Before we knew it, the last week of classes at YISS was staring at us in the face. Four more days of walking those hills from SK Global house near East Gate towards the center of campus where classes were held. Two more days of studying our butts off to memorize and drill facts and vocabulary into our brains.
I guess the weather was helping us be more studious during the crunch period as mother nature decided to downpour most of the week, finally.
On a rare occasion that week, my friends and I made it out for either lunch or dinner. It wasn't the most extravagant meal. Naengmyeon 냉면 and goonmandoo 군만두 were both quick and affordable eats.
Another night a full-time foreign Yonsei student, who was one of our friend's roommate, took us to his hidden Japanese ramen spot in Edae. Boy was it one of those secret finds! Kayaa Kayaa 가야 가야 was located in one of the very narrow alleyways in Edae. The inside looked like a typical ramen shop with counter seating facing the kitchen and regular tables. While I remember it being a nice bowl of ramen, it doesn't hold the strongest spot in my food memory from Korea.
While I am used to chilly rain in New York, the storms in Seoul came with high humidity. One of our Korean language teachers helped us cool down with some refreshing ice cream, her treat!
But in reality, we were also in dire need of a break from studying for the 4-part language exam that was awaiting us in a couple days. Students at KLI have to be tested on all four aspects of the Korean language exam: listening, writing, reading, and speaking. I was pretty nervous for all parts of the test but speaking (i.e. one-on-one interview) was probably the most nerve-wracking.
Everyone had to sign up for an 8-minute time slot. Not wanting to be too scared out of my wits being the first few students, nor drag out my nervousness being the last few, I luckily secured my spot in the middle of the pack. The thing I feared the most was having a brain fart in the middle of the interview. We were already assured that the interviewer would be our own teacher, so my fears of not understanding what the examiner was saying were relieved. The biggest potential hurdle was being so nervous that I would forget everything we had studied and read everyday for the past few weeks.
Studying nights meant ordering in for our meals. The further along we got into the program, the more friends we all made. The more friends we made, the more food we were able to order and share at our dinner gatherings at the dorm lounge. Going out eating was fun and all but having the bonding time with friends was the most important aspect.
P.S. Boneless chicken, soonsal chicken 순살치킨, is love.
None of us had the energy or desire to go out after an exhausting afternoon of Korean language exams on that last Wednesday. Everyone settled for ordering Korean-Chinese as our celebratory meal.
Our time at YISS was almost nearing its end. Day 42 was the second to last weekend that we had together. Of all the things to do in Seoul, my friends and I all couldn't wait to go back to Hangang. Even though had we previously went in two separate groups on different occasions, everyone was still excited for the day's plans.
It was also a special day since we were joined by 2 new friends of friends. One was a Korean local our Californian friend met via the Facebook group for YISS. He was studying in the U.S. full time but came back to Yonsei for the summer program just like us. The other was a Canadian working in Hong Kong but came to visit our Australian friend where they met in France. Talk about being globally connected!
We started the day off late and decided to grab ramen from the Hyundai Department Store as it was conveniently located right by the Sinchon subway station.
The must do at Yeouido Park, for me at least, was renting a bike. It was easier and more freeing to ride a single bike but there were way more people out enjoying the weather that day. For those not extremely confident about their swerving and avoiding skills, the park is quieter earlier in the day.
So many families and groups of friends were out picnicking or just chilling by their tents. There is even a water park nearby where a lot of people were enjoying the pools for those who prefer that over bike ridess.
Our friends discovered this really great Korean-Chinese restaurant nearby the last time they went to Yeouido Hangang Park. (I think the place was called Hano Little China Star judging by other photos and video clips I have.) They had been craving the food from there ever since that fateful day and I was pretty excited to see just how awesome it was.
