Guidelines for planning your own Korea trip

Thanks to Air Asia, many Malaysians can now visit the land of K-Pop at reasonable fares. Here are some guidelines or tips for those who are planning a trip there on your own. Other than leave availability and budget, do consider your objectives when deciding your travel schedule:

Weather/ Season - Generally spring is a nice season to travel for four season countries, including Korea. When it comes to summer, sceneries will be almost the same as Malaysia. Busan, which is rich with mountains, cliffs and beaches, will be a nice place to visit. You’ll get to see ladies in bikinis and topless muscular men in Haundae and other beaches. If you look forward to experiencing snow or skiing, Seoul and its surroundings will be ideal. Most ski resorts operate from December to February each year. Contrary to what many will assume, Busan does not have snow for most winters! So think twice if you planning a trip to Busan around December-February. It will be very lucky if you see snow in Busan.

Skiing – The best time for skiing will be December and January. If you go in November, ski resorts may not be operating yet or there’s not enough snow.

Shopping – If your objectively is shopping then any season will do. There are many malls, department stores and street stalls in major cities like Seoul and Busan. Youngsters would prefer going to Myeongdong – a compact area with everything you want. For street stalls, Dongdaemun and Namdaemun are the places to go. There are also malls operating almost 24 hours in Dongdaemun e.g Migliore Mall. A haven for ladies! For Busan I would recommend shopping in Seomyeom and Nampo-dong. If you have a tight budget or looking for cheap goods, explore the local market at Nampo-dong. It’s a bit off from the main streets in Nampo-dong, normally visited by the locals only. P/s: Bargaining is not an issue in tourist areas as most of them speak fluent Mandarin.

How many days in Korea?
If you’re planning to stay in one city, one week is more than enough. If you’re planning to cover Seoul/Busan and Jeju Island, at least one week is recommended. 5 days in Jeju Island and 5 days in Seoul/Busan. As of now there are no direct flights to Jeju Island from Malaysia. Travellers will need to take a flight to Seoul/Busan first. So you’ll be spending around one day’s time in total for the international flights, domestic flights, travelling and waiting time. Geographically Busan is much nearer to Jeju Island, and thus cheaper flight tickets and duration to Jeju Island.

Getting around
Getting around within Seoul and Busan is very convenient and cheap with train. Just get yourself a transportation card such as T-Money, Cashbee. The card can be purchased at around 2,000 won (around RM6). T-Money is widely use in most cities and the card value can be reloaded in convenient stores like 7-11. You can also use your T-Money to purchase goods in convenient stores and selected vending machines.

Tip: If you plan to explore out, it’s recommended to do some homework as language can be a barrier in non-tourist areas. Do mark down names of places in English and also the writing in Hangul. It helps a lot when asking for directions and info.

For those travelling to Jeju Island, it is recommended that you rent a car for groups of 3 pax and above. Car rental is relatively cheap upon sharing and travelling by bus in Jeju Island is not that convenient (low frequency and some places does not have direct bus).

Must experience
Your Korea trip will not be complete without experiencing Jjimjilbang (Korea bath houses). They have many pools and sauna with different temperature and features. The bathing section is normally separated between male and female. Toiletries such as shampoo are available for purchase if not provided. After bathing there is a common area for relaxation and chit-chat. You can purchase drinks, snacks and food etc from the counters in the common area.

Tip: Try what the locals do - bring your own mask and relax while watching TV in the common area.

What to buy from Korea?
Locally produced goods are cheap in Korea:
- Local cosmetic/skincare brands (e.g. The Face Shop, Skin Food)
- Clothings – Winter/ Thick jackets, socks, stockings, hats, scarfs, hair accessories.
- Food – Kimchi (make sure it’s properly packed to avoid spill over), ginseng products, local specialties.

Payment
Credit cards are widely accepted in Korea e.g. convenient stores, malls. However for street stalls and many local shops only cash is accepted.

My last 20s birthday

Due to some technical error, this year my birthday appeared as “Dec 4th” in many of my friends’ calendar. Suddenly I received many greetings and wishes over Facebook on the 4th. Though I tried explaining to some of the “early birds” that my birthday has yet to come, more greetings just kept coming in. Anyway it’s a blessing in disguised. Thanks to that I have been receiving greetings and wishes throughout the whole week.

