[Spain:Valencia] My first night out!

-The first night out, 08062012

I went out for the first time with my new friends in Spain!

It was actually sad day because it was last day of my dear new italian friend Giusy:(

We went to las animas for celebrating!

It is located near beach and hobor, and doesn't have a roof which is super nice.

Minji-Me-Dorien-Giusy-Rosie-Jessica

[Spain:Valencia] 20120601

-The way to Valencia, 01062012


I took the Airfrance to come to Valencia!
The food and liquor were really nice:D! The things that they offer champagne was very special. As soon as i took the plane, i ordered it! Here's photos of food and beverage.

Here is my plane! @ Incheon airport. 

(The best airport ever!)

Hongdae- Sangsang Madang

Cultural Complex Space - Sangsang Madang in Hongdae


Sangsang Madang opened in 2007 by KT&G. This building has seven floors above the ground and four underground. It's a quite a big space. It was built for the non-mainstream artists who don't have any space to exhibit or play performances. And also for the people who want to enjoy and learn cultural life. In the building, there are variety of facilities such as gallery, theater, and live hall. I made this as a chart for you to understand easily. 

6F	Café  –provide coffee, snacks, beer, and wine. Tue-Thur 12pm-24am, Fri-Sat 12pm-1am, 02-330-6232
5F	Studio - A studio for art photographers, and photography class. AM 10:00 ~ PM 22:00 Tel) 02-330-6229
4F	Academy  – provide art, picture, and writing lecture to the public. Give an opportunity to meet artists and learn from them in person. PM 01:00 ~ PM 10:00, Tel) 02-330-6226
2,3F	Gallery – Introduce finge group of arts to the public. Exhibition of pop art, media art and experimental performances. AM 11:00 ~ PM 22:00 ,Tel) 02-330-6224
1F	Design square - Promotion and exhibition design products of promising designers. They sell the products such as living products or fashion accessories. AM 12:00 ~ PM 23:00, Tel) 02-330-6221
B2	Livehall -a place that you can watch a concert of an indie band or a new band. Tel) 02-330-6212
B3	Cinelab  Support to make a film and provide a space where people can interchange their information about movie Tel : 02-330-6230
B4	Cinema -a cinema for independent films.  Tel) 02-330-6263

All the photos from official website

 I recommend this place because you can have all the cultural experiences at one place. It's like a Pompidou center in Korea. Most of contents in this place might not familiar with, but it's a great opportunity to see and experience up-to-date arts. But their programs are always changing so I recommend you to check out the official homepage before your visit. Here's the official website. 
http://www.sangsangmadang.com/


*Location 

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Shinsa - Y-Spa

Relaxing in Seoul - Y-Spa


Y-Spa is run by famous french cosmetic company 'Yonka.' Yonka is famous for its aroma therapy cosmetics with 60 years history. The reason why I visited Y-Spa was I was satisfied with their cosmetic products such as Gel Nettoyant and Creme 15. And their spa was likable, too.


Just like other spas in Korea, it's not cheap at all. But comparing to hotel spa, it's worth to visit like once a year or month. Especially to the girls, it's important to be relaxed and take care of their looks. Once in a while, girls should enjoy this kind of honor. In addition, there is a couple spa for a couple who wants to make a special memory with a girlfriend or boyfriend. And I would say it's not a bad idea. 


Y-Spa's offering various programs such as aroma stone therapy, detox treatment, and slimming treatment. I had an aroma stone therapy and it made me really relaxed. It was like all of my stress went away. And you can also have only facial treatment with their products. Depend on your skin type, program will vary. There are acne, hydration, and pore care etc. The price of body treatment approximately 60000 to 150000won for half an hour. And the facial treatment is from 70000won to 100000won depend on time. 


There are branches in Jamsil, Dogok, and Incheon etc. So when you are so stressful and tired, you can visit nearby branch.

                                                Photos from official website

*Information

http://www.y-spa.co.kr/

Tel :02-3448-4848

*Location

Shinsa building 7F

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Gangnam - Between night and music

Paradise for 8090 in Gangnam 밤과 음악 사이


It's a new and hot place in Gangnam thesedays for people who was born in 80s. It used to be a Club Harlem but it changed into a unique bar named "Between night and music." It almost looks like a just club but songs they play are Korean pops which were famous in late 90s. They play songs of H.O.T, Shinhwa, G.O.D, S.E.S,Turbo,DIVA and DJ D.O.C etc. Those singers' songs would make you feel nostalgic for the time when you were student.


