summer holidays in Seoul! (Day 6)

You know, Korean dramas certainly have their own ways in making people (like me) addicted to everything about the dramas.

For instance, the actors and actresses, of course, and also the places where the shooting happens.
Not to mention that it's a great way to promote the country.
The day before we went to two tourist attractions that used to be shooting places for Korean dramas 'Winter Sonata' and 'Boys Over Flowers'.
Well, for day 6 we managed to go to another place made famous by the drama 'Stairway to Heaven'. God this drama just kills me everytime I watch it. I'd cry like nobody's business. Very bad.
Me and my sisters were obsessed with this drama and ahem, the actor (Kwan Sang Woo) of course, so long before we came to Seoul we decided we must go to Lotte World.
Okay, this was where we got confused. Lotte World is a huge, tremendous place. There are Lotte hotels, shopping malls, tall buildings and indoor and outdoor theme parks.
Yup, it's so big I honestly think it's ridiculous that someone can be this rich. It's like the whole city is owned by Lotte!
Putting the awe aside, we learnt that we need to pay around 20,000Won for a ticket. Our idea was just to snap few pictures and went home happily. We weren't interested to play any games in the theme parks so we just walked around for pictures.
*ticket booth. super cute!*
*the entrance of indoor theme park*
*the ice ring & outdoor theme park as seen in 'Stairway to Heaven'*

Next, we satisfied our needs to 'shop til we drop' in Insa-dong and Myeongdong.
Again.
Bought souvenirs at Insa-dong, grabbed myself the Korean spoon and chopsticks and socks with celebrities' faces on them.
Yep, they're that creative to even have these kinds of socks.
I found a pair of shoes I really really like at Forever 21 Myeongdong, sadly my size had sold out! I was very disappointed! Out of all days it had to be on this day!
Browsed through garments and bags but none caught my attention. Here at Myeongdong you'll see many beauty shops such as The Face Shop, Etude House (both are also famous in Malaysia), Missha and Its Skin and with these numbers of beauty shops, how can I not shop?
I bought too many facial masks, BB creams and eye liners that probably would be a year supply.
Okay, make it two years.
They're super cheap as the brands originated from Korea. Almost 70% off from the price in Malaysia.
At that bargain, tell me how should I refrain myself from buying anything?
Could I?
I'd be crazy not to.
*Insa-dong Art Market*
*Myeongdong, a shopping heaven*
*socks!*
*collateral damage. unintentionally. hehe..*

Shopping sprees had basically made my dad very tired so we went straight home.
If it were up to me, I'd be shopping up until the last train of the day.
hahaha...
But then again, holidays are not for selfish people.
We went out together, we came home together.
Had shower and hot drinks.
End result -everyone was happy for the night.

And a bit gloomy because it's time to pack things to go HOME.
='(

summer holidays in Seoul! (Day 7 -final day)

It is a norm for everything to end.

Every starting mark has its finishing line.
The same goes to my great journey in Seoul. As much as I hated to leave, I missed my own bed and bathroom and my 5yo nephew.

It was raining on our final day in Seoul.
Our flight home was almost midnight so we still got a few hours to embrace the last moments in this beautiful cultural rich country.
We decided to to visit The Museum of King Sejong the Great because my dad is a big fan of a drama about the king.
It was raining heavily and because of the weather, it was quite a hassle to find the museum.
It took us almost an hour of walking in the rain and two policemen to guide us there.
Such an adventure on the very last day.
And the museum was, well, disappointing.
First, the guide book was written in Korean. Secondly, the description at every historical item found in the museum was also in Korean.
Basically, we couldn't understand a thing there.
It doesn't make sense for a museum to not include English translation but who am I to criticize upon this matter, they probably have their own explanation.
You can read the history of the great king here.

*The Museum of King Sejong the Great*

We made our last stop at Itaewon for our last lunch here.
A Pakistani man gave us pamphlet of a buffet restaurant and we decided to give a try.
The food wasn't that bad but not so variety for a price of 15,000Won per head. The naan bread was nice and fluffy, though.
*Maha Raja Restaurant*

We stopped by at home to refresh ourselves and to collect out luggage bags.
The landlady was at church so we said goodbye to her through phone call. Her husband was at home but he couldn't speak English, a very nice guy.
He called a Jumbo cab for us which can fit up to six people. The cab took us straight to Incheon International Airport, for almost an hour journey and it cost us 80,000Won. It was still raining when we arrived at the airport at around 6pm.
We had some good rest at the airport, just lazying around and walked around the airport. We checked in quite early as we planned to do some last minute shopping at the duty free shops.
Worse thing happened -the duty free shops close at 9pm in this airport.
What a day.
But we did manage to grab few things before the shops closed -bought more beauty stuff.
Hehehe..
Our flight was delayed for half an hour, probably because of the bad weather.
*Incheon International Airport*
='(

