02 Mar 2007

Even Has It's Own Travel Bag, Courtesy Of My Mom

We finally land in Incheon somewhere around 6.30am (Korean Time), crossing time zones and even dates, to find gloomy skies and rain that greeted Amy when she stepped out to test the temperature. We were supposed to meet a representative that was able to speak Mandarin about an hour after we landed, and so first thing we did was shop. We went straight to a convenience store and bought ourselves bowl noodles (how Asian, but when in Korea...) and calling cards as our phones both didn't work. Time just zipped by and we had to find the rep who had given us instructions to meet at some bank, but no one seemed to know where we were supposed to be headed. We finally find her in some quiet little corner and she couldn't have picked a better place to get kidnapped in. Seriously, for such a big airport and with so many food outlets that had English names, she had to pick a bank, which no one seem to have heard of, that was located at some dingy little corner. To make it worse, she led us to the van that was supposed to bring us to town and from the dingy corner, she just made us walk all the way back to where we came from. Seriously I could've killed her if more people spoke English, but that wasn't the case and she was our only lifeline at that moment in time.

We head out to get into the van for the ride to Seoul and the rep just stands there like she's enjoying the cool temperatures while Amy and I were trying to keep our fingers alive. The cold just hits you and takes hold of your fingers first and wearing gloves didn't help much either. To top off the cold temperature, it was really windy and was raining rather heavily too. So not only were we being chilled, we were being sprayed with mist as well. By this time I was too tires and too frozen to take pictures.

We get into a heated van and were taken for a really long ride to Seoul. It took about 2 hours and I nodded off a few times along the way, seeing that I didn't sleep on the plane, I really needed a bit of recharging. It was just really dull anyway... looked like Korea lacked colour on it's buildings... even if there was colour, it just looked drabby. We finally reach Seoul and are transferred to a coach that would take us all the way to the Yong Pyong ski resort. As it was rather empty, Amy and I took separate seats and once again I slept. It starts to get cold in the bus and the change in temperature wakes me up, only to be greeted by the sight of snow-covered mountains beyond the dead-looking trees on the side of the road. That's when I finally woke up, with my personal battery recharged, and started snapping pics again.

Ohhh A Bit Of Colour!

Then as we neared the resort, we started seeing civilisation once more, and a little colour compared to Seoul and the way up to Yong Pyong. There was an area that looked like the main town of that part of Korea where there were quite a number of shops renting or selling ski equipment or cars that gave me a good indication we were nearing the resort. Along with the businesses were the fish being dried along the river, most of which were covered with the blue plastic sheets. A few more turns up the roads and we were greeted by apartments along both sided of the roads, and the frozen pond that looked like one could ice skate on. We finally stop and were told to get off the bus but weren't even told where to go or who to look for if we needed help, which was one thing we really needed.

Just Next To The River....


Fish Being Dried In The Cold


Frozen Pond @ The Entrance To The Resort

I stood guard with our luggage in the cold while Amy checked if we were at the right place, and we were told to wait in the lobby while the rep from the hotel came to get us. The guy comes and he doesn't say much except to follow him and he kidnaps my bag upon seeing that I had to help Amy with her other bag along with the 2 I had. After we checked into our room, we were supposed to go for our very first ski lesson but we were just too tired and hungry to do anything. So we told the rep, Mr Lim, that we had to take a rain-check on the ski lesson and started to explore the surroundings of the hotel while looking for something to eat.

Can See She Slept On The Plane....


Trying To Put On My Glove While My Glasses Were Slipping Off.

After a disappointing, and really expensive, bowl of udon, we went out and checked out the slopes as well as the buildings next to the hotel and what they had inside. Looking at the slopes, we were wondering where we would be brought to during our ski lessons and how high up we have to travel up on the ski lift. Looking at the people getting on the ski lift already made us nervous, and then I saw a couple who go on the ski lift, one person on almost each end of the chair and it toppled to one side because the guy was heavier. That really scared the 2 of us and at least gave us an inkling of what to do when it was our turn. After we got bored with the surroundings, we decided to take a nap before we would go down for dinner. However after our nap went on too long and made us too late for dinner as they already cleared the place and we were supposed to have a buffet dinner with members of some tour groups. Well we were left with our only option to get our own dinner and that was at one of the hotel's restaurants. We got a set for two and ended up getting our own buffet spread to choose from. Joining us had to be the weird one in the hoodie, that just sat at the corner of the table watching us eat. 