Other than Facebook greetings this year’s birthday was also quite eventful. Janet surprised me with a very early birthday present, followed by two little presents by Huwi Yin during our annual birthday get-together. There are dinner appointments almost everyday. Celebrations also extended - my lunchmates threw me a surprise cake today (3 days past) which is lovely~

This year’s birthday there’s actually some mixed feelings – received some not-so-good news about a friend’s health, just around one month ago my former manager left the company and the world losing a great leader (Nelson Mandela). At the same time I also recalled the two birthdays in the past with some fond memories. Guess you get more sentimental as you grow older…

Thank you everyone for your thoughts, glad to be on Mother Earth for another one year! Also prayers to everyone’s well being…

Once again "Happy birthday" to Huwi Yin, my dai kor in the Land of Oz (Alex) and Sek Hoe. ^^

Taj Mahal, India

I have always wanted to go to Taj Mahal, and this dream was fulfilled recently. Early this October, my boss kindly approved my business travel to India for a partner visit. It was a very short notice and I hesitated for a moment as it coincides with my balik kampong trip. Eventually I decided to go as it will be the last travel approval by my boss. Still very amazed that I managed to put together all the business visa requirements in half a day (there’s a long list of them) and submit the application the next day with a fee of more than RM450 (quite expensive!). My business visa was approved just in time – phew! And on the same day I received an important piece of info from my colleague Stephan that there’s an attraction near Noida, and it’s Taj Mahal! From Noida to Agra (where Taj Mahal is), it used to take 4.5 hours one way. However with the new highway, it only takes about 3 hours one way. Excellent!

We departed immediately after meetings on Day 2 with some packed food from the cafeteria. The whole journey including sightseeing took about 8-9 hours. It was very tiring but it’s all worthwhile. Taj Mahal is indeed very beautiful. The design of Taj Mahal, its surrounding buildings, gardens and gates are symmetrical. Its building architecture leveraged much on optical illusion. There’s no paintings in Taj Mahal – the wordings, the designs all were handcrafted with workmanships and stones. Right behind Taj Mahal is one of the three holy rivers in India, the Yamuna River. Sunset was very beautiful in Taj Mahal as we saw the skyline changing colours during sunset.

Special thanks to my colleague Stephan for all the good advice, my counterpart John for joining me in this brief adventure and last but not least my colleague Anand who assisted us on the transport arrangement. 

Biz trip to UK

One week after my KK trip, I was off to UK for business trip. I will be meeting my boss for the 3^rd time. Most people see their bosses’ everyday, for me meeting my boss and team is like an annual affair. The first week was rather packed with meetings and dinners at night. The second week was vacation – on personal expense of course. Met up with an ex-colleague, Jo and her dearest 3 years son Zac on my first day. We spent some time around Thames River, near Windsor Castle.

First of all I would like to share an interesting story about gaps in expectations and cultural differences. Before departure I was very excited - first time staying in a four star hotel in UK. As I arrived I was rather disappointed with the hotel service – no one bothered to greet as I entered the hotel, the reception area was rather small, the baggage storage was not very organized, there are many fire doors in the hotel and the sound proof was bad. My boss reminded me that I am not in a service-oriented country and must lower my standards, and I did. In addition the hotel is an old building – poor sound proof, plenty of fire doors and staircases are rather common. After staying in multiple hostels during my own travel I must say that the hotel is quite good – points added.

During my first week in the UK sandwich or pasta (normally less than GBP 3) was a norm for lunch. At first I was rather excited. After some time I can start memorizing the menu or types of sandwich or pasta available in Tesco. As a Malaysian I started to miss our food variety - sweet, sour, spicy, fried, soup, steam etc. Good thing they have a variety of fresh juices and smoothies. I really miss those healthy drinks.

Travelling around UK is very convenient via bus, train or flight. Booking in advance saves a lot of money and can be done online. It's better to book long intercity trains in advance for several reasons:

- it can be much cheaper but must travel on the schedule booked

- to reserve a seat. You can choose a front facing, back facing, aisle, window, table etc. Normally intercity has a lot of coaches. As long as A to M - you can imagine how long it takes to walk from one end to the other. The trains arrive and depart on-time. They don't stop for a long time. Not booking in advance means you may not get a seat before the train leaves the station.

