August Favourites

My monthly favourite for August is my new and improved skincare routine.

Ever since being exposed to the Korean skincare routine(yes... Korean... again...) (don't leave me please) and reading and listening about the huge hype, I decided to try it out. A friend also told me to try out Asian skincare as opposed to the Western skincare seeing how our skin type might differ from the Westerners. Never even thought about that so I'm glad someone told me.

So as Tania and I went to Seoul, we decided we should revamp our then skincare routine to a Korean one. Which required us to go shopping. And that's hardly ever a chore. Korean skincare lines are actually surprisingly affordable compared to the likes of Kiehl's and Mario Badescu and Dr. Murad (in which I've tried all and the only thing that's ever effective for me is MB's Drying Lotion - other than that, it was all a waste of moolah for me). From The Skin Food to Missha to Laneige to Tony Moly to Nature Republic, there were so many brands to choose from so what Tania and I did was try to get as many products from as many brands.

Since there are so many Korean brands, it was quite difficult to choose what to get because seeing how competition was stiff in the market, it is presumed that every brand would try to innovate and create the best product in the market. And all at a low price. 

So how does the infamous Korean skincare work?

I gotta admit, I've been slacking on my skincare (so it really is my fault) and the only thing I put on my face is moisturiser and eye cream. Obviously, that works perfectly for a lot of people (you lucky &*%$#@!, you!) but my skin is a little bit more high maintenance than that and I just wasn't bothered. 

There are 10 steps, sometimes even more according to what you like, in a typical Korean skincare routine so I'll share it here. I've been reading on this a lot lately so I'll try to summarise what I've learnt !

1 Make-up remover / Cleansing oil

This is such an important step because make-up is usually the culprit for acne. If you don't clean it properly, your pore gets clogged with the foundation and powder you wear and it doesn't really matter what you put on your face after, it's just not gonna work.

I'm still very loyal to my Garnier Micellar Water and I use it although sometimes I steal from Tania's cleansing oil - the Banila & Co.'s 'Clean it Zero' which is their best seller. It's such an interesting product though - you apply it clear but when it comes in contact with water, it turns a bluish purple colour and thus, melts away all traces of make-up. The Koreans are big on the gentle approach when it comes to washing their make-up off so they don't believe in rubbing your make-up with a make-up wipe or even with a cotton wool. How people use Clarisonic is beyond their comprehension!

2 Foam cleanser

If you're unaware of the 2-step cleansing system, this is what it's about. To ensure all dirt and sweat and excess oil and make-up and all that dirty stuff is completely off your face, the Koreans cleanse their face twice! For some people, this is already a step too many. But this was something I was already familiar with because I wear make-up and so I always wash my face twice to ensure that my face is as clean as it can get! It's said that you're supposed to allocate the same amount of time to wash your make-up as much as you allocated time to put in on in the first place. So if you take 20 minutes applying make-up, that means you should take 20 minutes off your time to wash it all off.

I'm currently using and absolutely loving Nature Republic's Snail Foam Cleanser. Yeap... snail. It's the newest biggest thing in Korea and every skincare brand has a line of snail products. Sounds icky and it is quite icky if you think about it - it's made of snail mucus but it's been acknowledged as one of the best cure for dark spots, wrinkles and age lines as well as acne so if you're aiming to have nice even skin, this is the best out there for you. For every shop we went, we were highly recommended the snail line and it is slightly more expensive than the other lines but I was curious to see how it worked!

3 Exfoliator

I don't do this daily but I always get excited using it. Why? Because you can literally see the dead skin peeling off from your skin. I'm using the one from Bio-Essence and it's the deep pore exfoliator. You won't use it too much though because then you'd be ridding your skin of its healthy nutrients. I do it about 3-4 times a week. I got myself a small bottle to test it out but I'm loving it loads. Your skin feels so much smoother, you just want to caress it all day. It also means that your skin is now properly prepped and primed for the following steps. 

4 Toner

Guys, I found the BEST SMELLING toner around!!!!!!!! It's an Aloe Vera one from Nature Republic and my God, it's probably my favourite thing to put on my face out of my entire routine because the smell is ridiculously good. 

I chose to get an Aloe Vera one because of its calming properties. My face tends to get very very red from all my spots and sometimes, when my eczema flairs up, I turn an awfully ladybug-like red. So, I wanted something that could help tone it down.

