Malaysia

This January/February, we had the opportunity to visit Malaysia. It was never somewhere that we had planned to go, however, we had a week long vacation and a friend who had recently moved there, so it seemed like the perfect excuse.

We decided take advantage of our friend’s car and Malaysian connections and turned the trip in to a road trip. We were going to cover some ground and see as much as we could in the time that we had scheduled.

First, we started in Kuala Lumpur.

We only spent one evening in KL. We visited the Petronas Towers, saw the light show and had dinner. I wish we could have spent a little more time here. However, coming from Seoul means that I wanted to escape the city for a while. So it was off to Kuantan, which is the capital city of Pahang!

On the road to Kuantan, we stopped at the Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary.

We eventually arrived in Kuantan and found our apartment.Word of advice, though, make sure you have asked enough questions of your host before hand. We were in the middle of nowhere and we had no wifi, hot water or air conditioning. We were told of this the morning that we set off on our trip. Sigh. It was fine, though, as we washed using a bucket of boiled water and had a fan on 24/7.  I couldn’t even complain about it on Twitter.

We know, though, that travel is not plain sailing all of the time.

We did still have fun in Kuantan.We spent most of our time on the various beaches where we enjoyed a break from the sub-zero temperatures of South Korea.

First on the list of places to visit was Sungai Pandan Waterfall. This was a beautiful spot and a great place to spend an afternoon. I wasn’t as fond of the little fish nibbling on my toes the closer I got to the cascading water. 

Later that day, we headed to the beach. The first beach we stopped at was Teluk Chempedak beach. This was really beautiful, it was white and sandy and was lined with pine trees. One other hidden attractions was the fact that we stumbled upon some (frankly terrifying) monkeys.

The Teuk Chempedak area was great for a casual evening. There are buskers, market stalls and lots of lively entertainment.

The next day, we headed to cherating beach. This was a little bit quieter but there was a really nice beach bar that was perfect when the sun went down.

The next day, we set off for the final place on our itinerary. We were off to the Cameron Highlands. This was my favourite place in Malaysia and somewhere that I had been desperate to see, when we had decided to come to this part of SEA. The photos don’t really do it justice but the green tea fields here were just out of this world. They even made up for the lack of hot water at the start of the trip.

The real highlight here is the tea fields (and the tea). Another fun thing we did to pass the time was to pick strawberries.

All in all, Malaysia was a great place to visit. There are some beautiful sights and the people are friendly and warm.

What wasn’t as fun was the 7 hour journey back to Seoul with the baby in the front screaming bloody murder. 

Hong Kong in pictures

Victoria Harbor

Victoria Harbor

New year’s eve at Victoria Harbour

Fireworks at Victoria Harbour

Hiking Dragon’s Back

Hiking Dragon’s Back

Sunset leaving Hong Kong

It’s a nice day for a Korean wedding

Last month, I had my first opportunity to attend a Korean wedding. I’m not going to lie, I was pretty excited.

My first protocol was, of course, to sort out what I was going to wear. In Ireland, people make a pretty big effort when they are going to a wedding. In fact, some guests make it their mission to look better than the bride and groom. Hats, fasteners, make up, eyelashes, nails, dress, shoes, handbags.

Essentially, the embodiment of Helen from Bridesmaids.

I posed the question about what an appropriate outfit was and received vastly difference titbits of information.

‘I’ve seen people go in camping clothes.’

‘Just don’t wear anything in light colours, I heard stories about brides who got deadly offended if one of the female guests wore even pink or beige outfit.’

‘It really depends on how close you are to the people who invited you. DO NOT go casual – people will gossip about you if you do and the bride and groom will be pleased if you make an effort – You might end up in their wedding photos (don’t want to be the only one in jeans right?). Wear something office smart or smart casual and don’t go too much above the knee if you wear a dress.’

It was like a wedding minefield. 

