The Spring Trip 2013: Jinhae Cherry Blossom Festival

It always happen this way. I tend to blog during exams preparation week. Honestly, I don't care really much about getting good results as I believe taking lectures should be more about learning than regurgitating facts during exams. 

Where is my Rose? (Me alone? ahhh!!!)

Nevertheless, I want to achieve well. Unlike in the past where my goals were to get excellent results and obtain admission to good university, now, I work hard solely to learn as much as I can and indirectly, achieving my small set of short-term goals.

"Little Moments" fashion mag~

These days, I felt my time in Korea passes by so fast because in less than a year, I will be graduating and then, a new dilemma begins: What's next for me. So instead of worrying about the next phase in life, I began an adventure of travelling to places I missed during my past four years in Korea. I started off at Jinhae.

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Jinhae (진해) is a beautiful port town located in the south of Korea. Travelling there is not a problem especially during non-peak months but come spring, you will come across huge crowds of visitors to the Jinhae Cherry Blossom Festival (진해군항제). This festival is usually held on early April for a week. This is also the time where you can see traders increasing their prices on every goods/food they sell.

Jinhae 2013

I am very kiamsiap (stingy) when it comes to paying for below-average food. I don't mind paying good money for a haute cuisine but if you asked me to pay double for a kimbap with so little ingredients, I wouldn't like paying for that crap. 

It happened when I was outside the Changwon station buying a cheese kimbap (a plain roll of kimbap: rice and seaweed with some garnishing, topped with only a slice of cheap cheese), it was 3,000 Won! Damn! I can get bulgogi kimbap for less than 2,000 Won at the nearby convenience store.  

Changwon Station, out from the train

Getting to Jinhae from Seoul/Daegu: Just take a train (KTX or Mugunghwa, the slow train) to Changwon (창원) and transfer to Jinhae using the Mugunghwa. Going back is the same. However, if you prefer to visit more places, you can travel to Masan, 마산 (most Koreans do it anyway if they found out that train tickets were all sold out) from Jinhae and take an express bus or train back. 

Going there: Dongdaegu - Changwon (KTX) - Jinhae (Mugunghwa)

From Masan to Daegu/Seoul by bus, you need to walk to 마산시외버스터미널 or the Masan Inter City Bus Terminal (around 1000 m from the station). It costs less than 7,000 Won, from Masan to Daegu/Dongdaegu Station by either bus or train.

Jinhae to Masan (you can get a ticket to Changwon too...)

Masan to Daegu (but we took off at Dongdaegu Station)

The key attraction spot in Jinhae during spring is the Yeojwa Stream (여좌천). This is where most travel brochures and flyers prominently display this place as a "must-visit" place. Fear not the countless touts waiting for you outside the Jinhae station telling you they are willing to fetch you there, you can, in fact, walk there by yourself! 

Outside the Jinhae station, walk a little further up until you reach the road and turn to your right. Keep walking until you can see an underpass on your right. This is it. You are already there.

As we walked pass the stream, flower petals were showering down on us whenever the wind gusted. Instead of snow during winter, this was petal showers during spring. Wouldn't it be nice if we can have two seasons in Malaysia, spring and autumn? 

My only complain was the overpriced food sold around the area. I really have serious issue with the food price here. There were a lot of kebab stalls (each is 4,000 Won) operated by Turkish and since I am bringing my Muslim friends, the vendors hesitated when I asked them whether they were halal or not. They simply said that the meat was halal, whether to believe or not, I don't know. I chose not to believe...   

Most snacks were above the 3,000 Won price range. You can get more delicious, cheaper and better alternatives in Seoul (especially in Itaewon for the Kebab), Daegu or anywhere else. If you come for food, I would not recommend it at all. This is also true for photography if you are there on weekends. I intentionally traveled to Jinhae on a weekday (Wednesday) just to avoid the crowds. And I don't have classes on Wed. Even better!

Side Trip: Jinhae Tower

Lovely.

As Jinhae is also the home of Korea's naval academy, they will be military parades during this festival (exact time not sure). According to a Korean I met over there, he said that the Yeojwa Stream looks better at night as the whole will be colorfully lit up.

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Say "Gangnam"!

With over a year left, I intend to travel to as many places (yet to be visited by me) as I can in Korea. It's quite amusing to see people studying over five years in Korea but have yet to visit Busan or Gyeongju (경주). My next trip would most probably be Busan, it is so near to Daegu. Happy weekend. 

Adventures at Yeosu - Yeosu Expo 2012

Yeosu Expo is being held in Korea from May 12 to August 12 this year. This exposition is aimed to allow the international community to understand the importance of conservation and the proper use of the ocean and coast resources. 

Not to forget, this exposition is also held to showcase the different cultures of the world and to strengthens Korean's international image as the host country.

  
Welcome to Yeosu Expo! 

With a huge numbers of pavilions being set up in a short time, it was a remarkable achievement for Korea. As a student staying in Korea, it would be a wasted opportunity if I did not attend this expo. So like most cash-strapped students, we try to go on budget (It is impossible though...). 