It's worked amazingly for me because now, my face isn't as red and I think it's largely thanks to this. 

And did I mention it smells like a little piece of heaven? I still have lots of it left but I'm going to get a few more bottles before I leave for the UK again.

5 Essence

The Koreans deem this as their most important step in their routine. The essence. It is meant to accelerate your cell turnover rate so this is particular very good for those who want to get a smoother and more even skin. Most people find that adding this step to their skincare routine has been incredibly helpful in clearing the skin of dark spots. The one I'm using at the moment is the Belif Anti-Aging Essence. A lot of young people stay away from 'anti-aging' thinking how it's not meant for them just yet but this is not the case with Koreans. A lot of them include anti-aging products into their routine because they strongly hold the belief that prevention is better than cure. Which is why there are so many Koreans who look so so so so so so much younger than what they really are. To them, it's better to start early than to kelam-kabut guna bila dah ada wrinkles and lines. Not that there's anything wrong with that, obviously, it's natural to have wrinkles but has it ever hurt when someone tells you you look much younger than you really are? Didn't think so.

6 Serum

The serum I'm using is by Missha and it's the Super Aqua one so as the name would suggest, it's super moisturising. A lot of products in Korea treat single issues - so for instance, there'll be a line of products specifically for moisturising and then there'll be one specifically for anti-aging. Here, you're meant to create your own little mixture and layer the serums. Some people go as far as using three different types of serums for three different types of problems. Sounds heavy but obviously, you don't have to use so many serums - one is enough, I'm sure.

7 Sheet masks

I read somewhere that the purpose of these sheet masks is to ensure that the products you've piled on so far don't go anywhere. It's like a seal, you're trapping all your products for the next 10-15 minutes and letting it completely absorb into your skin. 

And, it's fun as heck shopping for these. Koreans are huge on masks - they have stores just dedicated to masks as in they don't sell anything other than these masks which is pretty crazy if you think about it. They have so many different types of masks, you won't know where to start. My favourite ones are from Nature Republic, they are so moist and so cooling when you put on. You use it about 3 times a week. But I don't think there's a rule anywhere in the book that says you only have to adhere to specific number of times - it's pretty flexible and whenever you feel like having a mask day, you just go have yourself a mask day. 

Even if you're not into Korean skincare and you're just reading this 'cause of me (thanks, luv u), try out a mask! Your skin gets so plump and so sedap after that, promise! I highly highly HIGHLY recommend the masks over at Nature Republic ; they are the best for me, they're so moist and so cooling to wear and they don't tend to dry out as quick as some other masks. Go get it, use it and thank me later. 

(and yes, that's a SHINee mask that I've not used because I don't want to tear open their perfect faces)

8 Eye cream

This is a step that I'm sure we're all familiar with. I was using a Murad one before this but it ran out just in time for me to switch to a Korean brand. I'm currently using the collagen one from Etude House. Eye cream has always been an important step because the skin around our eyes is thin and therefore delicate so it's vital to have them moisturised and taken care of. 

9 Moisturiser

We're finally at moisturiser!! 

By now, my skin is so sticky and so shiny from the products I've applied but moisturiser is still moisturiser, you still have to have it on. When your skin is dehydrated, your body will produce more oil to your skin in order to have it moisturised. But it is often this oil that accumulates and comes in contact with bacteria that'll bring you acne. So, moisturise! 

I'm topping it all off with my snail cream moisturiser from Nature Republic. I love this line, it really is living up to its hype. This particular moisturiser is made up of 70% snail mucus which can be quite off-putting to some but you don't really think that when you see it. There are just so many snail moisturisers in the market but I decided to stick to the same brand as my foam cleanser to see how these two work out. So far, going great!

10 SPF

Seeing how it was super hot in Seoul, I couldn't live without SPF. Thankfully, because of it, I didn't get as tanned nor burnt as I thought I'd be. Also, because of all my dark spots, it's very important to religiously put SPF on to prevent them from getting darker. I've actually been quite good with my SPF so this was just like adding another familiar step into my routine. The one I've been using for the last few months is by Kiehl's and because you only use the tiniest amount of it, it lasts you a long time so it's really good value for money.