Because they play songs that 20s have listened throughout their school years once, so you can find people sing and dance after songs enthusiastically. It is quite a unusual scene but very interesting, too. People can request songs what they want to hear, I once request "Ppuyo Ppuyo by UP."


At first, I just thought it's an weird place, but I changed my mind once I entered. I got so excited and elevated with my favorite songs in my school years. So if you want to feel nostalgia about your school years, I strongly suggest to visit once. For foreigners, it would not be familiar with these songs but it could be a chance to learn about original K-pops.


In weekends, it might be hard to get a seat. I recommend to go there as soon as possible. Peak time is from 12am to 3am and entrance fee is 10000won.

*Location (It's located across Su Karaoke.)


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Sinchon- ECHO

Limitless beer for 10000won -ECHO

Echo is my favorite pub in Sinchon. I usually don't go Sinchon for a drink but whenever I go there, Echo is my one and only choice. You might wonder why, but there's a quite good reason to choose this place all the time. First one is its atmosphere, Second is a clean bathroom, and the third one is that they offer beer without limitation for 10000won!! I believe there's no more good reason to choose a pub. 

They used to provide various beers such as Miller, Heineken, Corona, Asahi, and Smirnoff ice. I don't know why but nowadays they're offering only Miller and Heineken. But still it's a good deal I believe. However, remember you have to order side menu for this and tell them you want this deal before you order something. FYI, my personal record was 9 bottles!

Including limitless beer, there are lots of good things about this place. I love its interior design which is very wide open and private at the same time, their music, and food. But if you prefer someplace quiet, it's not the right place. But if you want to listen to club music and be excited, it's worth to visit sometime. 

*Location

* Unfortunately, I couldn't find any more information like phone or website. So I'll add more details after my next visit. But if you want to know more about this place, contact me anytime!

Seolleung - Scarlett

My favorite american dining -Scarlet

I realize I've never posted about western restaurants in my blog. Probably it's because there are too many western restaurants in Korea already, and most of them are good. So it was hard to choose the best. Anyway I choose my favorite, Scarlett in Seolleung. But it's not because it's exceptional or outstanding comparing to other restaurants. I don't know the specific reason, but this place has always been no.1 to me. Maybe their food is always good and it's not crowded with lots of people. The taste of food is important but I believe overall atmosphere of restaurant is also very crucial. That is the reason why I adore this place so much.


 I have visited this place for 3 years I assume, but the truth is that it's not as good as what it used to be. One years ago, Scarlett had a big renewal which was a little bit disappointing. They cut back the menu, and increased the price of food. I'm sorry about their decision but the taste and atmosphere is the same like before. 


My favorite menus are beef pilaf and trio steak. Beef pilaf is very well-seasoned, and the beef on the top of rice is tender and juicy. And it's one of the cheapest menu here. But after the renewal, it can be served only at lunch. The trio steak is literally served with three different types of steaks. It consists of grilled lobster steak, sirloin, and prime rib eye steak. It's a big benefit that you can have all these at the same time. And also their pizza is spectacular so I recommend to have it. It's big and tasty.

Even there has been an unsatisfactory renewal, but still Scarlett is my favorite because of its quiet atmosphere and reasonable price of food. And sometimes you can watch live jazz concert, so check out the website. http://www.scarletts.co.kr/


*Location


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Korean Restaurant 3. Bobone Kitchen

Fusion Korean Food in Apgujeong -Bobone Kitchen


This is the last post of introducing Korean restaurants series. Two of them I posted already was traditional Korean restaurants, but I know some foreigners might not be familiar with traditional food, and also Korean might want something different and special Korean food. Bobone Kitchen I'm going to talk about is a premium fusion Korean restaurant from Bennigan's.

My favorite menu is a bowl of rice with steak toppings. I love rice and steak both but it's not easy to have them both at the same time. So I was really excited when I found this menu in the Babone Kitchen.

I am also a big fan of Bulgogi Bibimbop they serve which looks like a hamburger. I loved this idea so much because I believe decorating is very important for introducing Korean food to the world. I think this hamburger shaped Bibimbop can appeal to foreigners. 

What I loved the most about this place is they use only fresh ingredients and don't use so much salt for serving well-being food to customers. And they also provide healthy dessert like kale and yam juice. I think also traditional Korean food is good, but this kind of fusion Korean dishes also have to be developed for globalization of Korean food.

