Korea Winter Itinerary 2016 / 2017 Day 4

Day 4
Stay: Seoul Lucky GuestHouse
Nearest Subway: Gyeongbokgung Stn Line 3 Exit 2

12:00 | Seohwa Hanbok Rental
12:30 | Gyeongbokgung Palace
14:00 | Café Bora & Samcheongdong

17:30 | Insadong
19:00 | Sinchon
21:00 | Dinner @ KyoChon Chicken

🎉💰Happy New Year!!! 💰🎉

We had a good sleep because we finally do not need to get up early this morning. Skipped our breakfast and quickly walked to hanbok rental shop where I had made appointment at 12pm for hanbok fittings. I came to know about this shop from FB suggestions. I must have liked so many Korean FB pages that it even popped this page up for me 😄. I like that it is a newly opened shop, so I anticipated their hanbok must be new as well. The price was slightly higher compared to other well-known rental shop at 18,000 won for 4 hours rental. Browsing through their FB page and website, I've had an idea on the design and type of hanbok I wanted. I emailed them to confirm if they are open on 1st Jan and made appointment in advance.

The shop is nicely located between our hanok and gyeongbokgung palace, so it's convenient for us to drop by the hanbok shop and then proceed to the palace. We were nervous while walking to the shop because we don't want to be the odd one wearing hanbok on the street. But tada....

Hanbok girls spotted!

As soon as we walked out from our hanok to the main street, we spotted a few people were already in the hanbok. It's New Year today so I think high chances people will be wearing their hanbok around the palace quarters.

SEOHWA HANBOK

It's easy to locate the shop. Once we went in, the friendly staffs asked what language do we speak and assigned a Mandarin speaking to us. We initially thought she was from China but we were wrong. Another staff was heard speaking fluent japanese to a Japanese couple and we thought she is a Japanese, and we were wrong again 😛. Not bad for a new shop with multilingual friendly staffs.

There are so many types to choose from. Some are typical traditional type but more popular ones are those modernised hanbok. Since I had in mind the colour and type of hanbok I wanted, I described it to the girls and they quickly pulled out a few for me to try on. I tried the 1st set and decided on it. Speedy right? While the funny Mic chose a grey pants (Baji) first before deciding on his top (Jeogori), I told him he looks like a prisoner in that grey pants which made him rolled his eyes. Finally the staff got him a set which looks matching to mine. Happie~~ 😄

The procedure was easy:
- show the staff your email booking
- proceed to select and try your hanbok (2 fittings allowed)
- move on to the dressing area to do your own makeup and hair
- choose your pouch, hair accessories and hanbok accessories
- place deposit of 10,000 won per hanbok + passport.

I would recommend this place because their clothes were indeed new and pretty, the staffs are friendly and there's no extra charge for King attire (most shops charges extra for this) except for King's accessories.

So we proceeded to Gyeongbokgung, looking like a couple ready to take our pre-wedding photos 😅

Tips: wear a thin white or nude colour top because you will be wearing hanbok on top of your own clothes. Avoid high collar or turtleneck top because it doesn't look nice on photos. Choose colours that will look vibrant on photos instead because photos are the thing that you are going to see over and over again.
I wore a thin white fleece top under my hanbok top which is actually a transparent long sleeve lace with gold embroidery. Thankfully my white top didn't looks too obvious

(source: http://www.seohwahanbok.com)

(source: google map)

Seohwa Hanbok Rental

Nearest Subway: Gyeongbokgung Stn Line 3 Exit 4
Operating Hours: 09:00 - 19:00 daily (last rental order at 18:00)
Email: seohwahb@naver.com

Charges:

Basic 4 Hours – 18,000 Korean Won

1 day ( same day return before closing ) – 28,000 Korean Won

2 days ( next day return before closing ) – 38,000 Korean Won

Additional hours charge – 5,000 Korean won per hour

Check out their FB and website for updated info

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GYEONGBOKGUNG PALACE

Nearest Subway: Gyeongbokgung Station Line 3 Exit 5
Operating Hours:
March - May 09:00 - 18:00
June - August 09:00 - 18:30
September - October 09:00 - 18:00
November-February 09:00 - 17:00

(Closed on Tuesday)

Admission: 3,000 won
(Free admission when wearing hanbok & last Wed of each month)

Website: http://www.royalpalace.go.kr/

Sumunjang (Royal Guard) Changing Ceremony - 10:00, 14:00 / 20 minutes per ceremony
Gwanghwamun Gate Guard-on-Duty Performance - 11:00, 13:00 / 10 minutes per ceremony
Sumungun (Gatekeeper) Military Training (outside Hyeopsaengmun Gate) - 09:30, 13:30 / 15 minutes per ceremony
Check out the updated timings here

We skipped some of the locations inside the palace and walked to the area with lesser crowd and took more photos 😄. It was my 2nd time here so we did not tour the whole palace because both of us ain't interested in palaces.

