In front of the house

On our way out from the frontyard of our home sweet home in Imundong, Korea. The 30-minute preparation every time we go out is hinted on the thick jackets with its pheriperal outfits that go along with them. It is Winter: the simplest reason as to why we dress up like this.

The house visage does indicate one of the major characteristics of Korean houses; especially the one for rents. The red bricks dotted the houses’ visage.  We love the house since it has a relatively wide open frontyard where our daughters can play or ride on their bikes in Summer ( a long time to wait, eh).

Blocks from Toys R Us

One of the presents that our daughters had in Korea. The Blocks. 

The party for the girls was not over yet. They were so excited of having been able to play the stacks and builds.

Look at their faces when they opened up the boxes of treasures.

It was actually almost midnight, but the excitement that they had really overpowered their tiredness(?).  All of kinds of imaginable shapes and things they could build were already in their minds.

At times they seem to have no feeling of being tired or bored of trying to build up new things. Good exercise, I guess.

Cheongnyangni at Night

We did not know that we spent almost half a day there. No, I mean...a few hours from late in the afternoon until early in the evening. That was the reason as to why we could see how Cheongnyangni looked like at night.

As for the other occassion whenever we go out, we also took the time to capture the moment. This time, Wawan—our friend—managed to be inside our picture .

The lighted xmas tree did shine up daringly in the midst of the crowd. Even some LED lights displays on the high wall of the store added up the Winter season’s atmosphere in the vicinity. The wind was blowing hard that time, the freezing temperature was also meagerly zipping through the loops in our not-that-thick jackets...^^

 Been fun being there, though.

So Tired of Shopping

In a good sense. Freya and Eyra had to undergo such a tremendous ‘ordeal’ of having to be with their parents who were busy taking their time off to shop. I know that it must be so tiresome and boring for them to be inside the mall without having nothing to do...but just tagging along their parents. (Of course, there were times when they were soooo excited of finding a new playground where they could spend some time there in da midst of our shopping spree).

But, the feeling of being here in the first days and having to do some out-shopping must have been so exhausting for them. Wefelt sorry for them, for sure, but  they had to be with us.
So sleepy were they....that they just fell asleep inside the cart, especially Eyra. As for Freya, she just fell asleep so soundly on the bench while we were waiting for the line at the cashier.
I think this Dept. Store is the easiest to get with and the nearest to our home.

Cheongnyangni at Daylight

 

It was the maiden trip to Lotte Mart and Lotte Dept. Store and its Toys R Us Store at Cheongnyangni station—which was just about 15 minute ride by Metro from our home. The first day out for the family afterwards was.....taking them to the nearest Mall—apart from sightseeing, it was also meant to do shopping on the house utensils: especially those we need to fill up the house...^^. We did buy some stuffs there. It was good that we found what we needed there.

The kids loved the first trip in Seoul despite the fact that it was freezingly cold for tropical people like us. ^^. But hey...it was fun to have this one Day out.  The big Pine xmas tree stood up right in front of the dept. store highlighted the spirit of being there. Well, the nuance itself was enough to make us feel that Winter season did set in in the neighborhood.  With the bright yellow and orange winter jackets that our daughters were wearing, we were like smoothering the spots on the vast lane of the yard where the tree stood. The huge black hole or ( I’m sure what that was) whatever-it-might-be was another center point that attracted our attention.  Till now..I do not know what that was.
Lots of pics were taken. Most ( all ) of them were taken by our dearest friend, Wawan who accompanied us along the way.

The First Korean Food: Deolseot Bipimbab

Since we had yet any tools to cook, we got no choice but to go outside and had something for dinner. The only thing that came to my mind was deolseot bipimbab –my favorite food. It was a good thing that I have a regular place to go whenever I want to have this specialties.

