July 30, Saturday – We departed together with Ryan’s labmates, Joon Dal and Sung Kyun oppa at around 6pm to Seomyeom. We were having “syabu-syabu” for dinner. It was originally a Japanese dish and a bit like tomyam steamboat. The soap did not taste exactly like tomyam, but it is a bit spicy. There were some vegetables and mushrooms inside the soup. The dish is served with thinly sliced beef. Joon Dal oppa ordered extra noodles, 2 bottles of Sprite like soft drinks and 2 bottles of soju. Joon Dal oppa treated us for this meal. It costed 50,000 won! Thank you Joon Dal oppa! ^^
After dinner, we walked to Megabox, a cinema in a nearby shopping complex. There were quite a lot of people there. The place reminded me of Sungai Wang Plaza in Kuala Lumpur. However, the surveillance cameras at the entrance were surprisingly a lot. This cinema was really nice, compared to the lousy ones in Nampo Dong. Too bad, the tickets were almost sold out, only left the midnight slots. Then, we walked to another shopping complex.
It was quite far away from the crowded area that we visited before and there were hardly anyone people around the complex. Yet, the cinema was quite pack. The fast food restaurants and café at the same floor as the cinema were having good business. We even need to take numbers just to buy the tickets. Since no one has the discount cards, we need to pay 6,500 won each for the ticket.
While waiting for the movie at 9.45pm, we had some fruit juice at a small store. The aunty there even gave me a small glass of juice as “service” since I was the only one not ordering any drinks. Sung Kyun oppa treated us this time. Thanks! ^^
Then, we went to the game arcade. It was not as noisy and pack as those in Malaysia. There were not many people there. Well, the games were basically almost the same. We can actually change coins at a machine rather than at the counter. Each game cost around 500 won. We played basketball, recognized the difference etc.
The movie that we watched is called “The Island”. The title was really lame. I thought that the movie has something to do with Mother Nature, or perhaps something like Robinson Crusoe. But, it was totally different. The theme of the movie was about human cloning. The storyline was interesting and there was a twist in it, the actions for the movie was exciting though sometimes it was a bit too violent. Hehehe… do not want to give spoilers here. The movie is recommended ;)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 31, Sunday – Ryan, Yushu and I went to Taejongdae together. Since there was no direct bus to there, we need to change bus. First, we took the subway to Jagalci station and had lunch at a restaurant in Nampo Dong. I ordered “su tu bu” and it cost 2,500 won. The main ingredient for this dish was “to fu”. The price was okay as they gave me an extra egg with some seaweed as well. Yushu ordered a chicken “dong ka su”. It was a rather small plate for a big eater like him.
After lunch, we walked to almost all the bus stops around Nampo Dong and Jagalchi market for the bus to Taejongdae. In Korea, buses only stop at the designated bus stops. It was quite tiring as it was hot today. Everyone was sweating a lot.
We reached Taejongdae at around 2+pm. The admission fee was 300 won each. It was rather cheap. The area was quite huge. The route was a big circle, but there was nothing much to see as the seaview was mostly covered up by the trees. However, the view at Yeongdo light house was really nice. The far end of the sea was a bit misty, as if it was borderless. There were some small islands nearby. The beach was rocky and the landscape there was really nice. It looked like the rocky mountains in Australia. The wind there was nice as well, though it was not very cold. Some of the views were really amazing, even the pictures were unable to describe 100% of its true beauty. There was a small performance there. It was unique, though the dancers were not in their full costumes and most of them were over 40 years old.
We spent about 3.5 hours there and departed to Seomyeom at 6pm. We had our dinner at Burger King. I took the cheapest set, Mexican set, for 3,500 won. The burger was rather small and there was no refill for the drinks(there is refill in Malaysia). However, the taste was nice. Maybe it was because we were very hungry. Walking around under the sun for such a long time was no joke!
The buses that we took today were:
Nampo Dong to Taejongdae - Bus no. 13
Taejongdae to Seomyeom – Bus no. 88
Seomyeom to Dongseo University – Bus no. 67
Sunday, July 31, 2005
Pictures in Korea - Batch 14
Here are some of the photos taken in Seomyeom and Taejongdae:
http://photobucket.com/albums/b378/dellachew04/Korea14/
Enjoy!
http://photobucket.com/albums/b378/dellachew04/Korea14/
Enjoy!
Monday, July 25, 2005
2 days 1 night trip at Gyeongju
July 23 and 24, Saturday and Sunday – Today, we departed to Gyeongju, a state which is located at the North of Busan. We departed at around 9am from the subway station to Busan Bus Terminal, which is located at Nopo Dong. It was actually Ryan’s lab’s training camp. We just joined them. Training camp doesn’t mean that they will be undergoing physical training or training related to computers, it was just an outing with all the lab members. We arrived at around 10am and waited for Ryan’s other labmates there.
At around 10.35am, all of them had arrived. There were a total of 12 people – 9 guys and 3 girls. We bought the tickets for the 10.50am bus to Gyeongju and it cost 4,000 won each. We had a small photo session before departing. I only happened to know 3 of Ryan’s labmates - Jong In, Dong Kyun and Joon Dal. The bus was a slightly different from the express bus that we normally took in Malaysia. There were belts for each seat. The way there took around 1.5 hour. Along the way, there was much breath-taking green scenery. I like the many layers of green paddy fields, white color birds in the paddy fields and ponds.
Gyeongju was the capital of the Shilla Kingdom for over 1,000 years. Thousands of historic buildings and objects have been maintained well throughout the city. As we arrived, we were able to see buildings with the traditional roofs. Gyeongju was the third biggest city in Korea. However, it was more to countryside, with more green scenery and very few concrete buildings. I had always thought of Korea being a country with only concrete buildings and advance technology. Well, I guess there is still nature here.
As we arrived at the bus station, a lady from the pension that we were going to stay fetched us there while some of Ryan’s labmates went off to buy food and drinks first. What is a pension? Pension is a regular payment to a person that is intended to allow them to subsist without working after they retired. However, pension here is something like a resort. Our pension was located inside a small village, just beside the paddy field, it was really wonderful. The pension was not a wooden house, but a concrete one. There were many pensions around the area as well. According to Jong In oppa, pension was the cheapest accommodation. The most expensive one is hotel, followed by motel and then mimbak. We were staying the area called HungHwa Condominium. The place that we were staying was a huge room with everything inside. It was quite decent, with a cupboard of mattresses and pillows, fridge, mini kitchen with stove and basin, a big mirror, television, air-conditioned and a toilet just beside it. It was rather different from what I imagined.
At around 1pm, the rest of them arrived with 2 boxes of food, beer, soju and soft drinks. The amount of drinks was actually more than food. The guys began cooking and arranging tables. Everyone was very cooperative. We had ramen, rice, kimchi and some seasoning food. It was very funny looking at how they ate with only ramen and rice. Some of them even mixed them together. I had tried that out as well, having rice after I finished the ramen and with some soup left. It tasted quite okay.
After lunch, we visited Gyeongju National Museum. The place was quite near to the bus terminal. The admission fee was 200 won. Dong Kyun sponsored us for this. The museum was very huge and nice. Too bad we were not allowed to take photos inside. Yet, I had secretly taken some and was spotted and being warned by the officer there. There were many clay figurines and potteries, with patterns in the shape of animals and humans. The ancient Silla also believed in Zodiacs and tombs of kings, queens and generals had those kinds of drawings on it. The design was rather different for each. The earrings and necklace were made of gold and it was very big. It must very uncomfortable when wearing them. Some of them were made of jade and the designs looked a lot like beans. There were many displays of Buddha statues as well as the kingdom of Silla was much affected by China. According to them, Silla conquered and united Korea with the help of China. Their main religion was Buddhism. We were able to notice many similarities they had for the design of their roof and some goods with China’s.
Our next destination was Anapji Pond. On our way there, we passed by a small place full of Lavenda. It was purple in color and really beautiful.
After that, we visited Anapji Pond. It was designed in such a way that the buildings were higher so that it was liked islands floating on the pond. It was very much like the palace in ancient China, where the noble sat beside the pond and reading poems. Only a small portion of the original place remained as most of them were burned down during the war. The admission fee for this place was rather expensive, 1,000 won. Ryan’s labmates sponsored us again for this. We spent of the time playing games inside rather than admiring the view. This game brought back a lot of my old memories during primary school. I am sure that most of us know about it. There are 3 keepers and will be chasing the rest of them. Before they are being caught, they must say “freeze” and stand still. If they are being caught, then they are out of the game. Those who are not freeze and are not keepers can run around unfreeze the others. One of them even bought us a small gift before leaving. We went back by bus number 10.