The must order items at any Korean-Chinese restaurant are of course jajangmyeon 자장면, jjambbong 짬뽕, and tangsooyook 탕수육. I could tell why our Cali friends claimed this spot was so delicious. The jajangmyeon I ordered was so nice. Typically the vegetables and meat are in really big chunks and cooked until very mushy. At this restaurant, all the veggies were cut to a small size and the meat was ground so everything didn't have to be cooked for that long (I assume). I don't know...maybe I'm spouting nonsense but I felt the sauce was killer here. Some one at our table ordered the bowl of jjambbong (spicy seafood noodles) and the bowl was humongous. It was impossible to even see the noodles underneath the pile of generous seafood ontop. If timing is right and this Chinese restaurant is still open, I would definitely go and devour as much as I can handle there.
We all tried rushing to see the last water show at Banpo Bridge since the Canadian/Hong Kong friend was interested in photographing it. We, unfortunately, missed most of it by the time we arrived. After listening to some performers nearby the Korean local friend took us on a bus ride to get back to Sincheon. None of us would have dared to brave the Seoul bus system had he not been with us. Luckily the number bus that we needed to take was right by the Banpo Bridge and would take us directly across towards home.
The night was never over without something sweet. We were introduced to a new place called Patmiok 小豆味 팥미옥 in Sincheon, which may be my all-time favorite bingsoo chain in Seoul. The shaved ice is extremely soft, snow-like, and milky. This place had one of the best ice consistencies of all that we tried. Even though the toppings look simple, both the mangos and chocolate cooking crunchies work so well with the milky ice. The only con was the shop closed pretty early (~10PM).
Another Thursday meant another class trip for my Asian art history class. This time, it was to Deoksugung 덕수궁. Our professor's original plan was to go to The Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art. However, an unexpected closure at the time brought us to Deoksugung instead.
Somehow I overslept that morning and had a mid-morning freakout. I had missed the start of class time by (at least) 30 minutes or more, which meant I completely miss the scheduled gathering time. I was faced with another crisis after rushing to get ready and left the dorms: the subway station was at least a 15-minute walk/jog away and taxis didn't stop right by the area closest to the dorms. I ultimately chose to wait for a taxi at the designated stand near the Yonsei Severance Hospital to try and save some time. Luckily the ride was only a short few minutes since all the palaces are relatively nearby to Yonsei University. If we were in any other city, a taxi wouldn't even be an option due to pricing but in Seoul the fares were affordable.
I had to purchase my own tickets in order to reunite with the class inside the palace walls. Even though this palace was the smallest of the 3 that we visited on our trips, I didn't find the class until I made a full circle of the place. Turns out I was so late and the palace was so small that they were already finished with their tour/lesson. Despite the rushed experience, I was still able to get a quick look at the structures. It was interesting to see more Western-style buildings here as Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung were very traditional. The museum in the mansion-esque structure was closed for renovation at the time.
By the time we got back to Sinchon I was starving. Bestie C and I found our way to Hyundai Department Store once again. This visit I opted to try something I had only seen videos on YouTube of and that was sujebi 수제비 or dough flake/hand torn noodles. Maybe the bowl of kalgooksoo I had left too strong of an impression on me but this bowl of sujebi wasn't all too exciting.
The highlight of the day that all my friends were patiently waiting for was the impending 4D movie experience awaiting us at the end of the night. A fellow student helped many others purchase tickets in advance to see Guardians of the Galaxy. Needless to say that was all I could think about throughout Korean class that afternoon.
Our movie was scheduled for 11:10PM. Korean BBQ was a unanimous choice for dinner. Filling our bellies with meat would help us last through the night. We ended up at Naemooban Sikdang 내무반 식당 that was along the way to the CGV theater. Even though this place wasn't AYCE, I think we still left pretty full without spending an obscene amount. The cuts of meat were definitely tastier and chunkier and the bean sprouts & scallion side dish was love.
With some time left to kill, our next stop was to a Baskin Robbins nearby. Our selection of choice? Probably one of the largest ice cream cup bucket that they offered! Since this size was calculated by weight, we went a little crazy with our selection of mishmash flavors we all enjoyed and wanted to try.
11:00PM came and we were finally at the Sinchon CGV theater. Other than the short Shrek 4D film ride at Universal, this was the only time I watched anything in 4D. It was something else to be sprayed at with water and perfumes, swooshed to and fro in the chairs, and bashed on by the massage like knobs every time an equivalent happened in the movie. While I only experienced it for a few minutes on the Shrek ride, this movie was a full-length feature film. Theater-going, at least for action movies, was forever changed for me that night.