Wondering If We Were Gonna Ski Down That Slope...






View From Our Room


Amy Thinks I'm A Terrorist.


Joining Me For Dinner When Amy Couldn't Make It.

After dinner, we were out again to check out how the place looks at night as well as venture up towards the ski slope to check out the snow. Sadly the rain had made everything into slushy ice, just like tons of uncoloured and cola slurpee strewn all over the floor. How disappointing to know that it was as good as walking on ice-kachang. From the very first day, Amy was on the hunt for all the locations she could take pictures regarding the Winter Sonata drama series. First one was in the morning where she was talking about a bench but it didn't have a significant sign like other locations so she skipped that one. She even had a map of all the spots that had the Winter Sonata filmed at!! The first one photo session was then the one just opposite the entrance of the hotel but it was a different bench from the one earlier. Worse part of it all was having to pose the bear for the pics! "No no, chin up, to the right... your right... a little left, thaaat's it! Ready... Smile!"

Brrrr... Baby It's Cold Outside.


Amy's Winter Sonata Location Shot 1

We went to sleep rather late the night before because the excitement haven't wore off and they had something really funny on tv as well.

01 Mar 2007

I receive a text message from Amy thinking it was one of the many we usually exchanged almost daily but it surprised me when she asked if I would like to go to Korea with her. Well first thought was how much the tour would cost, thinking that she was actually just thinking of Korea as the next destination but she surprised me further by telling me that the flight and accommodation were free!! She then goes on to add more icing on the lovely cake by telling me that it included a ski lesson, just that the equipment rental wasn't, but how expensive can rental get? The part that made me laugh was the fact that she had just decided to ask me instead of one of her family members. After spilling all the details, I found out she had participated in an online contest and was actually one of the 2 lucky winners.

Well after a month of wondering if the whole thing was just a hoax as the Korean tourism office sure took their time confirming the details, the reality that we were going to Korea finally hit us when we went shopping for winter clothes and worrying that we didn't have enough to keep us warm. The day finally arrives and Amy is still not packed when all she had was 2 hours before she had to leave for the airport. She tells me that they'll swing by to give me a lift to the airport and it seems like we were going to miss our flight by the time she and her posse arrived. Thank goodness they were at her place to force her to get ready or else I would have been flying solo once again. We reach the airport a little later than I estimated but well in time to get our tickets and have a drink before we passed immigration.

Since the flight was free, and it was a Korean tourism promotion, what other flight would u expect but Korean Air. It didn't have the usual perks I'm used to, with just a tiny TV showing the day's movie and no choice of any "radio station". Being prepared for this, I brought along my iPod which entertained me through the flight when Amy was asleep. Our flight was at 11.30pm and it would take about 6 hours to get to Korea and it was the only flight available, leaving me no choice but to try get some sleep on the plane.... suuuuurrrreee.

Movie I Saw Onboard... Viewing Without My Glasses.

One thing I have to mention now - Amy's Bear - it haunted me throughout the journey! That bear was everywhere and into every thing, and I think it posed for more photos than I did. Anyway, right from the start, Amy started taking photos of her bear in the plane, with the plane food, and even me - since we look alike when we have our hoodies. Then when she finally gets too tired to do any other strange things, I'm left alone with my music and nothing else better to do than try to get some sleep on the plane - which didn't really happen.

Looks Cute & Innocent Here.... But It's A Cam Whore!


Tua Pui & Xiao Pui

12 Jan 2007

After breakfast, we headed out to the shopping mall just to get another piece of luggage for all his junk, receiving laughter from the hotel staff as we got in. We already knew they were gossiping, but they couldn't hold it in when he was dragging in his new travel bag. Honestly, I would have too, and I was laughing behind him anyway.  Soon it was time to say goodbye to Sniffy and company and head home.

Looks Kinda Boring Colour-Wise


Couldn't They Serve A Slice Of Buko Pie?