Everyone was taking turns to bath as there was only one bathroom/toilet. We had Samgeoksa(grilled pork) for dinner and the guys were doing a good job preparing the meal. Maybe this is the result of army training. It was funny looking at how Jong In and Dong Kyun oppa was eating while they were cooking. They must be very hungry. The dinner was very full as there were tones of supply for pork. There was an ice-breaking session as well. Most of Ryan’s labmates are actually engineering students.
After the meal, we played some games and those who lose need to drink soju. Jong In oppa was drunk very fast as he drank a lot before that. He even called himself a soju maniac. Sung Dong is very active, always in action. Dong Kyun is very shy, his face becomes red easily. He always gets the camera ready for photos. Joon Dal oppa was cold as usual. Jae Won oppa is always serious but actually a nice fellow. For the first time, I drank soju as I normally told them that I do not take alcohol drinks. After drinking 2 small glass of soju, my face became really red, but I was not drunk. They begun to worry about me and let me leave the game.
The game ended at around 2-3am. We did some major clean up after that. Song Jung oppa was really drunk and begun talking a lot in English. It was very funny as he was very quiet person. Some of them were washing the dishes while some were chatting outside. Jae Won oppa was the first one to sleep even though he hardly drank any soju. The next one was Dong Kyun oppa. BJun and I slept soon after that.
We woke up very early in the morning, around 8am. We were watching some television programs together. It was a word guessing show. Giving a word, the Koreans must give the foreigner a hint on the word using English and she guesses them. It was funny looking at how the Koreans described them in English. Some of them even made sounds and did some actions. Then, they watched a show on people playing a game, which I think it was Star Craft.
At around 10.30am, we had breakfast/lunch. We had ramen, rice and kimchi again. Then, we departed to Bulguksa, our last destination by bus number 10. Originally built in 528, Bulguk-sa provides an excellent example of architecture from the Shilla Dynasty. Literally meaning "Buddha Land," it remained intact for more than 1,000 years before the Japanese destroyed it in 1593. Only a few of the buildings were rebuilt until the 1970s when it was completely reconstructed. It is designated Historic and Scenic Place #1. UNESCO recognized it as an international cultural property in 1995(from Life in Korea). The architecture of the buildings here were indeed splendid, especially the interior design.
At around 3pm, we departed back to Busan.
At around 10.35am, all of them had arrived. There were a total of 12 people – 9 guys and 3 girls. We bought the tickets for the 10.50am bus to Gyeongju and it cost 4,000 won each. We had a small photo session before departing. I only happened to know 3 of Ryan’s labmates - Jong In, Dong Kyun and Joon Dal. The bus was a slightly different from the express bus that we normally took in Malaysia. There were belts for each seat. The way there took around 1.5 hour. Along the way, there was much breath-taking green scenery. I like the many layers of green paddy fields, white color birds in the paddy fields and ponds.
Gyeongju was the capital of the Shilla Kingdom for over 1,000 years. Thousands of historic buildings and objects have been maintained well throughout the city. As we arrived, we were able to see buildings with the traditional roofs. Gyeongju was the third biggest city in Korea. However, it was more to countryside, with more green scenery and very few concrete buildings. I had always thought of Korea being a country with only concrete buildings and advance technology. Well, I guess there is still nature here.
As we arrived at the bus station, a lady from the pension that we were going to stay fetched us there while some of Ryan’s labmates went off to buy food and drinks first. What is a pension? Pension is a regular payment to a person that is intended to allow them to subsist without working after they retired. However, pension here is something like a resort. Our pension was located inside a small village, just beside the paddy field, it was really wonderful. The pension was not a wooden house, but a concrete one. There were many pensions around the area as well. According to Jong In oppa, pension was the cheapest accommodation. The most expensive one is hotel, followed by motel and then mimbak. We were staying the area called HungHwa Condominium. The place that we were staying was a huge room with everything inside. It was quite decent, with a cupboard of mattresses and pillows, fridge, mini kitchen with stove and basin, a big mirror, television, air-conditioned and a toilet just beside it. It was rather different from what I imagined.
At around 1pm, the rest of them arrived with 2 boxes of food, beer, soju and soft drinks. The amount of drinks was actually more than food. The guys began cooking and arranging tables. Everyone was very cooperative. We had ramen, rice, kimchi and some seasoning food. It was very funny looking at how they ate with only ramen and rice. Some of them even mixed them together. I had tried that out as well, having rice after I finished the ramen and with some soup left. It tasted quite okay.
After lunch, we visited Gyeongju National Museum. The place was quite near to the bus terminal. The admission fee was 200 won. Dong Kyun sponsored us for this. The museum was very huge and nice. Too bad we were not allowed to take photos inside. Yet, I had secretly taken some and was spotted and being warned by the officer there. There were many clay figurines and potteries, with patterns in the shape of animals and humans. The ancient Silla also believed in Zodiacs and tombs of kings, queens and generals had those kinds of drawings on it. The design was rather different for each. The earrings and necklace were made of gold and it was very big. It must very uncomfortable when wearing them. Some of them were made of jade and the designs looked a lot like beans. There were many displays of Buddha statues as well as the kingdom of Silla was much affected by China. According to them, Silla conquered and united Korea with the help of China. Their main religion was Buddhism. We were able to notice many similarities they had for the design of their roof and some goods with China’s.
Our next destination was Anapji Pond. On our way there, we passed by a small place full of Lavenda. It was purple in color and really beautiful.
After that, we visited Anapji Pond. It was designed in such a way that the buildings were higher so that it was liked islands floating on the pond. It was very much like the palace in ancient China, where the noble sat beside the pond and reading poems. Only a small portion of the original place remained as most of them were burned down during the war. The admission fee for this place was rather expensive, 1,000 won. Ryan’s labmates sponsored us again for this. We spent of the time playing games inside rather than admiring the view. This game brought back a lot of my old memories during primary school. I am sure that most of us know about it. There are 3 keepers and will be chasing the rest of them. Before they are being caught, they must say “freeze” and stand still. If they are being caught, then they are out of the game. Those who are not freeze and are not keepers can run around unfreeze the others. One of them even bought us a small gift before leaving. We went back by bus number 10.
Everyone was taking turns to bath as there was only one bathroom/toilet. We had Samgeoksa(grilled pork) for dinner and the guys were doing a good job preparing the meal. Maybe this is the result of army training. It was funny looking at how Jong In and Dong Kyun oppa was eating while they were cooking. They must be very hungry. The dinner was very full as there were tones of supply for pork. There was an ice-breaking session as well. Most of Ryan’s labmates are actually engineering students.
After the meal, we played some games and those who lose need to drink soju. Jong In oppa was drunk very fast as he drank a lot before that. He even called himself a soju maniac. Sung Dong is very active, always in action. Dong Kyun is very shy, his face becomes red easily. He always gets the camera ready for photos. Joon Dal oppa was cold as usual. Jae Won oppa is always serious but actually a nice fellow. For the first time, I drank soju as I normally told them that I do not take alcohol drinks. After drinking 2 small glass of soju, my face became really red, but I was not drunk. They begun to worry about me and let me leave the game.
The game ended at around 2-3am. We did some major clean up after that. Song Jung oppa was really drunk and begun talking a lot in English. It was very funny as he was very quiet person. Some of them were washing the dishes while some were chatting outside. Jae Won oppa was the first one to sleep even though he hardly drank any soju. The next one was Dong Kyun oppa. BJun and I slept soon after that.
We woke up very early in the morning, around 8am. We were watching some television programs together. It was a word guessing show. Giving a word, the Koreans must give the foreigner a hint on the word using English and she guesses them. It was funny looking at how the Koreans described them in English. Some of them even made sounds and did some actions. Then, they watched a show on people playing a game, which I think it was Star Craft.
At around 10.30am, we had breakfast/lunch. We had ramen, rice and kimchi again. Then, we departed to Bulguksa, our last destination by bus number 10. Originally built in 528, Bulguk-sa provides an excellent example of architecture from the Shilla Dynasty. Literally meaning "Buddha Land," it remained intact for more than 1,000 years before the Japanese destroyed it in 1593. Only a few of the buildings were rebuilt until the 1970s when it was completely reconstructed. It is designated Historic and Scenic Place #1. UNESCO recognized it as an international cultural property in 1995(from Life in Korea). The architecture of the buildings here were indeed splendid, especially the interior design.
At around 3pm, we departed back to Busan.
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Pictures in Korea - Batch 13
This weekend, we went to Gyeongju, which is a state just beside Busan, with Ryan's labmates. Here are some of the photos taken:
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea13/
Enjoy!
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea13/
Enjoy!