Airport check-in in UK may take a long time due to strict checking. Sometimes travelling between airports and cities may take a long time and inconvenient. Depending on the route, taking a bus or train maybe a better choice. 

A brief escape to Kota Kinabalu

The past six months has been crazy, with ups and downs. April was the “travelling month”. I went on a brief escape to Kota Kinabalu (commonly known as KK), “the land below the wind” with my mum. It was a leisure trip – no expedition to Mt Kinabalu.

KK is a small but developing city. A big mall is currently under construction. The old KK town has the 80s feel with pre-war houses, small roads and trees. We stayed at Best Western Hotel which is of walking distance to 1 Borneo Shopping Complex, Jesselton Point, Gaya Street Sunday Market and Filipino Market. Taxi fare in KK is very expensive – minimum RM10 and does not go by meter. If you plan to get out of the city center or outskirts then renting a car would be a better choice.

Lok Kawi Wildlife Park is highly recommended for those who want to have a look at some of the Borneo animals. It takes around 20 minutes drive from the city center. It’s rather near if you go straight from the airport or Tanjung Aru. In Lok Kawi you can see the Sun Bears, Orang Utans, Proboscis Monkeys and other rare species under one roof. Note: You don’t need to sign up for a tour package for Lok Kawi – just grab a taxi, get there and pay the admission fee. However the taxi can be quite pricy – remember paying around RM120 for the return trip. But it’s still cheaper than the tour package for two and there’s more flexibility.

Island hopping or snorkeling is quite convenient in KK. Just go to Jesselton Point and grab a package which includes boat transfer, snorkeling equipments and life jacket. The fare varies according to the number of islands. For those who plan to cover two or more islands, it is advisable to depart early in the morning as the last boat transfer back is around 5pm. We got there around 11am and manage to cover only one island – around RM80 for 2 pax. Pulau Manukan is the biggest island and also with the most visitors. You may get a better snorkeling experience at the smaller islands. Seafood is very cheap in KK – whether it’s cooked, dried or preserved ones.

There are plenty of seafood restaurants around KK. There is one along the same row as the Best Western Hotel which is always crowded with people – unfortunately we didn’t manage to try. We spent most of our dinners in the Filipino market where you can pick the seafood and get it cooked. There is nothing to brat about for the cooking style but the freshness of the seafood has greatly enhanced the taste. Simply delicious!

Our favorite spot for dried seafood is the Filipino Market. There are a lot of varieties and the price here is generally cheaper. Explore the shops at the back – they are way cheaper. We bought several huge packets of the algae for about RM10-15 each – price varies according to the grades.

There are many night markets around KK city. Ladies will be happily shopping for bracelets, necklaces and accessories as they are really nice and cheap. There’s a wide selection as well. For those who miss the night markets, you can still shop at the Gaya Street Sunday Market. There’s much more things to see comparing to night markets e.g. local fruits and handicrafts but selections maybe less. Note: Do bargain when going to markets – you can get quite a good deal.

Soon after my KK trip I was off to UK for 2 weeks - 1 week biz and 1 week leisure. Then back for election, work, the alumni association's annual dinner, house moving, funeral etc. Shall share more on my UK trip in the next post.

Hokkaido - Transport and Food

Hokkaido is a lovely island with fresh air, lots of greeneries, cheap seafood, nice dairy products and desserts etc. There are simply too many good things about this island up north in Japan. The only few minus points would be the expensive transportation cost and long travel time between difference places in Hokkaido.

Transportation in Hokkaido is fairly straightforward, of which most of the transports are operated by JR. So you don’t need to do detail research on which route to take and the cheapest fare. However do take note that Suica (JR version of Touch ‘N’ Go) can only be used at very limited stations in Hokkaido. This is because many train stations in Hokkaido do not have the machines to “check in” and “check out”. Therefore it is strongly recommended that you get tickets from the machines instead to avoid unnecessary hassle. If you are using the JR Pass, then just simply produce your card. Note: The intercity trains in Hokkaido can easily take more than one hour and very costly. For those who plan to spend a week around Hokkaido it is strongly recommended to get a JR pass.

