Paju Light Festival

This weekend it was time to brave the cold and go and see the Paju Light Festival.

Arriving just before dusk there was little to see that was impressive but as soon as the sun went down out came the lights!

Millions of little lights lit the landscape and many couples enjoyed the atmosphere of walking around and sitting in to have coffee or bread.

The festival runs until April 1st and tickets cost 3,000 won for children and 5,000 won for adults.

You can check out this website for more: www.provence.co.kr

However bring some gloves because my fingers have never hurt so much in my life! Not to mention my feet as well!

Well here are some pictures and a youtube slide show for you to see just how many lights there were!

Also last week I uploaded some English counting songs and the like. Ironically when I could have used these I didnt but now that I have no use for them I uploaded them to Youtube....? Hmmm Anyway here are a few so You get the idea and if you want to check out more (a dozen or so...) visit my Youtube channel here: http://www.youtube.com/user/RawrKorea?feature=mhee#p/u

Until next week stay warm and have a great time :)

Pyeong Chang Snow Festival & Sheep Farm, Notre Dame de Paris Da

Well it was the New Year this weekend... the year of the Dragon has begun and it was kicked off with a trip to Pyeong Chang to check out the snow sculptures and some sheep.

The festival was at an end so the snow sculptures had some wear and tear from the people viewing them and climbing on them. I had a great time in the snow since I haven't really been in the snow and thrown snow balls and such before so it was fun!

Next we went to see some sheep at the local farm or sheep park / village. It was snowing so pretty exciting again for me. The sheep were warm inside and getting hay fed to them by the tourists.

I even made a video slide show of some more pictures of snow :) so if you like you can check it out:

Earlier in the week we went to quite an interesting show... quite risque for Korea I must admit. It was in a small basement area near Hyewha station and the stage was the size of a small apartment. If you are interested here is the ticket stub. Check it out on Naver or Google I guess:

Last on the agenda was a fabulous afternoon at Notre Dame de Paris in English!!! thats right English! Fantastic singing and dancing for about 3 hours. So if you are interested I will post the link for tickets. It runs until February 26 so you have plenty of time to get yourselves sorted :)

http://ticket.interpark.com/Global/Play/Goods/GoodsInfo.asp?GoodsCode=11014973

Well until next week have a "stunner"! :)

Woops!... almost forgot... got these angry birds out of a slot machine in Sinchon in the weekend :)

The Kahn 3 and Hell Pizza Korea

Starting with Saturday...

Hell Pizza.... what?... that's right! The New Zealand pizza franchise is actually in Korea... well around Seoul anyway :)

http://www.hellpizza.co.kr/stores/choose-region.htm

So we went to the Apgujeong Line 3 Exit 3. Turn around and walk down past Dunkin Doughnuts and then past an KB* Bank and you cant miss it.

I had to splash out on this trip because it has been quite some time since I last had a hell pizza so we got a cheesus and a sloth pizza with some wedges and red bull. We even had honey dipping sause for the pizza?!

Delicious :) Wow I forgot how good wedges can be :) So if you are a kiwi definitely go along and have a bite or two to eat.

Sunday was The Kahn 3 another fighting event. The under card fights were actually great! With my favorite being the Lee Na Hee v Lee Ji Whan which you can see by clicking that link or later on in this post.

The main poster event was ok but the Korean fighter was pretty dominant and at a crucial moment in the fight my SD card filled up and I had to swap cards but I did get the replay on film.

Overall I would say the quality or ferocity of the fights was better than Road FC 005 but the venue was a little cold :/

So check out the fights here... if you are wanting to go to Road FC 006 February the 5th here is the link: http://ticket.interpark.com/Global/Play/Goods/GoodsInfo.asp?GoodsCode=11018741

Lee Na Hee v Lee Ji Whan

Kim Se Gi v K.Max

The Main Event (Woman)

Lim Sujeong v Hayashimiku

Well there you have it for another week!

Remember this weekend is New Year in Korea so have a fantastic long weekend and do something exciting! I will see you again next week :)

Hongdae Bakeries ft. Richemont, Paul & Paulina, Jesters and Publique

Been here a while? Had your fill of Paris Baguette or Tous Les Jours? Want a taste of home or close to it?

Well you are in luck my friend! :)

I have a hand full of places you can visit in Hongdae to get your fix on some delicious breads and even a pie or sausage roll or 2... that's right a good old pie for all you aussies and kiwis missing a tasty meat pie and an essential sausage roll.

I will even help you out with directions! and perhaps a map (even though it a little small... but will be helpful in addition to my written clues).