It's always been the case for me where skincare is not something you should be stingy about. Spend your money, if anything, on reputable skincare brands because it shows on your face in the long run. Also, you never know what they have in cheap skincare so always invest in proper skincare.

___

So far, this skincare routine, although a bit heavy and tedious, has been working well for me. I haven't had a pimple in weeks (I hope this isn't a jinx!) and I'm just loving it. Leaves my skin feeling really clean and smooth and moisturised. Once you've gotten used to the routine, it doesn't take much time (sheet masks aren't for everyday use anyway) nor effort. In fact, getting my skincare routine on is my favourite time of day because of how therapeutic it can be. 

I'm no expert when it comes to skincare, obviously, but everything I've spurted out in this blog post is all entirely things that I've read online from accredited sources and learnt from doctors and sales assistants. I'm all too familiar with skin problems so I educate myself by reading a lot of articles on skin in my free time and it's also actually oddly interesting.

___

Moving on to music, I've just realised I've not properly listened to an english song in ages that whenever I turn on the radio (hardly ever these days), it's like I'm listening to newer and newer songs every day when actually in fact, they've been on the radio forever. 

And then shortly after, I'm reminded why I don't listen to english songs anymore. I do, however, feel bad for abandoning my once much loved english TV shows. There's been so much hype for Suits these days, and to think I was a huge fan once upon a time! I think I shall try to catch up with it. 

LOL I say this as I watch another episode of We Got Married and Running Man. I've currently been so hooked on this show called The Genius, a variety game show, where 13 (?) members are gathered and each week, there's a game and it's all about tactic and alliances and betrayal amongst the contestants. It's so smart and so good with loads of unexpected twists. It's been on for 4 seasons now! 

Ok, so the music I've been listening to a lot lately; 

I couldn't find this song on Soundcloud but give 'Unforgettable' by 2BiC a listen. It's made me cry so many times now! Such a sweet melodic song with lyrics worthy of your tears! 

Ok, enough Korean in one blog post! 

Hope you're having yourself a great day! 

xx 

Seoul Day #7

Day 7!

After recovering from the havoc dream that was seeing SHINee, we calmed ourselves down with some retail therapy.

But first! Lunch!

Since this was our last full day, Tania wanted to go eat her favourite Indian food just at Sinchon. I didn't mind because I mean, I'm always game for Indian food anywhere in the world.

After finishing our lunch (I highly recommend this place too for anyone planning to head to Seoul! It's really good, Tania reckons one of the best she's tasted thus far), we left for Ewha Womans University.

Besides being an actual university, Ewha is also a great place to shop! Because it's heavily populated with university students, shops around the area are catered for a students budget so you can find yourself great bargains for similar or identical clothes you would otherwise find in Hongdae. We already thought Hongdae was cheap, but this was even cheaper! Such bargains you'd find here. Tania and I made a mistake of going here on our last day because man, the things we would have shopped!!  And just endless choices from one shop to another. I'm no good in bargaining but I'm sure if you know how to, they'd give you a good one. Prices range starts from 5000W which is ridiculously cheap for such pretty clothes that you would otherwise wouldn't be able to find here. Ever.

So if I were you, I'd go to Ewha first and then make your way to Hongdae (still my favourite place!). Chances are you'll get a lot more things out of your money. Tania and I didn't do **terrible** amount of damage here because we weren't sure of how much we actually had with us and we were flying off the next day so we wanted to save some money for any emergencies (which we didn't face, thankfully but damn, could've spend a lot more in Ewha!!!!)

After our shopping bit, we walked to the actual university. I didn't expect it to be that beautiful, to be quite frank! It was such a pretty sight! UWE whaaaat? Heh heh

As you can see, all the poses we would do is one with the peace sign. How Asian are we...

Tania is planning to do her summer school in Seoul at this very university and I hope all goes well for her because then I can follow heh heh man, even the thought of possibly going to Seoul again next year pumps me up!

After walking around Ewha, we went home to refresh ourselves before going out again to Hongdae.

Heat rant for the billionth time : 

Man, the heat was something else. We were just melting for most of the trip! If I were to go again, I don't know if I'd choose to go in August again. Maybe way way earlier or in September where it'll start getting cooler. Gila punya panas ok, tak exaggerate! 

