tadaima. in fact, i should have said tadaima on Oct 26, 2013 at 3.20pm when i set my foot on the land of 31 degree celcius LCCT.
i am now at Jalan Yong Shook Lin for a training.
how was my trip to Korea you asked?
it was good.
so good that i wish that i can stay in Korea forever.
...
Day 0 - what to do before departing
Nami Island Electric Car Tour Guide <3 p="">
*Based on
personal experience and guidance from a Malaysian Muslim student studying in
Konkuk University.
In Islam,
if you are going for a trip with 3 people (including yourself) or more, you
need select a leader.
In our trip, we didn’t really select a leader, but we consider me as one
because (I think) I made most of the final decisions and lead my group to the
places we want to go. But, being a leader is mentally tiring. I felt lucky that
we have The Student to guide us for a few days that I can consult him in making
decisions; and lucky to have someone else in my group to give suggestions in
cases that I am about to make wrong decisions and take over my position as a
leader when I was getting really tired.
**Side Story 1
“Pernah datang ke sebelum ni? (Have you been here before?)” The
Student asked.
Why did he asked? It seems that I know many
things about Seoul. I really did my homework, darling.
Check the weather condition: easy
for you to plan on what to
wear and what to bring, don’t bring too much clothes if you are planning to
shop for clothes. For Oct 18 to 23, bring some t-shirts and light jacket. For
Oct 24 and above, bring a light winter wear. My body does not easily get cold
but my hand and ear does, so I brought myself a pair of gloves and bought a
cap. I mostly just wear jeans and t-shirts on Oct 18 - 23. I only wear my
jacket which I bought at Wintertime in the night on Oct 25.
Learn to
listen, read and speak some Korean words (I did learn some;
way before I knew I am going to Korea). It helps, especially if you are using
Navermap, asking for directions and asking if there is meat in a certain menu. But
make sure your pronunciation is good and avoid banmal (반말); else
just say everything in English. I mostly use my reading and listening skills;
as I do not really know how to converse in Korean well. Some of the yeok (yeok 역 means
station) and buses doesn’t write the Romanized exits and destinations. Some
Korean in Namdaemun Sijang (sijang 시장 means market) knows how to speak in Bahasa Melayu; and
many in Myeongdong speaks Japanese and Mandarin. I can speak Japanese way
better than Korean, and I do understand a little bit of Mandarin. So I get to
save myself a lot. If you really know how to speak in Korean, sometimes you
need to pretend that you don’t know; especially when you are dealing with some
shopkeepers in Migliore, aPM, etc...
**Side Story 2
I accidentally stepped on The Student's shoes
while we were walking as he is walking in front of me.
I spontaneously said "미안 (Romanized: Mian.
Means: Sorry)"
He looked at me once, walked and looked at me
again and said "Macam mana tau? (How did you know?)"
I said "Ada belajar sikit. (I studied a
little.)"
**Side Story 3
I was walking alone in Myeongdong when suddenly
a promoter from Tony Moly grabbed my arm and shoves a face mask to my sight and
said "はい! このパックであげます! お土産です! 見てください~ (Romanized: Hai! Kono pack de
agemasu! Omiyage desu! Mite kudasai~ Means: Yes! i am giving you this pack! A
souvenir for you! Have a look~)"
LOL. Do I look like a Japanese to you?
Note: The Japanese called face mask as ‘pack’.
**Side Story 4
Again, I was walking alone in Myeongdong, and
was given a free face mask and asked to go inside the shop for "eye
shopping". When I go in the shop the person standing at the cashier
counter greeted me in Korean which I don’t understand.
I replied him by bowing and smiling. I walked
around the shop and I had a promoter walking together behind me. I did not say
a word as I do not have any intention to buy anything then I heard something
like:
Cashier: “한국 아닌가요? 외국? (Romanized: Hanguk aningayo? Oeguk? Means:
Not a Korean? A foreigner?)"
Promoter behind me: "외국, 외국. (Romanized: Oeguk, oeguk. Means: A foreigner, a foreigner)"
Another promoter: “중국해요? 일본어요? (Romanized: Chonguk hae yo? Ilboni yo? (A Chinese? A Japanese?)"
Promoter behind me: “모르겠어요 (Romanized: Moreugessoyo. Means: I don’t know)”
Note: Eye shopping means window shopping.
Decide where you want to stay (make sure it is very near to any
yeok): we stayed in Namdaemun Guesthouse, the things needed for Muslim
prayers are provided, and it is very near to Hoehyeon Yeok Exit 1, Namdaemun Sijang, 7E and other
Korean 24H convenience store. There are washing machine and drier, and pantry
with toaster, some free food and beverages, water dispenser, rice cooker,
frying pan, etc...
