One of the many wonderful things about the Korean-style heated floors is that when I wake up in the morning, I not only don't have cold feet when I get out of bed, I can warm up my socks by laying them on the floor so they are toasty when I put them on. Do you know what a wonderful feeling putting on warm, toasty socks is?? It's like putting on a sweater fresh out of the dryer :3

I went to the Top10 store in Gangnam this morning to exchange two jackets I had bought for a different size. I still have not figured out their sizes there, since I was unaccustomed to clothes in Korea HAVING size (generally everything there I have bought in the past is what is called a "free size". In layman's terms, you either fit this hybrid cross between an XS/M, or you are SOL. I say cross between XS and M because some areas are super small but others are really loose. For example, I fit most clothes in Korea but often the shoulders or chest area are too tight. They are often really long vertically though, since it is the style there to have shirts that sometimes go down to your knee area. It varies from article to article, but apparently the 105 size I got at Top10 was like an XXL or something lol. I exchanged them for 95's). I ended up walking into Top10 before it was even open, although how I was supposed to know that I don't know. The doors were unlocked and workers were moving about inside, so I came in. I went upstairs to the counter where a female worker was standing, whereupon she (I'm assuming) told me in Korean that they weren't open yet. I played the dumb foreigner because I was on a tight time schedule today, and didn't want to have to come back lugging my big bag of jackets. She was really nice, even though she didn't really know what to do lol. She tried explaining again Korean and did the floundering-don't-know-what-to-do-shy-Korean thing they do whenever I speak only in English and they don't know any English. It's cute ^^. I bought another of the men's cardigans I got last time at the Top10 at COEX, since it fit so well and is made so nicely. And is still only 10,000 won!! 


The KoreaPost office I went to mail a postcard is so scarily efficient, I actually had to ask the elderly guard/helper guy wandering around what the heck I was supposed to do. I was intimidated by the office lol. There were 5-6 workers along the long desk to help you but there were no lines. Zero. Instead, there were tons of chairs and people seated in them; think like the pharmacy at Kaiser, where you get a number and wait for your number or name to flash up on the screen and then you go up to the counter. It was like that here, but you take a number and then wait until one of the desks had your number flash above the station. In the meantime, I was left to sit in comfort and wonder why I don't live here again. WONDERFUL. Every US post office I have ever had the misfortune to go into has inevitably had a horribly expected long line snaking around that takes forever because there are only one or two people at the desk. Who are usually very rude and cranky and as unhelpful as possible. I'm sorry you hate your job but that is NOT my fault >.< No offense to any respectable postal workers out there, I know you are numerous. I just haven't had the good fortune to ever meet any of you :(

Since I had kalguksoo twice already, I wanted seolleongtang (my other favorite Korean dish) a second time as well! Dajeong had looked up places for me around Gangnam the other day, so I searched around the back streets near Sinnonhyeon station before I came across the place she had mentioned. I'm so so thankful that I can read Korean relatively fast now, so I'm not standing in the middle of the street, lips moving, and my eyes fixed on a sign that is probably advertising a random brand of ramen or something hahah. The looks people gave me were weird enough @.@

I feel like the young guy who greeted me thought I was Korean but my brain was so fuzzy that when he spoke to me, it took me a minute or two to get my bearings. It was the weirdest thing, I think I was still distracted from having spent the last half hour focusing solely on my Korean reading skills. I understood him and knew how to respond but for some reason it caught me off guard, so I just stood there vaguely saying ah yes...just one person....ah yes...seolleongtang...ah yes okay, I'll sit over here...T.T He probably thought I was retarded lol. Whatevs. I asked him in English for the dish I wanted, partially because I can't pronounce the 15 character long name of the dish and partially so the staff knows I'm foreign and not some depressed random girl eating seolleongtang all by herself. FT Island playing while I waited for my food, which made me happy. They aren't as big in Korea so you don't hear too many of their songs playing in public places. 

I spent some time afterwards wandering around and shopping. I had wanted to go back to the store where I bought my knapsack for 10,000 and I wasn't disappointed by the bag selection they had today! I was having lunch with my friend Yeji today so I headed over to Sinchon. She is studying for her civil service/government position placement exams or something of the kind, which are EXTREMELY difficult. She was explaining how they work to me over lunch, and I was like Mind = Blown. It makes the bar exam look like a first-grade spelling test. (No offense to any potential or past bar exam takers, it was just a joke!) 

Seriously though. The people here take this test over and over again, and the whole series of tests take almost a full year. So people fail over and over and take it over and over. You have to study and take the first part of the first test, then the second part of the first test a few months later. Then you have to take the first part of the second test, the second part of the second test, and the third part of the second test, and so on. And if you don't pass ANY of these parts, you fail and stop right there. You can only continue if you pass each part. And in the final part, only 50% of the test-takers are accepted into the government sector they desire to be in. THAT MEANS AFTER ALL THAT WORK, TIME, STRESS, AND EFFORT IN CRAMMING ALL YEAR, ONLY HALF OF THE ALREADY CUT-DOWN AMOUNT OF PEOPLE WHO MAKE IT TO THE END WILL GET THEIR JOB. Yeji said she wakes up at 7am and studies studies studies until 11pm when she goes home and eats and then wakes up to do it again the next day. And the next. And the next. Goddamn. No wonder everyone's smarter in Asia O.O Yeji will pass the test though, I have faith in her! My eonnie is a smart cookie :) She wants to work in international relations, and she will be WONDERFUL at it. 

After we ate, we got coffee at her university's coffee shop with ridiculously low student prices (cuz of course, they have that too. They have a FLOWER shop and hair salon in their university. What do they not have... @.@). It's so awesome the university really tries to make it easier for students by making the food and coffee so afforable. When they give "student prices" at UCSB, it was more like "here, take 50 cents off. Aren't we so generous?". Here, they give you whole trays of food for a couple thousand won, as opposed to the 8,000 or higher you'd be paying otherwise. Yeji had to get back to studying so she walked me back to the front and then I headed off to Edae. Thanks for making time to meet with me Yeji!! <3

Edae is only one stop over from Sinchon, so I just walked horizontally from Yonsei. I love Edae in the same way that I love Hongdae. I love the atmosphere and the vibrance coming from the area. It's not quite like Hongdae though, which is a more mellow hang-out kind of place for boys and girls. Edae, in accordance with its proximity to the all-girls Ehwa University, is a girlier version of Hongdae. It has tons of girls clothing stores, heaps of cosmetics stores (often you see the same exact store only a few stores down from the first one), and tons of jewelry and shoe vendors all over. Everything is really pretty and cute, and obviously targets girls. It is similar to Hongdae also in it's maze of streets with endless shops going in all directions. It's easy to get lost! 