I decided on a simple dress. Not too casual, not too fancy, not too bright, not too dark. I felt like the Goldilocks of Korea.

The day arrived and we made our way to Gangnam. The groom worked for Samsung and so the wedding would take place in the Samsung event hall there. We had been informed, before we got there, that we should put money into an envelope for the bride and groom. We would arrive, sign our name, pass over the money and take a ticket for the dinner that would follow the ceremony. The amount of money you give, we were told, would be based on how close you were to the bride or groom.

We then made our way into the wedding hall. It was huge and not at all what I was expecting. It was not ‘traditionally’ Korean. I think I was expecting something along these lines.

What I found, though, was completely different.

This wedding was very modern and, from what I have since been told, this is becoming more and more common for Korean couples.

The only real ‘Korean’ aspect of the wedding was the hanboks worn by some members of the wedding party.

The only other traditions that this Korean wedding followed was the fact that it lasted around just 20 minutes, people talked quietly as it happened, a man in front of me answered his phone and once we ate our food, we all left and went to find our own fun. No rock the boat at this wedding.

The best part for me, however, was when a Korean couple stood up during the ceremony to sing ‘A Whole New World’.

Amazing.

Turning 28.

I had another birthday here in Korea. I turned 28, which officially makes me 29 in Korea. What a ridiculous country. Oh well, there are worse places I could celebrate turning another year older.

My beautiful 6th grade class got me a cake and sang happy birthday. Adorable.

My birthday also happens to fall on Pepero day. Here, you give pepero to your loved ones to make them tall and skinny. My students were being artistic.

Eating birthday cake with chopsticks. How else?

Such a cute birthday gift from one of my fifth grade students.

Enjoying the autumn colours of Bundang park.

Enjoying the beautiful autumn colours in Bundang park.

‘No! I don’t want to turn 28! Oh, ok then. Pass the tequila.’

If you don’t know where you are going, any road will take you there.

This September, we made a decision. The decision was that we would stay in Korea a little longer. We will return to the UK in July. The decision was giving me sleepless nights until it was hastily made. I keep the fortune I received in Tokyo in mind, if ever I have any doubts.

“Friendship … is born at the moment when one man says to another “What! You too? I thought that no one but myself . . .”

This September, three of some of my best friends paid me a visit. I hadn’t seen them in over a year. Here are some of the highlights of our jaunts through Seoul and Jeju.

Tokyo

This summer, we spent a long weekend in Tokyo.

The trip got off to a pretty disastrous start. We checked in online but didn’t realise that this was going to put us at the end of a pretty long queue at the airport. So, yes, I cried. We did not have time to be at the end of this queue and were on our way to missing our flight. By the grace of a sympathetic steward, we were able to skip to the front, grab our boarding passes and sprint to the boarding gate.

We would have been relieved had the plane not been delayed.

Eventually, we made it to Japan. We had visited Fukuoka before but this was our first trip to Tokyo. I feel like we were able to cram in a lot of things into our three day visit. We also got to meet up with friends that we hadn’t seen in over a year.

Tokyo skyline

Tokyo skyline 

Tokyo Tower

Tokyo Tower

Tokyo by night 

Hozomon

Hozomon

Street food, Asakusa

Imperial Palace

Shibuya Crossing 

Super Mario cars, Shibuya Crossing 

Wedding at the Meiji Jingu Shrine 

Japanese food 

When it was time to leave, our trip home was no less eventful. We couldn’t get a taxi, waited outside in the rain for longer than we should have and then had to sprint like Usain Bolt to the train station. By the skin of our teeth, we managed to get the last possible train to the airport. We were feeling pretty smug. That was until the air steward decided to tell us that the flight *might* be cancelled or delayed due to ‘adverse’ weather conditions. We were definitely lacking in the luck department when it came to travel on this trip.

We managed to board the plane on time, but had the most horrific flight home with the worst turbulence I had ever experienced.

Tokyo was worth it though. 

