Most of you are probably wondering how much shopping budget to aside when visiting South Korea. 

I've prepared a Korea shopping haul so you will (more or less) get an idea on how much things cost in Seoul. (Note, however, that most of the stuff I bought are from small stores in Hongdae/Myeongdong). See post about Hongdae, here. I didn't buy from the usual/popular brands like H&M, Uniqlo, Basic House, etc... because items there will surely be more expensive. 

(For the benefit of my Filipino readers, 1. Bag, Php 2,040 2. Eyeglasses, Php 540 3. Wallet, Php 480 4. Flats, 1,480 5. Shorts, Php 198)

(1. Bracelet, Php 236 2. Necklace, Php 200 3. Bracelet, Php 276)

I consider myself as a frugal shopper so I do think twice before heading to the cashier. And as you can see, I made it a point to just get one of each: one pair of shoes, one bag, one pair of shorts, one wallet and a few accessories. Are you a frugal shopper too? What do you consider a good mix of items when shopping? 

XX, 

Jess
Read my Korea Beauty Haul, here. 

Seoul, Korea Day 3: A Day at Hongdae

For our third day in Korea, we decided to leave the hotel at around 9:30 am to go to Hongdae.
Hongdae or also known as Hongik University is a famous place for the young and hip! You can eat, shop and even party here! 

How to get there: Ride the subway and alight at Hongik University, exit #9. Walk for about 250 meters then turn right. You'll see on your right the lane full of shops and restaurants! Don't be too early though cause shops normally open around 10:30 am or 11 am. 

Once you arrive at Hongdae, you'll notice the big H&M outlet.

The shopping marathon starts in 3..2..1.

We passed by a store called "I Love Flat". And I tell you, it was truly love at first sight!
The pair of flats I purchased here are comfiest flats I own now. I'll include ze pair of flats in my upcoming fashion haul post.

Oh yes, a sweet ending it is.
XX,
Jess

Seoul, Korea Day 2: Lotte World

Lotte World, Seoul, South Korea
Welcome to largest indoor theme park in the world!
Families traveling to Korea must schedule a visit to at least one theme park. It's either Lotte World or Everland but if you're the adventure-seeking type you can even choose to visit both!

How to get there: Ride the subway, alight at Jamsil Station Subway Line 2 then take exit #3. Follow the Lotte World signs at the exit.

Admission Fee: KRW 40,000 for adults (Php 1,600) If you're a foreigner, just bring your passport and you'll get a 15% discount therefore making it KRW 34,000 (Php 1,360). You may purchase your tickets at the self-ticketing counter (automated machine) or at the amusement park entrance itself. 

Awww little kids are just way too adorable for words.

Excuse our obsession with the Korean poses. We just made the most out of the opportunity to do so. lol.

You can buy waffles for KRW 3,000 (Php 120). A word of caution though, the waffle server didn't use gloves while putting the icing and chocolate syrup. If you're overly conscious on proper food preparation then I suggest that you skip the waffle and look for other snacks available within the area.


We weren't able to ride too many rides because the queues at the rides are way too long. You have to wait for 30 mins to an hour depending on the ride. I don't really like the feeling of falling in line for too long so my sister and I agreed to go ice skating instead! We paid KRW 9,500 (Php 380).
It already includes the ice skating rink admission and skates rental. Be sure to bring gloves so you wouldn't need to purchase new ones at their store.

After ice skating, we took the subway to Myeongdong and searched for an authentic Korean Restaurant. Luckily, we found one that will even require you to eat while in an indian sitting position.

Notice the amount of side dishes served! Now tell me, who could resist a Korean meal?
XX,
Jess

Korea Beauty Haul

Paris has been known as the cosmetics capital of the world for the longest time now but I think South Korea is such a strong contender for the same title. The amount of stores selling cosmetics - in Myeongdong alone - is overwhelming even for a cosmetics junkie. And since our hotel was just within the area, I wouldn't pass up the chance to take home a beauty loot of my own. The popular cosmetic brands in Korea are Etude House, Missha, Nature Republic, Skin Food, Innisfree, Tony Moly, Holika Holika and Dearberry. I know there a lot of Etude House stores here in the Philippines already but I still couldn't resist to purchase a few things. Blame their cute packaging, 10% discount coupon I got in the hotel and my liking to get a lot of freebies. lol.

Missha Signature Wrinkle Filler B.B Cream SPF 37. KRW 20,860 (Php 834.40) vs. PH retail price of Php 2,100
Don't get me wrong. I don't think I have premature wrinkles but the Korean saleslady convinced me that this is the best choice because of its "long-lasting effect". Well let's see if her claim is true. The BB cream is originally priced at KRW 29,800 (Php 1,192) but they're having a spring sale so it's 30% off, making it KRW 20,860 (Php 834.40) Hooray for a sale-priced item plus 3 packs of cleansing tissue as freebies. 

1. Innisfree Green Tea Pure Cleansing Foam 150 mL. KRW 12,000 (Php 480)
Packaging says it "revives dry, stressed skin by supplying abundant moisture". I guess I need to save this for the sleepless nights.

2. Innisfree Green Tea Mineral Mist 50 mL. KRW 5,000 (Php 200)
I used to always carry around an Evian mist spray on my bag but when the time came that's already used up I felt so guilty on buying another 280-pesos spray bottle of fancy water. But when I saw the Innisfree mineral mist I convinced myself that it's a different story. It has green tea and green tea complex from Jeju island! Let's see how the complex thingy-majigs from Jeju island will make a difference. 

And in case you're wondering, I got a green tea seed cream as the freebie. I have no idea what it is but I guess it's worth a try. Hmm let's Google it then! 