I made a most happy discovery of my favorite tornadoes as well! The adjusshi manning the stand sold ugly hotdogs (and normal corndogs) as well as sausages. He also had a whole collection of seasonings to put on the tornadoes after they were done, unlike the last cart I bought them from. I used an onion & garlic powder on mine :) It was SO YUMMY SO YUMMY SO YUMMY. Like heaven in little crispy tasty bites :3 I could sit and eat these things forever, so it's probably good that I don't live here. Just writing about them is making me want some SO BADLY. I can't even explain it. Yes it sounds good when reading about it, but there's something about them when you're actually munching on it that is just so...GOOD. It's addicting, like all the street vendor food here T.T

Pretty much the most common lower body clothing I see here on women are these leggings/skirt combination articles. The skirt is attached to the leggings. They are most often a short, tight pencil skirt-esque kind of skirt made of the same material as the leggings. Occasionally I see a flared or other variation on these...skeggings? I have never seen them before I came here to Korea, so I was kind of taken aback the first time I saw them lol. However, TAKE HEED AMERICAN LADIES. This is how you are supposed to wear leggings; they are not pants. I repeat, THEY ARE NOT PANTS. It's one of my biggest pet peeves ever. Wear a long shirt that covers your butt or wear shorts or a skirt over them. There is NOBODY who wants or needs to see that much of your butt on any given day. Seriously I don't care who you are. It's not pretty.

I made my way back to the main drag of Edae and walked towards the subway. I had miraculously managed to not buy a single thing yet, other than my first Tornado when I first arrived. I had fun browsing and window shopping, but talked myself out of buying anything that caught my eye and I actually considered getting. As a reward, I bought a second Tornado because the first really did nothing but make me want another one immediately hahah. 

Of course, I AM leaving the country just a few days so I stopped by an Etude House and a Missha on the way to the station and picked up some last minute things I wanted to take back. I was planning on stopping by the Gangnam Underground Shopping Center on my way back to Yeoksam too, so I could look for a carry-on back to use on my way home. I had had to check-in my carry-on bag on the way over to Korea and somewhere in transit it had ripped :( 

Of course, I should have known better -.- The Shopping Center is dangerous. I walked into the Center, full of good intentions and firm convictions. I left with 3 shirts, 4 sweaters/cardigans, a duffel, several boxes of citron tea, and a most interesting collection of adorable earrings. Wah. At least I accomplished my original mission of finding a carry-on?!? Lol. It just goes so fast...I stay strong in the beginning and bypass everything that catches my eye, but after like the 150th store with adorable clothes and sale signs everywhere, you start to break down...I spent less than $100 on all that but I was carrying like 9 bags because of the backpacks I had bought earlier that day and the Etude House/Missha stuff. I forgot to mention how much that makes me stand out lol. Whenever I go shopping and then head home afterwards with my 5-6 bags, it automatically makes me look foreign because the people who live here have this all the time so they never really go on "sprees". If anything, the most they are carrying is one small bag from a cosmetics shop or a paper bag with a cake from a bakery. I stopped for a minute on a bench to think and regroup, and then realized some of my purchases were things that could hold other stuff! I packed my purse and all the smaller bags into my small duffel and into the larger of the two backpacks I had bought and headed back into the subway with my hands now blessedly free...they were starting to turn red and throb from all the weight they had been carrying lol. 

As SOON as I started carting around the duffel and backpack people would ask me if I was Korean first thing, as if checking haha. They wouldn't immediately assume I was. Then I would get the chance to tell them I was from America and avoid all the awkward staring, the averted eyes, and confused looks. I guess Americans who LOOK American (read: white people) are rare here but Asian people who LOOK Korean then don't know a lick of Korean and say they're from America are even rarer -.- How splendid for me. I'm practically a martyr. Or an alien.

Also, I saw a Jo Kwon on the subway home. It was young and still had not reached full J.Kwon maturity, but it was most DEFINITELY a Jo Kwon :D I couldn't believe my eyes. I wanted to take him home with me so I can be his friend when he gets older and he can make me laugh until I turn blue and die hahah. I was happy leaving him there though. The next generation will need another Jo Kwon once my generation's one has gotten older and gone into retirement...pfft. Who am I kidding. Jo Kwon will never go into retirement xD

I met my friend Dajeong today for lunch at a place in Gangnam she described to me as kind of "unique"...didn't know if I should be scared or not hahah. Thankfully it turned out to be this AMAZING italian-fusion restaurant with a unique THEME. The food was also unique but in a good way :) I say italian-fusion because it was italian food, but not. Dajeong described it as Korean-ized, which I am now officially going to make a word because it describes so many things perfectly lol. There are so many foods and concepts here that I recognize but that are a little different, or tweaked, or something...it is because they are Korean-ized and totally awesome in general. 

The line for the restaurant was so long!! The place was SO popular, I was really excited :) The line of people curved out of the restaurant and around onto the sidewalk and into the office building next door! 0.0 And more people came as soon as Dajeong and I took a place at the end of the line! I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. 

The theme for the restaurant was "construction" I guess? It was very metal and factory-worker chic inside, with a very fun, laid-back but still classy atmosphere. I had noticed all the waiters seemed to be cheerful, attractive young men and I later found out why from Dajeong. She was telling me how this restaurant was really popular for women especially. I asked why, and she said it was like Coffee Prince: Restaurant Version; this restaurant ONLY hired good-looking young males :D AND IT TOTALLY WORKS. I couldn't believe I was sitting in a real life version of Coffee Prince hahah, and watching it's ridiculous success with my own two eyes. Why don't more businesses here do this? There's not really discrimination prevention laws here like the ones in America, so why not haha. 

Once inside, we ordered at a central ordering desk (think Stonefire) and in accordance with the construction theme, we received a construction hat with a number on it. We decided on a garlic bacon pan cheese (that's right, I said pan CHEESE, not pan pizza...details later) and spaghetti salad (can't believe this hasn't been invented and reached widespread popularity by now). They asked which general area we were sitting in, since the place was HUGE, and then gave us our hat. 

S/N: This place really was gigantic, in terms of Korean restaurants over here. Most are small and narrow and go either up a floor or down a floor if they are "larger" places. This one was two stories, packed in with tables (all of which were full), and REALLY wide, so I was surprised at the scale of it all. Guess they need it to accomodate the flood of customers...and there's STILL a massive line outside!

The inside of this place is extremely lively and its fun just sitting in there. When the waiters come by with your food, they are loud and energetic and talk you through the food (which comes in big bowls that you share from; everything here is like Stonefire, down to the numbers on your table waiters use to find you to bring your food) and then give each person at the table a big high five!! HOW FUN :D Dajeong had called my attention to it earlier when a waiter was giving another table with a boy and girl at it, high-fives. I thought they had just told a joke or something, or they knew the waiter. So I was somewhat shocked when our waiter came, explained everything, and then energetically held his hand out to me for a high-five. No wonder this place is so popular with the women hahah. Whoever is the business owner is a smart cookie. And a rich one T.T

The food was sooooooo yummmmmmmmmmy. I almost melted all over the table, it was so good. Dajeong I'm sorry I probably wasn't very good conversation, what with me stuffing my face as fast as I humanely could for a good 10 minutes xD The salad, while normal looking on top, had a bed of spaghetti underneath the lettuce that you mix up with the leaves. It had a sort of dressing on it that was really good, light but with a bit of spicy to it to keep it interesting. 