Monday, July 18, 2005
Lab seminar
From this week onwards, our lab will be having a seminar on every Monday from 3 to 5pm. Today was the first one. Daniel oppa and I were presenting for this session. We were allocated with 1 hour each. It was really long for me. Normally we had presentations for at most 30 minutes back in Malaysia.
Shortly before the seminar started, many of my labmates entered the lab one by one. My oppas were busy preparing the projector and projector screen. It was really funny indeed when I saw them playing with it.
Initially, I was supposed to present first. As I was a little bit scare(never present before in Korea), I requested Daniel oppa to present first. His topic was Labview. As his presentation was done in Korean, practically I did not understand what he was saying at all. Everyone was paying serious attention to the presentation, sitting straight and with both eyes looking straight at the screen. Some even took out a notepad to write down some information. Luckily, there were demonstrations on the software, else I am going to fall asleep for real(I was already half asleep at that time). His presentation lasted for about 45 minutes. Wow… he really can present for long…I was quite shock when Daniel oppa informed me about the time allocation.
There was a 5 minutes break in between before my presentation. My presentation topic was my project, Dragon stream cipher. Well, my presentation lasted only for about 20 minutes, a very short presentation for the Koreans indeed. I wonder if they really understand my presentation as they did not show any reaction indicating they understand or not. They just looked at me as if I got something for them to stare at, not something interesting of course. My professor did not show any reaction as well and I wondered if he was unhappy with my presentation. He was like having a shock when I told him that it was my last slide after 20 minutes. Then, he explained some parts again with reference to both his slides and mine in Korean. The explanation lasted more than 20 minutes. I wondered if I was the one presenting or him. After the session ended, he told me that I did a good work. Daniel oppa commented that it was okay. I really wondered if it was really that good.
At around 7pm, we had some delivery food at the lab. Star visited the lab as well. She was wearing spectacles today. We had Janjang meon again. They sure like it a lot I guess. Jang Chun oppa treated me for this meal ^^ Kamsahamnida(thank you).
Shortly before the seminar started, many of my labmates entered the lab one by one. My oppas were busy preparing the projector and projector screen. It was really funny indeed when I saw them playing with it.
Initially, I was supposed to present first. As I was a little bit scare(never present before in Korea), I requested Daniel oppa to present first. His topic was Labview. As his presentation was done in Korean, practically I did not understand what he was saying at all. Everyone was paying serious attention to the presentation, sitting straight and with both eyes looking straight at the screen. Some even took out a notepad to write down some information. Luckily, there were demonstrations on the software, else I am going to fall asleep for real(I was already half asleep at that time). His presentation lasted for about 45 minutes. Wow… he really can present for long…I was quite shock when Daniel oppa informed me about the time allocation.
There was a 5 minutes break in between before my presentation. My presentation topic was my project, Dragon stream cipher. Well, my presentation lasted only for about 20 minutes, a very short presentation for the Koreans indeed. I wonder if they really understand my presentation as they did not show any reaction indicating they understand or not. They just looked at me as if I got something for them to stare at, not something interesting of course. My professor did not show any reaction as well and I wondered if he was unhappy with my presentation. He was like having a shock when I told him that it was my last slide after 20 minutes. Then, he explained some parts again with reference to both his slides and mine in Korean. The explanation lasted more than 20 minutes. I wondered if I was the one presenting or him. After the session ended, he told me that I did a good work. Daniel oppa commented that it was okay. I really wondered if it was really that good.
At around 7pm, we had some delivery food at the lab. Star visited the lab as well. She was wearing spectacles today. We had Janjang meon again. They sure like it a lot I guess. Jang Chun oppa treated me for this meal ^^ Kamsahamnida(thank you).
Pictures in Korea - Batch 11
Here are the photos taken in Haeundae, not many though:
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea11/
Enjoy!
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea11/
Enjoy!
Pictures in Korea - Batch 12
Here are some of the photos taken during the outing with my labmates and Korean Traditional Paper Art:
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea12/
Enjoy!
p/s: will upload the photos taken in Haeundae soon.
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea12/
Enjoy!
p/s: will upload the photos taken in Haeundae soon.
Korean Traditional Paper Art
July 17, Sunday – BJun, Eileen, Ryan and I went to a temple in Nopo-Dong for their 86th monthly event, Korean Traditional Paper Art. We took a subway from Naengjeong to Nopo-Dong. Nopo-Dong is the last subway station of line 1. We changed line at Seomyeom. It took us around 1 hour to reach there.
Beside the Nopo-Dong subway station is Busan Bus Terminal. As we have some free time left before the shuttle bus at 1pm, we had lunch at Lotteria. The air-conditional was not on at that time and it was hot inside. The service was not good as well. It was a big mistake for me to order “hot squid burger” as it was really spicy. It was a really painful experience >__< The others had “rib sand” lunch set.
As we a new to the place, we were clueless on the location to wait for the shuttle bus. We accidentally took a shuttle for another event to a stadium near by. As we were aboard on the bus, we were curious why almost the whole bus was filled by senior citizens. We arrived at the stadium, realized that we were actually taking the wrong bus. We saw a few police cars as we were attempting to walk back to the bus station. We waived at them, hoping that they would stop and showed us the directions to the bus terminal, but they did not seem to bother and drove pass us. This was the first time that we were lost without anything as guidance. None of us remember the temple name and the old folks nearby do not understand English. Luckily, we managed to catch a taxi at a traffic junction and got ourselves back to the bus terminal.
Shortly after we reached the terminal, we met a China guy who was looking around for the shuttle bus as well. He had been to the temple before and knew where to wait for the bus. Well, it was a shuttle van rather than a shuttle bus. We met a few other foreigners there, such as Gregory and his mother. He was a lecturer in a university and has been in Korea for 3.5 years. He will be going back to America soon.
Nopo-Dong’s main activity is farming. We were able to see many vegetable fields along the way. The temple is surrounded by green scenery, with many trees, flowers and vegetables. It is a very nice place indeed. The event was held outdoor. There were tables and mat beneath the trees. The arrangements reminded me of the sittings for kindergarten students as they are having art classes. This paper art activity was different from what we imagined. Some expected it to be like an exhibition whereas I expected to be like folding animals and stuff with papers. But, we all got it wrong.
At first, we registered ourselves and were seated. We were given a set of stationeries and a fan without any design. We thought that we were about to do some paintings on the fan as a brush was provided each. But, we were actually going to tear off the Korean traditional paper given to us into pieces with shapes and then glue it on the fan to form a picture or art. These papers are different from normal color papers. Different parts of the paper are of different color, such as a dark green color paper will have some part with slightly darker or lighter green color. Before the activity started, Gregory told us that we were to follow the instructions given by the teacher closely. He even told us that he got scolded by the teacher by adding extra pedals to the flowers. The flower was supposed to have 8 petals and he made it with 9 petals instead. The paper is very thin, with different color tone and as we tore it off, there were something different to it. The sides being torn out become a bit fury. It was a fantastic feature of the paper that made great master piece. The arts are simple but it looks like as if it is alive. This event was sponsored by the Buddhist association
After the activity, we were provided with some desserts(watermelon cubes with soda and some Korean “kuih”) before having the group photo session. Then, we had a walk around the area. It is really nice as the whole place is covered by carpet grass, trees and flowers. The place is well maintained. We took some photos there before departed back to the bus terminal. Then, we took the subway back.
p/s: will upload the photos later.
Beside the Nopo-Dong subway station is Busan Bus Terminal. As we have some free time left before the shuttle bus at 1pm, we had lunch at Lotteria. The air-conditional was not on at that time and it was hot inside. The service was not good as well. It was a big mistake for me to order “hot squid burger” as it was really spicy. It was a really painful experience >__< The others had “rib sand” lunch set.
As we a new to the place, we were clueless on the location to wait for the shuttle bus. We accidentally took a shuttle for another event to a stadium near by. As we were aboard on the bus, we were curious why almost the whole bus was filled by senior citizens. We arrived at the stadium, realized that we were actually taking the wrong bus. We saw a few police cars as we were attempting to walk back to the bus station. We waived at them, hoping that they would stop and showed us the directions to the bus terminal, but they did not seem to bother and drove pass us. This was the first time that we were lost without anything as guidance. None of us remember the temple name and the old folks nearby do not understand English. Luckily, we managed to catch a taxi at a traffic junction and got ourselves back to the bus terminal.
Shortly after we reached the terminal, we met a China guy who was looking around for the shuttle bus as well. He had been to the temple before and knew where to wait for the bus. Well, it was a shuttle van rather than a shuttle bus. We met a few other foreigners there, such as Gregory and his mother. He was a lecturer in a university and has been in Korea for 3.5 years. He will be going back to America soon.
