Myeongdong Christmas Walkthrough

Myeongdong Christmas Walkthrough

So I have been wanting to do this for quite some time but the weather has been quite nasty recently. Well I finally did it and visited Myeongdong for the purpose of giving you a video tour of the shops and scenery there. Saturday was the last weekend before Christmas and I was there around 12pm.

There are a lot of street vendors and restaurants to eat at so I took a few minutes to show you some menu's as I walked around ^^.

Myeongdong is one of the most popular places for tourists to go shopping and is frequented by Chinese and Japanese tourists for cosmetic purchases and other body care and fashion items.

What have you got planned for Christmas?
I checked the temperature at 6am this morning and it was -17C so it might be a cold Christmas here is Seoul... I will be having a nice quiet day off and will relax somewhere warm ^^.

Well here are the walk through videos. If you have some time take a walk with me through Myeongdong. ^^





Well thats all for this week. Have a Merry Christmas and see you next week! ^^.

Res & Cafe Lami Seoul South Korea

Res & Cafe Lami Seoul South Korea

This weeks blog entry is about a restaurant that I enjoyed while I was living in the Gyeonggido province east of Seoul.

Restaurant and Cafe Lami is situated right alongside the Han river and has 2 levels in which to sit and enjoy the scenery and sunset at night.

I always enjoyed the pasta here and the peaceful atmosphere. The price range is a mid level with dishes in the mid teens e.g. 14,000 to 20,000 won for a dinner main. A great place to visit during the wintery months we are now enjoying. ^^

Here are some pictures and a slideshow showing you more of the restaurant and scenery that can be enjoyed.





















Next week I should be bringing you a winter walk through of Myeong Dong and perhaps a little something more...??

Until then keep warm and have a great week! ^^

Korean Basketball League KBL

With winter here its a good idea to stay indoors or find something to do inside and one of those things is watching a basketball game.

The temperature in Seoul has now plummeted to -12 as I write this and I expect it will fall even lower in the coming weeks so heading outside is almost out of the question. I remember travelling around Seoul in past years during the winter and it was always an uncomfortable experience no matter how many layers of clothes or protective garments I was wearing...



So one fun activity you can do is go and watch a basketball game at your local "gym" or basketball stadium. In Seoul you can go to the Sports Complex Station on the green line and follow the signs to the Gym where you can join in the chanting and cheering. The weekend games are usually played on a Saturday or Sunday at 2pm and 7pm so you may get a couple of chances to watch a game. The seats are usually around 8,000 won and you can take your snacks and things there to enjoy during the game.

I went and saw the Samsung Thunder v Inchon (ETL Elephants?). There was a lot of excitement during the game and a half time singing show as well as some free gifts if you are sitting in the Samsung supporters area. There were also some t-shirts catapulted into the crowd by the cheerleaders which was interesting to watch. ^^

Here are some information links and photo's:

Korea for Expats page which has all the games and prices in English ^^
http://www.korea4expats.com/events-in-korea-K-League-Basketball-December-2012-Around-Korea-6994.html

The Korean KBL page:
http://www.kbl.or.kr/main/main.asp























Well that's all for this week. I am trying to stay warm here as best I can. The first heavy snow of the year fell last week so perhaps there will be a white Christmas here. Lets see what I can do for next week... maybe I will show you some sights of winter?... ^^ Anyway until than have a good and warm week!^^

Norebang 노래방 Korean Singing Room (Karaoke)

Norebang 노래방 Korean Singing Room (Karaoke)

Well with winter coming on things are starting to get quieter, not many events are on my schedule and generally its too cold to go outside :(
This is my 3rd winter here and I am still not liking the winter.

So I have reached into the archives to pull out this weeks update, Korean Norebang. If you are in Korea you will know all about these places and if not let me tell you a story. Norebang is very popular in Korea with several Norebang rooms on every corner (or just about). The idea is to go there with your friends (perhaps sober or more likely drunk) and make the biggest fool out of yourself or become a workplace singing legend. ^^

Being so many around the quality and costs vary but you might pay 20,000 won for an hour of singing and you may get bonus time for singing well depending on the singing program they use.

The Norebang featured here is rather a new one near Konguk University and had a glass windows and a view overlooking the street.

So perhaps it time to torture you with some of my "hits" from the 80's and 90's ^^ Hold on to your hat!











Well there it is for another week. ^^
See you again next time for another look into Korea, until then have an amazing week! ^^

Korea International Stationery Fair & Toy and Game Show 2012

Korea International Stationery Fair 2012
Korea Game Show 2012

COEX Seoul 15 - 18 November 2012

A few weeks back I visited both the International Stationery Fair and Game Show at COEX in Seoul.

I must admit I do have a small interest in stationery and like to visit stationery stores every now and then to find a unique pen or note book ^^ You might like to call it a stationery fetish ^^ But seriously I had the opportunity to see many new and exciting gadgets for computer sockets, fashioned pens, cutting tools for craft work and of course some toys and characters.

Got Miilk... an interesting brand name for photocopying paper which is quite popular here in Korea started off the show at the entrance way. From there I moved freely about looking at all the stationery things that you could imagine... however I noticed one thing that was sadly lacking... freebies :( ...Where were all the free gifts of pens and erasers or pencils or something?... I managed to get a free screen wiper and that was all. I was hoping to have some new and fantastic items to try out but alas the products on display were not even discounted or discounted enough for me to even have a slight bit of interest.

But all that aside it was very entertaining and the other half of the hall was taken up by toys so I had a look at some air guns, games and the lego knock offs that were on display.

Here are some pictures of the event and the mandatory youtube clip ^^ enjoy:





















Well that's all for this week... Christmas is fast approaching so I had better get out and about and do some more things to share with you.

So until next week have a great week!^^

G-Star 2012 International Gaming Expo Busan South Korea

G-Star 2012 International Gaming Expo Busan South Korea 8th to 11th November.

So as promised I am bringing you a post on G-Star 2012. I headed down to Busan for one day on Saturday to catch a glimpse at this years gaming expo. Amazingly as soon as I walked out of the subway station I was confronted by the ticket line! I was a little surprised so I walked over to BEXCO just to see what was going on.  I saw a shorter line on the other side of BEXCO so I went over there and stepped over a roped off area as I saw someone else do. I didn't realize until I got my ticket that I had cut in line! But oh well it was for the best as I think it was a 2 hour wait to get tickets and I didn't have that kind of time to waste.

The expo was similar to last year with the same exhibitions almost and a few new arrivals. Warface was being shown off (I actually knew a guy who worked on that game) as well as the usual Starcraft, World of Warcraft, World of Tanks and World of Warplanes. Thousands of people were there as well as a few cosplay costumes so perhaps this event may attract more of that kind of thing in the future? Who knows.

Oh and of course there were many "racing girls" or product models there and competition was fierce to get a good position for a photo. ^^

Well that's enough from me. Take a look at some pictures and slideshows of the event:


























Well that all for this week. I already have something lined up for next week about the Stationery and Toy Expo that was on at COEX last weekend. Well until next week have a great time! ^^