The pan cheese was exactly what it sounded like. Like a pan pizza, but all cheese. Alllllll cheese :D In other words, MY FOODIE DREAM COME TRUE. I couldn't believe it when I started eating it and tasted it (you scoop it with a spoon btw). Now, everyone knows burnt cheese is pretty much the best thing on this planet, because it doesn't actually burn it just gets all crispy, golden-brown, and delicious. Yea well, this was AN ENTIRE PAN OF THAT DELICIOUS CRISPY, GOOEY CHEESE. WITH BACON AND ROASTED GARLIC CHIPS ON TOP OF IT. THAT YOU EAT WITH A GIANT SPOON OUT OF THE PAN. How the eff does life get ANY better than this, honestly? Can somebody tell me? Anyone, no? Didn't think so. 

Once I had calmed down enough for rational conversation (read: once I was completely stuffed and the food was taken away), we headed out to hit Innisfree and Aritaum in search of more face masks and some other stuff I wanted to take back home with me. It really helps having someone along who speaks both English and Korean fluently because then she could read me the labels on all the sheet masks and bottles I was purchasing when they didn't have English on them. Most of the time they do, but they don't put much information in English, just the bare essentials (like, This is a hand lotion. Or Face scrub for exfoliation). It doesn't tell me whats in it or what specific thing it is for (whitening, moisturizing, acne-prone skin). Having Daejong along is a god-send.

We stopped for coffee at a place called The Banana & Co, Today just seemed to be a day of both gargantuan proportions and extreme popularity because this was EASILY the most giant coffeeshop I've ever been in, United States and Korea locations both. We ordered our drinks on the first level when we walked in then started looking for a table. The decor inside was simple, cute, and a bit funky with splashes of color among the glass and black. Finding none on the first floor, we went up the stairs to the second floor. Finding none on the second floor, we went up to the third floor. Finding none on the third floor, we went up to the fourth floor. Finding none on the FOURTH floor, we went up to the FIFTH FLOOR. And finding none on the FIFTH FLOOR, DAJEONG WENT UP MORE STAIRS TO CHECK A FREAKING SIXTH FLOOR ATTIC AREA. Really?! A six-floor gigantic coffee shop?? WITH EVERY TABLE FILLED. Holy criminy, I seriously couldn't believe it. Every. Single. Table. In this massive place. On the higher up floors they had those cute Asian low tables where you take off your shoes before going up on the raised platform where the tables were, and sit on cushions. 

Admitting defeat, we began the long, long descent back down to Earth (aka the first-floor). Back on the first floor, we happened to see a small table right by the staircase that we immediately grabbed. Almost simultaenously, Dajeong noticed another staircase behind the one we had just come down on...one that went DOWN. HOMG THIS BUILDING HAS FLOORS BELOW US TOO?!?!?!? O.o

Dajeong also spotted another table that just opened up by the windows so we relocated to that one instead, just as our buzzer rang. We sipped our drinks and happily chatted for awhile now that we fiiiiiiinally had a table; I've really missed this girl!! :)

Dajeong asked me if there was anything else I was trying to buy while I was here and I mentioned I had wanted a rechargable battery, like the kind that you can pre-charge then carry around and charge your phone, ipod, tablet, etc. if they happen to die on you away from home? This had happened a few times to me during the days I was at the music broadcasting shows, due to lots of phone use talking to my friends and taking lots of pictures. And being without your phone, in a foreign country, all by yourself is just...not a good way to go, okay? For one, I can't even listen to music on the subway. Or take pretty pictures for you folks to see later. On another note, I can't call for help if I ever needed it or locate my friends if they're trying to find me. I also can't use my Jihachul app to find me a subway route to wherever I want to go either. So I really wanted a backup plan, in case this happened again.

Dajeong thought for a bit then took me to an Apple retailer called Frisbee (like I explained in my first trip's blog, there are no actual Apple stores here, only licensed retailers). After asking around, we found a selection of rechargable batteries, some only for the iphone, some big, some small. I settled on a slim, metal one that had a USB port; I wanted to be able to charge an appliance I had with me that needed it, not just my iPhone. This particular battery was super cool too, as it was multi-functional. It was also a flashlight, a pocket handwarmer (heated up like a mini-heater!), AND a rechargable battery. It had different settings you could click the top to, and different light colors it glowed for each function so you'd have to be blind and sensationless to mix it all up. Talk about a nifty thing to have in an emergency, ANY kind of emergency, huh? :D

When I opened the box later, I also realized IT COMES WITH ITS OWN SOCK COVER. I almost fell over, it was so cute and adorable and Asian and AWESOME. I actually just wasn't expecting it lol, it was so perfect for it.

On the way back home as I walked through Gangnam station, I almost ran into this guy carrying a gigantic fistful of instant coffee packets clutched tightly in one hand, holding it out in front of him. He was walking like he was on a mission. Uh...okay?? Lol, I'm sure there's a really good story behind that...or he's just weird. 

Back in my room I surveyed my purchases from today. I had several new types of pretty face masks to try with some new free Aritaum and Innisfree essence samples to try out as well. I also had picked up some green tea latte and green flake latte (with crispy brown rice in it) instant packets at Olive Young; since Dajeong knew about my green tea latte infatuation, she suggested I try out some instant brands to see if I liked one so I could bring it back with me if I wanted. She's such a good friend :)) 

I had also picked up this ADORABLE little black and tan knapsack for only 10,000 won!! I had seen this exact backpack in Myeongdong at a bag sellers place for like 60,000 won when I was there with Jess. Jess, do you remember it? I was holding two bags and asked you to check the price of this one (that I just bought today) that was hanging on the wall above you in that Myeongdong shop? I am definitely coming back to this store before I leave and picking up another bag...or two. Their bag designs here are seriously cute. The bag looks small in the picture, but its a nice size in actuality, and is more than big enough to fit all the stuff from my purse. I love when bags have zippers everywhere where I can put small things too <3

Ladies & gentlemen it seems in my distress over Jess leaving me in Korea, I somehow FORGOT TO MAKE AN ENTIRE POST for 3.19.13, her last day here. I have NO idea how this happened but it is completely ridiculous. This has never happened before, me completely missing an entire batch of photos. You all know how OCD and borderline crazy I am (lol). Anyways, here it is. It will be filed under it's proper date though, so it won't appear at the top of the blog page >.< 미안!

And on to fun stuff! Today was Jess's last day, as she was flying out tomorrow :( It was a toss-up whether it would be spent at Edae or Myeongdong (two of the places left on our to-do list this trip), and she chose Myeongdong so off we went. Myeongdong is located pretty much directly in the center of Seoul, not far from Hongdae, Ehwa, Itaewon, and the like. 

We had passed this little shop on our way transferring from the Green line to the Light Blue Line before and always meant to stop to try it. Today was the day haha, so we bought some...whatever they are. They looked and tasted like sweet crumpled waffle cones coated in chocolate and sprinkles. I got a green tea chocolate one (surprise surprise ㅋㅋ) and Jess got a white chocolate with rainbow sprinkles one. 


