Annual Event & Costco Yeongdeungpo

So last week I promised Lotte World.... well due to changes in schedules Lottle World has been postponed to this coming weekend :)

So anyway on with the show. I didn't post anything last night as I was out at dinner (which does not happen often on a Sunday night).

This week there was an annual song and dance performance for the school I am at. As you can see its a lot like WWE wrestling with the go go signs.

The event turned out OK and I would have had more to show you but... call me old grandfather time or perhaps Mr conservative but I am not all impressed by the contemporary "dress the kids like Friday night hookers" costumes that were chosen for these little kids or "children" to perform in. And a few of them also felt quite uncomfortable wearing them.

So I took a few pictures and a video to show you.

Costco.... again

So I have decided to visit all (if I can) the Costco's in the Seoul Gyeongido area and tell you which I think is the best (at the end).

This week I went to Yeongdeungpo Exit 3 turn around take the first right 350m here is a map:

This Costco has a larger variety of stuff than Mangu or more correctly Sangbong Costco. It has the standard Costco things like Pringles, and Tim Tams but also a few goodies like Snickers Ice Cream Bars and Cheesecake which I didn't see at Sangbong (but I might also be blind). This Costco also has a wider variety of Liquor and I saw 4 liters of white wine for $20 so all you cheap wineo's out there...

I want to buy some cheesecake but 16 pieces is even a bit much for me!... Oh and if you are in Korea you may have noticed that the "cheesecake" here is not really cheesecake at all so I'm going to get me some Costco cheesecake maybe in the summertime!

Well that just about all for this week. Here is a photo dump and I hope to have some exciting Lotte World things for you next week!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/59716500@N03/sets/72157626166673234/show

Jump & Animation Museum Chuncheon

Monday it was Valentines day and I was lucky enough to be taken to "Jump" the Martial Arts Comedy show in central Seoul.

Its a fantastic show filled with great martial arts tricks and some comedy obviously.

Here is a short youtube clip of what you could expect if you go along:

Link to directions and prices of the show:

http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_2_1.jsp?cid=684044

Also in Korea it is a little different to my country for example in terms of Valentines Day. Women here get men chocolates for Valentines and the men reciprocate their love later in March. So lucky men get to have lots of chocolates to gorge on :)

So in the weekend it was off to the Animation Museum (Different from the Cartoon Museum) in Chuncheon. There is a couple of buildings that you can enter and have a look at some of the equipment, techniques and animation films as well as all the characters.

Here is an excerpt from Wikitravel on it:

• Animation Museum [1]

Korea's only Animation Museum is located in Chuncheon and is worth a visit of a few hours or more. The museum sits directly next to an animation studio. Patrons may also purchase tickets to view a screening of animated Korean short films for 4,000 won. The subject matter mainly pertains to the history of Korean animation, but also highlights animation from other parts of the world, including North Korea, Europe, Japan, and the United States. Although most of the displays are in Korean only, English speakers will still enjoy the variety of media presented. The sculptures outside of the museum, created with used car parts, are a popular photo opportunity.

of building

Here is the full photo set:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/59716500@N03/sets/72157625967867483/show

We also passed on the way some ice fishing, an interesting natural ice sculpture and other random things:

So that looks like it for another week. Next week (fingers crossed) Lotte World!!! :)

Garden 5 is a huge shopping and entertainment centre built to rival Coex as the place to go for your greatest shopping experience. Scheduled to open in April 09 it promised big things. However on my trip there this weekend it was basically a lot of empty space. There is still construction going on and I didn't see many actual stores there. It is almost a ghost town with the exception of Kim's Club and a few other places.

However there was a living art exhibition going on there where you could pose next to paintings as though you were interacting with them....

There were also a few strange ones as well...

Here is the full photo set:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/58055258@N02/sets/72157626037274886/show

Here's what Garden 5 looked like when I was there:

Oh and while I remember here is the wikipedia link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Garden_5_in_Seoul,_Korea.jpg

Line 8 Jangji Station Exit 3

Don't forget it's Valentines Day tomorrow (depending on where you are of course) so make it a good one!

And I will leave you with another Star Wars special:

Gyeongbokgung Palace, National Palace Museum & Cheongwadae (Blue House)

Its the year of the Rabbit...

So as promised I went to Gyeongbokgung Palace, The Blue House (or as near as I could get) Cheongwadae and the National Palace Museum.

The weather was a tropical +4 / +6 degrees.

I took the subway line number 3 to Gyeongbokgung and got out at exit 5 which puts you inside the palace basically. The cost is 3,000 won to enter and can be paid inside the main gate on the right hand side.

The palace is quite huge and will take you a while to get around everything. I would probably recommend waiting until spring and take a leisurely stroll around in a more humid climate and (my own personal preference) I think spring / summer would be more beautiful although the snow look is ok too... but no I prefer summer :)

For example I bet this place would be far more fun in Summer...

Anyway about half way through your journey you will see the National Palace Museum. Outside there is an old street with shops and a street car. There is a children's museum and the main museum right next door. It was free admission (possibly due to it being a public holiday) and is worth a casual look if you have time. It closed at 5pm so I had to be quick!

Carrying on back through the palace grounds you will exit the back gate and catch a glimpse of the "Blue House" and the dozens of police all over the streets around it.

So the weather is getting a little warmer and the snow and ice is melting and I am getting a little excited about spring and very excited about summer and all the exciting things I can do and see since I wont be freezing!

All the photo's can be found in my photo set here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/58055258@N02/sets/72157625861970617/show

On a side note... these are my favourite biscuits/cookies in Korea and I may have a secret recipe in the summer if my theory is right...

I will leave you with a couple of things:

I am also going to check out this anime... Ergo Proxy... tell me if you know of any epic anime series :)