The second to last week of the study abroad trip arrived before we knew it. Things always seem to come to an end when it is at it's best. I finally got comfortable with a routine in a foreign place and around my newfound friends, yet we only had mere 14 days left together. When all of us weren't busy with the school aspects of the experience, foods brought us all closer.
Bestie C and I went out (of campus) for the majority of our lunch breaks during the remainder of our time in Seoul. We didn't have a particular place in mind but found a small restaurant named Noodle Box during a stroll through Edae. They sold a variety of different stir-fried noodle dishes that were served in cardboard take-out style boxes. I ordered the migoreng since I had never tried it before, but cannot attest to the authenticity of what I had. Of the noodles and the spring rolls appetizers we got, I remember much preferring the latter bite.
Whilst on the hunt for lunch, Bestie C spotted the other liquid nitrogen ice cream shop that she had read about. Since we had more fruity flavors at Solid Works, we opted to try the dairy based versions at Lab Time. Oreo milk ice cream can never be a wrong choice. Tiramisu ice cream was a pleasant surprise. I think it had some cheesiness to it and the melted chocolate syringe made the experience extra exciting.
After discovering the West Gate area of Yonsei, our group of friends decided to see what else Yeonhui-dong 연희동 had to offer. We stumbled into Yeonhuidong Kalgooksoo 연희동 칼국수 by pure chance. All of us were hungry after a day of classes and I think many of us had to get back to our studies. Somehow our big group walked into the bottom-most floor of this noodle restaurant one night. The servers didn't speak much English but it wasn't an issue because there was 1 and only 1 item that this place served, it's eponymous dish. The only options given were small or big bowls.
In translation, the restaurant name simply meant knife-cut noodles from the Yeonhui neighborhood. But the bowl of noodles was far from plain. It may look like just a boring bowl of noodle soup with only a few strands of julienne carrots, egg, and scallions at first glance. But this was the best bowl of noodles I had. The broth was so flavorful but slightly under seasoned. Their spicy kimchi was seasoned well, crunchy and not too fermented (just the way I like it) so it balanced the broth just right when eaten together. This restaurant even offered a non-spicy white kimchi that tasted just as nice. It seemed like everything that was served matched my tastes exactly! My friends and I probably devoured every last morsel of food on the table that night.
Ice cream cakes from the big chains, in NYC at least, are pretty boring. If not all vanilla flavored, then all chocolate. If not either then a combination of the two. If none of the above then part cookies 'n cream and part sheet cake.
We were all amazed by the ice cream cake selection we saw at all the Baskin Robbins. One night when we gathered one of our biggest group together for a dinner outing, the dessert of choice was to share a cake rather than each buy our own little cups. There were about 9 different flavored cubes of ice cream in the cake that we picked and none were the basic options either.
Our cake was safe from the heat since we all chipped away at the blocks right away in the shop. Had we chose to share it in the comforts of our dorm lounge, there was no need to worry about rushing back with a melting cake either. The Baskin Robbins in Korea actually packs the cakes first in the typical cardboard cake boxes and then in another styrofoam container with dry ice. How awesome is that?
In case you haven't noticed already, I really enjoyed going to the Hyundai Department Store in Sinchon for food. Bestie C and I stumbled upon a Japanese ramen vendor called Magokoro and had to satisfy our ramen craving. Even though ramyeon is very popular in Korea, that is just the instant variety for noodle fare. Nothing really beats the taste and texture of fresh noodles.
At first, I was skeptical of the flavors since most foreign foods we've had in Seoul didn't turn out to be all too authentic. But the tonkotsu ramen from Magokoro was pretty spot on. It wasn't the best Japanese ramen I have ever had but it was a good replacement to fill the missing void.
There weren't very many restaurants that my friends or myself visited more than once in Korea. The exception was albab house 알밥 하우스 in Edae. It was convenient and very affordable with decent sized portions. I tended to order the rice bowls and during this particular visit I had the mixed katsudon, which was essentially donkatsu, shrimp tempura, and egg over rice.
