Day 1 in Korea - Gyeongbokgung, Insadong, Murree Muslim Food Itaewon, Lotte World

Annyeonghasaeyo!

Setelah sekian lama dan sekian ramai yang bertanya, maka kat sini I nak share the stories of my family's memorable trip to South Korea.

Overall, our trip kali ni memang best sangat (but of course penat yg teramat) as we did it all on our own . Concept nak travel like locals kan, makanya kena la turun naik subway stations and ride the buses bagai, tak guna travel agent (except for ski tour). Yang bestnya plan sendiri ialah kita boleh pilih mana tempat kita nak pergi dan biasalah bila travel with kids, diorang ni mesti aim theme parks je. Travel agents biasanya akan include hanya satu sahaja theme park dalam package mereka (either Lotte World or Everland). So bila plan sendiri, boleh pergi dua-dua tempat tu. Best kan? But then tours that we're not interested in seperti belajar buat kimchi, kita skip. Budak-budak ni even my hubby bukan makan pun kimchi ni, so membazir masa je kalau nak join the kimchi-making class.

It was late November, the temperature starting to drop as it was already end of autumn entering winter. Actually the best time to visit South Korea is by the end of October or early November sebab time autumn ni pokok-pokok tengah cantik warnanya. Tapi we've decided untuk pergi lambat sikit sebab time tu bukan cuti sekolah. Lagipun saja nak feel these two seasons. Nak tengok daun-daun berguguran (chewah!) and at the same time snow juga. A week before dah turun first snow which was earlier than usual. Dan lepas dua hari kita balik pun ada juga. Masa kat sana tak turun pulak, tapi memang kebiasaannya time ni belum ada snow pun di Seoul. So, in order to treat my children for their first snow experience, we've included Yongpyong in the itinerary coz normally this ski resort have started open to public in mid November.

We tried to visit all the popular attractions in Seoul and it's nearby provinces within those 5 days only. Insane! But totally worth it. Ramai yang kata it's impossible but we manage to pulled it off without a hitch. Alhamdulillah not once pun kita sesat jalan. Cuma ada tukar plan sikit-sikit to suit the time but at least still lagi dapat pergi banyak tempat berbanding kalau guna travel agent. Alang-alang dah travel jauh-jauh ni, baik pergi semua tempat yang tak ada kat Malaysia ni (shopping-shopping tu tak penting sangat lah, kat Malaysia pun banyak jual barang Korean made) . Credit goes to my children too, diorang bertiga tak banyak buat kerenah sepanjang masa kat sana. Saranghaeyo!


Ok let me share my story now, the way I remembered it :-

Travel party : Me and my husband with our three children age 5,9 and 13 years old.

20th November 2013

We took a 6.40pm MAS flight from Johor Bahru, so pukul 7.30pm kita dah tercongok kat KLIA. Our Air Asia flight to Incheon was scheduled at 1.00am but we don’t want to gamble by taking the 10.25pm flight to LCCT. Buatnya delay, niaya je.

So, lepas solat jamak qasar Maghrib dan Isya’, we took the shuttle bus from KLIA to LCCT. With nothing else to do, we terus proceed with checked-in and later our flight took-off on time. Alhamdulillah, smooth so far….



Masha Allah! Ni dah nak dekat landing...

21st November 2013 - Day 1

Penerbangan ke Seoul mengambil masa lebih kurang 6 jam setengah and touched-down in Incheon International Airport at 8.20am. FYI, masa di Korea adalah awal sejam dari Malaysia.

Turun dari kapal terbang, nampak kat pintu tu ada pula tulisan dalam bahasa Melayu....



Bangga!

Sebelum collect bag, terus pergi washroom dulu untuk freshen up sikit dan tukar baju kepada sweater and coats. Bilik air di sana sangat bersih dan banyak, so tak payah la nak berebut-rebut kat bilik air yang pertama yang you all jumpa. Selesai immigration clearance procedures, kami terus tuju ke pintu exit untuk cari ticket booth. Keluar je pintu tu……..mak aiihhh... ssseejjuuukkknyaaa!!! Bila cuba nak berbual dengan hubby dalam keadaan menggigil tu, berasap mulut. Daebak! Macam yang biasa tengok dalam k-drama!

And then, masa ni lah this thought sunk in....

Ommo! Aigoo! OMG!!! We're definitely in KOREA!!!! 

Setelah setahun planning, Alhamdulillah akhirnya berjaya juga sampai di sini. Land of K-pop and dramas...inilah dia. Hyun Bin oppa aku datang! Hehehe, poyo...;p

Fyi, average temperature in Seoul at this time was around 2 degrees Celcius.




Brrrr.....



Ok, where were we? Oh yes, keluar pintu tu terus cari ticket booth nak beli tiket bas ke apartment.. Ticket booth yang kat tengah tu...

Location...

Direction to Gyeongbokgung : naik airport bus no 6011..

