What did I eat in South Korea?

This is a special food edition that could only be possible thanks to the dear friend I was traveling with. The title of this post could easily be “Portraits of the Author with Food” because every single photo that was taken of a snack or meal I had in Korea, featured myself as the focal point.

Enjoy this post featuring food, and me. 

1. Food I wished I had but didn't:  oh so much, soondobu, chijime, more street food, Korean Ice cream
2. Food I had but wished I didn't:  our first Korean BBQ meal was disappointing, expensive and best unoriginal, like any old place in LA or Japan, nothing that said “oh, I really am in Korea."
3. What should have been on the list: more casual, local joints, and places around universities (they are cheaper and better)
4. Biggest surprise: street food – I was so pleasantly surprised with the quality and variety
5. Most delicious meal: Korean BBQ at a very famous place that I can’t remember the name of and sadly, I may never find again…

Restaurants: caveat, I know none of the restaurant names, since we just happened upon whatever place and decided to eat there.

Bibimbap: a favorite of mine

Korean BBQ - twice!

first time: a touristy and expensive place that was mediocre

second time: an popular and cheap place that was phenomenal

Dokkboki, fish cake, and Kimbap

rom a small joint near the university. We literally pointed to three pictures on the menu outside, and got none of the three items. But what we got was delicious!

Street food

Tornado Potato: 

a Curly deep friend potato on a giant stick. Fun and delicious

grapes in a sugary glaze

Western food:

KFC

more on my obsession with Korean KFC here

Cupcakes

Coffee

Korea is obsessed with coffee. I wrote an entire post on it here

Photo Diary: Best of Seoul

Some beautiful memories of my three-day weekend in Seoul with my best friend from Japan. It was March, and in northern Asia March is still practically winter. It was very cold and were still wearing thick coats. Seoul’s street were alive with light and color.

KFC in Korea

I fell in love with KFC in Seoul for the first time in the Incheon Airport on layover form Los Angeles to Hong Kong. I almost never eat fast food in the united states, so it still perplexes me why I chose KFC, of all places, to dine at on my first trip through Incheon. Maybe I didn’t know what else to get. Maybe I felt like something familiar. Whatever the reason, I fell in love with South Korea’s spicy and soft fried chicken. That chicken lived in my mind for so long that I insisted my friend and I return to KFC on our 3-day trip to Seoul.

It was the only meal we had that doesn’t belong in a list of typical Korean dishes. Maybe I’ve just gotten a little older  and my tastes have changed, but the chicken was not quite as good as I remember it. Still nice and spicy though.

I was also pleasantly surprised to find egg tarts there, which is the KFC special in Taiwan. The egg tarts in Korean KFC were not as good as the ones in Taiwanese KFC, but it was still evoked a little nostalgia. 

The journey to Seoul from rural Japan

Kansai Airport Station

Going back through old albums I realized I never wrote that much about my trip in Seoul in March of 2014. I was living in rural Japan, busy working during the week, and at that time in March, I was preparing for two overseas guests to visit me for a moth. I probably didn’t have time to reflect on all the interesting things I experienced in Seoul. I was probably consumed with preparation for my guests, planning more trips, and just trying to get through the day. My three-day adventure in Seoul with one of my best friends was a wonderful experience, and deserves a place on this blog.

So I will begin again, as all things begin, with a journey.

I am surprised after taking this long trip from my provincial village to a major airport so many times that I never bothered to record how long and cumbersome it was. That is truly a feet in and of itself. Here is the breakdown:

1.    40minutes: Drive my car from my small village (Kawamoto) to a bus stop in a nearby but slightly larger town (Oasa). The drive is on a one-lane road with no street lamps. In the dark, it's a little lonely and scary. There are often monkeys, boar, or other animals that come out onto the road so you must be very alert and careful. 9 out of 10 times I would be the only car on the road for the entire journey. I remember this feeling like the lonliest part of the trip.

The road from my village to the bus stop

2.    1 hour and 20 minutes: Board the Iwami Express from Oasa station to Hiroshima Station. This bus come every hour and takes people from Oasa (on the outskirts of Hiroshima prefecture) to the main Hiroshima Station. It is quite popular and usually fills up by the time we get to the station. I always rode this bus because the only bus that comes directly to Kawamoto leaves only once a day, and doesn’t line up well with things like flight schedules.

3.    1 hour 30 minutes: As soon as I arrive at Hiroshima Station I jump on the Shinkansen (bullet train) to Shin-Osaka station. If I am traveling during peak season I will have tried to purchase my shinkansen ticket a week or so in advance. Otherwise, I just buy it at the station for the next departing train. They leave from the upper platform, so then I ascend the escalator, find my reserved seat on the train, and relax for an hour and a half.

4.    50 minutes take local train (Limited Express Haruka) from Shin-Osaka Station to Kansai Airport Station. Once I arrive in the bustling Shin-Osaka station, which feels worlds away from my tiny quiet village, I maneuver through the crowds to transfer to a local train which will take my directly to Kansai airport. I can usually get a seat on the train, and the journey lasts for almost an hour.

5.    2 hours: Board a plane from Kansai Airport to Incheon Airport. The business at the airport is usual – I arrive about two hours early, get my tickets, and go through security. Japanese airports are pretty efficient and predictable. For this particular trip to Seoul, I met my friend at the airport station and we got out tickets together. Though I had been traveling all day, it felt like my trip began at that moment.

6.    1 hour: Ride the Express train from the Airport to Seoul Station. Once we landed in Seoul, we were relieved to find that their train system is just as robust and efficient as Osaka’s or Tokyo’s. It was very easy to catch a train from the airport to the main station, but it did take almost an hour.

The long train ride from the airport to Seoul

Total travel time: 7.3 hours, not including waiting at the airport, or the waiting for buses or trains in transit. In other words: all damn day.

Back to school special

Sunglasses: from a museum in Hong Kong

Bag: Inujirushi, from Tokyo

Hat: made by my mama

Jacket: Urban Outfitters

Shoes, Dress: Target