For those who do not speak and read Japanese, travelling around Hokkaido can be quite a hassle. Generally people in Hokkaido speak poorer English compared to Tokyo (many times they only speak in Japanese). They are very friendly but communications can be a problem. For instance rather than telling you that you can get off at the next station, they would just tell you “get off”. Sounds rude isn’t it? It was rather comedy in a sense but they’re just to trying to convey the message :)

Before going to Hokkaido I have always thought that they are famous for seafood. However there’s more than that. In terms of food Hokkaido’s dairy products, desserts and beers are of top class. There’s a lot of focus on the freshness of its raw ingredients in Hokkaido. Milk in glass bottles cost only 100-200 yen, which is very cheap for Japan’s standard. In addition, the milk is really fresh, delicious and without the strong “milk smell”. However the coffee doesn’t taste that good, it’s rather mild. Note: Back then 100 yen = RM3.90. Now is much lower.

Hokkaido is simply a dessert heaven. There are so many types of desserts to choose from. They look great and also delicious! They are so smooth and melt in your mouth. The shops would normally give you some dry ice when you take away. However it needs to maintain certain level of temperature to ensure its quality. So bringing it back to Malaysia while maintaining its goodness is rather mission impossible. I miss the winter melon chocolates and cheese tarts! For those going to Otaru, I would strongly recommend Le Tao Confectionary for desserts.

Generally Hokkaido’s seafood is very fresh. However to get cheap seafood, you would have to visit the local markets. More than 10 pieces of sashimi for only 300 yen, it’s simply too cheap! If you can speak Japanese, you can request for e.g. 500 yen salmon sashimi and they will prepare it for you accordingly. Other than the price, in the market you can see all sorts of fish, shells, crabs etc. It is a real eye-opener. They are also many restaurants in Hokkaido selling seafood rice. What’s in the seafood rice? Well a bowl of rice, on top there will be seafood. There are many variations for the topping, depending on what you order. You can have only fish eggs, a mixture of sashimi etc. A seafood rice cost around 1,000 yen – you won’t be able to get it at this price in Tokyo and Kyoto.

 

Guideline for planning your own Japan trip

Just completed my 12 days free and easy Japan trip more than a month ago. Well “free and easy” is not as easy as it seems, especially when you want to get as much as you can from the limited amount of time. In the 12 days journey, I covered around 4 places – Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hokkaido.

Today’s topic would be on getting around Japan. One of the commonly asked question is “do I need to get a JR Pass?”. I would say it depends. Japan Railway (JR) is a major train operator in Japan. JR Pass is a pass that enables unlimited rides for almost all JR trains and buses within a given period of time, and can only be purchased by foreigners in overseas. JR Pass comes in 7-day, 14-day and 21-day (see http://www.japanrailpass.net/eng/en003.html ). A 7-day ordinary JR pass costs 28,300 yen. Generally if you are not travelling between cities, it’s not worth buying JR pass:

-          JR pass can only be used for JR trains and buses. However not all trains and buses in Japan are operated by JR.

-          Travelling within the city e.g. Tokyo normally cost less than 1,000 yen per day. Cities like Kyoto have one-day pass for buses which costs only 800 yen.

Would recommend that you plan your trip in advance and check out the fares for your route first, before deciding whether to get a JR pass. 

Note: In Japan there are many types of trains – normal, semi-express, express, shinkansen etc. If you are travelling to location X to Y, there can be many options which consists of different combinations of train, route, number of changes required, travel time and fare. Sometimes the fastest option may also be the cheapest option. You can use tools like Jorudan (http://www.jorudan.co.jp/english/norikae/e-norikeyin.html) to plan your trip.

Getting around Japan is quite convenient by train. However the train system in Tokyo city can be very complex as there are many lines and operators. There are two major types of train within the city – train (by JR) and subway/metro (by other companies). Yamanote Line, the loop within Tokyo city centre which covers popular locations like Shibuya, Harajuku and Shinjuku, is operated by JR and normally very crowded. It will be crazy taking that line during peak hours.

For locations such as Shinjuku there are multiple operators. Changing to a line operated by a different company, means that you may need to walk as far as more than 1km, or walking to a different station (sometimes you may need to walk out) to change line. A very good experience is Tokyo Station – walking for more than 1km just to change line to go to Disneyland.

For Kyoto, bus is more convenient comparing to train. Many buses depart from Kyoto Station – the transportation hub in Kyoto. Do some homework on the bus # and destinations before departure. You can purchase the one-day pass for bus at 800 yen via the ticketing machines or counter. Ticketing machines are available just beside the “bus stop” at Kyoto Station. If you see many buses and huge crowd queuing up – yes, the machines are somewhere nearby.