Route for bus no 6011 from Incheon Airport

Airport bus ni akan inform awal-awal nama every bus stop yang dia akan berhenti. So takde masalah asal tau nak turun kat stop yang mana. Since our apartment dekat dengan bus stop Gyeongbokgung, kita turun kat stop ni.... Next two stop is Anguk station, so sesiapa yang nak ke Anguk atau Insadong, boleh naik bas ni jugak.

Along the way



Sedikit info tentang Seoul, The Han River (Han gang) divide the city into two parts: the northern part (Gangbuk) of the city is a focal point for culture and history, whereas southern part (Gangnam) is well known for its business district.

The area that we're staying is in Jongno district, which is at the northern part of the city. It is home to palaces in which the kings used to reside and work, such as Gyeongbok Palace, Changdeok Palace, Changgyeong Palace etc. The South Korean president's current residence, the Cheongwadae, is also located in Jongno District.

Meanwhile, Gangnam refers to a part of Seoul situated on the south side of the Han River, and is most notable for high-end shopping, restaurants, unique cafes, and entertainment.

Ok sambung cerita balik.... Turun je dari bas, fuhh! Sejuk lagi...segala plan yang ada dalam kepala otak terus hilang, macam tak boleh fikir. Buntu gitu...mana nak gi ni? Kiri ke kanan... Yang tau nak lari dari sejuk ni dulu sebab kesian tengok budak-budak ni menggigil walaupun dah pakai baju berlapis-lapis. Ada jugak ahjumma tegur nak tolong tapi masing-masing cakap macam ayam dengan itik, hampeh. Btw tq ahjumma!

Rasa-rasanya time ni dalam 2-4degrees Celcius... Tiba-tiba ternampak tangga menuju subway dekat-dekat situ. Owh ok dah tau lah kita kat mana sekarang. Aishhh!

So me and my husband decided masuk subway station tu dulu untuk panaskan badan sikit.

Masa ni dah dekat pukul 11.00am. Waktu untuk check-in apartment pukul 3.00pm tapi I dah contact house owner Mr Steve Park mintak letak beg kita je dulu. Lepas ni kita plan nak jalan the whole day. Nasib baik dia bagi, tapi paling cepat pukul 12.00pm. Ok la tu!

So untuk menunggu pukul 12.00pm, kitaorang decided untuk pergi ke Gyeongbokgung Palace. Tak payah keluar dari subway station ni, terus ikut exit 5.

1. GYEONGBOKGUNG PALACE

Built in 1395, Gyeongbokgung Palace is also commonly referred to as the “Northern Palace” because it is the furthest north when compared to the neighboring palaces of Changdeokgung (Eastern Palace) and Gyeongheegung (Western Palace). Gyeongbokgung Palace is arguably the most beautiful and remains the grandest of all five palaces.

Operating Hours for Gyeongbokgung Palace
January-February, November-December: 09:00-17:00
March-May, September-October: 09:00-18:00
June-August: 09:00-18:30
Ticket : KRW3,000

Masa kat sini, sempat la tengok "Royal Guard-Changing Ceremony" kat Gwanghwamun Gate.Tak payah bayar tiket sebab kat luar Palace je.

Untuk Royal Clothes Experience, masuk ke dalam sebelah kiri di Beodeul Maru. Kena beratur dulu. Btw, it's free...:)

2. RENT AN APARTMENT

Since it's time to check-in, kita pun gerak ke apartment tak jauh dari situ. Tak sempat nak explore dalam Gyeongbokgung Palace ni, National Folk Museum dan Blue House Cheongwadae semua. Ada rezeki, next time visit kita sambung lagi. Lagipun, dengan bawa luggage bagai since tak jumpa locker kat sini, pergerakan agak terbatas...

Walk on foot for 10 minutes, sampailah ke apartment yang terletak di Naesu-dong.

Naesu-dong ni lebih tenang berbanding Myeongdong

Ala-ala K-Drama gitu



Selesai berkenal-kenalan dengan Mr Park owner apartment ni (kecoh sekejap masa nak belajar tekan code kat pintu tu, maklumlah jakun gitu!) dan simpan beg, kita mulakan perjalanan lagi. Bermulalah episode naik turun tangga subway yang tinggi-tinggi belaka. Pada yang ada sakit lutut bagai, fikirlah 2-3 kali untuk try travel macam ni ye...

3. INSADONG

Direction to Insadong : Get off at Anguk station and use exit 6. Walk straight then turn left.

Cantik tempat ni. Insa-dong Street stretches over 700 meters between the Anguk-dong Rotary and Tapgol Park (Jongno 2-ga). Kalau nak beli souvenir, I recommend beli di sini. Banyak handmade dan unik. Harga pun boleh tahan...

Cantik!

Singgah di Ssamziegil untuk beli handmade souvenirs...



Bangunan Ssamziegil ni unik...jalan di corridor ni menaik ke atas, macam panjat bukit


Dalam Ssamiegil ni kebanyakan kedainya atas tampal yang melarang untuk kita ambil gambar, so kena curi-curi lah snap. Ngeee!

