KIMCHILANDIA CHRONICLES: JEJU ISLAND – LOVELAND

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure

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WARNING!

If you are under 18, or have a weak heart, please do not proceed on reading this entry.

I am actually warning you. See those cartoon characters they used on their entrance booth? Definitely not for kids.

HEY! Why are you still reading? Didn't I tell you to leave this page?

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There. Don't say I didn't warn ya

KIMCHILANDIA CHRONICLES: JEJU ISLAND – SOINGOOK MINIATURE THEME PARK

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure

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Christo Redenter

Yup, that's right. It is the Christ the Redeemer statue. But nope, we were not in Rio de Janeiro (how I wish we're there). Actually, we were in Jeju Soingook Miniature Theme Park. It features miniature versions of some of the most famous architectures, landmarks, et cetera around the world.

See? It's just a miniature version.

Anyway, please enjoy viewing our trip to the Soingook Miniature Park. :-)

BLV T R NT

Before I start this entry, let me just make a (belated) congratulatory shoutout to my two brods in UPLB Street Jazz, Louie Canaria and Erik Javier. Yeah, I know I have already done this in Facebook but I just want to make this moment a part of my blog. :-)

Both Louie & Erik were part of the Megacrew entry of the UP Streetdance Club which won 3^rd place in World Hiphop International (Megacrew Division). Erik is also part of The Crew, a subset of UP Streetdance Club which competed in the Adult Division of the same event. They bested all the other entries... GOLD baby!

with Louie and his Bronze

Erik's Bronze and Gold

Great job, you guys!

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Okay, since I am now in a roll, and since I’m still on vacation, let me squeeze in this entry posts that I missed writing about due to my uber impossible work-school routine.

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First up, I want to congratulate my friend Jaja (Pooja Sujanani). She recently got married.

If you’re wondering if that’s her in the image, yes, you’re right. She is a pure blooded Indian who grew up in Bohol.

KIMCHILANDIA CHRONICLES: JEJU ISLAND – RIPLEY’S BELIEVE IT OR NOT

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure

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I knew this is a quite delayed post for my March trip, but I vowed to finish these Kimchilandia entries even if I have to do it inch by inch. :-)

You see, I have started my Masters in June and since then I barely had time to rest. Much less blog. But anyway, here’s another tourist attraction we visited while we were in Jeju Island.

Ripley’s Believe it or Not! Museum.

Mr. Ripley with Balinese dancers

Mr. Ripley in few of his countless excursions

KIMCHILANDIA CHRONICLES: JEJU ISLAND – CHOCOLATE MUSEUM

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure

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Wow. I have been soooooo busy with my work-school routine that I am recently finding it hard to make time for blogging.

But anyway, since I am currently uploading bulk photos of my Aunt's wedding and his son's christening (rushing this for my dear mama who's so eager to see the pics since she wasn't able to attend because she is in the province), I will squeeze in posting this one entry.

Luckily, this is not too time consuming as there is no long story to tell.

not your ordinary chess set

That pictured above is something that you don't want to play with. Because that set, believe it or not, is food.

It is chocolate molded into chess pieces. And while you're reading this entry, you will see a lot of "cute-ly" styled chocolates, because well, this entry's about the...

CHOCOLATE MUSEUM! Are you ready to salivate?

Shortstride & Arigato by the entrance of the museum

the facade

the welcoming lobby is a chocolaterie

KIMCHILANDIA CHRONICLES: JEJU ISLAND – TEDDY BEAR MUSEUM

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure

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We kicked off Day 2 of our Jeju sub-trip by having a warm morning with teddy bears.

I used to love cutesy stuff when I was young. Figurines, collectibles, potpourri, stationery, anything scented, stuff toys. However, that affinity disappeared when I started college. I don’t really know why 

I stopped liking cute things maybe because Elbi made me realize that life is tough, and cutesy stuff are just impediments in one’s coping with the bluntness of reality. (huh?)

So anyway, enough of that uhm darkness. I’m here to talk about light, delightful stuff! What’s good about the Jeju Teddy Bear Museum is that it made me get in touch with my old self. Now I’m liking cute stuff again. =)

Move over Michelangelo

I mean, how could you not be joyed when you see these adorable bears...

KIMCHILANDIA CHRONICLES: JEJU ISLAND - LAVA RUINS, A LABYRINTH, AND A GIANT SAUCER

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure

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Seongsan Ilchulbung (see source at the bottom)

Gimnyeong Maze Park

Manjanggul Lava Tube

From here on, I will classify my Kimchilandia entries per theme. This is because our Jeju trip, albeit short, featured soooo many different tourist spots that putting all one-day’s worth of activities in one entry is a Herculean task.

And besides, I don’t want the amazingness of a particular attraction to diminish; which I think would happen if I would squeeze them in one entry. Especially as Jeju island is the home of 3 UNESCO World Heritage sites.

So anyway, let me start by featuring first the destinations that are ‘nature’-related.

