winter

Winter (again!) in South Korea – Chill Walking around Seoul

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*extremely picture-heavy post

As it was a Sunday, we decided to drop by Myeongdong Cathedral. As the guesthouse was located only at Chungmuro, we only walked rather than take the train.

Weirdly, we got lost and we ended up at a Presbyterian at the other side of the road! We got confused with the spires, even though it was not our first time to go to the cathedral. We spent a good ten minutes looking for it.

When we finally arrived, the mass just ended and the people were filtering out. A bunch of them were getting free calendars from a tent. Mon tried to get one and he was given.

When I tried doing the same, an ajumma said “Give calendar after you attend mass”. T_T I am always unfortunate with free stuff.

Winter sun in Myeongdong Cathedral

They also have LED roses in Myeongdong Cathedral

They also have LED roses in Myeongdong Cathedral

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Winter (again!) in South Korea – the arrival

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After four years, I can’t believe that we are traveling again to South Korea! Especially after the passport and visa drama from a week ago!

Mon and I have a soft spot for Seoul. We have been twice there before (summer of 2011 and winter of 2012), and we look forward to see what changes there might be. The country is to host the 2018 Winter Olympics, and it will be interesting to note of any preparations that they have (if there is).

Before anything else, I will be traveling with a very sore throat. Just imagine my horror waking up on Thursday barely able to speak. But this has been planned already and I packed a bottle of Bactidol for extra measure.

Sore throat!

Our flight left the Philippines at around 3:00 pm. We will be arriving four hours after in Incheon International Airport. I was feeling a bit feverish during the flight, but somehow, my excitement to be back eclipsed my predicament.

It is no secret that I love winter so much. However, I was anxious that I might not even see snow when we arrive. Global warming is real. I have been monitoring the weather for days before we arrive and not a single snowfall took place in Seoul. Sure we can go to Seoraksan just to see snow, but we do not have time for that.

Night about to fall

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Rêve de neige

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I finally had a very good Christmas compared to last year. =) Exactly a year ago today, I was in a mortal peril and the vivid memory of what transpired that time seemed to have happened only yesterday.

Toddle Elsa and Toddler Anna dolls with Olaf - Disney Frozen

Toddle Elsa and Toddler Anna dolls with Olaf (click to zoom)

But what is past is past, and I was more than happy to pig out on things I never got to eat last year. We were also back to our normal tradition of letting the kids open all of the gifts under our tree. We line them up from smallest to biggest, and allow them to tear the wrappers one by one. I was most particularly excited for Brie to open her gift because Elsa finally got a sibling. But to my astonishment, she seemed more delighted with the books Mon and I gave to her, which is always a good sign.

Hopefully, she gets to like books the same way I do until now. The whole Christmas morning until afternoon, I was busy playing with JB’s toys and I even took a couple of ensemble photos of Brie’s Frozen dolls a day after.

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See you again in July!

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Today is Mon and I’s 4th year and 5th month together and a few minutes after the clock had struck 12, he gave me a piece of paper with a note and a drawing of the Eiffel Tower and some French macarons from Max’s. =D

First of all, I did not even know that these are called as such, and I initially thought that there was a mistake with the spelling (i.e. macaroons). The irony of a French major not knowing French food.

French Macarons from Max's

We had a plan to meet up with Ikle today because he is going back to China tomorrow until the semester ends in July. As it is still winter there, I decided to just give him one of the trench coats I bought last November online.

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Winter in South Korea – Day 4: Simone Handbag Museum

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*extremely picture-heavy post*

For our last day in Seoul, we already have our itinerary in set and it was non-negotiable for us not to go to one of my must-see places. Back in October 2012, I previously expressed my anticipation of visiting Simone Handbag Museum and I could not believe that I finally had the chance to go and visit it. It was very uncommon for tourists to include a bag museum to their travel itineraries but I consider it a sin for sort-of bag lovers like myself not to drop by when in Seoul. So from Myeongdong Station, we travelled all the way to Sinsa station in the upscale Gangnam-gu to visit the museum (directions to this place can be found at the end of this post).

Simone Handbag Museum's building in Gangnam-gu - Simone Handbag Museum, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Simone Handbag Museum’s building in Gangnam-gu

Rainy winter - me on the bright side, while Mon in his neutral ensemble ---- and I love out transparent umbrellas we bought for only KRW 3,500!

Rainy winter – me on the bright side, while Mon in his neutral ensemble —- and I love our transparent umbrellas we bought for only KRW 3,500!

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Winter perfect: PathFinder boots

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Yet another post on the things I will be bringing for our winter trip to Seoul. =D The jackets that I will be wearing are all ready, but I still can’t decide on what shoes to bring. I thought of packing just two pair of shoes and I will definitely bring the brown 8-hole ones because they are the most comfortable out of the bunch. When we went to Seoul last year, I brought my white Nike Air Force 1 because I thought that any sports shoe would do the trick of keeping my feet from hurting. I was still wrong. The pair was comfortable, all right, but it did not stop my feet from aching after a day’s worth of walk. So the pair that I will be bringing with me next time should be the most comfortable.

Black PathFinder PF 8902 boots - shoes

 

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Our visa for South Korea got approved!

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Two weeks ago, I started preparing for the requirements of our visa application for South Korea, but slowly psyched myself out until last night — what if I get denied. O_O

I arrived in the office very eager to leave and immediately go to McKinley Hill.

I was very anxious because Raisa has still not replied whether she had already obtained my visa from the consular services. When she informed me that Mon was granted one last Monday, she was very quick to let me know.

My paranoia kicked in and I called her just to clear things up. Turned out, something was just wrong with the network and Mon’s cellphone even has no signal.

Chancery lobby - Embassy of the Republic of Korea in the Philippines - McKinley Hill

Not so sure if taking of photos was allowed

We arrived in the embassy and went immediately by the lobby of Chancery, where we waited for Raisa. The receptionist was already waiting for us and handed out our passports back to us. My first action was to shake the passport for signs of that dreaded white slip/paper, then search for my visa inside.

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