Granny’s Homecook Food

I have always been my granny’s fan when it comes to food. My granny can cook almost any Chinese cuisine under the sun. When it comes to the Dragon Boat Festival, we get to eat dumplings. When it comes to Mooncake Festival, we get to eat mooncake. When I was young I look forward to the weekend lunch in granny’s place. Granny would cook my favourite dishes and soup. Simply delicious and energizing! More effective than any supplements I ever have.

In recent years, granny’s health deteriorated tremendously. She has difficulties moving around freely and starting to forget things – suspect to be the early stage of Alzheimer’s disease. Despite her health condition, she still cooks my favourite soup whenever I go back to Penang. 

So morale of the story – Good food does not mean that it has to be expensive. Other than the taste, it is a form of love by those who cook to those who consume.

Last meal @ granny's old house. Now the place had been demolished.

Packing

House moving has always been a headache for me. For the past one month I had been doing massive packing for my old house in Penang. We will be doing a major renovation and need to move everything out of the house. The process includes discarding rubbish which we have been keeping for the past 23 years, putting our “valuables” and items which we have yet to decide its values into boxes, wrapping fragile items etc. It was really tiring, physically and mentally.

As I was packing, I re-discover memories which have long forgotten – birthday cards and presents from friends, a stack of stamps, trophies from primary school etc. Suddenly I feel that I am very lucky to be blessed with so many lovely people around me. Though as years go by we may not as close as before, thank you for been by my side and making a difference in my life :)

I would certainly miss the old interior - my brother's "artwork" on the wall, the kitchen door with a huge hole etc.

Matsuya

Located at Jalan Telawi 2 (near Bangsar Village II), this restaurant serves really good Japanese food. Below is my feedback:

Taste – Better than SZ

Food portion - Good

Food variety – Less than SZ

Alcoholic drinks – More than SZ

Price – More pricy than SZ

The cheapest set is around RM30++. All sets come with Japanese style salad, chawan mushi, miso soup and fruits. The bento set (RM50++) portion is quite huge with tempura, sashimi, fish and rice – recommended for 2 pax. Their sashimi is really fresh and sushi is handmade. Simply delicious! They have some other premium and rare dishes in the menu but I did not try.

Highly recommended for Japanese food lovers who doesn’t mind paying a bit more extra.

Note: This restaurant seems to be under the same group as Gin Shui Tei, the Japanese restaurant in Tropicana Golf and Country Resort.

It all starts with the salad and chawanmushi.

The bento set

The bento set

The sushi set

In Memory of May 5th

This is the day which we used to celebrate... shall we meet up dear HDS and ex-HDS?

BlackBall Dessert

Visited this dessert shop @ Jalan Burma (near the Police Station) in March when I was back in Penang. They have several shops/branches in KL as well. BlackBall perhaps is referring to the yam ball dessert which is their signature dish. Customers can choose from a selection of yam balls, potato balls etc. Well I am not a fan of yam and potatoes etc but the balls are chewy and delicious. A good try if you want to go for something different.

PJiuan: You should try since it’s vegetarian J

Soondaeya @ Ampang

Visited this Korean restaurant in Ampang last December after purchasing some Groupon vouchers. As the name “Soondaeya” implies, it is a restaurant specializing in pork intestine cuisine. This shop is located at a “hidden corner” of Ampang, I had difficulty finding this place even with a GPS.

The interior design of the restaurant was simple but cozy. I was rather worried about the type of food that they will be serving so I ordered a pork intestine soup and a fried pork cutlet (donkatsu). The side dishes served were cabbage and radish kimchi. Nothing fancy but the cabbage kimchi was extremely delicious – the best kimchi I ever have! And then came along the pork intestine soup and donkatsu. Well I would not recommend the donkatsu as the meat was quite thin, though the amount was substantial. However the pork intestine soup was quite nice. Yummy~ The price is quite reasonable – starting from RM20+ per dish.

I would strongly recommend this restaurant for those who want to try some authentic Korean food. It is not the type of cuisine that you can get at normal Korean restaurants. After the meal, you can make a visit to the Korean mini mart downstairs to get some soju.