Unpredictable as my friends were, we decided to go to the exposition after deciding only two days before.

 
This is me! 


I love adventure and going to places with little planning. Usually, most of my trips were not planned but we have a list of where to go and what to try. 


Getting to Yeosu from Daegu is not difficult as it seems. Yeosu is located at the Southernmost of Korea and it takes less time (and cheaper) to travel from Daegu (in the middle of South Korea) to Yeosu than Seoul (northern part of South Korea) to Yeosu.


 
First, get off at Seongdangmot (성당못)

 
Exit here - Exit number 3

 
The bus station is directly next to the exit 

From my university, we took a taxi to Banwoldang Station (반월당), the only station where Line 1 and Line 2 of the Daegu subway intersects. Then, we took Line 1 to Seongdangmot (성당못) and exited the station at Gate 3 (Sobu Bus Terminal - 서부정류장). 

There, bus ticket to Yeosu can be bought (Less than 20,000 Won one way). Travelling by bus was a "butt-wrecking" experience. One Ahjumma (old lady) entered the bus even though all the seats were filled and she pretended to arrange her belongings on the top rack of the bus. 

When the bus driver was halfway on the road, she asked the bus driver whether or not it is possible for her to sit on the floor of the bus. Left with no choice, the bus driver relented. 

 


I felt like giving her my seat but the 3 hours plus journey scares me off. Along the way, I remembered we stopped at a rest stop and during the rest of the journey, I was sleeping. We arrived at Yeosu around 6 pm and we took a bus (Free!) to the exposition site. 

There will be guides (around bus stops) so it is very easy for tourists visiting the town. My first impression of the town/city (I can't call it a city) was this is a countryside (진짜 시골처럼 ㅋㅋ). Facilities there were bare minimum but food and accommodations were as expensive as in Seoul (maybe because of the exposition).

 
Evening Pass 

 
Standard Day Pass 

 
Sight from the main entrance gate

We knew beforehand that visiting the Expo for a day was not enough, we quickly bought the entry passes as soon as we reached Yeosu Expo site (2 tickets - 1 for the standard day pass, 33,000 Won and the other is Evening pass, 16,000 Won). So, the journey began. 

As a souvenir, we also bought the "Yeosu Passport" at 5,000 Won each. At every pavilion visited, we can obtain a stamp to be stamped/pasted on the "Passport".

 
Yeosu "Passport"

 
Singapore Pavilion

 
Australia Pavilion! 

On the first day, I visited Singapore, Peru, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Brunei, Australia (Had my dinner there too), Malaysia (Roti Canai at 7 Dollars? Come on!!! I can get it for less than 0.50 Dollars if I am in Malaysia!!!), Philippines and finally, Russia (Food here is so expensive, more than 20 Dollars for a decent meal). 

 
My Dinner @ Australian Pavilion

 
Malaysian Pavilion 

As it was already late at night, we watched the fountain performance and light-play at the "Big-O". That was the end of our Day 1. After we exited from the site, we searched for place to overnight. Most cheap rooms were already taken and it cost upwards 100 Dollars for a normal room. 

So we bargained and we managed to reduce the it to less than 70 Dollars.

 
"Big-O" fountain show 

 
Look at the crowd! 

My Day 2 was about waking up early and getting to the theme pavilions. As I was the earliest to wake up, (the rest were still sleeping) I managed to visit the aquarium (Lots of people!!! Honestly, if lining up for hours is a cup of tea for you, go for it but if not - skip it! I started to line up at the entrance at 8.00 am and entered the aquarium only at around 9 am.). 

 
Hyundai Pavilion

 
Bus ticket back to Daegu 

Other pavilions I visited worth mentioning were the Climate and Environment Pavilion and the Korean Pavilion. I visited almost all the international pavilions but had to give few European countries' pavilions a miss. 2 days is certainly not enough to visit all of them. 

Going back was the same and the bus journey (18,200 Won) back was better, everyone was tired so most of us slept until we reached Daegu. Dinner was a miserable Cheese Kim bap (2,000 Won) and red (or black?) bean buns. 

 

The expo was so-so and personally, I witnessed many people cutting in line (luckily not the younger ones) and it pissed me off at certain point. As an Asian with Asian values, I maintained my calm and respect for elders but...

Daegu: Of Summer, Life, Happiness, Korean Photo Studio and KNU Festival

This will be my last post of the month, exam's nearing and early preparations are essential to achieve my desired results. Now, it is summer in Korea, there aren’t any cherry blossoms to be seen blooming or cool weather to be felt anymore. It is also highly unlikely that I can wear my favourite outer every time I am outdoors.

Goodbye Spring...

Exercising under humid and warm summer weather has become a physically demanding routine. I felt I am now at my peak of physical capability. I used to run 12 km every day. My love for sports and running began after I realized I had grown a lot fatter since arriving to Korea in 2009. 