Nopo-Dong’s main activity is farming. We were able to see many vegetable fields along the way. The temple is surrounded by green scenery, with many trees, flowers and vegetables. It is a very nice place indeed. The event was held outdoor. There were tables and mat beneath the trees. The arrangements reminded me of the sittings for kindergarten students as they are having art classes. This paper art activity was different from what we imagined. Some expected it to be like an exhibition whereas I expected to be like folding animals and stuff with papers. But, we all got it wrong.
At first, we registered ourselves and were seated. We were given a set of stationeries and a fan without any design. We thought that we were about to do some paintings on the fan as a brush was provided each. But, we were actually going to tear off the Korean traditional paper given to us into pieces with shapes and then glue it on the fan to form a picture or art. These papers are different from normal color papers. Different parts of the paper are of different color, such as a dark green color paper will have some part with slightly darker or lighter green color. Before the activity started, Gregory told us that we were to follow the instructions given by the teacher closely. He even told us that he got scolded by the teacher by adding extra pedals to the flowers. The flower was supposed to have 8 petals and he made it with 9 petals instead. The paper is very thin, with different color tone and as we tore it off, there were something different to it. The sides being torn out become a bit fury. It was a fantastic feature of the paper that made great master piece. The arts are simple but it looks like as if it is alive. This event was sponsored by the Buddhist association
After the activity, we were provided with some desserts(watermelon cubes with soda and some Korean “kuih”) before having the group photo session. Then, we had a walk around the area. It is really nice as the whole place is covered by carpet grass, trees and flowers. The place is well maintained. We took some photos there before departed back to the bus terminal. Then, we took the subway back.
p/s: will upload the photos later.
Saturday, July 16, 2005
1st outing with my labmates ^^
July 14, Saturday – Today I went out with Eileen, Ryan and my labmates – Jae Hoon, Jang Chun, Dong Hun and Jae Hoon’s girlfriend, Star. Star looked a bit different from the pictures that Jae Hoon oppa showed me before in his homepage. However, she still looks cute in a way, very much reminded me of Li Rong, Thai Sin’s younger sister. We met Jae Hoon, Star and Dong Hun in front of Baskin Robbins ice-cream shop. Ji Hyun onni who was supposed to go with us was unable to make it. We took bus 61 to Nampo Dong. My labmates wanted to watch “Magdagascar”. As we had watched it before, we decided to shop around the area instead. They offered to pay for our tickets, but it is not nice for us to let them do so. They bought the tickets for the movie in another cinema, which is located near to the cinema that we went to previously. This cinema is nicer, from the outside. The cinema is called CGV, reminded me of Tanjung Golden Village(TGV).
Our first target was tower, as I only brought one from Malaysia and it was difficult for me to change. Eileen led the way as she had been there for a whole day shopping before and knows the place better. However, we were still a bit lost. Ryan and Eileen tested out some hawker food along the way. After some time, we come across several shops selling towels. There are not many designs. They are normally in plain color with little patterns. I bought a blue towel, average size at 4,000 won. It is the cheapest I can get. The smaller ones ranged from 1,500 won to 3,000 won. Next, we visited some shops selling souvenirs. Stuff such as the box for keeping accessories is very nice. They are made of wood and sea shells. The inside of the box is shinning. The design is indeed very unique and beautiful. However, it is very expensive as well. The smallest one cost 50,000 won(around RM200). Eileen managed to get herself a green watch at the underground shopping complex at 6,000 won. The design is cute.
At 5pm, we met up with my labmates again in front of the cinema. Then, we went to a restaurant for dinner. It was a very grand one, with mini fountains and automatic doors. I was astonished by its interior design, it is really traditional-like. I like it very much. The next thing that comes into my mind was…”this meal is going to be an expensive one”. The waitress leaded us to a small room at the second floor. They were dressed in traditional Korea clothes. The utensils for the food were very different from the ones that I went before, such as the chopsticks and spoon was served differently. They were also heavier than the normal ones that we used. The meal was really nice, maybe also because I like seafood. We had many side dishes, a big serving of bean sprout with seafood and soup. I was really enjoying myself. Jae Hoon oppa was trying to be funny as usual. Jang Chun oppa did not seem to eat much. After dinner, we had dessert. It was called “Crystal Fruit Juice”, a direct translation from the Korean name. It tasted a bit weird but delicious. My guess was correct. My oppas were really going to treat Eileen, Ryan and I for the meal. Then, we headed back to Naengjeong by subway.
As we reached Naengjeong, Jae Hoon oppa treated us ice-creams. It was tasty. When I reached the lab, they treated me a can of aloe juice. Jae Hoon oppa sure has a good memory on things like this, such as people’s favorite food.
p/s: will upload the pictures soon.
Our first target was tower, as I only brought one from Malaysia and it was difficult for me to change. Eileen led the way as she had been there for a whole day shopping before and knows the place better. However, we were still a bit lost. Ryan and Eileen tested out some hawker food along the way. After some time, we come across several shops selling towels. There are not many designs. They are normally in plain color with little patterns. I bought a blue towel, average size at 4,000 won. It is the cheapest I can get. The smaller ones ranged from 1,500 won to 3,000 won. Next, we visited some shops selling souvenirs. Stuff such as the box for keeping accessories is very nice. They are made of wood and sea shells. The inside of the box is shinning. The design is indeed very unique and beautiful. However, it is very expensive as well. The smallest one cost 50,000 won(around RM200). Eileen managed to get herself a green watch at the underground shopping complex at 6,000 won. The design is cute.
At 5pm, we met up with my labmates again in front of the cinema. Then, we went to a restaurant for dinner. It was a very grand one, with mini fountains and automatic doors. I was astonished by its interior design, it is really traditional-like. I like it very much. The next thing that comes into my mind was…”this meal is going to be an expensive one”. The waitress leaded us to a small room at the second floor. They were dressed in traditional Korea clothes. The utensils for the food were very different from the ones that I went before, such as the chopsticks and spoon was served differently. They were also heavier than the normal ones that we used. The meal was really nice, maybe also because I like seafood. We had many side dishes, a big serving of bean sprout with seafood and soup. I was really enjoying myself. Jae Hoon oppa was trying to be funny as usual. Jang Chun oppa did not seem to eat much. After dinner, we had dessert. It was called “Crystal Fruit Juice”, a direct translation from the Korean name. It tasted a bit weird but delicious. My guess was correct. My oppas were really going to treat Eileen, Ryan and I for the meal. Then, we headed back to Naengjeong by subway.
As we reached Naengjeong, Jae Hoon oppa treated us ice-creams. It was tasty. When I reached the lab, they treated me a can of aloe juice. Jae Hoon oppa sure has a good memory on things like this, such as people’s favorite food.
p/s: will upload the pictures soon.
Friday, July 15, 2005
Training: Week #7
Another week of my training is going to be over again. I only have 2.5 months left before going back to Malaysia. It is not raining so often nowadays, normally during midnight. The weather is not very hot as it is cloudy. Eileen and Wei Shi have temporary shifted to an office in the Millennium building. There are some renovations going on in the Design Hall.
Daniel missed out Tae Hoon oppa’s farewell party as he did not know about it. (p/s: oppa is a term used by female juniors referring to their senior males) He had shifted his PC over to Tae Hoon oppa’s seat now. It is a mess now as he has yet to clean up the place. Jae Hoon oppa is very funny as usual, saying good morning to me whenever he wakes up(normally he sleeps in the lab). Jang Chung and Kyung Kon oppa come to the lab once in a while. My professor is in the lab quite often these few days.
It is a culture here in Korea for them to treat foreigners nicely, especially female juniors. Normally, uppas like to treat their juniors for juice after they have lunch together. Daniel oppa treated BJun and I once this week after our lunch in sky lounge in the Millennium building. Jae Hoon oppa treated me some chocolate and rice cake that he brought from home. I do not really like it as there are beans inside.
I had done the major part of my project and is a bit relax now ^^
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here are something funny to share:
#1
Tuesday afternoon, Daniel oppa treated BJun, Yushu and I to lunch at the sky lounge. Yushu was very tired as he had been working in the lab yesterday night. The topic of the day was prediction terrorist attacking Korea because of the coming APEC event. He warned us not to take public transport such as the subway and visited places like complex. His expression was really funny. Well, I do not think that terrorist is going to attack a private university like DSU or shopping complex like Lotte. Perhaps, places like Gwangali Bridge. So, we are rather safe from the attack, if it really happen. .