We decided to end our night in Hongdae because it's both our favourite place in Seoul because of how ridiculously lively it is. Everyone's with their friends and just having a damn good time whether it's eating chicken with beer, singing karaoke, shopping, or gathering around Korea's next biggest popstar. The air was intoxicated with energy and it radiated such a youthful vibe. In short, every night was a damn party. A damn happening one, at that. There's bound to be a singer or dancers doing their thing for the crowd in every corner. It was so great and refreshing to see the passion in them. Tania and I came across this singer on his guitar singing English songs. He was brilliant. Blew me away with his voice. You can see a part of his song on my Instagram and also on Tania's. His guitar skills were ace but above all, his singing. So jazzy, so sultry, so damn melodious. Bit by bit, more and more people were crowding around this songbird, enamoured by his singing. Unfortunately, the police came and shooed him away which was a big pity because he was just THAT good and so many people protested against this because we didn't want it to end. I hope everything goes well for the chap, he deserves to be heard by the world!

I LOVE this shop. I bought the black skirt I was wearing in this blog post from this shop and I love the 2 unnie's working there!  They're so friendly (the blonde one even said I could speak Korean well hehe always makes my day that comment!!) and so helpful with so many things. They had a sick range of clothes to choose from, and it was all very exclusive to this shop only so you won't find the same ones elsewhere. SICK!!!! Best gila, always rambang mata. 

I wore the skirt that I brought from them earlier when we went for a second visit and the blonde unnie ('kak' in Korean basically) came rushing to me saying "WAAAA YEPPEOYO!!!" (Yeppeo = pretty) when she saw me. So cute lah. Also, to note : the Koreans and I can get along well lah, they're always so game for a selfie (or selca as they'd call it in Korea). Love them! 

Tania got a temporary tattoo from a stall somewhere in Hongdae and we were so pleasantly surprised when the guy manning the stall spoke perfect English. A Korean speaking English in an American accent is pretty hard to get by so we were surprised to say the least. Turns out he studied in America for quite some time. Handsome pulak tu hahaha

And I saw this lady doing henna so I thought why not! How random to do innai kat Seoul but oh well. 

Then, after a great great night out, we left for home which was just across the street. 

The next day, we left for KL already so we left the apartment by 1130 and headed for the airport. I'd highly recommend the place we stayed at because Hongdae Station has a direct line to the airport so it was very convenient for us. Anyone who wants to inquire about the lovely, lovely accommodation we stayed at, don't hesitate to drop me a comment! I'd gladly tell you. 

Thus our holiday comes to an end!

This is my first time going for a holiday and writing all about it in 7 different posts for each and every day. Usually, I'd sum it all in one post, at most two. Just goes to show how much I loved Seoul. 

I had high expectations of the place and I've never been so excited to go somewhere ever. So stepping foot in Seoul, amidst the crazy humidity, was exhilarating for me. I sound so over but it really was a dream come true once we got to Seoul. I loved everything about it, even up til the last day, I was amazed at everything I saw, from seeing how the people would obediently queue up to get into the tube (even London can't compete) to seeing the very buildings my favourite K-Pop artists would train at. Can you imagine me and Tania just 24/7 fangirling over a city?!?!?! 

From the fashion (we wanted to buy everything in stock), to the music (every shop we went in, we sang to every song they were playing), to the people (we couldn't stop gawking at their flawless complexion), to the vibrant energy and upbeat vibe the city effortlessly exuded. And I also loved (and am personally quite proud of) that I could hold a conversation with the locals even for just a bit, phew! My Korean wasn't as bad as I had initially thought; even Tania was shocked! It was great motivation for me to keep studying Korean.

Whenever someone asks me how was my trip, I don't usually go into great detail because if I do, I'll go on just forever and I'm scared to bore you to death so here's my conclusion, simply put, of my Korean holiday : 

Next to my own home, Seoul is my favourite place in the whole wide world. I'm not even close to kidding around - it really is one of the best places I've ever been. I've never been so happy on a vacation and I don't usually miss a holiday (because I tend to put the comforts of my own home over everything else) but I miss Seoul so, so much and if I was given the opportunity to go again, I would do it in a heartbeat. 

