This year we were quite busy and, to be honest, lazy. Which unfortunately results in less traveling. Nonetheless I needed to stock up our Korean kitchen-supply, which we combined with a nice date-walk to Korea Town in Japan. [see this post and this one for more K-town]
Hubs took the chance to get hands on one of the “Hotdogs” which are booming like nothing ever before. But well, Japanese like to cheat and instead of 1 sausage inside you got 1/7 of it for 5 bucks. [The pic shows the first time we -saw- a glimpse of sausage. Taste was .. nothing you might wanna eat again]
Actually our walk through the city was more interesting than overcrowded K-Town on a Saturday. We got a glimpse on “typical Japan” and the “build, tear down, repeat” culture of Japanese architecture.
Not even a tiny centimeter is wasted regarding buildings
Buildings are teared down and rebuilt when “grandpa” dies (interesting post to this philosophy and a possible change)
As long grandpa IS alive, he stands his ground (infrastructure seems to -swallow- old buildings)
Jogging along my morning route is less monotone as it sounds. Given the fact that we live in “Shitamachi” [old dowtown district] the number of old buildings owned by old people is high, as well is the turnoverof new buildings suddenly popping up. It is fascinating and scary the same time »seeing a little square of free land “oh, granny died“, which then is replaced by a new buildingwithin 3-6 months.
→ No time to mourn in a city where space is more than limited.
An interesting place to go in Tokyo is a small area called “Shinokubo” [betterknown as Korea-Town]
If you have been to Korea you will realize it has certain overpriced, cute, wanna-be-like, korean flair and it is a cheap way if you calculate in “flighttickets” [Though flight tickets from Tokyo to Busan can be as cheap as 50 Bucks if you are lucky]
cute staff
kpop cafe
My fault basically was to stroll arouond on a weekend — makes you feel more like in chinese rushour. And a (I`ve never seen them) Band kinda just roamed through the streets, followed by a long looooong crowd of mothers and students. Same goes for the kpop cafe we went, there were only female customers drooling at the cute staff (which were obviously male!)
Iced, Spicy Sashimi Salad
After a lot of “town” stress, we managed to find a nice restaurant a bit off-site, and yes, now I did feel like in Korea ( my friends and boyfriend are korean so it`s not that difficult of a task )
Enjoy the video at the end — that is totally KOREA *eww* (sorry I can`t eat those, neither does my boyfriend)
Part two on my short stay in Korea. If you missed part one – follow the link.
First of all the cliché-check: [or jump to the trip here]
»’Couple-Things’ to do/see/experience are ever.y.where! Litteraly!! And so do couples itself. [I understand my single-eonni who kinda is dieing in seoul, alone….no escape]
So I guess I was lucky to have a boyfriend, who actually was with me in Korea. (Thank you, oppa!쪽)
»Cafes – they love it, we say. They love it, you will see! Everywhere, open until late night. Even inside car-shops or other let’s say ‘strange‘ locations. But cafe is good, and as mentioned before less expensive than other countries.
» One curious thing, totally drama-like, is – it happens a lot that you have cafes and restaurants for you alone (and maybe 3 other people). Due to their size [which is way larger than what we consider to be cafes in europe]
» Public toilets – are everywhere too and clean!! big and free of charge!! so drama-like. Even makeup corners and mouth wash after enjoying a delicious meal. [nothing compared to munich, the least non-free-peeing city ever! where the only possibility to pee is inside starbucks & co. – which now require a code to open the door, i.e. a purchased item = spending money = not free]
»My new love for pure frozen water is called Bingsu!! Shaved ice as soft as fresh fallen snow– topped with different kind of flavours and don’t be surprised, cheese is actually a popular ingredient and has (against all odds) addiction potential!! → check out the most famous brand “Seolbing” [we went to a store near the sea in Busan at night, freaking cold, but yes – korean eat bingsu anytime, anywhere]
»Chicken & Beer & Green Bottled Alcohol – again, true. And delicous. Nothing compared to our ‘fast food‘ nor KFC. It is as addictive as nothing compared and I really wonder how korean girls escape the kcal-bombs.
^To talk more about my trip, there was one day where I made my (sub) way [←god I love dajyare (wordjokes)] to the very northern Paju. It’s one of those military bases near the north korean border, DMZ. (and yes, you can go by subway from seoul, driving about 1h30min) A friend of mine actually works for the military and I was able to get across certain –no access– areas. It’s quite a non-usual view having barb wired fences, separating the sea from possible attackers, while driving along the highway.
• And it gives you more the (positive) (soooo cute) military angel checks your face, looking deep into your eyes and………..okay, as a drama-addict I admit for my friend it might have been less romantic and a normal ID check.