#2
As Daniel oppa was going to make some coffee, he asked me if I want. He asked me why I did not take the green tea. I told him that I prefer the pure green tea instead of the unpolished rice and green tea combo in the lab. Then, he told me that, “The professor has pure green tea, but he keep… don’t want to share”. His facial expression was very funny at that time ^^
#3
One afternoon, as usual, I took out a packet of the mixed instant coffee, tore it open and poured the powder into the paper cup. As I was about to pour some hot into the cup from the thermostat, suddenly all 3 of my labmates who are in the lab rushed to me and stopped. I got a shock. They kept on saying, “Cannot, cannot!” I begun to wonder if I am drinking too much of the coffee and they do not want me to have it. Well, there are 2 types of coffee in my lab; coffee mixed and ice coffee mixed. There are only 30 packets of the ice coffee mixed and it is more expensive than the normal coffee mixed. I started taking it early this week and am addicted to it. In less than a week, I finished almost 15 packets of them.
Then, they opened the thermostat and pointed inside. I thought they want to tell me that there was no more water inside. But, there was water. Maybe the water was not hot, but the status there was “keep boiled”. They kept on insisting me not to drink the water and I became very curious. Jae Hoon oppa even offered me to have his chocolate. I was very confused. Then, they showed me a bottle of vinegar. They told me that they poured some inside of the thermostat. I wondered why they did so. They seemed to have difficulty finding the right word to tell me. Then, Daniel oppa said, “Kill bugs! Kill bugs!” Their expressions were very funny at that time ^^
Daniel missed out Tae Hoon oppa’s farewell party as he did not know about it. (p/s: oppa is a term used by female juniors referring to their senior males) He had shifted his PC over to Tae Hoon oppa’s seat now. It is a mess now as he has yet to clean up the place. Jae Hoon oppa is very funny as usual, saying good morning to me whenever he wakes up(normally he sleeps in the lab). Jang Chung and Kyung Kon oppa come to the lab once in a while. My professor is in the lab quite often these few days.
It is a culture here in Korea for them to treat foreigners nicely, especially female juniors. Normally, uppas like to treat their juniors for juice after they have lunch together. Daniel oppa treated BJun and I once this week after our lunch in sky lounge in the Millennium building. Jae Hoon oppa treated me some chocolate and rice cake that he brought from home. I do not really like it as there are beans inside.
I had done the major part of my project and is a bit relax now ^^
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here are something funny to share:
#1
Tuesday afternoon, Daniel oppa treated BJun, Yushu and I to lunch at the sky lounge. Yushu was very tired as he had been working in the lab yesterday night. The topic of the day was prediction terrorist attacking Korea because of the coming APEC event. He warned us not to take public transport such as the subway and visited places like complex. His expression was really funny. Well, I do not think that terrorist is going to attack a private university like DSU or shopping complex like Lotte. Perhaps, places like Gwangali Bridge. So, we are rather safe from the attack, if it really happen. .
#2
As Daniel oppa was going to make some coffee, he asked me if I want. He asked me why I did not take the green tea. I told him that I prefer the pure green tea instead of the unpolished rice and green tea combo in the lab. Then, he told me that, “The professor has pure green tea, but he keep… don’t want to share”. His facial expression was very funny at that time ^^
#3
One afternoon, as usual, I took out a packet of the mixed instant coffee, tore it open and poured the powder into the paper cup. As I was about to pour some hot into the cup from the thermostat, suddenly all 3 of my labmates who are in the lab rushed to me and stopped. I got a shock. They kept on saying, “Cannot, cannot!” I begun to wonder if I am drinking too much of the coffee and they do not want me to have it. Well, there are 2 types of coffee in my lab; coffee mixed and ice coffee mixed. There are only 30 packets of the ice coffee mixed and it is more expensive than the normal coffee mixed. I started taking it early this week and am addicted to it. In less than a week, I finished almost 15 packets of them.
Then, they opened the thermostat and pointed inside. I thought they want to tell me that there was no more water inside. But, there was water. Maybe the water was not hot, but the status there was “keep boiled”. They kept on insisting me not to drink the water and I became very curious. Jae Hoon oppa even offered me to have his chocolate. I was very confused. Then, they showed me a bottle of vinegar. They told me that they poured some inside of the thermostat. I wondered why they did so. They seemed to have difficulty finding the right word to tell me. Then, Daniel oppa said, “Kill bugs! Kill bugs!” Their expressions were very funny at that time ^^
Monday, July 11, 2005
Farewell, Tae Hoon oppa!
Today, as I woke up early in the morning, the rain was not very heavy but the wind was very strong. On my way to the lab, I was struggling as I moved forward. I got myself a bit wet. When I arrived there, Jae Hoon oppa was sleeping in the lab again. Dong Hun oppa arrived shortly after that. Around 12pm, more and more of my labmates begun to gather at the lab. My professor was there as well. I haven’t really seen him for quite a long time already since he is always at 2nd floor, busy with the NURI project. We will be having lunch together this afternoon as a farewell party for Tae Hoon oppa as he will be departing to Malaysia tomorrow. Tae Hoon’s wife, Young Sil onni and I took Tae Hoon’s oppa car while the others took the professor’s car.
The restaurant was somewhere near Gaygeum, but the opposite direction. It was a traditional Korean restaurant. There were around 10 of us. The side dishes here were really nice – tofu with sauce, marinated onions. The main dish was Samgye-tang(Ginseng Chicken Soup). The body cavity of a small chicken is stuffed with rice, young ginseng shoots, and jujubes. Then, it is boiled in a clear stock and served in an individual earthenware pot (quoted from “Life in Korea”). A small bowl of salt was given to us. The soup was rather plain when I first tasted it. Later, I found out that we actually need to add salt into it. We can adjust the taste by ourselves as we decide the amount of salt to be put in. Each of us was actually given one bowl of it, with the whole chicken. Luckily that it was a small chicken, though it was not really that small. I had taken some photos on the food and my labmates, too bad Young Sil onni refused to take any pictures. Throughout the whole meal, they were talking to each other in Korean. I had no idea what they were talking about. Tae Hoon oppa was not talking much to me today as his wife was around :P My professor was sitting beside me and doing most of the talking. It was not nice to bug in him when he was talking as well. I looked around hoping that someone would translate what they were talking to me in English. But, none seemed to do so. I asked Tae Hoon oppa what they were talking about after they finished and he told me that they were talking about the seminar, presentation by the lab members.
(p/s: “onni” here is a term referring to older female senior by younger female junior)
After lunch, all my labmates went back to the lab. For the first time in a while, the lab was happening again. The guys were busy playing games whereas Young Sil onni was reading some stuff. Jae Hoon oppa was playing some games and making funny duck sounds. Jang Chun oppa was listening to mp3 as usual.
My labmates went back quite early today and for the first time, my professor was in lab with me. As usual, he was very quiet. But, at least he was in the lab ^^
The restaurant was somewhere near Gaygeum, but the opposite direction. It was a traditional Korean restaurant. There were around 10 of us. The side dishes here were really nice – tofu with sauce, marinated onions. The main dish was Samgye-tang(Ginseng Chicken Soup). The body cavity of a small chicken is stuffed with rice, young ginseng shoots, and jujubes. Then, it is boiled in a clear stock and served in an individual earthenware pot (quoted from “Life in Korea”). A small bowl of salt was given to us. The soup was rather plain when I first tasted it. Later, I found out that we actually need to add salt into it. We can adjust the taste by ourselves as we decide the amount of salt to be put in. Each of us was actually given one bowl of it, with the whole chicken. Luckily that it was a small chicken, though it was not really that small. I had taken some photos on the food and my labmates, too bad Young Sil onni refused to take any pictures. Throughout the whole meal, they were talking to each other in Korean. I had no idea what they were talking about. Tae Hoon oppa was not talking much to me today as his wife was around :P My professor was sitting beside me and doing most of the talking. It was not nice to bug in him when he was talking as well. I looked around hoping that someone would translate what they were talking to me in English. But, none seemed to do so. I asked Tae Hoon oppa what they were talking about after they finished and he told me that they were talking about the seminar, presentation by the lab members.
(p/s: “onni” here is a term referring to older female senior by younger female junior)
After lunch, all my labmates went back to the lab. For the first time in a while, the lab was happening again. The guys were busy playing games whereas Young Sil onni was reading some stuff. Jae Hoon oppa was playing some games and making funny duck sounds. Jang Chun oppa was listening to mp3 as usual.
My labmates went back quite early today and for the first time, my professor was in lab with me. As usual, he was very quiet. But, at least he was in the lab ^^
Haeundae
July 10, Sunday – Ryan, Yushu, Eileen, Jong In, Jong In’s senior(Suk) and I went to Grand Hotel, Haeundae for swimming. Haeundae is a very famous beach in Busan. It is a hotspot during summer and daily visitors can reach up to around millions of people. We met Jong In and Suk at the subway and took the subway to Dongbaek station. The hotel is not right beside the beach, but very near to it.