Also, special thanks to my little sister, Tania, for being so tolerant of me throughout the trip (if you think my complaining of the heat through my blog posts was annoying, imagine me there), and for being so patient with me. For planning everything ahead, and for being my personal GPS and tube map, thank you. I hope we can make this a tradition - us going on holidays just the two of us. We had the best fun and it was largely thanks to you for planning way in advance (she had an itinerary laid out like 3 months before). 

From freaking the freak out after seeing SHINee to getting lost in Gangnam to shopping up a storm in Hongdae and Myeongdong to randomly singing and dancing to Big Bang and Sistar on the streets, thanks my darling sister.

Love you, Tanners, even more than I love Seoul and EXO combined. 

And that's pretty major.

서올, 나 진짜 사랑해!!!!!! 빨리 한곡 가고 싶다!!! 정말 짱이야!!!!

xx

Seoul Day #6

Day 6!!!! Favourite day from the whole trip (and possibly whole year)!!!!

We dedicated this day to touring around Gangnam. Yes, that Gangnam. The Psy Gangnam. Gangnam is the district to shop if you're one of the rich and famous. We walked along Apgujeong Rodeo where you'd find your friendly ol' plastic surgery office after every 5 designer stores. We also came across the hair salon where Girls Generation would do their hair and make-up. Pretty surreal, guys!!!!!

Anyway, so the reason we made Day 6 all 'bout Gangnam because we wanted to be close to SM Town. What happened was, after leaving SM Town on our first trip there, Tania forgot to get something from the gift shop so we actually went back to SM Town after having late lunch at the Italian place just downstairs.

As she was paying for her things at the cashier, some of the employees were setting up this banner just next to it, about SHINee's new album. Tania looked and didn't think of it much because by then, the album has not yet been released. It was due to release on the 3rd of August. And she knew this because I had mentioned it to her earlier. What caught her eye was the date '5th of August'. She came out of the store and called me in to ask when the album was going to release. As I confirmed the 3rd of August, we both got a tiny weeny bit excited "... so if the album is releasing on the 3rd... what's on the 5th... ?" and she asked one of the employees to which she responded "fan signing upstairs".

Quite difficult to stay calm and composed knowing that SHINee will be just upstairs in a few days time. So we decided to come then on the 5th, but I kinda knew it would be difficult to get admission for the fan signing event. Regardless, we both still wanted to come to SM Town again. Thus, our trip to Gangnam!

So, first! We went to Gangnam but somehow, stopped at the wrong subway station and so we had to walk quite far to get to the tour bus stop. I persevered but survived only by complaining hahahaha I really really cannot stand heat, it's been like that always, I don't mean to be mengada or anything like that, I just really dislike heat, it's very suffocating and rimas for me. I pitied Tania who had to endure not just the heat but my complaining and whining but I mean, she's stuck with me for the rest of our lives anyway hahah

We had to go find the Gangnam Tourist Center which is where the kind lady told us of the tour options. The bus was leaving only an hour later so Tania and I had to go find lunch first. Damn. Susah. Nak. Cari. Makan. In the end we settled for a boring shrimp burger at McDonalds.

The lady at the counter couldn't understand my "Shrimp burger, please" and she was looking so confused 'til I altered my pronunciation to "She-rim bo-go, ju-se-yo!".

After eating and taking advantage of the cool a/c in McD, we headed out to the bus. Thank God the bus was also nice and comfortable with air-conditioner! We were the only ones aboard though, seeing how it was a weekday and it's not school holidays so tourist count is very low despite it being summer. The tour guide was an old man but he could speak English well and he showed us all the landmarks and bits of history about it which I genuinely found very interesting. Seeing how we were the only ones there, we could ask him questions personally. It felt like being on a private tour!

Hahaha I took this photo 'cause of CPK as it's a big family favourite for us. I remember going there EVERY Friday all the way in KLCC. Pity they've closed down, they had quality Italian food! 

We finished both tour lines in about an hour and and 45 minutes, if I'm not mistaken. This one is not bad compared to the previous tour bus we took. This one at least we learned something and not completely in a daze hahaha

We then walked to Garosu-gil, another street of shopping. You can find A Land here and lots of skincare shops that you won't otherwise find in Myeongdong or Hongdae. There's also a 3CE standalone store. The whole street exuded such a cool vibe and I kinda regret not going there earlier  on the trip to spend more time there. There were so many pretty café's along the street too!