The ajumma at this siktang has been sooo nice and generous to me that I never skip any deolseot bipimbab at her place whenever I have this appetite for this one. This is something that I treasure most.
So, I took my family, along with Seonhee and Wawan to have late-lunch together. The kids loved it soo much. It was a good choice since the veggies were a lot and the banchan or side dishes were also thoroughly good.
Eyra and Freya did love it. It was good to know that they could enjoy their first Korean

Being home for the first time...: house warming

Our family was greet by our friends who have been so helpful and dear to us. Wawan, Min Seonhee, and Cha Heeran or our Yuliana sonsaengnim were the first friends to greeted us at home.

It was a relived feeling to have such lovely friends like them. Wawan helped us by managing the first dinner for us.

Once again...we did not have time or better yet...we had not dared ourselves to try any Korean food since it was our first time (at least to my wife and the kids).

So, Wawan ordered Seoul Cheeze Pizza..^^ (another Koreanized western food). It is the pizza near our campus . We eat a lot—to be truthful. ^^. It is relatively inexpensive and delicious. ^^. And...they have veggie pizza and cheeze pizza and potato pizza that we love.

 

Anyway...the first house-warming was held on Dec. 10, 2011...simply because our friends were ready to help us there. Good, eh?
Then, after our friends bid goodbyes for our first night in Seoul.....my kids continued their night-time snacking  before going to bedJ ^^...well, another left-over pizza, then......

I still vividly remembered the first time they enjoyed their time with their Daddy in Korea....^^.
And what’s more: Eyra just loved meeting with her new friends.....lots of dolls that I had prepared for them. She just loves them.

Lotteria for Lunch

 It was actually lunch time and yet we had not had anything to eat...
So, the only thing that I had come to get familiarized myself with is....Lotteria. Since we were still at Seoul Station, the best thing to do was getting into Lotteria ...which turned out to be so crowded during lunch hour. Then, I noticed that Lotteria offered a special discounted price for lunch menu. Oh...I see.

That’s why lots of people were jammed sitting on almost all seats available and visible there.  The only way to get any seat was just patiently waiting for any customers who’d finished their lunch. It  paid off...after 10 minutes or so we managed to secure seats for us to enjoy our Shrimph burgers. The kids loved the french fries.
I know...I know...it was the first day in Kore

a...and yet...we had not Korean traditional menus for the family...instead it  was Korean-style westernized burger^^....well..at least it was Korean brand^^.

Or .....that was not the exact reason as to why we ate there.....first, I came there often. Second, it was fast (fast foodJ), third: we needed to skip time...and fourth....hey....it turned out to be a good dealJ ^^.

The first train (a.k.a. AREX & Metro) ride in Seoul

  

I planned to pick up my family via AREX since it was cheaper than that of taking the Limousine Bus. Apart fromt that, I also wanted to make sure that my family could enjoy the best of their time even from their first day of arrival in Korea....i.e. by taking the train back to Seoul.

Eyra and Freya were so excited as they could see the first glimpse of what Korea was like through the windows of the AREX ...of course ...before the train subduing itself into the underground tunnel that would make it categorized into Metro or subway(back then).

Anyway...the  trip to Seoul by AREX and Metro turned out to be just fine...^^
After getting off at the Seoul Station where we had to transfer to Imundong where we live,  a diorama of a city with its trains operated by KORAIL  caught the attention of my kids.

So, we stopped there and let them enjoy their first enthusiasm of being in Seoul....despite the freezing winter breeze. They liked it, though.

Family Reunion in Korea

The topic of today is the arrival of my family that I had been waiting for. Finally, it was December 10, 2011: the day when my family came to Korea.

I just could not wait to meet the angels: Eyra and Freya: my daughters who (I’m sure) missed me as well.

I prepared for the day with lots of preparations. One thing for sure: the two-room house that we rent was ready right before they came. In fact, I moved into the new home the night before they came to Korea.

OK...shortly speaking: I woke up early to go to Incheon International Airport (IAA) by AREX (Airport Express) from Seoul Station. I thought it was one of the best highlights that Seoul has to offer for all of the world travellers.