I bid goodbye to Seoul at 12.05am.
It was a hard goodbye, a bittersweet feeling because at the same I can't wait to return home.
I was too tired I couldn't sleep at all on our journey home.
I really enjoyed my time in Seoul, despite the language barrier, the city is a place I wanna come back in the future.
And a thing I truly respect of Koreans would be the fact that they don't smoke in public. I remember walking down the streets in Myeongdong and people would stop to smoke in the alleys, not while walking in public.
Try walking in Jln TAR in Malaysia and you'll have people exhale their cigarette smoke into your face.
I decided then with this mentality and attitude of no respect towards others, we'll never move forward and be developed as Korea or Japan.
I have nothing against smokers, it's your choice but it's proven that secondhand smoke is dangerous, thus, don't drag non-smokers, children and helpless old people into your smoky living hell.
Oh well, I better rest my case.
Why would they care about others when they themselves provide nicotine into their own lungs?

And so with a slight bump, we safely landed at LCCT at 4.45am.
Alhamdulillah.
They don't say 'home sweet home' for nothing.
=)

eye candy of the day

*pic googled*

Paul Walker.
How can a man be this beautiful?
Not fair.

when you're this beautiful...

Jane Aldridge.
She's super gorgeous, isn't she?
I've been visiting her blog religiously since a year ago.
Once you started following her, there's no turning back.
LOL!
She is a creative soul and well, she's just oh so pretty!
And she loves shoes a lot! So I guess I can feast my eyes on shoes I can't afford.
Read more about her here.

Burlesque

*pics googled*

You should really watch Burlesque, people.
Seriously.
It's super entertaining.
I just love the setting, costumes, songs, choreographs..well almost everything about it!

Christina Aguilera is so adorable in it. And so tiny!
I always feel she has one of the most powerful voice as singers.
And to watch her dance almost perfectly in every choreographed scene, it's just too cute you actually want to learn how to burlesque!

On top of that, Cam Gigandet.
Oh dear, where should I start?
He's charming. His eyes pierce straight through my heart. His smile melts every muscle in my body.
Sigggggghhhhhh....

And Stanley Tucci is hilarious! Cher looks too plastic for me.
But she's a legend, people.
Can't argue with that.

Overall, the movie reminds me a lot of Coyote Ugly.
But Burlesque wins with its costumes and sexy choreography.
I've been watching it for at least five times I can sing-a-long to every song already.
I've always loved musicals, they're always colourful and fun to watch.
I definitely wanna watch it again!
And again.

a pat on my back

*pic googled*

Finally, after a long, winding, heart-fainting, rain and shine, feverish 2 1/2 years I have completed my M.Ed TESL.
Alhamdulillah. All praises to Allah.
It wasn't a smooth journey at all. Been sick, challenged and given up but in the end I realized I've got to finish what I've started.
And for the sake of my future and to make my family proud.
No, it wasn't easy and for that I praise anyone who's doing it and at the same time has to manage full time job, husband and kids and household chores.

Looking back, yeah could have done a better job.
Actually, I would do a better job.
But I guess some things are better said than done.
One day you're doing it because of passion. The next day you just want to get it done and over with and find good job.
That was what happened to me.

One thing for sure,
I want my next job to be somewhere I want to work at.
Desperation just leads to boring days at work which you'll end up whining about almost everything.
I don't want to whine about a place that pays for my food on the table or the monthly pocket money I give to my parents.
My dad always say, "You are your responsibility. Whatever decision you make, suck it up! Don't blame others when things go wrong."
One of the best advice my dear old man has given me throughout my life.
He has got to be the most hardworking man I've known.
May Allah bless my parents with nothing but happiness and a place in heaven.
Ameen...

So, my next big step is to look for a job.
I've decided for it to be around Melaka or Selangor.
It would be nice to be near to my family but Selangor isn't that far either. I can still drive home on weekends.
And oh, hopefully my next job doesn't require me to work on weekends.
Been there, done that. Hate it.

Oh yeah job hunting mode is so ON!!!

But before that, I need holidays.
How about Seoul?
;)

eye candy of the day

*pic's from his twitter*

Matt Lanter.
I blink and he's still here.
What more could I ask for??

she's his princess...

*pics googled*


I realize this is kind of late already but I'm sort of in a lovey dovey mood right now.

I've to admit I'm not really amazed by weddings, I actually want mine to be simple.
My main aim is just for me and my family to be happy and enjoy the whole day.
When I watched the Prince William and 'Princess' Kate's wedding, I was touched by the love they showed in their eyes.
And when William whispered "You look beautiful" to Kate, I just had to cry a bit.
And I'm sure I wasn't not the only one.
Isn't it ironic that people cry during the most glorious day in a couple's history?


Love is beautiful regardless of any religion, race and colour because our hearts look exactly the same.
I really hope William and Kate last forever.
If they kept looking at one another's eyes like they did on their wedding day, I believe they have nothing to worry about.