The fee for the swimming pool is 6,000 won each for adult. However, since Soak oppa work there before, we were able to get a discount of 1,500 won, meaning 4,500 won each. The swimming pool is located at the 6th floor of the hotel. At reception, we collected the keys to our lockers. All the lockers have numbers. The entrance is divided into 2 parts – men and women. Inside the women entrance, there are many sections – lockers, places to dry hair, shower room and toilet. At the place to dry hair, hair dryers are provided. We are not allowed to wear shoes inside here. There are many lockers and mirrors in there. There is a vending machine for drinks inside as well, but it is rather expensive. The ladies here are very open minded. Most of them walk around naked and changed clothes right in front of the locker. It seems to be something normal for them. It is a must to wear swimming suits and caps when swimming.
The swimming pool is not very big, only average. Suk oppa helped us to borrow some swimming caps and goggles as most of us do not have them. There is a children’s swimming there with slides. There is a separated small pool with warm water only for women as well. There are 2 workers standing there, guarding. However, it does not seem to be a bother to them. The pool was rather crowded as there were many people swimming there. We tied the keys of our lockers to our legs and begun swimming
Towers are provided. Thus, we do not need to use our own towers. However, we need to use our own shampoo. In the shower room, everyone bath together, naked. It is very unusual in Malaysia, but it is something very normal here. They do not look at each other when bathing, so it is nothing to be embarrassed about. However, I am still unable to get use to it and bath in my swimming suit.
There is an ATM machine at the lobby with visa interlink. I tested out my Maybank card right before we departed at 5.30pm and it was working perfectly fine.
Next, we have a walk at a park beside Haeundae beach. It was a rocky beach, there are many pine trees there and the air is refreshing. The view is nice; too bad we cannot go down to have a closer look as they were having a small renovation there. We attempted to go down but were stopped by 2 young police officers. There are renovations going on for the coming APEC meeting that is going to be held in November.
After that, we went to have a walk at the famous Haeundae beach. It is plain beach, nothing special to be noted. The beach is very long beach and the sand is kind of rough. It was drizzling that day, the wind and waves are quite strong, quite windy. Not many people were doing sports activities there. The Haeundae aquarium is located just beside the beach. The entrance fee is rather expensive, around 12,000 won, so we did not visit it. There were a few safety guards sitting along the beach. There are many hotels near the beach, but none are right beside the beach, like in Tanjung Tokong, Penang.
Then, we had lunch at a shop near the beach. We had mandu and noodle with “lala” for dinner. It is not spicy and the taste is quite nice, not very salty or plain. It costs 4,000 won each.
We went to the shopping complex near by after dinner. The cinema there is very big and grand, totally different from the one we went before in Nampo Dong. There is a place called Horrorwood, to see real horror shows. It is expensive, around 8,000 won each. After a scroll, we headed back to Naengjong by subway.
On our way back, we visited Bluemoon, a Chinese Fusion Soju Club. It is a shop for soju and hof. Soju is Korean wine. I do not know what is hof, but it seems to be something close to beer. It was not a bad place, there are no disco or singing or drunken people there. It is like a restaurant, but the atmosphere is a bit different due to the lighting and interior design.
Suk oppa ordered 2 bottles of 7-up and a medium sized bottle of Chinese alcohol. The percentage of alcohol is 50%. I only took a sip of it; it was rather too much for me, so I took 7-up and plain water instead. There were some other side dishes and a big plate of “char siu” (barbecued pork) and slice cucumber. There was a small plate of sauce for that dish as well. The dish is not warm, rather old, but its taste is very Malaysia-like. We played some Korean games. Suk oppa ordered 2 more bottles of 7-up and a small bottle of alcohol drink later on. This bottle of alcohol contained 60% of alcohol. Jong In and Suk oppa treated us for this and it cost 22,000 won.
The fee for the swimming pool is 6,000 won each for adult. However, since Soak oppa work there before, we were able to get a discount of 1,500 won, meaning 4,500 won each. The swimming pool is located at the 6th floor of the hotel. At reception, we collected the keys to our lockers. All the lockers have numbers. The entrance is divided into 2 parts – men and women. Inside the women entrance, there are many sections – lockers, places to dry hair, shower room and toilet. At the place to dry hair, hair dryers are provided. We are not allowed to wear shoes inside here. There are many lockers and mirrors in there. There is a vending machine for drinks inside as well, but it is rather expensive. The ladies here are very open minded. Most of them walk around naked and changed clothes right in front of the locker. It seems to be something normal for them. It is a must to wear swimming suits and caps when swimming.
The swimming pool is not very big, only average. Suk oppa helped us to borrow some swimming caps and goggles as most of us do not have them. There is a children’s swimming there with slides. There is a separated small pool with warm water only for women as well. There are 2 workers standing there, guarding. However, it does not seem to be a bother to them. The pool was rather crowded as there were many people swimming there. We tied the keys of our lockers to our legs and begun swimming
Towers are provided. Thus, we do not need to use our own towers. However, we need to use our own shampoo. In the shower room, everyone bath together, naked. It is very unusual in Malaysia, but it is something very normal here. They do not look at each other when bathing, so it is nothing to be embarrassed about. However, I am still unable to get use to it and bath in my swimming suit.
There is an ATM machine at the lobby with visa interlink. I tested out my Maybank card right before we departed at 5.30pm and it was working perfectly fine.
Next, we have a walk at a park beside Haeundae beach. It was a rocky beach, there are many pine trees there and the air is refreshing. The view is nice; too bad we cannot go down to have a closer look as they were having a small renovation there. We attempted to go down but were stopped by 2 young police officers. There are renovations going on for the coming APEC meeting that is going to be held in November.
After that, we went to have a walk at the famous Haeundae beach. It is plain beach, nothing special to be noted. The beach is very long beach and the sand is kind of rough. It was drizzling that day, the wind and waves are quite strong, quite windy. Not many people were doing sports activities there. The Haeundae aquarium is located just beside the beach. The entrance fee is rather expensive, around 12,000 won, so we did not visit it. There were a few safety guards sitting along the beach. There are many hotels near the beach, but none are right beside the beach, like in Tanjung Tokong, Penang.
Then, we had lunch at a shop near the beach. We had mandu and noodle with “lala” for dinner. It is not spicy and the taste is quite nice, not very salty or plain. It costs 4,000 won each.
We went to the shopping complex near by after dinner. The cinema there is very big and grand, totally different from the one we went before in Nampo Dong. There is a place called Horrorwood, to see real horror shows. It is expensive, around 8,000 won each. After a scroll, we headed back to Naengjong by subway.
On our way back, we visited Bluemoon, a Chinese Fusion Soju Club. It is a shop for soju and hof. Soju is Korean wine. I do not know what is hof, but it seems to be something close to beer. It was not a bad place, there are no disco or singing or drunken people there. It is like a restaurant, but the atmosphere is a bit different due to the lighting and interior design.
Suk oppa ordered 2 bottles of 7-up and a medium sized bottle of Chinese alcohol. The percentage of alcohol is 50%. I only took a sip of it; it was rather too much for me, so I took 7-up and plain water instead. There were some other side dishes and a big plate of “char siu” (barbecued pork) and slice cucumber. There was a small plate of sauce for that dish as well. The dish is not warm, rather old, but its taste is very Malaysia-like. We played some Korean games. Suk oppa ordered 2 more bottles of 7-up and a small bottle of alcohol drink later on. This bottle of alcohol contained 60% of alcohol. Jong In and Suk oppa treated us for this and it cost 22,000 won.
Saturday, July 09, 2005
Pictures in Korea - Batch 10
Here are the photos for the CCAP Orientation:
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea10/
Enjoy!
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Korea10/
Enjoy!
Extra photos
Here are some extra photos to share with everyone:
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Extras/
Enjoy!
http://photobucket.com/albums/a9/dellachew03/Extras/
Enjoy!
Friday, July 08, 2005
Cross Cultural Awareness Program (CCAP)
Cross Cultural Awareness Program is a program to help foreigners understand the Korean culture and communicate with Korean people. It is a join program by UNESCO and Education Department of Korea. On July 4(Monday), we went to Hauendae Education Office to attend its orientation. There were 9 of us in total - Sin, Gupta and Pooja from North India; Wei Shi, Ryan, Yushu, BJun, Eileen and I from Malaysia. We took a subway to Jangsan station, the education office is located very near to the subway, but we were kind of lost because it was our first time there.