We had both seen the mallet lying on the counter and had been vaguely wondering what purpose it served, when the man took out my green tea...thing...and then whacked it with the mallet!! And again and again, until it was in lots of yummy little eatable pieces. Ah ha, so THAT's how you eat something that is roughly the size of a grapefruit lol. Munching on our breakfast treats, we rushed to catch the next transfer subway a few floors down. 

One of the things we had been looking forward to finding in Myeongdong was the custom Converse store! I've been to Myeongdong several times before but had never been looking for anything in particular so I had never noticed the Converse store around. We located it alright, but the workers inside told us the custom part of the store (second floor) didn't open until 1pm. Well then. We had a good couple hours to kill. In the awesome, colorful, bustling, cosmetics store-laden, food vendor-filled, clothing stands-packed area known as Myeongdong. Gosh, what a chore... :D

We wandered, doing some idle shopping and I bought some awesomely unique stud earrings at a shop. They sell a lot of earring pairs here that include a third earring for a conch piercing or helix piercing. It's awesome since I have both now, and can have a third earring in those higher piercings to match the lobe ones :) We got ugly hot dogs and chicken vegetable skewers from a food cart and munched on our snacks in a state of supreme happiness. I was chatting with a Japanese lady and her high-school daughter who were eating standing next to us at the same cart. They didn't know much English but I used the little Japanese I knew, and they did vice versa with English lol. They were very sweet; the Japanese lady even gestured towards my clothes and told me I was so stylish, and she liked my whole outfit! I was so flattered... that's such a nice thing to say especially to a complete stranger x) <3

Obviously after eating a savory snack, now we need bubble tea! We hunted down this bubble tea shop I had come to last time I was here that was AMAZING. It was called Gong Cha and I have no idea what Gong means, but I know "cha" is "tea" in Korean (similar to "ocha" in Japanese!). It's extremely popular, and there was a massive crowd inside + line going out the door. Nonetheless, they were efficient and the line moved relatively quickly. I can't remember the drink I always order there because I kind of just know where it's place on the menu is, find it, and read it off to the serving girl but its a green tea (actual green tea, not like my lattes lol) milk something with white jelly. 

It is THE BOMB. Cofioca is still #1 in my heart, but the drink I get at Gong Cha has just an entirely different taste all it's own. It's unique and delicious. After getting my drink, I went upstairs to find a table rather than wait with Jess and be jostled and glared at by the massive crowd downstairs by the bar. What's nice about the usual multi-story structure of many coffee shops, restaurants, and clothing stores here is that once you go up, you usually have a nice view of the surrounding area to people-watch or daydream or just to enjoy a nice bright backdrop while you chat. I like it better than when the coffeeshops go belowground instead of up.

We went back to the custom Converse store now that it was past 1pm, only to be told (by a different sales associate than the one we asked this morning) that the custom studio WASN'T EVEN OPEN TODAY. DAFUQ. We can't exactly argue with them and I didn't know how to explain about the associate who told us it was open at 1pm in Korean, so we just left. We did some more minor shopping around so Jess could buy more gifts to bring home, before we headed back to the subway.

Another thing I had told Jess we needed to try before she left was Manoffin, a cupcake shop located in most subway stations. They have the most adorably delectable cupcakes EVER. And I mean EVERRRR. They make me want to just buy one of each and preserve them in a glass case to use as decoration around my room, they are so perfect and cute. Last time I got one of their staple cupcakes, Black Prince (which was black tea-based) and was definitely a cupcake. This time I got an Almond Proposal cupcake, which had a texture more like a muffin...not surprising I suppose, given the shop's name lol. I forget the name of the one Jess got but hers was SUPER adorable and cute too. We were reluctant to eat them because they were so pretty to look at but eventually hunger won out. As expected, they were delicious. And more filling than you would think actually...must have been the muffin-consistency. 

Some tv and bedrest later, we headed out again to meet Haeri at Seullong station for kbbq. She had found a new kbbq place lately that she really liked (and we love kbbq haha) so we were excited. We chatted all the way to the place and then ordered this wine-soaked samgyupsal (I think it was wine? Or some other Korean alcoholic equivalent) that had whole peppercorns on it. It was SOOOOO GOOOOOOD. Just the smell of it cooking was mouth-watering enough. Hanging out with Haeri is always lots of fun, as she's such a cheerful and sweet person. Cheerful people like her bring out the super bubbly valley girl in me haha, I always get so excited >.< 

Haeri took us to a nearby store that sold all manner of things from pens and office supplies, to bedroom essentials, to phone chargers and cases. It was such an awesomely handy store, the kind you want to have right next to wherever you are living haha. It's like Staples, Fry's, and Target rolled in one cute little place! We went to Ediya Coffee down the street afterwards for dessert and talked over our drinks. We ended up thumbing through this massive Korean fashion magazine as well, exclaiming over clothes, pretty models, and who had or hadn't gotten plastic surgery done xD Well, we ARE girls...

Haeri and I went on a hilarious hunt for a restroom later, consulting this funny treasure-map kind of area sketch in Ediya at length to find the restroom. We trekked all the way outside, around the block corner, and up into this shady little office building lobby to find a bathroom...only to find there was no toilet paper. After ALL that. I just held it until we got home later that night haha. I'm blaming being so pre-occupied with needing to pee that night for forgetting entirely about writing this post. It was a good day though :)

Candace: Today we tackled the Seoul Zoo!! We have been wanting to go here for awhile now, so we were especially excited to get going this morning. The zoo is located at the Seoul Grand Park subway exit, which wasn't too far from us. We were scheduled to meet Jess's cousin and her husband + kids and go around the zoo with them.  

After you come up from the subway, there was a long straight walk with food vendors and hat vendors lining both sides. Jess & I had time before we met her cousin so we wandered and looked around. I bought a cool leather patchwork cap and we both bought fun animal ears to wear around the zoo :)

The walkway led straight up to the Grand Park Info Hall or whatever, pictured above. On my return trip after we finished at the zoo, I found out the tram deposited and picked up passengers here. We headed to the right and up the long hill to the park on foot.

I was hungry (surprise surprise) so we picked up some double-dipped corn dogs from a vendor to munch on while we climbed up to the zoo. I've had them before on my last trip and they are seriously the BOMB. They are massive, first and foremost. And they are like flaky and crispy on the outside but have mounds of soft yummy bread on the inside. The actual hot dog is really thin, in keeping with the Korean's more healthy less-meat eating ideologies. America, take note. They do eat a lot of bread, but they balance that with TONS of veggies, less rice, and almost no meat. Hence, they are all skinny and beautiful. Maybe if I move here, my diet will adjust...eventually o.o

We reached the top and sat to wait for Jess's cousin + family. Since we have no wifi on our phones, we had no choice but to sit and watch for them. Jess had made contact with them earlier and found they were stuck in a bit of traffic. They had agreed to meet at the entrance to the zoo but after sitting & waiting for hours for them and the time they should've arrived being well past, we finally headed inside with our tickets. 