From Seoul station, it took only 50 minutes or so to the IAA. In the wee early hour, I managed to arrive at the airport just in time to meet my family. I was happy as well as nervous for having to wait for their arrival. It was like a feeling of having to meet them for the first time.
Anyhow...the information board at the arrival hall finally showed that the Garuda Flight from Jakarta had just landed safely. I was ecstatic. Could not wait to meet my family. After for about 45 minutes of waiting.....after their landing....I finally managed to see and meet them again after 3 months. ^^

I could see the surprised and can-not-believe look on my daughters’ faces as they were running towards me. Their expressions were like....”So, it  IS true that Daddy is IN Korea just like Mommy told us.” Funny, eh? Well, I mean...for the past three months...the only way we connected to each other was through phone, internet, or Skype-ing.

So, it was like too-good-to-be-true kind of feeling.
Being united again....was so deliberately .....freshly ....indescribably....soothing.
Ok...then..came the hugging and kisses moment.....ignoring the fact that we were in the midst of others. But.....it was unplanned for.
Then...came the time when we had to keep up with one another. My angels never let their hands off me as soon as we met...right until we got ourselves to Seoul by AREX again.

In between, we managed to take some pictures as tokens of memories of their arrival to Korea. At that time, IAA was already decked with the Season’s best greetings and nuance and atmosphere. X-mas was everywhere...or should I say... the Winter festivities were alreay there as if to meet and greet all of the travellers who came to Korea during this Winter.
All in all...it was such a great day....one thing for sure..because I met my family again....^^

Edible Snowman and Sock

Since I got to make sure that the kids love their time to the best of their heart's content...
I got to think of any ways of anything that would go with this.
So, the other night...we had a chance to have dinner with one of the professors from HUFS.

Afterwards, the kids got another present from the professor, i.e. Donuts.

Well, since it was Christmas time...(well...approaching)...the only thing that surely captured the atmosphere is Xmas...and I never thought that the business really is...into this season's.

Even the Donuts' shapes.

So, edible donut in the imaginable shapes of snowman, socks, pine trees were all that matters.

They looked too good to eat...but we did eat them eventually.

My daughters loved it soo much. At least..that was their dinner.

the warm and cozy room of our two-room home sweet home added the warmth in the midst of Winter in Korea....with some pieces of donuts on hands...ready to be rolled up into the mouth....^^

Two Families on the Go

We were taking the Metro from Namdaemun on our way back home to Imundong when we bumped into a family of six from Malaysia who turned out to be having their Winter vacation in Korea. Wow what a coincidence. We felt like brothers already since we came from Southeast Asia. What struck me most when we met them was the fact that the family of six came to Korea for their Winter vacation to see the snow...but unfortunately..they did not see any, yet.

We chatted along the way on the Seoul Metro and got a chance to exchange address and promised to keep in touch.

I was touched by the fact that they did enjoy having their one-week trip in Korea.

and...what's more interesting than that....was the fact that they brought up 70%  of the family members. (I mean: two stayed home due to their jobs back home). But.....the idea of having a trip for the whole family to Korea was more than intriguing for me.

Before saying goodbye..we managed to take a picture as a token of memory at the Dongdaemun Station.

It's been a while since I last blogged it out

I think it's been two-week off season for me:) I mean..I've been so busy preparing for the last term's exam on Korean languaage as well as my preparation to welcome my family to live in Korea during my 4-year study here. What a hectic (but hey..it's a wonderful one) life here.
I have been busy moving out from the dorm to our two-room house near campus.
I was lucky to have such friendly friends who helped me out when I got to move into the new house.
The thing is....
there have been so many things going around me in my campus that I got to make sure I can keep up with them.
I got sooooo many stuffs to tell on the blog but yet...to do so.
so....guess I'd better wait till I got some time off...afterall...I just started my 5 level term in Korean language. I mean....I can't believe it myself that now I AM having my 5 level of Korean class. Really?
I'd better check and re-check as to whether I AM capable of being at this level.
So...the only way to find it out is by taking a TOPIK test next year on January 29.
Already registered myself.
Got to prepare for it.
And...Hope for the best.
Ok...my friends and fellows out there...pls. wait for more blogs and entries on my site.
I am sorry for not checking this out often lately.
But I do promise to keep posting more stories on Korea and my life around it.....sooooooon.
till then..enjoy reading my previous blogs.
It's been like minus 10 degrees lately in Seoul (especially)...and I love it....^^ (really?) brrrrrrrrrr