Many people were in their hanbok as well

Mic was famished by the time I'm done with photo taking so we proceeded to Samcheongdong in our hanbok. We wanted to try the highly raved Mukshidonna Tteokbokki but it was already so crowded outside the restaurant so we had to give that a miss. Furthermore, I was a bit worried about my hanbok and felt kind of paiseh because I peeped and peeped but didn't see anyone in hanbok in the restaurant.

In case you are interested, Mukshidonna Tteokbokki is famous for their rice cakes (as per their name) cooked in a pot of stew. You may choose ingredients to add into the stew from their menu. I even listed down what I should order - mains Seafood 4,500 and Cheese 4,500, sides Ramyeon 1,000, Odaeng 1,000 and Fried Rice 2,000. For my next trip then.

Mukshidonna Tteokbokki

Nearest Subway: Anguk Station Line 3 Exit 1
Operation Hours: 11:00 - 20.30

Check out their website (in Korean only)

Identify this restaurant with this signboard
(source: Mukshidonna website)

We ended up at Café Bora (my must try list) for some desserts which is nearby Mukshidonna Tteokbokki. It's a small café located at the end of a small lane. Most of their desserts look pretty in purple which comes from the purple sweet potato. We ordered sweet potato bingsu (6,500 won) that comes with sweet potato chips, candied walnut and extra sweet potato puree, peanut ice cream (3,500 won), sweet potato bun (1,500 won) and Vietnam condensed milk coffee (4,300 won) which all turned out to be good. Their traditional food presentation is totally instagram worthy!

Café Bora

Nearest Subway: Anguk Station Line 3 Exit 1
Operation Hours: 12:00 - 22:00
Check out their FB and website

(source: google map)

We decided to return our hanbok earlier before we proceed to explore Samcheongdong because we do not want to walk up the road and then rush down just to return the attire. Mic and I walked through the palace as a shortcut to reach the hanbok rental shop. More and more people were seen coming out in their hanbok, making the whole atmosphere felt so traditional, joyful and colourful. I guessed this makes those without hanbok wants to join in as well as a few of them came to us and asked where to rent the hanbok from.

There are a lot of hanbok rental shops around Gyeongbokgung especially the row of shops at the main road (facing Gyeongbokgung) between Gyeongbokgung and Samcheongdong. Am unable to recommend any shops here because most of them only bears Korean signage. If you don't mind paying a little bit extra, Seohwa Hanbok is a good choice.

We missed out Bukchon Hanok Village and I didn't realised that until I came back from Korea. No wonder I see and see my hanbok photos but none of the background looks like Bukchon Hanok Village wan.. sigh... I must had been so relax (since it was New Year) walking leisurely around Samcheongdong that I didn't bother to look at my itinerary. Nevermind, next time then.

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SAMCHEONGDONG-GIL

Nearest Subway: Anguk Station Line 3 Exit 1

This is the place that I would luv to return to if I visit Seoul again. I like how the whole street is lined with restaurants, beauty shops, chic cafés and quaint little shops with mixture of both modern and traditional designs. We had our late lunch here in a random traditional restaurant which was not that superb so I did not take any photos.

For the adventurous who doesn't mind cycling upslope the road (in this type of bicycle)

Purposely took picture of this store because they had a lot of pretty stuffs with cheaper price compared to others

The 2 girls in red hat and jacket are "information counters".
Just look for them if you need help. They will be walking around the area.

Tips: if you are interested in getting a handmade personalised name stamp, better known as Dojang, get it here. After checking the price at Insadong, dojang here is much cheaper but I can't recall the price though. I'll definitely get one if I go back to Samcheongdong again

(source: google map)
click to enlarge
*noticed I misspelled Mukshidonna in the image. But you understand can already 😝

This is the walking route that we took from our Airbnb to multiple locations around Jongno-gu. May look far but actually it is not because there are so many things to look look, see see and eat eat along the way. Just enjoy strolling in this area.

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INSADONG

Nearest Station: Anguk Station Line 3 Exit 6.
Walk 100m straight and turn left into Insadong-gil. You will see a G25 store at the beginning of the road. Otherwise, just follow the crowd.
If you are going there from Samcheongdong like we did, just follow the map above.

Night was falling when we reached Insadong around 5.30pm so all the photos taken here are nighttime photos. In fact, most photos in this trip were taken during nighttime because we woke up so late and the night comes early during winter. So, apologies in advance if some of the photos are too dark.

If you are interested in Korean traditional art and products, this is the place. Most of the stores here sell similar items like pottery, hanbok, bags, handmade cards and etc, but price wise, it may not be that cheap. I bought a few handmade cards and postcards from one of the store here that sells at slightly cheaper price.