THAT JOYFUL OCCASION

I wanted to entitle this “The Wedding” but realized I already used that HERE. I thought of using “Dale Weds Aya” instead, but it sounded a little too dry. So, I ultimately decided to use “That Joyful Occasion”. Simply because... it was!

the handsome Groom

the beautiful Bride

Dale Satur & Malaya Manalang

I would like to tell a thousand stories about this day, but my mind is crapped out at the moment. So I’ll just tell you two things:

ONE, the event was EPIC! It was very dreamy that I felt like being part of a fairy tale story, watching the main characters swaying from one moment to another, so deeply in love, enjoying every second of their day.

And TWO, I was so haggard on this day due to the following reasons:

Kimchilandia Chronicles: Day 2 – THE SEOUL CITY BUS TOUR THAT WAS NOT

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure.

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Sunday, 11 March 2012

Day 2 was allotted for Seoul City Bus Tour.

Korevia # 2 – If you want to optimize the appreciation of Seoul, you better board the Seoul City Tour Bus. It travels in a circuit that links the best places to see in the city like the great palaces (Gyeongbokgung, Changgyeonggung, etc.), N Seoul Tower, markets (Dongdaemun, Namdaemun, Insadong), Korean War Memorial Hall, and many more. What’s best about the tour is that you can purchase a one-day pass for 10,000-12,000 KRW and you can tour the city in your own pace. Meaning, you can get off in a particular attraction and stay for as long as you want, then just board the next scheduled bus.  Tip: The bus tours are not operational on Mondays. So make sure to plot your itinerary properly. Also, if you are serious about the palace tours, research about the tour schedules as English tours are only conducted in certain hours.

Sad to say though, as the title suggests, we were not able to do this activity. We were too exhausted (Go, go, muscle pains!) from the activities the previous day. Plus, factor in the lack of rest since we all came from work the day before that. So our ending: Photoshoot around Hwaseong Fortress.

Kimchilandia Chronicles: DAY 1 (ANNEX) - SNOWBOARDING 101

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure.

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SNOWBOARDING 101 for LONEWULF, SHORTSTRIDE, and ARIGATO 

Jisan Forest Ski Resort, Yongin, Gyeonggi, South Korea

10 March 2012

Lonewulf, Shortstride, and Arigato

The Slopes

Lovin' the cold

To complement a previous entry about our Day 1 in Korea, I am posting these pictures of our snowboarding adventure in Jisan Forest Ski Resort. Please have a journey through the pictures below. By the way, note that it is our first time (ever) to try this sport so be easy on the "fallen" shots. :)

Happiness - We'll definitely come back next winter

Read on.

Kimchilandia Chronicles: DAY 1 – ARRIVAL + SNOWBOARDING + MYEONGDONG DINNER

Kimchilandia Chronicles – Chronological recounting of Lonewulf’s great Korean adventure.
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Lonewulf, Shortstride*, and Arigato*

For the next few entries, allow me to recount my experiences in South Korea. I’m doing this for three reasons: (1) I was extremely awed by the beauty of this country and its culture, thus my strong urge to write about it; (2) I want to provide as much tips and other info as I can to those who are also interested to visit Korea; and, (3) That weeklong vacation we spent overseas was one of the greatest experiences of my life, and looking at our pictures never fails to make me smile (or laugh at times). =)

Okay, so let me start by recalling our Day 1 activities.

PART I – ARRIVAL

Friday, 9^th of March 2012. Straight from our respective offices, Shortstride, Arigato, and I dashed to our respective homes to get our respective baggage, and went straight to the airport, all giddy about the coming adventure. Four hours after take-off from Manila, with less sleep, we treaded on Korean turf for the first time in Incheon International Airport. YAY!

cute toilet bowl for kids - airport washroom

THE WEDDING

Okay, so I’m in a bit of a panic now that I finally received this.

It’s the official wedding invitation from Dale John Satur and Malaya Manalang. Say whuuut? This is real now. I mean, I learned about this happy occasion was that more than a year ago(?), but now that the invite is in my hands, I felt like, yeah, this is really happening. And I’m not yet prepared.

 

 

TO KIMCHILANDIA WE WENT

Just over a week ago, I embarked on my ‘first vacation abroad’, with two good friends of mine, to the home of electronics-giants Samsung and LG, automobile-giants KIA and Hyundai, and of course, Lotte. The Land of the Morning Calm... SOUTH KOREA, BABY! =)  /*I do not count my HK trip last July as a vacation abroad, as that one’s business-related. Or so I call it.*/

So for a few days, I lived and breathed kimchi. Which is not entirely true as I do not really fancy eating vegetables (and fruits). But anyway, here is what I can tell you now... THE WHOLE TRIP WAS BLISS. It was like experiencing a good fraction of the best moments of my entire life within one week!

And because of that I will spend the next couple of weeks writing entries about our week-long trip. =) I hope the entries will give you a taste of Korea, if you haven’t been there (yet). Or give you tips and ideas in case you are planning to go there.

W.O.C.D.T - HELMET DIVING

 

Finally, I was able to find some time to post this. The last installment of the W.O.C.D.T. series. :)

To complete our Bora activities, we allowed ourselves to be submerged was that 15? feet below sea-level, and had a one-of-a-kind experience of playing with some fish.