Location: Soon Dae Ya Korean Restaurant, No. 17-L2, Jalan Ampang Putra 6, Ampang Putra, 68000 Ampang, Selangor Darul Ehsan.

Proud to be a Penangite!

Came across this while I was browsing the web – an article titled “Yahoo! Lists Penang among world’s top 10”. Well the article dated back to February last year (Click here to read the article). But yet I feel really proud as a Penangite!

Before leaving Penang for my studies, I took many things for granted – the good food, everywhere is in close proximity, everything is cheap. Penang’s community is very close and helpful. Everyone is somehow related to someone that you know – whether it’s the photoshop owner, the plumber, the hair dresser. If you need recommendations for plumber, you can ask the photoshop owner.

Penang is like an interception of the old and modern. For instance having Komtar, Prangin Mall and 1st Avenue - three shopping malls together (and nearby Gama - an extremely old but still surviving mini mall) and surrounded by pre-war houses. Simply Amazing!  

Not to mentioned – it’s an island with everything you need – hills, beaches, parks, food, water dams, shopping malls, pre-war houses, monkeys, fruit farms, trishaw, ferries, jetty.

House moving

9 months ago I moved to Sri Petaling because of work. 9 months later I am force to move again because the landlord is taking back the house. My new place is also in Sri Petaling, around 5 minutes from my current place. However the process of finding a new place, packing, unpacking and rearranging etc is a headache. Moving from a master bedroom to a medium bedroom, which is around 40% of my current room size is a big challenge. Tonight will be my last night online before moving to the new place. Looking around my room gives me the headache so I decided to blog a bit.  Argh… better start packing again!

April 10th

Below is a narration of an accident happened around 2 weeks ago:

This was the day before the Installation of the New King. I was all set for my trip to Ipoh the next day and about to go to sleep at around 11pm. Suddenly I recalled something which I need to get from the closet, a friend’s wedding present. With the lights off, I climbed onto the chair, searching for the present in the dark. 

Everything went well… until I lost balance and ended up spraining my ankle. Before I could react further, I fell from chair with a loud sound - *bang* on my back. I was able to maintain consciousness and tried to get up on my own. However my first attempt was unsuccessful. Lying down on the floor, I thought of all the worst possibilities. 

Luckily in the end I was able to get up on my own and walked to my bed. However the pain coming from my left leg was extremely painful. Sitting down on my bed, I tried examining my injury by trying to stand straight, but it wasn’t possible. Obviously there was a bone dislocation for my left leg and some pain from my back. Feeling worried, I suddenly recalled about a famous Chinese medicine “sifu” whom a friend talked about some time ago. This “sifu” worked till midnight at times. So immediately I called the friend for rescue. Indeed the “sifu” was still working and tomorrow he’ll be off as it will be a public holiday. I went there at around 2am and surprised to see many customers.  I was one of the last few customers and managed to get my treatment done by around 3am.

I had a good sleep that night – due to the pain from my leg and back, and of course staying up late. My original plan of enjoying the great Ipoh delicacies with friends was ruined due to this incident, which I regret it very much. I can walk normally now, with minor pain from time to time. Some bruises are still noticeable around my ankle but nothing serious. Without my ankle guard, I feel that my leg is going to get disconnected at times.

So lesson learned: Do not attempt dangerous or potentially dangerous moves while you are sleepy and with the lights off.

What do you want in life?

Recently I discussed with many people about this topic and realized that there are many lost souls. So I would like to share my 2 cents.

Most of my friends are in late 20s or early 30s. So what they want in life is normally about career. Many of them are not happy or satisfy with what they are currently doing. Some maybe due to misalignment of expectation and job scope, routine job scope, lack of career advancements options etc

Here are some questions to ponder about.

1) Are you happy/satisfy with your current life?

2) Why you are unhappy/ dissatisfy?

3) Do you know the “secrets” to happiness/ satisfaction?

4) Have you put in efforts or taken steps to achieve happiness/ satisfaction?

The above are relatively simple questions. If you ask a kid these questions they can easily answer you. There is no right or wrong answers. Your desires may change according to age, exposure, experience and so on. Nonetheless you can only be happy and satisfy whe you understand yourself, your desires, how to achieve them and make them happen.

Fear of failure may impede you from moving forward. So be brave and take chances.

Hope this helps.