Night Shopping

It was meant to be a usual night-out for dinner--nothing else.
What was supposed to be a dinner-then-go-straight-home occasion turned into a prolonged night of shopping. Not to our nearby E-Mart--where we mostly go.....BUT to a 20-minute-ride-by-metro shopping center called HOME PLUS at Yongdo station.

On the way back home...

It was supposed to be me and Wawan having dinner.
Then....Ilya, my friend from Kazakhstan, reminded me as to whether I wanted to go to E-mart for daily shopping.
As I had also a plan of going out for buying some stuffs, I asked him out to go to Homeplus, instead. Afterall, I've been meaning to ask Wawan to go there as I had promised him some weeks ago. ^^
So, here we were.
Three of us were walking down to the Metro station when someone we knew showed up walking towards us. It was Elmira.

Since she was actually not in the mood of going back to the dorm--well, she kinda like to stay out for some more shopping....as I learned, so...she decided to join us.
---off we went to Home Plus....thinking that it was like weekend. Well, in fact...we ARE in the midst of holiday.

After 20 minute ride from our campus, we got there at about 8 pm. Since the store opens 24 hours, it did not matter what time we got there as it'd be open as usual.
We started our shopping journey from the food and fresh market section where we encountered lots of discounted foodstuffs. We bought some potato crisps and other stuffs.
Then..we went to fashion and toys section where we spent most of our time. We were like zoomed into the labyrinth of endless temptations since Winter fashion was on sale. Wawan, Ilya, and Elmira were undoubtedly tempted to buy some for themselves. As for me, I bought some gloves for my daughters.
let's highlight what we bought: Emmi could not decide which one to choose to buy, as to whether the red sweater or the blue one. She ended up buying BOTH:) *chuckles*

on our way back home. hwajangsil? ^^ (it's a toilet)

Ilya bought this dog-shaped pencil-case where he put his three little mice that he bought into it. So, instead of mice eating cat, he made a funny rendition of mice eating dog:)
As for Wawan, he could not decide as to what kind of sweater to buy--just like what Emmi was experiencing. But, he bought one in the end-the better one.

Then....we went to the 2nd floor where electronic section was. We checked out the prices of rice cooker, camera, television set, toaster, mixer, and others that we might need to buy later on.
The time flew so fast that we had to rush home since it was already 11 pm.
As a token of our memories of doing some midnight shopping, we took some pictures as posted on this entry.

Jobir's Birthday

I was walking down the backyard of the main building at HUFS when I spotted a familiar figure hurrying up towards the building. It was Jobir--my friend. He was unusually cloaked in a suit like he was going to have some job interview.

(note: the picture does not correspond to the story cos it was taken right after the birthday bash, actually)

Indeed, he DID have an interview for the final exam. But, it turned out that that was not the reason as to why he was wearing a formal attire. It was his birthday. :)










Wow..that was nicely cool.
So, I got his invitation to come over for his birthday bash.
---












The class (I mean...the exam's over)...and I got back to my room only to find another message reminding me of Jobir's birthday. We were going to Mr. Pizza.

--Jobir, Maya, Felix, Wawan, Polina, and some
other friends were ready to have the party. Since it was colder than the day before, we dressed up in winter jacket....only to find that the birthday boy stood up distinctively wearing his suit.












 I think that was a good decision of him to wear one since he looks cool in it. It compliments him.












So, we're having this good pizza.: a large cheese pizza and a potato sweet pizza.
In short, after a quick break .....










and off...we started the party by digging into the delicious pizza.

So, Jobir...Happy Birtday.
May All of the wishes come true.
Amiiin.