The orientation was held in a conference room equipped with computers. Handouts, souvenirs and CDs were given to us as reference on how to conduct a class. These classes are conducted to promote our country and culture to Korean students, mainly primary and high school students. For each visit, we will be given 30,000 won for the expenses on the materials used in the class and other expenditures. They will bank in the allowance into our account the following month after the class. We will decide on our own the topics that we are going to present and how we conduct it. They will provide a translator during the class, so it is not a problem to conduct the class in English. Normally, the translator is the school teacher. I am looking forward to it in the coming September ^^
After the orientation, we had dinner at a Japanese restaurant, which the owner is a Korean. We had Korean food instead there, but it was nice. It must have been expensive. We had Bibimbak(mixed rice) and some side dishes such as Tian Zhang Chige and fried fish. It was really enjoyable.
The orientation was held in a conference room equipped with computers. Handouts, souvenirs and CDs were given to us as reference on how to conduct a class. These classes are conducted to promote our country and culture to Korean students, mainly primary and high school students. For each visit, we will be given 30,000 won for the expenses on the materials used in the class and other expenditures. They will bank in the allowance into our account the following month after the class. We will decide on our own the topics that we are going to present and how we conduct it. They will provide a translator during the class, so it is not a problem to conduct the class in English. Normally, the translator is the school teacher. I am looking forward to it in the coming September ^^
After the orientation, we had dinner at a Japanese restaurant, which the owner is a Korean. We had Korean food instead there, but it was nice. It must have been expensive. We had Bibimbak(mixed rice) and some side dishes such as Tian Zhang Chige and fried fish. It was really enjoyable.
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Myeongnyun Dong
p/s: with reference to batch 9 pictures
June 3, Sunday - It was drizzling almost the whole day. At around 3pm, Eileen, Ryan and I departed to Bokcheon Museum at Myeongnyun Dong. We took the subway there and then we took bus no. 1. The bus was smaller than the normal bus we take. The charges are a bit cheaper as well, about 690 won. It took us around 5 minutes to reach the museum.
As we reached there, it was very misty. There was a hill slope there, forming a natural fortress. It was very beautiful, covered with green grass and trees. The architecture of the museum and the scenery there reminded me of the olden western era, where kings and queens still exist.
There are 3 levels in the museum open to the public. The last floor is the cafeteria. There is nothing much on the first floor. On the second floor, there are displays of the ancient potteries and tombs. There are 2 main types of tombs – made of stone and wood. These categories are further divided according to their designs. The explanations are further enhanced by the displays of the models of a variety of tombs, video demonstrations, models, pictures and miniatures on its process of making the tombs. However, the explanations are all done in Korean, only the labels are in both Korean and English. The third level exhibits the normal ancient pottery and royal clothing and accessories.
Then, we had a walk at the compound of the museum. There is a bridge connecting the museum to a small green meadow. The place is really wonderful. But, soon after that, we realized that it is actually the locations of the ancient tombs. We took some photos of it. Luckily, Ryan brought along his new transparent umbrella. Else, we would not be able to get nice pictures of it as it was drizzling at that time. Then, we walked further into the meadow. There is a “green house” there. Well, it is not a green house to be exact, but a show room of the ancient tombs. The whole place is actually the locations of the previous tombs. However, the scenery here is wonderful. The place seems to be resting in peace as it was drizzling and misty. It is like a little green garden in the middle of the busy town.
As we were exploring outside of the museum, we came across a Guang Yin temple. However, there was no one there and the place seemed to be deserted. It gave us an eerie feeling. As the place become misty, the Guang Yin statue looked like as if it is very holy and god itself had descended to Earth.
We walked further up the hill and found ourselves at an abandon fortress. The architecture is very temple like and the walls kind of represent a smaller version of the Great Wall of China. There was hardly anyone around there. We explored the area ourselves and climbed up the hill following the staircase along the wall. The scenery from the top is very beautiful and mysterious. There are flags along the path as well. After some distance, we found ourselves coming to an end of the road. The place is badly maintained and there is a signboard explaining the place. It seemed that it was a fortress traditionally built to keep the town safe from invasions. We made our way back by following the hiking trails and found ourselves in the middle of a residential area on the slope. There are some small vegetable farms there as well.
As we got out of the area, we walked around finding for the bus station for bus no. 1. We ended up enjoying ourselves sightseeing at a street market nearby. There are a lot of things selling there and some of the items are very cheap. 3 Hoptop are selling at 1,000 won and a loaf of sandwich bread is selling at 1,000 won(normally more than 1,500 won each). In the middle of this town, we found ourselves lost. Thus, we took a bus directly to Seomyeom.
Seomyeom is the central of Busan. We leaved the bus as we reached the Lotte Deparment Store. Lotte is a giant corporation in Korea. They have huge department stores, apartments scattered all over the towns in Busan. They even produced food products like milk, mayonis and biscuits. We had a walk around the area, hunting for something cheap to eat for our dinner. We ended up having dinner at a small shop mainly selling “dim sum” like food. We had Bulgogi burger(beef burger) at 1,000 won each. The taste is not bad, almost the same as the one in McDonalds, but it is not very filling.
After dinner, we had a scroll around the area. The streets nearby are very happening, in fact, even better than Nampo Dong. Some of the things there, such as clothes, are quite cheap. One of the shops is selling 3 short pants at 1,900 won, around RM8. However, the quality is not very good and thus I did not buy it. We found a shop with a lot of machines for taking photo stickers and decided to have a try. We took the cheapest one, which is 2,000 won. Since it was the first time for all of us taking such photos, it was quite a mess and we ended up having all the photos looking the same. We can actually choose more than one photo. Never, I guess we will just have to try it again next time.
June 3, Sunday - It was drizzling almost the whole day. At around 3pm, Eileen, Ryan and I departed to Bokcheon Museum at Myeongnyun Dong. We took the subway there and then we took bus no. 1. The bus was smaller than the normal bus we take. The charges are a bit cheaper as well, about 690 won. It took us around 5 minutes to reach the museum.
As we reached there, it was very misty. There was a hill slope there, forming a natural fortress. It was very beautiful, covered with green grass and trees. The architecture of the museum and the scenery there reminded me of the olden western era, where kings and queens still exist.
There are 3 levels in the museum open to the public. The last floor is the cafeteria. There is nothing much on the first floor. On the second floor, there are displays of the ancient potteries and tombs. There are 2 main types of tombs – made of stone and wood. These categories are further divided according to their designs. The explanations are further enhanced by the displays of the models of a variety of tombs, video demonstrations, models, pictures and miniatures on its process of making the tombs. However, the explanations are all done in Korean, only the labels are in both Korean and English. The third level exhibits the normal ancient pottery and royal clothing and accessories.
Then, we had a walk at the compound of the museum. There is a bridge connecting the museum to a small green meadow. The place is really wonderful. But, soon after that, we realized that it is actually the locations of the ancient tombs. We took some photos of it. Luckily, Ryan brought along his new transparent umbrella. Else, we would not be able to get nice pictures of it as it was drizzling at that time. Then, we walked further into the meadow. There is a “green house” there. Well, it is not a green house to be exact, but a show room of the ancient tombs. The whole place is actually the locations of the previous tombs. However, the scenery here is wonderful. The place seems to be resting in peace as it was drizzling and misty. It is like a little green garden in the middle of the busy town.
As we were exploring outside of the museum, we came across a Guang Yin temple. However, there was no one there and the place seemed to be deserted. It gave us an eerie feeling. As the place become misty, the Guang Yin statue looked like as if it is very holy and god itself had descended to Earth.
We walked further up the hill and found ourselves at an abandon fortress. The architecture is very temple like and the walls kind of represent a smaller version of the Great Wall of China. There was hardly anyone around there. We explored the area ourselves and climbed up the hill following the staircase along the wall. The scenery from the top is very beautiful and mysterious. There are flags along the path as well. After some distance, we found ourselves coming to an end of the road. The place is badly maintained and there is a signboard explaining the place. It seemed that it was a fortress traditionally built to keep the town safe from invasions. We made our way back by following the hiking trails and found ourselves in the middle of a residential area on the slope. There are some small vegetable farms there as well.
As we got out of the area, we walked around finding for the bus station for bus no. 1. We ended up enjoying ourselves sightseeing at a street market nearby. There are a lot of things selling there and some of the items are very cheap. 3 Hoptop are selling at 1,000 won and a loaf of sandwich bread is selling at 1,000 won(normally more than 1,500 won each). In the middle of this town, we found ourselves lost. Thus, we took a bus directly to Seomyeom.
