Seeing Off Om Wawan & Tante Ulfa...

We arrived earlier so that we made sure that we'd be able to meet them.

We didn't tell them that we'd come to the airport...^^ 

Jakarta-bound Asiana Airlines was scheduled at 4.55 pm..so we had ample time to meet .... 

Om Wawan and Mbak Ulfa have been our close friends, neighbors, and even families... 

As for me, I came to Korea together with Om Wawan...back in 2011. That's why we've been close..very much close... 

and after mbak Ulfa came along, our wives got along well and we lived our lives in Korea together.. 

Doing practically..lots of stuffs together...^^. 

That's why..it's like a must-do task, not that..should-do one...that I, along with my family, went to Incheon airport to see them off personally. 

Group picture, please. Have a great flight, om and tante. 

Till we see again...in Indonesia or anywhere.

Freya and Eyra have surely been close and got along well with om Wawan. Undoubtedly. 

and these two ladies...^^ they've been sharing lots of memorable moments in Korea.. 

That's why...it's been such a bless to have known them and being close with them. 

Bye-bye Om Wawan...Tante Ulfa...

Keep in touch.

Wassalammu'alaikum.^^

Winter's Tale ^^

We still had some reminiscences of what we did over our winter's vacation. One of them is how those two little daughters of mine insisted that they had their own trolley to bring along all the way through the concourses leading up to the Gate. 

And..the fact that they loved this winter vacation is something we treasured the most. 

"and...what do you think you're doing? and...

wait..where did you leave the other trolley, kids?"

Enjoying Craft Experience?

Yep..and that's what practically they're doing. It's officially 'the Year of the Horse' and what could entice travelers waiting for their flights to sit down and enjoy some cultural insight offered right here in Korea's Incheon Airport? 

Well...since it's (once again) Year of the Horse....they provided travelers like us a chance to experience 'Horse-related' craft-making. 

This time (around), Eyra and Freya chose the 'Color the Horse, please!' experience.

Picture of a seemingly (not-colored) horse printed on a wooden block was the object of "color-it-as-you-like" experience that lasted for about 40 minutes.

It turned out to be quite an inviting experience for foreigners who happened to be bumping into this section dedicated for foreign travelers (only). 

Well, of course, we wouldn't miss this great opportunity. After all...we were not in a rush to catch the plane--so to speak.

*Rate: I got to give it 10 out of 10 for Incheon Airport for providing travelers with this kind of activities. 

Alhamdulillah, Safely Arrived Back Home in Seoul

Alhamdulillah, we finally got back to Korea on February 11, 2014 as scheduled. Now we're ready for Spring Semester to start again. Eyra, Freya, and me, of course, are about to start another year at school:) as for Mama, she's ready to be there for all of us. 

Waiting for the *limousine* airport bus that would take us to Taereung. The comfy-bus cost 15,000 Won for adult and half of it for kids.

(*had we extended our vacation in Indonesia for a mere two days, we would have been stuck in Jogja for more than a week longer...due to the closure of major airports in Java during the eruption of Mount Kelud in East Java). 

So, Alhamdulillah we're back to Korea as scheduled. 

More Stories from Incheon Trip

The pictures are for decorative purpose only. It has no relation to the stories I am jotting down here whatsoever.

It took us 2 hour from our home in Seoul to reach Incheon Port. We took the subway at around 12 and reached the city at 2 pm. Then off we spent 2 hours at Incheon's China Town. 

After 2-hour tour in China Town, we took no.2 city bus that transported us to Wolmi island. 

Then we spent 4 hours at Incheon Port and Wolmido including a cruise ship for 4 of us. It was a worth-trying cruise should anyone want to visit Incheon. 

We booked the 6 pm cruise earlier so that we could have ample time to explore more of Wolmido before boarding on the ship. 

Fed the birds, strolling along the sea-side lanes full of restaurants offering mainly seafood, especially the 회 (hwe) or live seafood (which) at times are eaten raw.  

But what we did mainly was enjoying the afternoon with the whole family in a comparatively different setting than that of Seoul.

After all, it's one of the cultural and social immersion program that we design for our kids to know and explore more of the country they live in currently, i.e. Korea. 

That's why we travel to see more of what this country could offer us for the sake of our first-hand experiencing and living in Korea. 

On Board the Venus Cruise (part 1)

Freya:"The wind's blowing so hard, Daddy..palli..palli" 

Yes, we're on the upper deck and of course the wind's blowing fast enough to fly my hat... 

Why don't we take pictures here as well? 

After all, it's what we came here for, right? Taking memorable moments while we could. 

My verdict: Eyra and Freya would ask me again as to whether we could take a cruise again.  

Because even on board the cruise, they still did what they started to like doing: feeding the birds that kept on following where the ferry went to. 

I bought them the shrimp crackers for them to throw away into/feed the birds. 

Seemingly Surreal Pictures at Sea (part 2)

 

Tiny cars lined up on a ferry with black dots of birds swirling around the propelling ferry into the far-flung sea. A toy-like ship toyed above the sea. 

We were passing this ferry at a speed so fast that I got to take the moment of capturing this cute little ferry. Though it was not small in reality, it does look small in this picture..making it one of the surreal pictures I took during vacation. 

This one looks so so..but let me post it here anyway.

Wolmido (Part 7): Riding on a Mercedes Benz ^-^

 

It was indeed a Mercedes Benz. There were other luxury cars for the kids to enjoy. This remote-controlled car is for rent at Wolmido. Kids surely wanted to try on one of these. 

As for Eyra, it seemed to 'small' for her but ...as usual..she kept on insisting that she would be fit into it. And she was right. 

But..comparing the scale of the mini car and its surrounding, we can see clearly how small the car is. Once again...the monorail that dotted the landscape said something like: "Visit us again, someday". 

Mama...with their kids. 

They seemed to have their own world of imagination. 

"I love it!!"

Now let me get this straight: I wanted to try it on. But come on..I wouldn't fit into it. So..let's just take a picture with Daddy, too.

Wolmido (Part 6): A Ride on Mercedes Benz

5,000 Won/20 minutes.

One Mercedes Benz was enough to satisfy their curiosity. 

"This is how it works, Sis" 

'You work on the remote control while I drive, Okay?"

They took turn to operate the mini car.^-:) 

Eyra seemed to be too big to take on this bid of riding a car, even when it was a Mercedes Benz.^^ 

"Sis, come on..it's my turn" 

"Why don't we ride it together?" Eyra sulkily offered an idea. 

"Nope, you go ahead riding on it, Sis.' I'd better watch something else. 

But..since nothing else did matter, Freya took the steering wheel and got ready to take the car for herself. 

"Make it quick, Freya. We need to board the cruise ship pretty soon."