If you are interested to have a hanbok experience, you can also try it at

Insa-dong PR Center

Address: 19, Insadong 11-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul

Operating Hours: 10:00 - 17:30 except lunch hour (12:00 - 13:00)

Duration: 20 minutes

Cost: 3,000 won

Ssamziegil

Operating Hours: 10:30 - 20:30 daily

I guessed no trip to Insadong is complete without visiting their famous spiral shopping mall, Ssamziegil. This four storeys building is connected via a spiral sloping walkway connecting all the floors. Top floor is an open air space where the Wall of Love is at. Couples can purchased the tag here and hang their message love tags on the wall. Mic asked if I wanted to get the tag. I'm wonder why he didn't realise I am not into this stuff when I don't even bother to place the lovelock when we were in Paris. But I told him, if I were to get one, I would write KieKie's name instead 😄

The entrance to Ssamziegil

Ssamziegil

Wall of Love

Mic and I went and checked out the message tags because we were curious whether the paper tags can survived under the sun & rain. But silly us la, the tag material is actually plastic, so likely they can withstand the weather.

Bukchon Son Mandu 북촌손만두 (Insadong Branch)

Operating Hours: 11:00 - 20:30
Website: http://www.mandoo.so/ (in Korean only)

I had this store in my must eat list as they are famous for their delicious dumplings. I did not check my itinerary too frequently that day, so we missed out Bukchon Hanok Village and almost missed this as well. The store is a bit hidden in a small alley but can be easily noticed once you see the long snaking queue. As it was quite late when we were there, there was no queue at all. It was by pure luck that my head turned and immediately recognised it's white mandu signage because I have photographic memory 😄 *proud*. This store is located in a small alley right beside Ssamziegil. If you exit Ssamziegil via the small exit on the right (near Ssamziegil's staircase), you will come out straight to this mandu store.

We made a little mistake by ordering only the fried dumpling (3,500 won). Should have order the combo set instead (8,000 won) which has a variety of their mandu. My verdict? Must eat!

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EWHA, SINCHON, KYOCHON CHICKEN

It was supposed to be a relaxing day for us so I did not specifically state where to go after Insadong. Since it was only 7pm, we decided to go to EWHA shopping street. It was a bad idea because the whole street was quiet and most shops had already closed by the time we reached. Am not sure whether it was because of new year or the shops there generally closes early.

We strolled around EWHA for a while and planned to walk to Hongdae from there. The map shows Hongdae is just 2 stations away from EWHA. We were obviously too ambitious already.. While walking halfway between EWHA and Sinchon station, our legs gave up. We had excessive cycling on the railbike and tandem bicycle in Nami yesterday followed by continuous walking today.

We decided to walk to Sinchon station instead and take the train to Hongdae when we stumbled upon a gem nearby Sinchon station. It is a mini market (I cannot remember the shop's name. From Sinchon exit 4, the shop is on the left side facing the main road) selling popular food stuff which you can also get in Lotte Mart. Overheard a group of girls in the shop said that things here are cheaper than Lotte Mart (which we confirmed is true after we went to Lotte Mart). This shop also sells loose packaging of MarketO brownie, instant noodles and other food stuff which we bought some to try first before we decide to buy the giant pack home.

We ended up at Sinchon and I'm kind of like this place as it is significantly less crowded and you can still find a lot of Korean beauty shops, boutiques that sells cheaper clothes, cafés and fast food chains. Happy that both MINISO & Daiso stores are located here as these stores in Korea have a lot more variety than the stores in SIN.

It was about 9.30pm, so we settled our dinner at the famous fried chicken chain, Kyochon! We ordered soy garlic flavour (18,000 won), Mic's one and only fav flavour. Unlike Kyochon in Malaysia which has size selection, Kyochon chicken in Korea only has 1 size. Their marinated chicken is freshly fried upon ordering so we waited for 20-25mins before it's served. True enough, it tastes so good to me even though I was not feeling well that day (and just swallowed 2 panadols). I had like only 5 pieces of it while Mic finished up the whole plate! Been regretting and craving for it since then. Think I should try Kyochon in Penang when I go back.

Doesn't look tempting but it's definitely 1 of the best fried chicken I've tried

We left Sinchon after dinner and made our way back to our hanok. I was feverish and walking in the cold weather made the feeling even worst. Bought a hot Apple Honey drink (2,500 won) from Paris Baguette while walking back to our hanok, assuring myself that this nutritious drink will helped to boost my immunity. When you are about to get sick on a holiday, whatever method also will try.

It surprised me that there are really bits of FRESH apple inside the drink. Awesome! It comes in a selection of apple, orange or yuzu flavour. I luv it so much that I tried all the flavours and had a cup almost everyday.