Seomyeom is the central of Busan. We leaved the bus as we reached the Lotte Deparment Store. Lotte is a giant corporation in Korea. They have huge department stores, apartments scattered all over the towns in Busan. They even produced food products like milk, mayonis and biscuits. We had a walk around the area, hunting for something cheap to eat for our dinner. We ended up having dinner at a small shop mainly selling “dim sum” like food. We had Bulgogi burger(beef burger) at 1,000 won each. The taste is not bad, almost the same as the one in McDonalds, but it is not very filling.
After dinner, we had a scroll around the area. The streets nearby are very happening, in fact, even better than Nampo Dong. Some of the things there, such as clothes, are quite cheap. One of the shops is selling 3 short pants at 1,900 won, around RM8. However, the quality is not very good and thus I did not buy it. We found a shop with a lot of machines for taking photo stickers and decided to have a try. We took the cheapest one, which is 2,000 won. Since it was the first time for all of us taking such photos, it was quite a mess and we ended up having all the photos looking the same. We can actually choose more than one photo. Never, I guess we will just have to try it again next time.
Monday, July 04, 2005
Nampo Dong!
p/s: with reference to the batch 8 pictures
June 2, Saturday – I went to Nampo Dong with Eileen, Ryan, Yushu and Jong Ing(Ryan’s labmate), Dong Gyung(Jong Ing’s club friend) and Das(Jong Ing’s club friend). We departed at around 1.45pm. We went there by bus no. 61.
Nampo Dong is the second biggest city in Busan. There is an area where many cinemas are located there. It was also known as the cinema street. We bought the tickets on “Batman Begins” at PIFF Square for 4,000 won(around RM16) each as we had discount cards. The normal price for a ticket is 6,500 won. There are many street vendors there, selling all sorts of things, from food to hand bags and fashion accessories. Some of the vendors are offering attractive prices in order to draw customers.
Since the show was scheduled at 4.20pm and there was some time left, Jong Ing brought us for a walk at Mount Yongdun Park(Dragon’s head Park). Mount Yongdun Park is located in Nampo Dong as well. We can see the port from the top. There were a big bell, a statue of a famous hero of Korea who defeated the Japan’s invasion long time ago and a memorial stone to remember the people who had been sacrificed during the revolution. We also visited Yongdun Gallery. They were having an exhibition on Korean Lacquer.
Around 4pm, we headed back to the cinema. The place to buy ticket is located separately from the movie screen and place selling pop corn. We need to take the escalator up several floors in order to reach there. The movie screens are not on the same floor as the entrance and the place selling pop corn as well. They were located at different levels. We need to take the staircase up.
When we reached the cinema, we noticed that the cinema was hot instead of cold. There are fans there as well. But, it was not switch on. The movie screen is smaller as well. Suddenly, I feel that we were somehow going to a degraded cinema for a higher price. Before the movie was screened, we enjoyed ourselves watching the advertisements on banana milk instead of trailers. The advertisements are some what amusing. It is very cute when at the end of the advertisement, a male and a female was holding the milk and singing some songs. The concept of advertisements here is really different and creative. I do not like the pop corn here. It's salty instead of sweet.
The movie was dubbed English and subbed in Korean on the right, like the way the old Chinese books are written in. The show was quite boring in the beginning, with a lot of discussions on philosophy. Some of the scenes reminded me of “Star Wars” and “The Last Samurai”. But, it was interesting and funny later on.
After the movie, we had a walk around the area. Jong Ing showed us around some places where we can buy things. It is really like Petaling Street but the street is much narrow. We tried a hawker food called Hoptop. It was a bit like “ham chin bian”. It was salty outside but with some fillings inside, making it sweet. The little shops on both sides of the street are selling a variety of things. Normally shops selling the same items are located together. There are even shops selling only hats. There are a variety of design and color of hats there.
We had our dinner at a restaurant recommended by Jong Ing. There were many people there. It was kind of unique as there was a wok in the middle of the table. The food will be cooked by the waiter or waitress there. We ordered 5 plates of rice and noodles with chicken and vegetables.
Then, we walked over to Jagalchi Fish Market. It is located next to the Busan Harbor. It was one of the main attractions of Busan. Actually it has two main sections: one for fresh seafood, another for dried seafood. As we went there quite late, at around 9pm, most of the stalls were already closed. I felt like as if going to a wet market in Malaysia. But, the fish there are very fresh. I heard that the price there is reasonable as well. At around 9+pm, we took the same bus back to Naengjeong. On the way, we met my 2 uppa(male seniors, the term “uppa” is only used by female juniors). It was my first time to see my labmates outside of the campus.
June 2, Saturday – I went to Nampo Dong with Eileen, Ryan, Yushu and Jong Ing(Ryan’s labmate), Dong Gyung(Jong Ing’s club friend) and Das(Jong Ing’s club friend). We departed at around 1.45pm. We went there by bus no. 61.
Nampo Dong is the second biggest city in Busan. There is an area where many cinemas are located there. It was also known as the cinema street. We bought the tickets on “Batman Begins” at PIFF Square for 4,000 won(around RM16) each as we had discount cards. The normal price for a ticket is 6,500 won. There are many street vendors there, selling all sorts of things, from food to hand bags and fashion accessories. Some of the vendors are offering attractive prices in order to draw customers.
Since the show was scheduled at 4.20pm and there was some time left, Jong Ing brought us for a walk at Mount Yongdun Park(Dragon’s head Park). Mount Yongdun Park is located in Nampo Dong as well. We can see the port from the top. There were a big bell, a statue of a famous hero of Korea who defeated the Japan’s invasion long time ago and a memorial stone to remember the people who had been sacrificed during the revolution. We also visited Yongdun Gallery. They were having an exhibition on Korean Lacquer.
Around 4pm, we headed back to the cinema. The place to buy ticket is located separately from the movie screen and place selling pop corn. We need to take the escalator up several floors in order to reach there. The movie screens are not on the same floor as the entrance and the place selling pop corn as well. They were located at different levels. We need to take the staircase up.
When we reached the cinema, we noticed that the cinema was hot instead of cold. There are fans there as well. But, it was not switch on. The movie screen is smaller as well. Suddenly, I feel that we were somehow going to a degraded cinema for a higher price. Before the movie was screened, we enjoyed ourselves watching the advertisements on banana milk instead of trailers. The advertisements are some what amusing. It is very cute when at the end of the advertisement, a male and a female was holding the milk and singing some songs. The concept of advertisements here is really different and creative. I do not like the pop corn here. It's salty instead of sweet.
The movie was dubbed English and subbed in Korean on the right, like the way the old Chinese books are written in. The show was quite boring in the beginning, with a lot of discussions on philosophy. Some of the scenes reminded me of “Star Wars” and “The Last Samurai”. But, it was interesting and funny later on.
After the movie, we had a walk around the area. Jong Ing showed us around some places where we can buy things. It is really like Petaling Street but the street is much narrow. We tried a hawker food called Hoptop. It was a bit like “ham chin bian”. It was salty outside but with some fillings inside, making it sweet. The little shops on both sides of the street are selling a variety of things. Normally shops selling the same items are located together. There are even shops selling only hats. There are a variety of design and color of hats there.
We had our dinner at a restaurant recommended by Jong Ing. There were many people there. It was kind of unique as there was a wok in the middle of the table. The food will be cooked by the waiter or waitress there. We ordered 5 plates of rice and noodles with chicken and vegetables.
Then, we walked over to Jagalchi Fish Market. It is located next to the Busan Harbor. It was one of the main attractions of Busan. Actually it has two main sections: one for fresh seafood, another for dried seafood. As we went there quite late, at around 9pm, most of the stalls were already closed. I felt like as if going to a wet market in Malaysia. But, the fish there are very fresh. I heard that the price there is reasonable as well. At around 9+pm, we took the same bus back to Naengjeong. On the way, we met my 2 uppa(male seniors, the term “uppa” is only used by female juniors). It was my first time to see my labmates outside of the campus.
Pictures in Korea - Batch 9
Here are some of the pictures taken in Bakcheon Museum, the little great wall near the museum, market in Myeongnyun Dong and a night view of Seomyeom, central of Busan:
http://photobucket.com/albums/v635/dellachew/Korea09/
Enjoy!
p/s: I will write about it later ^^
http://photobucket.com/albums/v635/dellachew/Korea09/
Enjoy!
p/s: I will write about it later ^^
Sunday, July 03, 2005
Pictures in Korea - Batch 8
Here are some of the pictures taken in Nampo Dong and Mount Yongdun Park(Dragon's head park) and Jagalci Market(a market selling fish) yesterday, June 2:
http://photobucket.com/albums/b199/dellachew02/Korea08/
Enjoy!
p/s: will write about it later. Just enjoy the pictures first ^^
http://photobucket.com/albums/b199/dellachew02/Korea08/
Enjoy!
p/s: will write about it later. Just enjoy the pictures first ^^
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