Decide
the places you wish to go and how
are you going to get there: based on my plan, we decided to go to
Namdaemun Sijang, Namsan Tower, Teddy Bear Museum, Hello Kitty Cafe, Cat Cafe,
Trick Eye Museum, Myeongdong Shopping Street, Insadong Shopping District,
Gyeongbukgung, Edae-Sinchon-Hongdae, Dongdaemun Sijang, COEX, Itaewon,
Everland, Petite France, Nami Island etc…
Petite France
We mostly travel by subway/train. So you will need
to buy T-money for convenience – it serves just like our Malaysian Touch and Go; that you
do not need to buy a ticket at the ticketing vending machine. There are some
places that provides discount for foreigners especially on Chuseok. For example, I went to check on Everland
website and printed out a coupon. We only get to pay KRW35000/adult instead of
KRW44000/adult. Some required you to print out the coupon; some only require
you to show your passport.
Side Story 5
"Tickets for 4 people. I have this
coupon," I said (in English) to the ticketing officer and showed her the
Everland Discount Coupon for foreigners we printed out; and the ticketing
officer asked me back (in English) "3 foreigners?" and pointed to the
other 3 girls behind me.
LOL. Do I really look like a local to you?
Everland Parade <3 font="">
Download Navermap apps when you reach there: it helps if you
are going to walk from a place to another, but it requires you to know how to
read Korean and understand what it means.
Download Jihachul apps:
easy for you to travel by subway/train.
Download Waze apps:
it helps if you are going to walk from a place to another.
Check for halal places to eat. Based
on my research and some suggestions by The Student, below are the list of
places that is recommended for Muslim: Incheon International Airport (Lotteria Shrimp
Burger, Paris Baguette), Namdaemun (Kebab between Hoehyeon Yeok Exit 5 & 6),
Myeongdong (Lotteria Shrimp Burger, Yugane Seafood Fried Rice, Potala
Tibetian Restaurant, Agra Restaurant, Myeongdong Eomoni Jib), Dongdaemun (전주집 Jeonjujib - Grilled Fish), Insadong (InsadongSujebi), Namiseom (shrimp burger at food court, pizza place beside a
musolla opposite the food court), Itaewon (famous for Halal Food, we ate at
Murree Muslim Food). Others are soft ice cream which range KRW 2000 - 2500,
fried rice cakes, grilled squid/octopus sold at the sijang(s) and seafood
pancakes. Avoid ordering things with any meat in it. Seafood is ok.
Jeonjujib
Buy some
food to bring
there; egg canned food, instant noodle and 3 in 1 drinks.
Convert
your MYR to KRW, and convert some other of your MYR to USD in case you are going
to be short of KRW and also to control yourself on how much you spend.
Get
yourself used to Korean modern culture. If you are eating in a
fast food restaurant, make sure you clean up after eating. Throw your trash
away yourselves and put the tray you were using to the places provided. If you
are in a train, make sure to put your phone in silent mode, do not speak loudly
to each other or if you are talking to someone over the phone; and if you want
to listen to some music, keep your music to yourself - use earphones or
headphones. You can sit at the "elders, pregnant women, disabled and
injured" seat, however you need to be alert if there are any one of the
categories are present in front of you and you need to get up to let them have
the seat.
You can
also offer your seats which are not meant for anyone of the above categories to
anyone of the above categories, but sometimes they refused to and they will say
it is ok for you to sit; like an auntie said to me “괜찮아, 앉아바. (Romanized: gwaenchanha, anjaba. Means:
it is ok, sit.)” when I offered her my seat, so I continue to sit. By the way, please note that this auntie is using banmal. It is ok for aunties
like her to use banmal to younger people.
If you
are using an escalator or walkalator,
and you are staying put on it, especially in the yeok, stay on your right so
that other people who are in a hurry can pass by. Knowing how and when to bow
and greet is a bonus. I bowed to the shopkeepers about 30 degrees every time i
entered a shop and bowed again when i leave. I don’t know if what i am doing is
right, but it seemed alright to them and they treat me well.
walk out of Hongdae Station Line 2 Exit 6 in front of KFC
There is
something that is actually invincible, but people can actually see: self-confidence. There
is another thing that is actually invincible, but people can actually see: bad intentions. If you
really have self-confidence, it will build a wall around you and people with
bad intentions won’t be able to come near you to bug you. If you are alone and
lost, don’t hesitate. Just carry on; but you need to also prepare
yourself to have a good sense of direction. There is a few times that i
left my group and walk alone; without any way to contact each other. But sure
we suggested that we meet at certain places at certain time. The last night I
am in Seoul, I really wanted to see Hongdae at night (especially street
performances), so I went there alone; and came back to the guesthouse safely.
:)
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