Seoul

I couldn't think what to call this post, so I've kept it simple. I tried to think up something clever and amusing based on the word Seoul/soul, but couldn't come up with anything that adequately described my experiences in Korea.

So I've kept it simple.

And to in the vein of keeping it simple I had a truly fantastic time. Seoul is a wonderful, vibrant place and I barely even scratched the surface. So before I even start into this post I have to say a BIG loving thanks to my girlfriend, Shiori and her Mum for organising everything.

GETTING TO KANSAI AIRPORT

Now my last experience of getting to Kansai, was one that I would rather forget. Imagine for a minute, getting up at the crack of dawn (4am to be precise), then with a heavy suitcase that has the maneoverability of Peter Crouch stuck in concrete, jumping on a succession of trains, each one leaving on a track a little further away from the other...

This time however, it was much easier. A bus from Shiori's home town straight to Kansai airport. Beautiful!

THE FLIGHT

JAL have always been great to fly with and this time despite a small plane, reminiscant of the ones I used to fly on to Mallorca or Ibiza with Mum and Dad as a kid, was again no exception. The flight time only 2 hours, which was a little disorienting after my last 3 flights have all been 13 hour monsters.

KOREA

Getting of the plane, I was hit with the familiar blast of humidity that has seemed to be a part of daily life in Japan, and also had blanketed itself over Korea. We had to wait at Incheon airport for about 30 minutes for Shiori's Mum's friend, who flew in from Tokyo. Whilst we were waiting were hassled once or twice by taxi drivers, who suprised me in that they spoke Japanese and English pretty well, and found the Korean convience stores stocked Twix bars!

Our first hotel was the Ibis in the busy shopping district of Meong-dong. The hotel was clean, nice and really convenient.

Then we went to dinner, where we had pork, kimchi (a Korean food, which is spicy vegetables), pickles, rice etc...it was a feast, and really delicious. It only came to 5000 between us (about 25 pound) which surprised me how cheap it was.

My first impression about Seoul was how cosmopoliton it was and how forward the Koreans were compared to the Japanese. Also young girls walk everywhere holding hands. At first I thought, maybe there are lots of lesbians in Korea, but Shiori informed that most Korean girls hold the hands of their friends...

That night, Shiori gave me presents that she had bought for me (ANOTHER BIG LOVING THANKS!!!!). A cool bag, a great new leather wallet, a cover for my phone (with Doraemon on!) and a candle in the shape of a heart. She's such a wonderful girl. xxx.

Also, I got some gifts from Shiori's mum, which was amazing. She bought me a really cool t-shirt and some sandals (which have taken some getting used too, but are really comfortable and convenient in the hot weather). Thank you!!!

Day 2 was spent shopping, and let me tell you in Korea it's a pretty amazing experience, especially in the bustling markets, where you could find anything. Food came by the way of Toppogi (Korean mochi and sausage in a hot sauce), which was oishi!

Day 2 was my birthday, so they bought me and Shiori's Mum's friend (as it was her birthday recently) a cake, which we took, along with our baggage to the Park Hyatt!
What a wonderful hotel....

http://seoul.park.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp

A massive room, with a ceiling to floor window that looked out onto the neon of Seoul, a granite bathroom with a tv...amazing!

All in all, Seoul is a wonderful city, that I would recommend to anyone, and as I said earlier I barely scratched the surface, so I want to go back at some point.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seoul

http://www.visitseoul.net/visit2006/index.jsp