However, while we were waiting by the entrance I saw more babies in 2 & 1/2 hours than I've ever seen in my WHOLE LIFE PUT TOGETHER. AND OMG WERE THEY ADORABLE AND SQUISHY :3 They were everywhere, running around with parents chasing them, sitting on grandpas knees, holding hands with older siblings, squealing in delight when they saw the tiger statue (pictures later in post), jumping around, babbling nonsense as they trotted along as fast as their chubby little baby legs could take them, OMG THEY WERE SO CUTE. Their outfits were equally adorable, all brightly-colored. Some had so many layers on, they were like walking marshmallows; they waddled more than anything ^.^ One little boy was wearing the TINIEST pair of Nike Free's I've ever seen. SO CUTE. The soles couldn't have been longer than my palm. Not my hand, just my palm. And my hands are pretty damn small. 

The first thing we saw when we walked in was a long line of face cut-out animals, ranging from dinosaur to cow to monkey. Us being the little 5-year olds that we are, we immediately freaked out and ran over to take pictures :D We didn't stand out at all...we were just like 4 feet taller than anyone else having their picture taken. Okay, so people MIGHT have stared...

The animals were SO COOOOOOOOOOOL AHHHHHH. It was like we were literally little kids again. Everything was new and wonderful and amazing. Animals are awesome, however old you are. They are different and interesting in how they live in such different environments and adapt to them. We ran all over the zoo snapping pictures and jostling for arm space in front of the animals habitats, cuz man, was it CROWDED. Zoo on a Saturday, on a day with beautiful weather was maybe not the greatest idea we've ever had. 

They had these really cool all-electric buses in the park, with animal murals on them. With my interest in renewable energy, I particularly admired the electric part of them. Although the animal pictures were cool of course :D

The monkeys we saw were a CRACK-UP. One of them even had a baby with it (the black one)!!! The mama was totally jumping around and climbing the fence and everything with it on it's lap 0.o So amazing. I took a video of them too, they were so funny. Visitors had corn on the cob, so they would take off kernels and toss them to the monkeys, who were holding out their hands through the bars. And they would climb the fences and catch all the tiny kernels being tossed to them in their one hand!! ALL OF THEM. It was like a dog begging for treats but more like a mini human asking for more food; it blew my mind lol. They were so silly! Their eye to hand coordination fascinated me, especially when they would speedily go loping around their cages, jumping from thing to thing, swinging from their hands, then suddenly come back and stop to catch a kernel. They are so smart too. I remember when I was little, all I wanted was a spider monkey. Other little boys and girls wanted a puppy or a gerbil, but I wanted a spider monkey. I even went as far as looking up adoption methods onlnine (I didn't fit the criteria). Failing that, I then wanted a cow. Yes, a cow. 

MY FAVORITE ANIMALS OF THE DAY: the Lesser Panda :) SERIOUSLY HOW CUTE ARE THEY. When we saw them we immediately took as many photos of them as we had taken of the rest of the animals all put together haha. They were so tiny and energetic and playful and quick! And fuzzy :3 I have now changed my cow pet desire to a lesser panda. Prease aaaaand fank you.

We also spotted something called a raccoon dog, that neither of us had ever seen before. They were unbelievably fluffy and super cute though, so whatever they are, they have immediately gone to the top of my favorite animals list!

On the way back down from the zoo, Jess decided to walk while I waited for the tram. It was really quick, and cool cuz I got to see Seoul Land! All the kids on the tram were so excited, yelling that yay, we were off!! Adorable :) 

I got down before Jess so as I waited I did some people watching. It was a good thing we went early because as I got off the tram near the entrance to Seoul Park, the line of people queuing up for the tram UP to the park was IMMENSE. All the way down 3 sets of stairs and out onto the plaza ON BOTH SIDES of the entranceway was a horde of potential zoo-goers, armed with strollers and diapers.


Jess's cousin was getting done with the zoo as well, so now that we had wifi (by the Grand Park entrance there was working free wifi) Jess could communicate with them again. We sat and waited again for awhile at the front until they made it down and we could finally meet with them ^^. We at least got to walk back down the walkway with them and chat. We got some food to eat as well; I got a potato slice stick (don't know what they are actually called, but they are effing amazing). They are like warm, crispy, meatier potato chips that you roll in seasoning and eat off the stick. And as we all know, everything is better when eaten off a stick :)

After the zoo, we hit my favorite Gangnam Underground Shopping Center. I had been already but Jess hadn't, so we did a quick(er) circuit...more so than I did on my last spree ^^. I ended up with a cute flowy white longsleeve, a long turquoise knit sweater and a teal colored assymetrical hem long sleeve top. It falls really nicely actually so I think I'm going to go back and get another, for $8. 

I have been needing a new phone case for awhile, so I also picked up a new one. There are a zillion options for phone cases, both in the regular bumper/back case type we mainly use in America and in the "diary" form that I use while I'm here in Korea. I'm of the hating-change variety though, so I got my same type of cover as my old one, just in a different color. It's navy blue on the outside now and lime green inside; super cute! At the zoo today Jess and I had gotten these adorable Winnie the Pooh phone charms from a machine; I got two. I attached the Pooh in a rabbit costume to my old phone case on the way to the shopping center, then once I bought my new case, I attached the Pooh in a froggie costume to it :)

I also haven't updated on my growing collection of scarves I've been amassing both for myself and for gifts when I go home. I love the scarves here, mainly because they have such a huge selection to choose from and they are EVERYWHERE. In all kinds of fabrics and all sorts of patterns. Anytime I find one that catches my eye and is the right price, I tend to buy it. It's way cheaper than I'll ever find an equivalent scarf for in the States anyway. 

With the day over and us pretty exhausted from running around the zoo and shopping area all day, we decided on some low-effort (yet still gourmet, cuz it's Korea) pizza for dinner. A stop at the grocery store and the pizza place later, we were in our room for the night, happily munching on dinner while we watched tv ^^. Really though, the zoo was so awesome. I had the greatest time today! No wonder parents take their 3-month babies there, when the babies aren't even old enough to appreciate/remember it (a WTF? thought I was cultivating while I did my people-watching today); the PARENTS just want an excuse to go see the animals :D Mmm, yes, I understand now.

Candace: Remember that second ear piercing I got at Nana's the other day? Well I was really worried it was infected because it was red, swollen, and bleeding like crazy. This normally wouldn't have phased me after getting 7 other piercings and knowing this is sometimes normal afterwards, but it felt & looked like my piercing was too tight (e.g. the bar going through my ear was too small and the end cubes on either side were pressing into my skin). I went back to Nana's in Apgujeong to get it checked, since the girl who had pierced my ear had told me to come back in a few days to get both piercings checked out anyway. 

Jess was tired out from yesterday so she rested up in the room while I went out. I really do love just taking my time and meandering around the city. Everything is the same, yet so different from home! I feel like one of those stickers in the sticker books you get as a kid. You pick them up and place them on different pages as you move through the book; I feel like a sticker plopped down at a crosswalk in Korea! I look like I fit in (until I open my mouth ha) but I know that I am from somewhere else ^^.