My weight was 76 kilos and in just less than 2 months, I ballooned to 82 kilos (Argghh)! Then, I felt I need to do something about myself. I started walking, and walking, and finally running. Now, I am 67 kilos but I used to be 64 kilos. What about you? There's nothing to be embarrassed talking about weight. ^^ 

The worst thing about losing weight was I couldn't wear most of my cloths. Every cloth I have now is either new ones or bought after I shed kilos. In Korea, the most common concern for the men was height issue. The taller you are, the better your "status" is. 

However, it's very amusing to see some people who purchased elevator shoe just to look taller. When I see short guys wearing basketball sneakers, high heeled boots or shoes with padding, just to look taller, I can only wish for them to be contented with whatever features they have.

Platform shoe

I am taller than the Korean national height average of 1.74 m but even if I am shorter, I couldn't care less. My height? Ahem, secret. When I was in high school, I always dread going to the school assembly because I felt teachers are always looking at the tall guys first before looking at others. Come on! Isn’t it so obvious? 

So, I learned to discipline myself by paying attention during assembly, this leads to paying full attention in classes and somehow, not liking to be distracted while focusing on a task. Frankly, I am also not very tall but during my "formative" high school years in Malaysia, I was among the "above-average" or "tall" in height. I never knew height was such an important issue until I was in Korea.

The Spiciest bun ever eaten in Korea! 

After living and mingling with the Koreans, I discovered that most of them are generally more sensitive and more concerned about how they present themselves to others - Are they good enough? Are they comparable with others?, etc. This is why Koreans are very obsessed with rankings. 

Rankings among the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries as the most technologically advanced country, ranking on YouTube on the latest pop culture (The K –pop), and the nomination of Jeju Island as the seven natural wonders of the world and so forth. They are very proud and happy.

However, by being too engrossed in the chasing after rankings and material wealth, they do not know how and when to be satisfied with what they had. Not many Koreans would like to be farmer because they always assume farmers earn very little. However, once they obtained high paying jobs, they are still dissatisfied because of the unending monotony of their job. They also work long hours. 

But they are never happy. Yet, they want their children to get high paying jobs like they themselves. How ironic isn’t it?

Recently, I attended a class but instead of normal lesson, we watched a video on a lecture about “Happiness” conducted at Harvard and a short slide on happiness. I was attracted to the slide presentation more than the video. It was about “What is Happiness?”. There are 3 types of happiness. 

The first one is “The Pleasant Life”, it is about being in a place and spending your time doing things you like. The second is “The Good Life”. This means doing something you are good at and when you lose track of time such as spending time with the people you love or your job. Finally, it is “The Meaningful life”.

Lets have a meaningful life... 

This means knowing your strength and using them in the service of something higher than yourself such as volunteer service. There are many occasions whereby I am happy because I am doing things I like, being on special place and helping people. 

When I think of “The Pleasant Life”, I felt I am always happy when I am inside my room, looking at the greenery outside the window just after it rains and eating a variety of cakes - fruitcakes, layer cakes and chocolate cakes. Yummy... 

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In Korea, taking photos is an essential activity for many occasions. 100-day boyfriend-girlfriend anniversary, class picture and even a plain-looking group shot are all taken in a photo studio. In Daegu, I would suggest going to a photo studio at Banwoldang Subway Station (반월당역). It is located at W427 near the Hyundai Departmental Store and opens from 10 am till 9 pm.

PhotoFun - Taking photos is fun? I don't think so..

"Hey, remove that ugly pimples!!!"..

What's next? Photoshop!

This studio is highly recommended because the price is affordable and for around 4~5,000 Won each person, you can get a set of photos. However, my only problem with Korean studios is that they photo shopped most photos all the time! 

Most of the time, they will make a fat guy appearing thinner on photo, a chubby lady suddenly having a coca cola bottle looking slender waist, dark skinned to a fairer skin (Sigh…), and some other basic retouching like removing wrinkles and pimples.

Tadaaa!!! (Don't ask why I had to pose this way... -_-") 

I love and very contented with everything I have.

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Stalls (주막) selling you-can-get-them-cheaper-elsewhere alcohols and food

From the top of my dormitory, wow! 

KNU festival was held from last Wednesday to Friday, I attended on Wednesday but fell ill on Thursday and was too exhausted for Friday. I slept early but I watched the fireworks display on the most romantic spot in my dormitory. The open space on the highest spot is where you can see stars, moon and sun, if only the girls can enter the guys dormitory… 

Photo of the week - Smoke gets in your eyes

Few weeks ago... A day before the closing date... I saw this on my Facebook's news feed.

So... I sent this entry...

Title: Smoke gets in your eyes (Location: Myeongdong)

And today, I received this email...

Most probably, my prize will be forfeited because I don't think I can attend the award ceremony. I have to attend a lecture (still undecided)... 

However, I am proud to win it. I always felt like I am not very good in taking photos but today, I realized I can also take good photos. Finally, I achieved my New Year's Resolutions goal no. 6. :) 기분이 좋아졌어 ㅎㅎ

Happy weekend.