11 Jan 2007

Day 3, and it's time to just relax and do some shopping. Seems like when we asked everyone that has been to the Philippines recently, the highlight of their whole shopping trip was when they stepped into a place called the Mall Of Asia, which was apparently a really huge shopping mall. So we headed there to see for ourselves, and it's true that it's huge, but somehow it didn't impress me. Well the only shopping mall that did is Siam Paragon just because it has an aquarium in the basement. It did have a carousel right smack out of nowhere but I guess if you build a place that huge, you might as well upsize everything, including the kiddy rides.

Not Your Average Kiddy Ride

The highlight of the place, or so says Mark, are the piers that lead out towards the sea from the mall itself. It would've been better if it ended up partially out at sea but it was nice nonetheless. Airol obviously wasn't impressed with it as most people were. He was impatiently waiting for me to get all the pics I wanted.

Click Me for a view of the sea from MOA.

After booking a night's stay at the Swisshotel when we get back, because he wanted to "rejunivate" from his "jetlag", as well as made sure we got all our stuff from each other, we headed off on our glutton hunt again. This time we ended up at just one place, the Congo Grille Restaurant, that pulled me in because they served up the Bulalo Soup I had been hunting for during the whole trip. We still ended up over-ordering, but then some things were worth chucking in the bin. However, I was so excited about my soup that I didn't even take photos.

Enjoying Life? More Like Kidding Ourselves.

After dinner, I started packing and was glad I managed to get all the heavy stuff into my luggage and only had the crackers to carry, although it was quite a bit. Airol however, gave up on packing as there was no hope of him getting it all into his tiny travel bags.

10 Jan 2007

Good thing we kept our curtains closed the whole night. The sun came up really early and it was as bright as mid-day when Airol opened the curtains at 9am, blinding the both of us, who reacted like vampires. After a shock like that, we just had to get out of bed and it was off to check out the buffet breakfast, forgetting to take my camera with me. Coffee was rather crappy, but other than that, the breakfast was something to look forward to the next morning. After breakfast, it was time to get ourselves to Airol's long awaited appointment for his extra special smile.

2 hours after all the excitement and form-filling at the clinic, K. Nurul emerges a new person, though in pain, and slightly numb, scared, and slightly confused. We get his meds and head back to the hotel, by which time, the poor boy was already sleeping in the cab. Why do I travel with people who just fall asleep with the snap of your fingers? I need to know their secrets. Once we got back, it was time to hunt for my dinner cos he wasn't supposed to eat anything but ice cream for 2 days. But being the glutton that he is, he decided to go against orders and get some food, and once again it was Shakeys, but he overdid it with a pizza.

After we had dinner, the night was still young and since he wanted to get some souvenirs from Hard Rock Cafe, we decided to catch a cab there. Thinking that the driver was out to try and cheat us as he didn't turn the meter on, we were deciding on how much we should pay him and just as we did, we arrived at our destination. The whole ride took us about 3 minutes and it was basically right across our hotel. Honestly we felt rather dumb, but the driver was nice enough not to give us a flat fee and even helped us with some questions regarding the trip we had planned for the next day. So well, we gave him a little more than we would have needed to but honestly it wasn't even much.

We headed straight to the gift shop as that was Airol's sole purpose and he bought the whole store. We then headed in to enjoy the live band, and some complimentary iced teas, while Mr Vain tried to bring the swelling down with more ice cream. For one who's afraid of getting fatter, he sure didn't mind all those ice creams.

9 Jan 2007

One of my best buds from Shatec asked if I would accompany him on his trip to the Philippines, with the biggest cost to me being just my flight there. As I've actually promised him that I would make the trip quite a while ago, he didn't really have to ask if I would go but rather if I could make it. Well lucky for him, I would get back from Australia just 2 days before he had to leave and so off we went.

We started the whole trip rather badly, being almost late for our flight. I didn't know how he made it but he ran past me on the way to the gate and I didn't see him at all. That boy must've been really working out, or he might just be hiding his blue & red spandex suit under all his clothes? The flight was alright except for the turbulence throughout the flight which gave us some problems with filling in our arrival cards. The shaking didn't really bother Airol though, he happily played some movie on his iPod and actually fell asleep after our meal. We both decided on the seafood meal and got the usual meal I've been getting, the only difference this time was the yummy dessert. Finally I get a dessert that was straight-forward, simple, plus enjoyable in a shaky plane!

