side of salad and mash potato.  The sauce tasted like Indian chutney.

When we finished, the sun hadn't set yet, so we decided to drive out off town towards Mount Cook.  We thought that it would look beautiful at dusk.

Well, the color of the sky and mountains were beautiful but, we couldn't get there before the sun down.  So, we returned to Lake Tekapo to wait for night time so that we could stargaze.  We didn't join a tour because it ended quite late.  So, we waited till 11pm then, drove 5 mins out off town and away from all the electric lights.  It was totally amazing.  Once we turned off the engine and lights, we could see stars all over the sky.  We have never seen so many stars.  We kept saying wow! wow! wow!
Day 9 -- The next morning, we drove to Mount Cook. 

From the Visitor Centre, we headed out to Kea Point Walk.  It was supposed to be 1 hour walk but, again with my stamina, it must have took us a bit over 1.5 hour.   

We kind of felt like Hobbits in the Ring Quest.  The trail ended with the view of Mt Sefton and Footstool, the Hooker Valley, Mueller Glacier Lake and Aoraki Mount Cook.  We loved it!!  Couldn't believe that mountains could be this beautiful.

There weren't many tourists around so, we could enjoy the scenery peacefully.  Same as before, the returning walk took much less time.  Back at Visitor Centre, we saw this duck sitting under the sign.  We were wondering why it was so tame and didn't walk or fly away.  It turned out that he/she had injured leg so, we tried to leave it alone.

From Mount Cook, we drove back to Lake Tekapo but, we stopped at Mount Cook Alpine Salmon Shop to pick up some salmon for lunch.  The view at the parking lot was a wonder.

I think we forgot about the salmon for a moment when we saw the lake and mountains.   From the shop, we got salmon sashimi.  Then, we picked up some more food in Lake Tekapo for our picnic near the lake.

There actually wasn't many picnic table around but, we were lucky that one of the tourist group was vacating their spot.  The salmon was really really fresh.  BTW, in case you are wondering, the green liquid between two trays of salmon sashimi was Thai seafood sauce.  We brought with us on the trip.  Got to spiced it up a bit hehehe.  We were accompanied by a duck (again) who decided to hang around with our group.

After lunch, we had a quick stop at the Church of the Good Shepherd.  The church was very simple but, combined it with the background and it transformed.   

Now it was time for us to return to the origin of our trip; Christchurch.  On the way, around Fairlie, we came up to fields of yellow flowers.  It was like a yellow carpet.

From Lake Tekapo, it took us 3.5 hours to get to Christchurch.  We checked in to

136 On Bealey Motel which was located on, of course, Bealey street.  It was a coincidence that our first and last hotel had the same name; Bealey.  I wasn't thinking about it when I booked the hotel.  Probably because of the combination of morning tracking and long drive, we nearly collapse when we got there.  I didn't want to do anything or go anywhere but, we still got last mission which was souvenir.  The easiest way for us was to go to supermarket and buy chocolate and local branded snacks for people back home.  We didn't have energy left much so, other than going to supermarket and driving around town looking for restaurant, I'm sorry to say that we didn't see much of Christchurch.  The next morning, we got up very early and drove to airport to return home.