The girl at Nana's took one look at my ear and plunked me down in a chair while she did...something. I don't know what she did, unscrewed the ends or replaced the bar (doubtful since that's bad so early in the healing process) or what but somehow after some pain, she showed me in the mirror how the bar was now like twice the length and the ends were no longer pressing into my skin. HALLELUJAH. I could physically FEEL the release of pressure as she did...whatever she did to my ear. So much better :) The girl who had helped me for both my piercings was this super cute, tiny, thing with AWESOME clothes and piercings. She also knew a tiny bit of English that she really tried to communicate to us with, was a lot nicer to us than the other workers there, and seemed to know what she was doing more than the rest as well. I recommend her if anyone ever ends up going there. 

Aaaaaand since I'm ALREADY right next door to Cofioca, I might as well go right? :D Don't answer that, it was rhetorical. And moot point, since nothing but raging howler monkeys could keep away (I know all about them now after our trip to the zoo! [zoo is next post]). The lady who runs the shop is seriously the sweetest thing on this planet. She's so cute and itty bitty and seems to recognize me at this point...I can hardly say I'm shocked given my addiction to this place, heh. I relaxed in the shop for awhile watching tv and sipping my bubble tea, before leaving. She was all "you're leaving already??" then thanked me as I said my goodbyes and bowed my way out. 

Now, since I hadn't done much clothes shopping since I got here I figured I would swing by the Gangnam Underground Shopping Center, located at the Express Bus Terminal subway stop. It was on the way home after all. 

I forgot how much I loved being in the shopping center; not even buing stuff, just being in there and cruising among all the cool stuff in the hundreds of shops :) It is undoubtedly my favorite place to be in Seoul...aside from in my room and at my twiggim lady's food stand that is. The noise and the hubbub from all the people and store owners and the colors and music playing is fun to be a part of ^^.

You knew this was coming, buuuut I did damage :3 I just can't help it. Next time I'll throw YOU all into this madness and see if you can resist the adorable clothes everywhere you turn for so cheap it's makes your head spin. I got 3 cute long sleeves, 3 chiffon button-ups, an aqua-colored cardigan, some cozy fleece PJ bottoms, 3 adorable thick knit sweaters, and the cutest blazer-trenchcoat jacket ever...all for about $100. The coat has an adorable print inner lining and it all flares out until around my knees, so I spent a good 5 minutes twirling in it when I first got home. Yes I am 5-years old, thanks for asking :)

Candace: Today was a rainy one so we had another late start. We lazed around all morning and recovered a bit from our trekking yesterday! Finally the lure of bubble tea at Cofioca got us out of the hotel haha. Off to Apgujeong we went! Since we were in the area anyway, we stopped by Nana's to look at jewelry. I got my third lobe piercing on my right ear I had been considering for awhile too! It is my 8th ear piercing so I knew I wanted something smaller and more subdued than my other piercings...I chose a cute, tiny, matte black cube! Jess also bought a pair of really cute wing earrings. This will be it for my right ear; I've always wanted a tragus piercing but my tragus is too tiny. If it was pierced I'd be unable to wear ear phones and we all know that is simply NOT an option lol. Music is life <3

Sipping our delicious bubble teas, we next headed off for Sinchon. I am familiar with this area because this is where my friends Yeji & Jessie live around! I also know this area because it is right between Hongdae and Edae, two of my favorite trendy places to eat and shop. After touring through the U-Plex (giant shopping mall with cafe, ice cream, etc) and taking pictures at the top, we hit the streets in search of dinner.

Since we had been denied the FryPan back in Itaewon, I remembered there was one here as well! In fact, the one here in Sinchon was the one I had personally been to before, when Yeji brought me with her :) I even vaguely remembered where it was, since I recognized the streets coming from Yonsei University (where I stayed with her for a night). Nonetheless, I was taking no chances and had her give me exact directions to get to there before we set off ^.^ 

Happily we made it there without incident and enjoyed a most delicious dinner. Seriously, this stuff is so good. It comes with two dipping sauces of your choice and we chose Sweet Garlic & Thai Chili, or something along those lines lol. SO BOMB.

We dodged foot traffic and real traffic alike on our way back to the subway station- with several universities in the area, there is a veritable flood of humanity out and about at all times apparently. I recall being overwhelmed the first time I walked around here with Yeji; I was like OMGSOMANYPEOPLE o.o 

After a trek through the department store attached to the station, we took the subway for an hour until we got home. Time for some serious R & R before we go at it again tomorrow!

Candace: Aaaaand it's another beautiful day in Seoul! A bit blustery but much warmer than yesterday ^.^ We stopped by my favorite Paris Baguette for breakfast and some second story people-watching- always a good time. 

But first, a word on crossing streets in Seoul. As I've said before, the drivers are crazy and if you value your life you will look left, right, leftrightleftrightleftright before you cross any side street longer than a friggin doormat because even that is fair game for a motorcyclist or delivery guy on a scooter. It hit me again how dangerous being a pedestrian is when we paused to check a side street, did our US-taught look Left, Right, then Left again, and JUST when we think were safe, WHAMMO, car swerves outta nowhere and tears up at us. Needless to say, we backed up in two shakes and stood calmly, like we had had no intention whatsoever of crossing just now. And no, you didn't just almost second-degree manslaughter us. 

We tend to make early starts on our day still, since we are jet-lagged per say...more like just sleep-messed-up. So we had time to kill in this coffee shop until our destination, Kyobo Tower was up and kicking. We still needed the rest of our arts and crafts stuff (namely gllitter :D). Luckily, once there we found all we needed and more. Am I the only one who has an obsession with cool paper?! Maybe it's the scrapbooker in me, but I LOVE cool papers, with like see through qualities, or metallics, or stuff embedded in the paper, or 3-D qualities...I WANT THEM ALL.

Next up we went to Apgujeong, where the famous Nana is located. This is where I wanted to get my conch pierced! Jess was supposed to get it with me but she decided not to at the last minute. It didn't hurt nearly as much as I thought it would; it's supposed to be the most painful ear piercing since it's going through the thickest part of your ear (pretty much the entire ear). I've found that most often my ear piercings have ADD when it comes to pain. It hurts at the moment of piercing, then absolutely nothing, then about 15 minutes later the adrenaline wears off and it hurts like a ^#&(%, then dulls, then nothing again. After that, I never feel it at all unless I bump it or hit it by accident. These are the longest-healing ear piercings as well, taking anywhere from 6 months to 2 years! Hope I can keep up with the cleaning like I need to, cuz I REALLY love this one :) It's as adorable as I thought it would be! <3 It was also ridiculously cheap at 10,000 won. THAT'S LIKE $9. I paid like $40 for my SINGLE LOBE piercing back home at Nathan's on Topanga, which is like the simplest, smallest ear piercing you can get. Seriously Korea, you keep kicking United States butt. I'm tempted to get another one now while I'm here, just cuz. 

