Shopping in Shinchon

My friend Annie took me shopping to Shinchon in Seoul at the weekend, it is right beside a womens University so there are plenty of bargains to be had. There are loads of girly shops from little boutiques, £5 handbag stalls to  large shops selling everything from jewellery to home furnishings, it wasn't hard to spend my saturday there!

Shoes galore

Every person needs a chicken outfit!

St.Patricks Day

I joined in with this excuse to get together with lots of foreigners and have a few too many!  We started the day by going to watch a live Irish band in Seoul and followed this up with a pint of guiness and a bar called Shamrock and Roll, very in keeping! Oh by the way we have booked a trip to Bali at the end of July, it's only for a week but I can't wait :-)

Irish band playing in Sindorim, Seoul

Burger and a Guiness at Burger Bs

White day, Valentines day and Black day ....

Here in Korea it is not only Valentines day that is a day for couples to give each other cards and gifts but also White day which is a month later. I am not sure who came up with this idea but I have been informed by the school children that on Valentines day women to give men chocolates and on White day men give women candy (or sweets in England). Today was White day which was great as there were plenty of sweets and chocolates around in the staff room! The singles also get there own special day, the ominous sounding 'Black day' on this day single people are meant to get together to eat a chinese style blackbean noodle dish! Why?! I have no idea!

Just a small selection of gifts outside a local shop

Ski trip

We made the most of the winter by going on a final ski trip, this time to Yongpyong, a much larger resort (by Korean standards anyway!). Although we had a tiring journey travelling to the opposite side of Seoul to catch the bus we had a great weekend. Sunny weather, a good group of people and ski hire for £5! Bargain!

Takeaway

Korea seems to specialise in speed, low prices and service, takeaways are no exception! We have collected a mountain of takeaway leaflets and flyers as we often come back to find several stuck on our door. The food tends to be either traditional Korean dishes such as rice dishes, soups and stews which costs around £2.50 - £3.50 or pizza, pasta and chicken, often you can get pizza with free fried chicken and coke for around £10! Ordering a takeaway can sometimes be a challenge due to our limited Korean but we always get there in the end. Once you have ordered its just a matter of waiting, only around 10 minutes though! The delivery man will then drop of your food complete with side dishes, cutlery, plates, bowls and chopsticks, amazing!

Beef soup and beef stew along with an assortment of Kimchi

Cosy cafe

Last week I decided to try out a cafe in the building next door to us. It has always intrigued me with its boutique style curtains and chandeliers and I wasn't disappointed! Inside the cafe is divided into seperate booths each with its own lamp and luxurious curtains so no one can listen to you gossiping! Unfortunatley the drinks are expensive but on the up side they give you free cake :-)

Island Adventure

Last weekend we decided to venture out of Seoul along with a few friends and go on a trip to Muuido Island organised by the Seoul Hiking Group. We got up horribly early at around 7.00 (bare in mind our early mornings these days are around 9.30!) to catch the subway to the coach stop. Just a couple of hours and a stop at E-mart (a big supermarket) to pick up crisps, beer and soju and we were there. Muuido Island is located of the west coast off Incheon Island where the airport is. Luckily it was a warm and sunny day so as soon as we got there we made the best of the beach ie; I lay on the sand chatting and Jack played frisbee! In the evening we hiked up to the top of a large hill (small mountain) to watch the sunset which was lovely, the fun then continued well into the night with a barbeque, campfire and drinking jenga! We didn't make it for the hike the next morning, had a great time though!

Jack in action

Campfire