Travelling In Style






Yum...


My Window Is Cracking!!!

The hotel was chosen by Airol and he sure did a good job in picking one right opposite a huge shopping mall. Although it apparently isn't the biggest shopping mall in the Philippines, it was still big enough for him to get lost in. We get to the hotel and was greeted by our guard dog, Sniffy, taking a whiff of our luggage before we headed in. With lots of time after checking in, even though it's really dark at 7pm, we got into our comfy shoes and headed out to get supplies as well as dinner. I guess we over did the dinner part, or as I still say he overdid the dinner, by ordering a whole basket of Mojos from Shakeys.

Sniffy & Trainer

Hotel Room's View @ Night




B4 Turndown


After Turndown... No Biggie


See The Big Tray Of Mojos Top Left?

07 Jan 2007

The previous week was basically spent shopping and catching up with friends and family. We met up with Sheeda and Mark, and even spent a day at the beach with Mark's sons. 

Brendan's mom, Billie, her boyfriend and Brendan's lil sis Molly, who's one really smart girl, also flew into town and I got to spend a few days with them as well. Billie had us over for dinner and it was strange yet fun, but Wai Ling kinda spoiled all the fun everyone was having. Got to meet Wai Ling's sis, who was a much nicer person, and she could really eat for a tiny person. Last day I got to spend with them was at Cottesloe Beach, shared a big seafood platter with Molly & Brendan, and ended the day with some Gelato.

Best time I guess was spending that quiet night with my uncle after Brendan pissed me off. Maybe it's the drive alone, maybe it's just that I got to rant and maybe it's because I got to pig out with someone who really knew how to.

Sis and I got to spend a few days alone while Brendan was with Billie, and it allowed us to get some shopping done before I had to fly back home. Wai Ling had to stupid idea to have a last gathering at Yanchep before I left, which my sis thankfully declined. Well... I would've gone just for Billie and Molly, they were really adorable in their own sweet ways, but a day before my early flight and with packing to do wasn't a good idea.

Last Day With Molly & Brendan at Cottesloe

Breakfast From Perth.

01 Jan 2007

"Hi Ma'am, this is a random breath check, could you please blow into this until I tell you to stop."

Lo and behold, I didn't blow long enough the very first time I tried. I tried my best and started to cough at the end of the whole thing and all the policewoman could say was "I'm sorry that's not enough, I need you to blow again and stop when I tell you to." In a rather prissy tone as well.... Well hey, I wasn't ready to huff and puff into a little bitty tube when Uncle Shane had been smoking next to me just minutes earlier.

Anyway, managed to get a deep breath and got it right the 2nd time... whoopididoo! I wondered what I actually got. I didn't have any alcohol but I just wonder if the meter shows other stuff. Another thing I'm wondering is if they change the tube... Looked like it wasn't changed but she didn't show me either... all I know is that she removed the plastic cover from it and told me to blow... finally putting that plastic thing back over. Hope it's used to pull mine out before it's replaced. Eck!

I just wonder what if my sis was made to do the test, if the alcohol from last night was gonna show up. Hahaha!

Blew The House Down

31 Dec 2006

It was an early day once again as my sis and I had to send our parents off to the airport. I would be driving the very same route in about a week and it was good to get to know the route a little too. After sending them off, we took the opportunity to get some shopping done but seems like everyone was in a holiday mood and stores opened late. So we returned to the apartment only to be greeted with this view from the apartment as everyone was enjoying New Year's Eve and the nice weather.

After this, I basically slept the whole day only to be woken up by a constant banging that was actually Brendan cooking. They then irritate the shit out of me about going clubbing, and after the lack of sleep and the irritation, I was in no mood to do nothing but stay home and chill. Another thing was I didn't want to bother with crowds. I've never gone out to clubs on NYE, I didn't intend to start now. Well sitting at home enjoying my dinner (at 11pm), I watched some of the neighbours below having a little drunk karaoke. Next thing I knew, they all just stopped and stared towards the other side of the river, and all I could hear was the fireworks going off. Here I thought I had a great view and that I could catch the sparks but noooo.... they had to be blocked by the building and I had to get out of the apartment just to view it.