We went to Cofioca down the street next, which is a famous bubble tea shop where a lot of celebrities go. I was fully expecting it to be just another boba shop, famous only because so many famous go there. I was, however, immediately proven wrong. That was HANDS DOWN the best boba I've ever had in my life. It was so good, we started craving it again WHILE WE STILL HAD OUR BOBAS. And the lady propietor was so so cute and sweet to us, trying to help and sending us off with napkins and stuff when we left. The shop was also tiny, much tinier than I was expecting for such a well-known place. It was no bigger than a walk-in closet in front, with a couple tables smushed next to each other and every inch of available wall covered with autographs from stars. It made for a very cozy and homey kind of feel, I really liked it :)

On the subway ride home, we had to stand, as we have had to most of the time. There is generally almost always someone older than us standing with us so I always give the seat to them. Several spots opened up but I kept offering them to others despite all the bags I was carrying. Apparently one of the adjummas (middle-aged women) I was standing in front of noticed (we were holding the hand ties than hang in front of seated people), and the next time a seat opened next to her, she caught my attention and told me to sit down! I sat. You don't say no to adjummas lol. But I immediately jumped up though and gave my seat to another woman who had just boarded, because the lady next to me had said something about a chingu, which means friend. I thought she was saying she had intended this seat for her friend who had just boarded lol, so I quickly got up. It was a misunderstanding though. The sweet adjumma who had first told me to sit down then said something and took my bags from me and held them for me on her lap! I had heard about people doing this in my research for my first trip to Korea but had never actually seen it done. It was so kind and unexpected!. Especially for me coming from America, where people are more often selfish and out for themselves than not. 

I had been heart-broken the other day when we went by my favorite twiggim street vendor and she wasn't there. I was worried she was gone, but TA-DA! she was there today! I was so happy I was jumping up and down like a 5-year old on Christmas haha. She had even upgraded, to thick outside covers with DOORS in them! Last time I was here, she had been out in the cold with no coverings, then towards the end of my stay, she had green windbreakers layered around her cart so the heat would stay in a little. Apparently she's doing well because now she can afford practically a whole metal-framed tent to herself! YAAAAAAAAAAAAY NEVER LEAVE ME TWIGGIM LADY. (it's like she's my drug dealer hahah)

After our dinner & a rest, we capped off our day with a night trip to Namsan. It took me a bit to remember my friend Dajeong's subway and bus directions to getting there but we got there in the end haha. We bought bear tags and had brought our locks we bought earlier at Daiso (I told you guys, I could seriously just live in that store forever; they have everything). I searched for where I put my lock last time but it was completely buried under several layers of other locks. I won't be finding it again in this life haha, maybe when they end up having to cut off locks when they run out of room in the future. I took a pictre of where it was buried instead. We locked our locks on a different corner this time, along with our messages!

We both bought tickets to go up to the top of the tower, where you can behold spectacular views and send postcards at the shop. We bought several postcards to send to family and friends and mailed them off, thousands of feet in the air :) The trip home was as tough as I remember it; Namsan is best viewed at night but that means we don't head home until 11pm-ish. While not a problem for me at home, this is late for me here with the jet-lag-messed-up-time-thing tenaciously hanging on to me. The bus ride and two subway transfers seemed to take forever, but once finally back and changed into bed clothes...KO'ed in about 30 seconds flat ^^.

Jess: So today started off like any other morning. We woke up and got ready for our day. We are our last pieces of our delicious pizza from last night, sadness. But just like any other pizza. It was just as good, if not better the next day and cold. Seriously, we need to start selling this pizza in the US. It's a party in your tummy. So yummy, so yummy.
We decided we would go out for coffee and try 'Dream something' coffee since Candace hasn't tried it. So we bundled up because it was cold and made our way out of the hotel. Too bad it was freezing with an artic wind and the coffee place was cold so naturally we booked it back to the hotel to layer up and warm up. We got a little more of our days planned out while we waited for the cafe to open before venturing out again. This time we were better prepared and were a little warmer as we walked to the cafe, but of course it was still cold so we ended up at Cafe Pasucci with our delicious tiramisu mocha and green tea latte.

Candace: While yesterday was unseasonably warm for here (highs of 66! PRACTICALLY NORMAL OMG), today has a lovely high of 30...with it feeling like 20. AND it's windy T.T Gah. We went out for coffee this morning and immediately had to go back to rub some feeling back into our feet and put some more layers on. They keep our room nice & toasty thanks to the marvelous Korean floor heating I'm so enamored with. But once in the open its like the Artic tundra up in here! With office buildings. And coffee shops...

An hour later we made it out onto the street without incurring frost bite in the first 30 seconds of exposure. Because it was so cold we chose the most yummy delicious drinks we could find, a tiramisu mocha & green tea latte. Those of you who know me, three guesses which is mine...actually make that one, you only need one ^.^ Our morning is starting to take on a pattern; warm up, defrost, warm up, defrost.

Candace: On our walk to Kyobo Tower today, where there's a giant bookstore/crafts store/music store on the first basement level, we had some fun at shops along the way. At a glasses vendor, we tried on some funny Harry Potter glasses. While we passed over the HP ones, I did pick up a cute pair for myself! (Since I left my other pair at home, like the genius that I am). Gas prices are so cheap here!!! And like I posted about before, you aren't allowed to touch the gas pumps, so this price includes them filling up your tank FOR you...sweet deal. And gas prices are skyrocketing up to $5 AND we gotta do it ourselves...clearly we suck. 

I also spotted these fun little Spam Singles that I've never seen before!! Jess said that she has seen them but apparently they aren't popular enough in SoCal cuz this is hilarious to me. It's like any other popular lunchemeat or cheese or something, but its SPAM. Only in Asia would this be everywhere hahaha. I also got some really cute bunny socks and some hand cream because with it being so bitterly cold here, my hands are already starting to chap and bleed. Good grief. 

Jess: So we were off on our search for art supplies and made our way to Kyobo Tower. We of course had to look into different shops and a street vendor on our way. We had fun looking in Artbox which had the cutest panda shirt that I may have to go back for later. We also saw really cute eating utensils with faces on them (picture below). It's just a fun little shop, kind of reminds me of Fuego back home. It just has little odds and ends that are cute and unique. We also made another stop at Daiso to get a few other things. That's three times alreay since we've been here. Haha. Maybe we'll end up hitting another one today. We still have to get locks for when we go to Namsan Tower. We also took our picture at a media pole on our walk and saw a jumbo tron playing SHINee's win on I believe M Countdown or Show Champion. ^^ 
Once we finally got to Kyobo Tower, it took a while for us to figure out where we needed to go. We were waiting for the elevator and once it came, of course a sea of people came flooding out. What made me giggle was that at the very end when you think that there is seriously no way all these people fit in an elevator, a guy with a bicycle walks out. We missed our opportunity to get inside the elevator so we made a pitstop to the bathroom while we waited for the next one. Once we finally got to where we needed to be we wandered around a little in the music section before ultimately making our way to where all the papers were. Once we picked out which ones we wanted, we made our way to pay. Unfortunately, we didn't know we were supposed to get a ticket for our papers. It's a good thing we were in the line with a helper for the cashier so she went to get the ticket for us. Once we were done, we decided to walk around a little before going to lunch since we weren't that hungry yet. We spent a little time in Etude House, which smells so good. Makes you just want to eat everything. Haha. We continued our trek down the street and saw shops we were more familar with and a few oddly named ones (see picture below). My favorite was that there was a 'Ho Bar' right next to the 'Kinky Robot'. 
And finally it was time for us to eat KBBQ! We were both excited and were so ready to eat once we got to the place. We were a little stupid and didn't realize how to work the door though. Candace tried to pull it but it would budge so we thought it was closed. We walked away and saw a few other people walking up to the restaurant and watched what they did. Apparently you have to slide the door. *face palm* Either way the food was delicious and quickly warmed us up from fridget air that we were in outside. 
After our lovely lunch of KBBQ, we got ourselves ready to brave the cold once more to head back to our hotel. We stopped by "Kona Bean' on our way to get some actual coffee to help warm us up. It was so cute inside and very warm. We sat inside to warm up a little bit and to cool down our extremely hot americanos. That was useless because they didn't cool down at all so we just decided to walk back to the subway knowing the coldness outside will cool down our drinks right away. Once we were at the subway again, we both went back to these shops we were looking at when we first arrived. Candace ended up buying a really cute shirt while I got this adorable backpack that I've been eyeing for the past couple days. I don't have much use for one back home, but I figure it will come in handy here. 
We pretty much book it back to the hotel, of course the stairs of doom was there to challenge us on our way. It is still winning by the way. We start off strong at the bottom, but are tired and breathless by the top. They are currently the bane of our existence. We were fully prepared to have our arts and craft day once we were back in the room, but since we are so easily distracted we ended up watching some shows and deciding on what kind of delivery we wanted for dinner. Too bad we were both out like a light by 8pm. >_<

