First of all, I got amazing feedback on my last post, it was really really popular! I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for wishing me well with my breakout and I’m glad that this post was helpful for people who also struggle with acne! I got 1400+ views on that post which is amazing! Thank you, this blog would only be half the fun without all my readers.
But now on to a more important question: WHAT THE HELL DID I DO IN SEPTEMBER?
(Be aware. Crazy amount of pictures beneath this shortcut.)
I did not have as much time for this blog as I had hoped because I was busy meeting amazing people and some very very old friends and I just had a really good month and wanted to share! I planned on making separate posts but this would drag on for way too long so for this month, I compiled my personal highlights of living in Seoul π
On Chuseok, the longest holiday in Korea, I met these two lovely girls from Canada (left) and the US (middle). We got to know each other via the internet (don’t look at me like that, a lot of my friends I actually met via the internet, I’m quite good at finding the good ones π ) and they showed me around Seoul, especially Anguk, where a lot of traditional culture can be seen and experienced.
Rooftop cafΓ© in Anguk / Hanok village
We visited this stunning old house that a private owner opens in summer for visitors. Two girls fluent in Korean, Japanese, Chinese and English gave tours and showed us the whole house and in the end, we sat down on the porch to enjoy a traditional Korean plum tea. It was so delicious and the house itself had a really calming atmosphere. We rested there for a while and enjoyed the silence.
Another day, I went shopping around Ewha University where everything is just insanely cheap. I mean, insanely cheap!! Everything costs betwen 5000 – 15000Won (3-12β¬), only fancy things cost more and every handbag for example is 10,000Won no matter the size or design. There are also a lot of streetfood vendors around which make cheap but incredible food. If you ever come to Seoul and you like shopping, this is a must-go! (No one really speaks English though, so speaking at least basic Korean or having a Korean friend accompany you might be of advantage.) It’s not the most pretty part of Seoul but really great for bargaining.
Let me introduce you to the ultimate grilled chicken melted cheese spicy herb stick! A woman sold these near the Ehwa station and OMG it was soooooo good. I could’ve eaten three more of those, they had perfect flavor and come on, chicken and melted cheese?! Seoul has the best food.
Another day, I met with my dear friend Haruka from Japan who has been living in Seoul for 1 1/2 years! She’s back in Japan now but I was glad to meet her after I haven’t seen her in 2 1/2 years. We had Korean barbeque, shared a bing-su (Korean ice dessert) and went shopping together.
So good! For my German readers, milky bing-su tastes exactly like vanilla mini milk ice cream!
I also met another friend which I haven’t seen in FOREVER. The fabulous Susan!! We studied together at TΓ΄kai University 2 1/2 years ago and my best friend Pachi, me and her were extremely good friends. She’s a bit crazy so she fits very well with Pachi and me. It is so much fun and meeting her was one of the things I looked forward to most when coming to Korea. When we met, it was like we just met like everyday, I didn’t have the feeling that I didn’t see her for such a long time! We had a crazy good day and I try to meet her as often as I can while I still live here. She is reading my blog but I’m not sure how much English she understands, so γΉγ΅γ³γγγγγγθͺγγ γγζ°Έι 倧ε₯½γγ γοΌ2εΉ΄εδΉ
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We had bulgogi because I told her that it was my favorite Korean dish π
We took purikura, because we can and because we originally met in Japan and you have to do purikura when you meet. No discussion.
In Hongdae, we stumbled upon this monster-themed ice cream store which sold ice cream stuffed with popcorn! This was their bestseller, caramel and cheese popcorn. The cheese popcorn was really strong and really weird but overall it was nice. We then went to a really fancy karaoke in Hongdae – I have never been in such a fancy karaoke place! Susan is crazy over karaoke so it was nice to finally go again – I only went twice in Japan because I didn’t have anyone to go with me.
Karaoke fans at work! π I can’t sing but I simply don’t care.
You gotta have chimaek if you’re out with friends: chicken and maekju (beer)! This was actually the best fried chicken I had so far. We were spending the whole day together and it was just really really good to see her again π I also got two new piercings! Piercings are SO cheap in Korea, it’s unbelievable. I paid 21,000Won (16β¬) for both, including the jewelry! This would have been at least 60β¬ in Germany so I basically had to to it, haha. I never wanted to do it because ears take forever to heal but this ear was really empty compared to my left ear, so… funnily enough, I had NO problems with these piercings, I could sleep on them within the first week and they are not hurting at all, I think I can change the jewelry soon! ^__^
Shiny new piercings π My mom wasn’t a big fan of them π Last but not least… food! I know how much my readers love food so here’s a best of. I didn’t actually recognize how much I did do during September and how much I ate, wow! It’s a miracle I’m not gaining any weight in Seoul so far :’D
Salty grilled chicken stick / Dunkin Donuts Chocolate Nut Everything Donut / Korean BBQ with some German friends / Shabu-shabu together with our professors at orientation.
It’s crazy it is already the middle of October! Now that I look at all those pictures it is no big surprise that time is rushing so super fast! Remember I have univesity classes and a part-time job in between. So far I have met amazing people and I am so happy that I was able to meet some friends that I haven’t seen in ages! I really love living in Seoul because the city just has so much to offer and is not crazily overpriced like Tokyo. If I had to chose cities, I would definitely chose Seoul π (Maybe I studied the wrong area… just kidding, I still love Japanese very much.)
Have a great day!
Sam