*Information
Phone:02-517-3902
Business Hour: 11am -10pm


*Location

Korean Restaurant 2. Happiness in the Yard

Myeongdong - Small Happiness in the Yard (뜰안의 작은 행복)

I believe Myeongdong is the most famous and popular place to foreigners.There are lots of shops, restaurants, and department stores to enjoy.However, You can easily notice that Myeongdong is a very, very busy and noisy town with lots of traffics and people. So you might want to find someplace quiet and peaceful. And that is the reason why I want to introduce this Korean restaurant where you can escape from all these chaos. 

                                                            photo from official website

Its one of the popular menus is a course menu. They provide 14 cuisines starting with the Korean traditional soup to desert. But they serve it only in dinner time. What is good about course menu is you can enjoy various Korean food that you can't have in normal Korean restaurant such as Tangpyeongchae (Mung bean jelly mixed with vegetables and beef) which is famous for King's food in Chosun Dynasty. But course menu starts from 20dollars, so you may feel it's expensive. These are photos of course menu.

                                                          Photos from ymis9482's blog

 

But when you visit at lunch, you can enjoy one-course dish. Even though it's not as fancy as course menu, it's less expensive and delicious, too. My favorite was Tteok galbi(meatball made with galbi) jungsik. I guess it's much more reasonable and delicious than course menu actually. So when you visit at Myeondong daytime for shopping or entertainment, you can have a lunch here  if you want something different. But for dinner with the big fat check? All I can say is you can have much better food with 25dollars!

Tteok Galbi Jungsik

*Information
Official Website: http://www.inhappy.co.kr/
Phone: 02-975-3429
Open: 11:30 


*Location

Korean restaurant 1. Todamgol

Chungdamdong "Todamgol"


 I don't know why but nowadays it is very hard to find Korean restaurant where serves decent Korean food. Maybe it's because there are too many western restaurants and lots of people prefer it to Korean restaurants. So I will start the series of introducing nice Korean restaurants in Seoul for someone who visit Korea from overseas or who is looking for  a real nice one. And first place I want to introduce is Todamgol which is located in Chungdamdong. 


 Chungdamdong is probably the most hip place in Seoul. You can find many of modern cafes,restaurants and boutiques. But if you look more into this place, you will find something else you didn't expect. Just like Todamgol. 


 Even though it is located in the most expensive town in Korea, but the price of food is very reasonable. Most of main dishes are less than 10dollars. And the taste of food is very, very nice. The dishes they serve is traditional Korean food with a homemade style such as Bibimbop, Doenjang Jjigae (soybean stew),bulgogi  and Seafood Pajun (Korean style pancake or pizza) etc. And the number of side dishes are more than 10 including oysters, seasoned raw crabs, and tofu etc.


 If you're a foreigner, you can experience real Korean food. And If you're Korean, you would think about meals that your grandmother made for you. I recommend you to make a reservation if you don't want to wait for a long time.

*Location 

Phone: 02-548-5114

Apgujeong - Pierrot Strike

*Hip Place in Apgujeong


"Pierrot Strike" is located in the first floor of Designer Club in Apgujeong. It's a pub where you can enjoy billiard, bowling, and dart game. It's very popular these days among so called 'Gangnam people.' Since lots of celebrities visit here, you'll see Big Bang or Super junior if you're lucky. Kim Yuna the figure skater is a frequenter, too. The things that good about this place is you can enjoy different drinking culture from Korean's. It's not only focused on drinking, it's more like a playground for adults. 

  With all these entertainments, you can get some beer from other countries such as Tsingtao, San miguel, Beck's, xxxx, and VB. If you want to have a dinner, consider that they also sell pasta, pizza, and salad. However, those are a little bit expensive comparing to other restaurants and also they add 10% of taxes.  So I suggest having a dinner near here, then you can get some beer and enjoy all these entertainments in Pierrot Strike.


In the daytime, they run brunch cafe only, so you can't use facilities like billiard or bowling. I've never been here in the day time so it's hard to tell its taste. But as I heard, it's tasty but pricey just like any other restaurants in Apgujeong. They offer sandwiches, salad, and egg scrambles etc. 

  I sometimes visit here when they throw a party. Because Its atmosphere is more casual and comfortable than real clubs. Also there are great performances at the party night. But there is a chance that you will wait more than 1hour when there is a party. So I recommend you to go there at early night. 

* Information

business hours : 6pm to 3am

fee: bowling 5000won/1game  bowling shoes rental 1500won

contact: 02-6007-8889
http://www.pierrotstrike.co.kr/

*Location