Candace: It was so so cold that we bustled back to our hotel double-time! We had intended to have our arts and crafts day now that we had all the supplies (even glitter!!!) and ordering delivery for dinner, but we ended up watching a few shows and getting so tired we fell asleep by 8pm >.< I think we are regressing in our jetlag status haha we are progressively getting more and more jetlagged as we go ^.^ Therefore, we were both up by 4am and that is when I am posting this since I passed out before I could do it last night. Today we are hitting Apgujeong, karaoke, and getting our conches (middle part of ear) pierced!

Cold -> 추위 -> choo-wee
Glasses -> 안경 -> ahn-kyuhng
Coffee -> 커피 -> kuh-pee

Today is Saturday over here so we decided to keep it simple and avoid the masses of humanity that are sure to be swarming the subways and streets. We had intended to have our artis & crafts day today but we couldn't find all the supplies we needed! :( We got a cute padded floor mat to work on too....we'll save it for tomorrow ^.^ We spent today doing some more sidewalk shopping and had an EPIC search for...lotion. Haha sounds silly but we didn't bring a lot of small essentials because we knew we could buy them here. However, they take cosmetics seriously here. It generally runs around 12,000 - 17,500 won for a small bottle of lotion, serum, essence, etc. A very CUTE and adorable looking gourmet bottle (e.g. lavender and goat milk, jasmine aqua capsule lotion, broccoli watery ampoule, gold caviar collagen serum) but too much for me to spend on some lotion, however deliciously tasty it sounds. I bought some at a general store instead for 2,000 won (less than $2), because I had spent so much on other stuff from SkinFood already in the past 2 days @.@

We stopped by my FAVORITE street food vendor who sells the most awesome twiggim (deep-fried kimbap rolls, vegetables, etc), but she wasn't there today! I hope she hasn't closed up shop in the 4 months since I've been here :((( I'll cry. Those mini kimbap rolls with japchae and rice inside were like little chunks of heaven FOR REAL.

Since the twiggim was unavailable to us, we decided on pizza! We went to the same pizza place I went to last time I was here, Mr. Pizza down the street. The adorable one that gives you your sauces in a gift bag and ribbon-wraps your pizza haha. I still can feel my shock the first time I was handed these when I ordered to go ^^. We also got some mini peptalks from the wrappers of my vitamin C drops, as seen above!

The pizza was DELICIOUS OMG. We got a deluxe one this time, with sweet pumpkin, potato, roasted garlic chips, broccoli, tender rib meat chunks, with BBQ sauce and a sweet potato filled crust (called Gold by Mr. Pizza). It was INSANE. I feel like everywhere else in the world but America treats pizza like a delicacy and a food to be dressed up haha. Only in the US is it eaten with beer & a sports game and/or at kids birthday parties. Today was also a bit more like the Seoul I remember, with crowded packed subway cars and lines to get through the scanning machines underground. As expected on a Saturday :) Tomorrow we will finish our arts and crafts gathering (I consulted my friend Dajeong for where else to look for materials; I was right in my guess and we are headed to Kyobo Tower!). We'll also be hitting the media poles along the street leading there so look for more silly pictures tomorrow ^.^~ Annyeong!

Candace: I had another great seat partner on my flight to Seoul! Good thing too because the flight was so long >.< He was a really nice guy who was apparently a baller. He had houses in Bangkok, Singapore, Canada, the East Coast, Vegas, London, New Zealand, lived in Hawaii, and golfed for a living. And traveled. Well geez, can I like, HAVE YOUR LIFE?! Luckily the flight went without complications and I got through immigration/customs relatively quickly to meet Jess at the baggage claim! She came in right before me so she met me at my baggage carousel. I always feel so relieved when all goes smoothly, flights on time, none of my baggage was lost, my phone works, etc. On trips like these there are so many factors and so many places where something can go wrong, that I feel blessed when they don't. We bought our bus tickets to Gangnam Yeoksam where our hotel was and checked in without any problems. Our room is really cute and the bathroom is way more massive than my single room last time! 

We watched tv and made a convenience store run for snacks and of course, banana milk!! My fetish for banana milk is only equal to Jess's fetish for banana milk :D We were both pretty tuckered out from the long plane ride and the long bus trip to our hotel. Not so tired that the excitement of being back didn't hit us though! It's SO wonderful to be back in Seoul, I can't even explain it. It's so exciting to see familiar places and to KNOW where I'm going and what to expect. Such a novel feeling haha since last time I was going by the seat of my pants, all day, every day. It was exhilarating not knowing anything or where to do/what to do, to be sure; I'm still really happy I went by alone and discovered myself along the way. But it's a completely different experience now knowing what to do and where to go for all the things I want. I'm still a clueless foreigner but I'm no longer a lost ant in an ocean. AND I'm now here with my twin, so it's a totally new trip! 

We slept around 10pm KST, which was about 5am back home. Had a blissfully uninterrupted sleep until 4am KST. I drifted in and out of sleep until about 6am, since I was TRYING to sleep more and get my sleep schedule on track ASAP. We have limited time here, so gotta make the most of it! After a quick run to my favorite Cafe Pascucci down the street for coffee & bulgogi paninis, we returned to our room to prepare for the day ahead: a raid on SkinFood, a run to Daiso for room and bathroom essentials, and (re)exploring the shopping under Gangnam Station...one of my favorite spots!! 

As you can see, we did DAMAGE :D The first day is always the most frenzied in terms of buying cool new things. We even restrained ourselves, because we were kind of limited to how much we could physically carry back T.T I miss my car already lol. So we toddled home with our arms full of bags...I think were good for today lol. After all, we have a whole 13 days more to break our banks...