By the way look out for my trendy Youtube video somewhere near the end of this post for delicious eye candy... (more pictures of delicious treats).

First things first:

Get to Hongdae Station. Take exit 9. You will immediately be on the main street with a little street to your left. Walk past that until you come to the next street on the left (it will be a big street). Turn left up it and walk to the next street. Right on the corner will be:

Richemont Bakery: ** Edit 27 February 2012 - recently Richemont bakery has closed :( **

Here is a landmark that will be across the street so if you miss it look for Mr Doughnut on the opposite side of the road then look around on your side of the road and you should see Richemont Bakery somewhere around where you are standing :)

Filled with delicious pastries and breads this is definitely the largest of the bakeries I visited and boasts a wide variety of edibles.

http://www.richemont.co.kr/a_about/open_eng.html

Jesters:

Just up the street past the KB* bank and a little further on (after the third street on the left after you exit the Richemont Bakery) You will come to a two storied eating building... filled with eating establishments. On the second floor about half way (or less) down the building is Jesters Pies!

Here is another landmark on the opposite side of the road.. Frisbee apple store... so if you see this turn around and look for a yellow and purple Jesters.

Filled with delicious pies and sausage rolls and chips its a must for those of us who come from "down under". Check out the flavors and prices in my video down below.

Paul & Paulina:

http://englishspectrum.net/seoul-restaurants/by-popular-areas/hongdae/paul-paulina

So you are on your way to Paul and Paulina for some freshly baked bread and even some scones! Well just head up the road until you come to the end. The University will be in front of you. Go left look for Nescafe cafe... turn left and walk about 20 or so meters and it will be on your left.

See there is Nescafe cafe in the background there...

Grab a scone or two and you are set for our next destination!

Publique:

http://blog.naver.com/inbp83

Now this place is a little hard to find and is a hidden gem.

So if you are at Paul and Paulina go back to where you were in front of the University. If you didn't go to Paul and Paulina then you are standing at the end of the street looking at the University. Turn right this time and be prepared for a little walk :)

Keep walking until you cross one big road then keep your eyes peeled for a Chinese restaurant on your right (it going to be about the 4th little road on your right). Once you see it take the little road immediately after it on your right.

If you cant see it look on the opposite side of the road for Hollys Coffee. Then you should be somewhere close.

So walk down the little road and it should be the second street on your left and it will look like this:

Jump inside and enjoy the sweet tasty treats they have to offer! Check out the qualifications in the window of the chefs and know you are going to be well satisfied :)

I cant say enough about this place. I have been there twice and will go again. I have not tried the cafe or coffee eclair yet so I will be back... oh yes I did say eclair so get yourself in there and since its winter you deserve something sweet to warm your soul :)

Anyway here is a map... or as best as I could do. The red dots are approximately the locations.

And check out this video to whet the appetite!

Wow so that all for this week... I haven't done this much work on a blog entry for a while so I hope you enjoy it! :)

Have a great week and see you next time! :)

New Years Eve & The Marionette

So if there is one show in Seoul right now that I recommend that you see it is The Marionette at the Art Hall in Building 63 (or the Yeoksam building).

I was totally impressed by this performance. I have been to a few performances now and I have been disappointed with some of the venues or sound. This place however is prefect, the sound was at an excellent level with no distortion and it was not too loud.

About the show... it was very ambitious and they pulled it off. Even with very simple props and a lot of imagination the audience was amazed and moved by the dancing and surprises that this show has to offer.

The show has a very moving and touching story which is illustrated through amazingly well drawn slides and really pulls at the heart strings on occasion.

Look out for cameo's of the Ghostbusters, ET and Optimus Prime (from Transformers).

I cannot say enough good things about this show! The dancing is amazing, the visual effects (although simple) are outstanding and the story was fantastic... I was totally blown away :)

Here is a link to an article about it... I believe a single ticket is about 40,000 won but remember at 63 building you can get discounted packages to visit multiple attractions at once so you could spend a good day there. For more on Yeoksam 63 building you can check out my prior adventure there... here:

http://rawrkorea.blogspot.com/2010/10/legend-of-flower-and-building-63-yook.html

For more on The Marionette have a look here:

http://www.dealiciouskorea.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=134:marionette&Itemid=890&lang=en

Also this week was New Years or the start of a new year. So I went to Walker Hill Hotel to celebrate in style at the Blue Spirit Dance Party. It consisted of two separate dance halls in the hotel which had special DJ and guests turn up to perform.

So here is a little taste of the action... walking from one dance hall to the other then the New Year countdown!

So until next week "Happy New Year!" have a great week and enjoy the start of something new. :)