Anyway, being so very close to the so-famouse “north” is chilling. We later made it to one of the most famous eel-restaurant in town and then drove uphill to one of the cutest tea-houses I have ever seen. [I wondered how a “military town” might be different but all I could see where normal people, normal houses and slightly more military dressed up guys and haircuts]
Normal tea usually is served in seethrough glasspots with flowers inside and as a sidedish you’ll get some grilled rice-cake, which comes with honey → “honey’s brother” as I was told. We later looked it up and it really was called “*following soon*“
I experienced one more great ‘it’s like in a movie‘ – trip, when I went to Chuncheon (located some 3h east of seoul) It has this famous dam on the mountain. We went there by car: total darkness, just us and the car lights, up on a steep mountain road, the dam closed but we kinda jumped over the gate and there it was – this totally spectacular fullmoon, black night scenery which you actually might have experienced while reading that book titled “Villain” by Shuichi Yoshida — [ ‘…and ends up violently throwing her out of his car on an isolated mountain road, leaving her stranded in the middle of the night.’]
And last but not least (actually it was the best day) there was this 24-dating-day with my boyfriend. YES; korean guys know how to treat girls! There was delicious food, holding-hands walks, ice-skating rink, shoppingcenter fun (see the cinderella stairs-video), sweet snacks, cinema! (with a huge sledge inside, and yes, I rode it. twice!!) star-wars is back woot woot and a delicious dinner.
There is so much more to talk about
the day with my eonni (actually the two days)
the couple-ring experience [yes I bought one for my guy haha]
the delicious food I ate
kakaotalk jewelry
street food and modern pyojangmacha (!! they are with a roof now and quite cozy)
roof gardens on shopping malls
colorful bridges
beaches and sea
angel wings
enormous skyscraper for the top VIP class
a.s.o.
⇒ So my last words. GO if you have the chance and experience it yourself!!
Finally. KOREA!! As I was short on money I stayed less than my planned 3 months. But they were the most exciting days this year.
»Korea is:small in size! – yes.
By bus from very northern Seoul to very south-eastern Busan max. 5 hours. And only 18 € Perfect. From western Seoul to the very eastern Gangneun – 3h for only 16€ by bus. → I love this country. (train is much faster, but a little more expensive) »Korea is:big! – yes.
Nothing compared to Japan. Houses, skyscraper, roads, cars, buses, apartments, stores, restaurants ANYTHING has –normal– size. And floor heating! [one thing that catches your eye is the very monotonous architecture, i.e. huge skyscraper apartments] »Korea is: cheap! – yes.
One condition, you bring Yen or Eur.Hourly wage (500 won) is like ..hmm.. about half to japan (1000 yen) – thus items and food are considered cheap if you come from overseas. Sweaters for 10 bucks, food for 5, hotel about 30 and transport goes with around 1 per ride »Korea is: full of mountains! – yes.
Ever wondered why korean girls seem to have perfect legs? Blood circulation! And you totally do work on that while simply walking around. Seoul alone has so many hills within the city [I would recommend a 2 week-intense training BEFORE entering the country, for those who have ‘sport‘ on their spam list]
»Koreans are:friendly and normal.
No fake-smile “I cannot say ‘no’ or my words might insult the other person”japan-style. They are somehow more honest, make and understand jokes (! ) simply → normal (in my personal point of view) — and we got the best explanation on how to eat and grill our food *yey~* [see the video below] »Koreans are:tall and stylish. OH YES!! (hotties alarm) Maybe less ‘drama-plastic-surgery’angel-faced but still much more stylish and way taller than Japanese people. If you call Japanese penguins (because of their suit) I would say Koreans are hip-hop penguins with a nice haircut (← oh yes, haircut! I totally dig the korean style, even the chubby geeks look cute with glasses and sweater) and for girls like we are you have the “pants, sneaker, red lipstick” style to choose. Again ‘hip-hop’ish cool. (compared to the ‘I’ve never seen a japanese woman wearing pants’ style on the neighbour island)
»Korean Food is:Spicy and garlic-ish. I would say you should practice at home like I did, changing the level of spiciness every time a little ‘upwards’– then you are close to a “I won’t die nor get indigestion in Korea”- level. And yes, KIMCHI is everywhere (they even do have separate fridges for this mostly home-made delicacy, as it is prep. once per year only) »Korean Food is: Delicious. And more german-bavarian like than expected. They have blood-sausage ! Actually way lesssugar-y as the “everything contains sugar” Japan, and less “need of rice” – as they wrap it into a leaf of salad or simply said you don’t feel like you need rice as the meat and side dishes are too delicious!!
I experienced a more non-touristic Korea as all I did was visiting friends and my boyfriends family. So I can’t say much about pricy hotels or tourist attractions. Some ‘I watch dramas and know about Korea‘ clishès are true to a certain extent ⇒
• Food is mostly set in the kitchenon the table – THEN the table will be brought to you, i.e. the restaurant or living room.
• Never start eating when the senior hasn’t started yet!!
