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Live travel log: I’m in Seoul!
Dec. 15th, 2018 08:10 pmMy 3-week winter break started yesterday, and I flew out as soon as possible. I arrived in the city this morning and will be here for one week. I originally wasn’t planning on making this trip (as with Japan) because Korean plane tickets from the Philippines tend to be expensive, but my grandma gave me all of her accumulated airline miles since she can't travel anymore. They were enough to buy round trip tickets for Japan and Korea! I’m incredibly grateful to her.
Our story so far: It is VERY cold. I’m originally from a cold place, but maybe my tolerance level has lowered after living in the desert and then the tropics. The coat my aunt lent me wasn’t thick enough to keep me warm, so my first mission was to hunt down a thrift shop to get an outer coat for the one I already have (I didn’t want to buy a complete winter coat that I would only use this week—I already have a good one back in the States). I dropped my suitcase off at my hostel and then took the subway up to Changdong, where there was a Salvation Army store near the station. I found a heavy gray trench coat for 10,000 won (about 10USD), which is great because I’ve always wanted a coat like it! My mission tomorrow is to find a good pair of gloves and maybe a hat as well. After shopping I took the subway all the way down to the National Museum of Korea and spent the rest of the day there. Permanent exhibitions are free admission. I had a lot of fun learning about Korean history.
Discover Seoul: I bought a 24-hr Discover Seoul Card. So far I’ve used it as my subway pass and to take the AREX train from the airport, but I haven’t activated the countdown clock for visiting the attractions it includes. I knew I would be tired today and that I would get lost a lot, so I’m holding off for a few days. When I'm ready I will try my best to game the system and visit as many sites as possible.
Hostel with shower-toilets??: My hostel is pretty nice—it has fast WiFi and free breakfast, and I only have two roommates. 10USD/night. The bathrooms are really weird, though—they’re all single use and have a shower head in the same little room as the sink and toilet? So whenever someone showers everything gets soaked?? I mean, I guess it’s space-efficient...
Also, I learned that electrical outlets in Korea are European style and always 2-prong. My converter is a 3-prong so I had to scramble to find another converter as all of my batteries were dying. 7-11 is a lifesaver! They also have great snacks like the ones in Japan.
I’m not sure if I should post every day or if I should just do a recap at the end of the week. I’ll figure it out as I go!
Our story so far: It is VERY cold. I’m originally from a cold place, but maybe my tolerance level has lowered after living in the desert and then the tropics. The coat my aunt lent me wasn’t thick enough to keep me warm, so my first mission was to hunt down a thrift shop to get an outer coat for the one I already have (I didn’t want to buy a complete winter coat that I would only use this week—I already have a good one back in the States). I dropped my suitcase off at my hostel and then took the subway up to Changdong, where there was a Salvation Army store near the station. I found a heavy gray trench coat for 10,000 won (about 10USD), which is great because I’ve always wanted a coat like it! My mission tomorrow is to find a good pair of gloves and maybe a hat as well. After shopping I took the subway all the way down to the National Museum of Korea and spent the rest of the day there. Permanent exhibitions are free admission. I had a lot of fun learning about Korean history.
Discover Seoul: I bought a 24-hr Discover Seoul Card. So far I’ve used it as my subway pass and to take the AREX train from the airport, but I haven’t activated the countdown clock for visiting the attractions it includes. I knew I would be tired today and that I would get lost a lot, so I’m holding off for a few days. When I'm ready I will try my best to game the system and visit as many sites as possible.
Hostel with shower-toilets??: My hostel is pretty nice—it has fast WiFi and free breakfast, and I only have two roommates. 10USD/night. The bathrooms are really weird, though—they’re all single use and have a shower head in the same little room as the sink and toilet? So whenever someone showers everything gets soaked?? I mean, I guess it’s space-efficient...
Also, I learned that electrical outlets in Korea are European style and always 2-prong. My converter is a 3-prong so I had to scramble to find another converter as all of my batteries were dying. 7-11 is a lifesaver! They also have great snacks like the ones in Japan.
I’m not sure if I should post every day or if I should just do a recap at the end of the week. I’ll figure it out as I go!