Some of the hand made items

Di sepanjang jalan ni memang banyak kedai-kedai souvenirs tapi I rasa kedai yang berdekatan dengan Ssamziegil ni yang paling menarik dan harganya boleh tahanlah, boleh tawar-menawar lagi.

Minah Korea ni boleh cakap Melayu...daebak!





Budak-budak ni pantang nampak si G-Dragon...Semua dia nak beli..

Anyway, sesiapa yang nak cari Insa-dong Information Center, it is located 100m from Ssamziegil, toward Jogyesa Temple. Services offered include interpretation services, tourism information, free internet access, and a program allowing visitors to wear hanbok (traditional Korean clothing). Since kita tak cukup masa, tak pergi pun ke centre ni...

P/S : Filming location untuk The Inheritors tu ada dekat-dekat sini je and diorang masih shooting lagi. Tapi tak sempat ler nak cari...

Overall, I love Insadong!

4. ITAEWON

Seterusnya, kita gerak ke Itaewon. Masa ni dah sekitar pukul 2.00pm+ so kita skip plan nak pergi Namsagol Hanok Village sebab perut dah lapar gila dari pagi tak makan lagi...

Itaewon is situated in the middle of Yongsan-gu, which borders the northern part of the Hangang River. It is also close to Seoul Station, Myeong-dong, and Namsan Mountain. Itaewon typically refers to the street full of stores, restaurants, and stalls over 1.4 kilometers between Itaewon 1-dong and Hannam 2-dong in the east. Fashion shops specialize in various imported clothes, leather goods, fur goods, handbags, shoes, and antique furniture. Big and tall sizes unavailable in other areas are well-stocked, and experienced tailors offer customized clothes.

Untuk Muslim yang travel ke Korea, Itaewon adalah tempat yang wajib dilawati sebab kat sinilah pusat makanan halal di Seoul.  

So, for our first lunch here in Korea, we went to Murree Korea Muslim Restaurant.

Direction to Murree Restaurant : Sampai ke Itaewon Station, ikut exit 3.


Hah, nak pergi ke restoran  ni  kena memanjat bukit la pulak... jalan menuju arah Seoul Central Mosque. Nanti nampak restoran ni sebelah kanan...

Ramai orang Malaysia makan kat sini

Tak kan la dah datang dari jauh ni nak makan makanan Malaysia atau kebab aje lak kot uollzz... Makan makanan Korea di Korea, baru real!



Ok, bulgogi kat Murree ni sedap giler...Serius!

Fuhh perut dah kenyang, barulah lega! Lepas makan, kita return semula ke subway station. Untuk transfer subway lepas tu mak aihh bukan main jauh!... Badan dah mula terasa penat dah ni tapi digagahi la juga.

Jauh nyaaa.... :(



5. LOTTE WORLD

Last stop of the day, kita pergi Lotte World. 

Direction : Get off at Jamsil Station and use exit 3.

Lotte World consists of the world's largest indoor theme park (a Guinness World Record) which is open all year around, an outdoor amusement park called "Magic Island", an artificial island inside a lake linked by monorail, shopping malls, a luxury hotel, a Korean folk museum, sports facilities, and movie theaters. 

Lotte World is divided into a '’Adventure’ theme (inside the building), and a ‘Magic Island’ theme (outside) next to Seokchon Lake.

Operating Hours for Lotte World

1 Day Admission : 09:30-23:00 

After 4 Admission: 16:00-23:00

Note : Lotte World opens all year long without holidays.

Ada ice-skating rink di sini





Masa nak ke Magic Island ni, dah malam. So cuaca kat luar tu punyalah sejuk tahap gaban! Jackets semua dah letak dalam locker, malas pula nak pergi ambil. Apalagi menggigil-gigil lah kami anak beranak. No wonder lah tengok orang-orang Korea ni pakai je jackets diorang all the time walaupun kat dalam bangunan ni tak berapa sejuk. Supaya senang diorang nak ke Magic Island tu pula! Laa gitu rupanya! Mana makcik tau...hikhikhik!

Sambung lagi.... Ada juga Trick-Eye Museum di Lotte World ni....

Diam tak diam dah 3 jam jugak kita kat sini. Kalau diikutkan, boleh lebih lama lagi. Tapi melihatkan budak-budak ni macam dah layu kepenatan, jomlah balik. Kesian diorang, dari pagi non-stop berjalan...

Sebelum balik sempat la cuci mata jap kat Lotte Mart




Mahal betul harga Elstinko yang original...

Sampai ke apartment, kemas-kemas barang sikit. Mandi ala kadar, solat lepas tu zzzzzzzz! Tak ingat dunia dah... Ada episode terbaru The Inheritors kat TV, pun dah tak boleh tahan mata ni.. Even Lee Min Ho yang kacak giler itu pun tak boleh buat I berjaga lagi..

So, that's all for day 1..... until then...