• And NEVER ever everfeed your boyfriend in front of his parents [yes I admit I watched too many drama and did it and it was a big laughter]
• Staying over night in so called ‘love hotels’ as a single or even with your friend is not a big deal. It is cheap, comfortable, you have everything you need, free water, a great bathtub, and ~~ a big big flatscreen where you can watch dramas all day long!!!
• One curious thing where subway-stations. I desperately searched for the timetable or a hint how long I have to wait for the next one to come. BUT → on those commercial screens you could find a tiny animated train [pink line], with station names below. Thus you could guess how long it will take.
Follow me to the next post about some other clichés that are true and really really amazing ones-in-your-life- experiences
I guess this is the ultimate xmas post ever. Though I felt like in no xmas mood at all. Japan is full of xmas specials regarding food and decoration. But you don’t hear xmas songs nor had some snow (it was way too warm) also [in contrast to korea where they do have holidays like we do] in Japan it is a regular working day.…until new year.
Nonetheless, being german, I felt like I had to come up with a certain xmas feeling which is why I convinced my boyfriend to preorder one of those xmas cakeswhile I prepaired some chicken menue and decoration. As he had a regular working day with another one following, our “xmas” was just some 3hours from 9-12 pm.
It was nothing compared to Germany. It felt like Tokyo tries hard to be –western– but has no feeling for the religious “silent night, being with beloved people” thing. It is interesting to see but it doesn’t fit to this country. And actually all the xmas promotions where a bit too much.
As for this one I cannot deny my homecountry and would say I do prefer German-Xmas.
In contrast to our first park (see this post on Kiba Park) Kiyosumi is the total opposite [you have to pay about 300yen to enter]
• very old
• very stereotypical
• very japanese
But really nice. And bigger than expected. It is a great location to escape the city, read a book on the tables and benches provided. And all surrounding you are different kinds of birds, ducks and other flying animals. Plus, at that time of the year: the last glimpse of autum coloured trees. ⇒ Simply beautiful.
One scary thing and not suitable for everyone might be those stone-steps to cross the water. Which are really simple stones, no fence no nothing. [recommendation: bring your boyfriend or lover – best “hold my hand” chance ever ❤ ]
And as I mentioned in my first post one big reason why I fell in love with my boyfriend is his humor. Even it is a “that wasn’t supposed to be funny” situation like we had in the park, where I decided to record a little video and he, unaware of the situation, suddenly asked me “why do you think is birds poo actually always white?” – my reply half laughing half talking “I`m not sure, but..you know..I`m filming” – unforgettable memories.
Due to my flight back to Korea and then Germany I was too busy to post anything. Sorry for the long wait.
so this is it – my last walk of this mind blowing year 2015. It was a perfect blue-sky-sunny-sunday that I simply had to go out, though my energy level that day was quite low.
We decided to take an easy route: ⇒ Non-stop subway, then walking about 1.5h around 2 parks and then take the same subway back home after heating up at some coffe shop [ despite the blue sky and sunshine it was freaking cold and once again I praised my lovely black undershirt labeled ‘uniqlo heat-tech‘ ]
I love the area were those 2 parks are located at. It is “my hood” – downtown Tokyo,Sumida. The little ‘island’ between two rivers near the sea. East-coast feeling [cross your fingers that I can convince my boyfriend to escape Shibuya with me]
We actually underestimated the cold and bought some hot canned coffee and tea at a 7/11 [finally I unerstand why those places are named -convenience stores- in english]
Kiba park is huge and it is worth to enter a little building just before crossing the enormous bridge. There we not only could warm up a little bit, but also found an interesting set of wooden bowls – labeled with the actual tree they are made of.
And once again I was surprised how easy it is to ‘escape‘ within Tokyo ⇔ • Baseball playing kids and their trainers • daddys that carry their baby for a walk • Moms that talk with grannys about next weeks plans. Oh, and btw on the other side of the bridge you will actually find MO+ (museum of contemporary art tokyo), don’t hesitate to enter as the hall outside is free of charge. While heating up once more there (yes, it was really cold that day) we were sitting on funny chairs, debating about IFthis statue would fit into our imaginary villa or not.
→ at that point I want to mention my boyfriends humor. Which is great and one biiig reason why I fell in love with him. I totally go for “double meaning” intelligent jokes, as one of the following. When passing by those 3 children he said, with a total serious voice “21st century boys” – on one hand mentioning the sad fact that children are actually inside a musuem but all they do is looking at their smartphones. And on the other hand referring to the manga 21. Centeruy boys where you could see those little boys stick together all the time. — jokes explained kinda lose their fun but I hope you understand what my actualy point was.
See this post for Part 2 of my -last walk in 2015-
A random post about my new friend named “Skytree” – I love to take a walk around our neighborhood. He’s like the big brother that always looks after me – and we had again one of those “it’s still summer” days which I love. ❤
→ check out the most famous brand “Seolbing” [we went to a store near the sea in Busan at night, freaking cold, but yes – korean eat bingsu anytime, anywhere]
HomelessParasite 