National Liberation Day of Korea:Sokcho Beach (속초해변) and Seoraksan National Park.

August 15th was the National Liberation Day of Korea and so, naturally, the entire country decided to celebrate by fleeing the city. We decided, quite last minute, that we would spend the long weekend in Sokcho.

The initial journey to Sokcho was a complete disaster. What had been advertised as a 2 and a half hour trip took closer to 7 hours. Note to self: Koreans LOVE a national holiday and they will ALL BE GOING THE SAME DIRECTION AS YOU ARE. However, we didn’t let it get us down and, within minutes of us pulling into the bus station, we were already on our way to Sokcho beach.

 

Beach side games-throw the coin into the bowl and win the prize! 

Enjoying the last few hours of sunshine 

We ended our day with some bulgogi and began planning for our Sunday in Seraksan National Park.

We woke up bright and early and decided to take a relaxed stroll to Seraksan, rather than wait for the bus. It was a really beautiful. When we arrived at the park, we decided to take a cable car to view the fascinating rock formations of the Gwongeumseong region as well as the Sogongwon area, Jeohangnyeong, and Ulsanbawi Rock to the north.

View from the cable car 

Whilst waiting to board the cable car, we strolled over to the Sinheungsa Temple. What was truly impressive, however, was the path to Sinheungsa. There was a great bronze statue called Bronze Jwabul Statue, which was well over 10 meters high. It was incredible.

When we finally took our cable car trip, the views at the top were incredible.

 

We then decided to follow the path leading to Biryong Waterfall, through a bamboo forest. From Biryonggyo Bridge, on the lower reaches of Cheonbuldong Valley, we then saw the Yukdam Falls, made up of six waterfalls and a deep pond. When we arrived at Biryong Waterfall, we cooled off before pursuing a hike from there. The water flowing through the valley and cascading down the waterfall was a sight to behold and it inspired us to pursue the mountain. The sights at the top were truly spectacular.

We finished the day by dipping our feet in the water and watching the sun set. Beautiful.

A perfect day in Korea couldn’t be complete without some Korean BBQ, so we decided to treat ourselves to some Samgyeopsal. However, a night in Korea could also not be complete without a random exchange. When going to grab some beer and Soju, we came across some foreigners, who decided to invite us to a Norebong. Singing with strangers. Perfect end to a perfect weekend.

Everland in pictures

Adventure is out there!

This weekend, we decided to hike Inwangsan Mountain (인왕산).

This was my first experience of ‘hiking’ a mountain in Korea. Actually, it was my first time hiking any mountain.

Inwangsan Mountain was on my list of things to do in Korea mainly because, when you are surrounded by the concrete jungle of the city, it is nice to escape and take in the beauty of some more natural surroundings. This one is a great spot too, as it is still in Seoul yet you feel as though you are a million miles away.

The trip up the mountain is really interesting. You come across lots of hidden treasures. First, we encountered Guksadong of Inwangsan, which was a shrine used to make sacrifices to Mongmyeok the Great and was later turned into a sight for exorcisms. Not wanting my head to spin around, we continued with our adventure to the top.

Next, we came across the Seonbawi. This rock is known as ‘Gijjam,’ the rock of childbearing prayer, because many women prayed for childbearing here. It was apparently also called ‘Seonbawi,’ the meditating rock, because it resembles a monk wearing a long sleeved Buddhist robe.Not wanting to become pregnant, however, we moved on.

Along the way to the top of the mountain, you also encounter several guards. Inwangsan is a military area and so it was clear that the authorities are quite sensitive to what type of photography occurs. One of the major landmarks that you cannot take any photographs of, is the President’s house. This is clearly visible due to its blue roof. I still managed to take some shots of the beautiful scenery, though, so it didn’t spoil anything for me.

One of the best sights, however? The Korean ajummas and ajusshis in their full hiking gear. This sight will never get old.

What a view

View of the city 

Exploring