1. Etude House Mini Brow Class Drawing Guide KRW 2,500 (Php 100). 

2. Etude House Precious Mineral BB Compact in Honey Beige W24. KRW 15,000 (Php 600).

3. Etude House Perfect Brow Kit. KRW 9,000 (Php 360). 

4. Etude House Drawing Show Creamy Liner in BK801. KRW 9,000 (Php 360).
Although gel liners are harder to use, I still prefer them over pencil liners. They don't smudge plus I don't have to sharpen anything. 

5. Etude House Essence Mask Collagen. Promo price of KRW 5,000 (Php 200 or Php 20/pack) 
Honestly, I have tried using facial masks but since Koreans are big fans of facial masks I thought that it's worth a try. I'll never know - the facial masks might be the reason behind their flawless skin. 

6. Etude House Dear My Blooming Lips-talk Lipstick in OR 204. KRW 8,500 

Note: Only the numbered products are my actual purchases. Yup, got so many freebies! Good thing I'm a sucker for freebies. Who isn't anyway? 

Korea Shopping Tip: If your purchase is at least KRW 30,000 worth, make sure to ask for a tax free receipt so you can ask for a tax refund at the airport. The net refund value is not that big at 5% but it's still worth saving a few bucks. 

Which one is your fave among the bunch? 
Stay tuned for the detailed beauty review for this Korea beauty haul! 

XX,
Jess

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Seoul, Korea Day 1: Gyeongbokgung Palace & Insadong

I'm baaaaack from Seoul, Korea!
Although the heat is quite unbearable in Manila, the fact remains that there is no place like home. It's always comforting to know that you're in a place wherein people understand you (literally and figuratively). You get to a point where you find doing overly dramatic hand gestures and slow talking a little bit exhausting. Well, that's just a teeny downside to a phenomenal trip! And although I'm no expert travel blogger, I'll do my best to write a vivid story of Seoul, South Korea.

Our last trip abroad (Bangkok) was devoted in shopping so this time we wanted to make sure that we'll allot some time to immerse ourselves in the culture therefore leading us to our first stop - the Gyeongbokgung Palace.

How to get there: Alight at Gyeongbokgung Station on Subway Line 3 then take exit #5. Follow the corridors and stairs up to street level and you'll eventually see the palace to your right. Admission Fee: KRW 3,000 (Php 120) or KRW 2,400 for groups of 10 or more (Php 96)

The palatial grounds served as the center of power, politics, economy and culture for many years so when the palace was destroyed during the Japanese occupation, the Koreans knew they had to restore the halls one by one until everything is back to its original state. According to the tour guide, the restoration is still in progress so she suggested to keep coming back to the palace whenever you visit Korea so you'll see the newly restored palace halls.  

The Changing of Palace Guards Ceremony happens thrice a day (10 am, 1pm & 3pm). Try your best to arrive on those time slots because even though you can't understand what the drumbeat orders meant, it's nice to revel on palace guards marching in unison. 

There are free guided tours in the palace grounds.
We arrived at the place at around 1:20 pm so we just waited for the 1:30 pm English guided tour. The tour begins outside the information office inside the Heungryemun Gate. (Wait there until a hanbok-wearing tour guide exits the office) The guided tour takes about an hour and she'll tour you around 2/3 of the palace.

The Gyeongbokgung Palace experience was truly fascinating and eye-opening. I grew up into thinking that kings and queens in real life are very much like the kings and queens in storybook fairytales -- their job is to dress up in fancy robes, delegate tasks and enjoy the finer things in life -- but the tour made me think otherwise. Here's an interesting story on why I had a complete change of heart. "Back in the day, King Sejong held meetings every single day at Sajeongjeon from 3 am to 5 am. Despite the burdensome schedule, Kind Sejong is said to have never missed a meeting. One day a minister told the king, "Your Majesty must be tired of attending a meeting every day. How about attending the meeting every other day?" The king rebuked him, saying, "If you come here to say such a thing, you need not come." Well, that's one heck of a story that can help me wake up early without even complaining!

After the tour at Gyeongbokgung Palace, we decided to visit Insadong next. Insadong is a well-known street for tourists and locals alike because there are a lot of cutesy cafes, handicraft stores and art galleries located in the area. If you're planning to purchase a painting on your trip, I suggest that this place may be the best place to scout.

Some say that Insadong is just walking distance from Gyeongbokgung but we didn't want to risk getting lost so we took the subway again then hopped off at Anguk Station then took exit #6 (where you'll see painted tiles like the ones shown above). Walk straight for 500 meters then you'll see Insadong on your left.

Ssamziegil is a known hub in Insadong. It's a place full of shops selling artsy and unique souvenirs like handmade jewelries, bohemian bags, etc. There are also coffee shops and what I call a love declaration-slash-cheeseballs center for couples at the topmost floor. A couple may write a note declaring their love to the whole world. It's very similar to the locks of love at N Seoul Tower. The only difference is that they don't use locks but instead they write on circular plastic cards.

Once you enter Ssamziegil, you'll instantly see a store selling odd-shaped breads. And once you look closely at the "odd-shaped bread", you'll notice that's it's actually shaped like a poopie. Don't worry though cause it tastes nothing like poop! It's tastes like a waffle with soybean filling inside. KRW 1,000 (Php 40)

After touring Insadong, we headed to Hello Kitty Cafe'. I'll make a separate post on that.

We then took the subway to Myeongdong to drop off our bags then went out again for dinner at Yoogane, Myeongdong. Yoogane is a popular restaurant in Korea that's why in Myeongdong alone, I was able to come across 2 branches already. We ordered the Chicken Galbi with Marinated Vegetables KRW 5,500 (Php 220). If you go there in a group, you must order one flavor only since they will put four orders or so in just one hot plate.

That's the end of my Korea Day 1 post, stay tuned for Day 2. I hope you enjoyed reading my travel diary!
XX,
Jess