For some odd reason, we didn't take much photos whilst in Garosu-gil. Like I said, I wished I'd spend a longer time browsing through the shops. It's just a small street but really cool shops like the vintage one (above). Apparently it's where SHINee's stylists got their clothes for their Married to the Music photos (below). 

Which leads us to the highlight of the day...

So after Garosu-gil, we left for SM Town. It wasn't that far to travel to Coex because it was already just around the area. 

We went at 730 I think and the event starts at 8, on the 5th floor. The escalator leading to the 5th floor was guarded by an employee so when Tania asked the girl, she said you had to register beforehand and obviously we wouldn't know how to do that. 

Regardless, Tania and I chilled at the café on the fourth floor and we saw fans diligently writing notes and letters to the SHINee members. We would too IF WE KNEW HOW TO REGISTER?!?!?!

But it didn't matter, for me it was as long as I could just ***see*** them. So what we did was camp downstairs by the entrance because they had to leave the building one way or another, right? 

As we expected, there were fans already downstairs although there weren't as many as we thought there would be, to be honest. There were fans who brought heavy-duty cameras and the girl next to me managed to take close-up photos of Jonghyun as they entered SM Town earlier. 

We saw Amber too from f(x)! She was walking to the building and we later found out it was 'cause she was the MC of the event (we watched a live broadcast of it on our phones). I didn't think much when I saw her (because I didn't realise it was actually her) 'cause she was dressed down with a grey hoodie and capri pants, but found it suspicious that this person was escorted by a security guard. I love Amber, would have loved to see her up close! 

We even saw some of the SM Rookies walk in, all wearing black with caps and masks to hide their identities. But they were all so fit and tall, it's impossible to not spot them. Some of the fangirls followed them in but Tania and I were too excited and nervous as we waited for SHINee.

Guys.

Finally.

They made their way down. 

The guards all came down first and they had to do some serious crowd control, not that there was a massive crowd, but it only takes 2 fangirls (us) to chase after the members, don't it? Thankfully, Tania and I got to the front 'cause like I said, crowd wasn't huge so it was relatively easy to get to the front anyway.

FREAK THE HELL OUT, GUYS. You can watch it all on the video that we made (earlier post!) but here are some blurry photos of my happiness hahaha

Onew was so sweet ok, he bowed to the fans !!!!!!! The others walked quite quickly to the car but Onew took the time to bow to us! How sweet!!

As I waited for them to come down, I kept myself occupied watching this...

SARANGHAEYO KEY OPPA!!!!

UGH THAT. WAS. SO. MUCH. FUN!!!! On cloud 9!!!! So surreal seeing them in person!!! Tania and I could hardly control our excitement along with the other fangirls. So freaking amazing and til this day, I still can't believe we saw them!!!!!

After completely losing it from seeing the boys walk pass us, we had dinner at the same Italian restaurant just downstairs and we had to calm ourselves down. We couldn't believe that we actually got to see them! We didn't have any expectations coming to Seoul to meet anyone but LO AND BEHOLD SHINEE ughhhh and for all SHINee fans, yes, they are as perfect as they look. So painful seeing Taemin omg I was just going to cry!!! We were ridiculously over the moon! 

If you haven't already watched our Seoul vlog, please do go watch it! Our little frantic episode at SM Town was all caught on camera also hehe 

Thanks for sticking around this very fangirl-y blog post you deserve a star hahaha

xx

Seoul Day #5

Back with another post of my Seoul trip!

Day 5 was a pretty laid-back day for us. The night before, a friend told me of a halal Korean barbeque place in Itaewon so since Tania and I were craving for anything really (will tell you about food in Seoul in a bit), we decided to go to this place called Eid.

You can get the directions easily on various review websites and/or on their Facebook page. Granted, it was a bit of a walk and with the heat, it was a bit trying for both of us. But we finally got there!

When we arrived, we weren't greeted with an 'Anyeonghaseyo!' which is what we usually hear but with a friendly and warm 'Assalamualaikum' by the waiter. How nice was that?!?!

He brought us the menu and he spoke fluent English with us, introducing and describing every dish there was and he also explained that they use different ingredients as substitutes for what is usually used. We were pleasantly surprised with how brilliant the service was because out of all the places we've been to, communication can be quite difficult and so this one was very pleasant and smooth.
After telling us of the different dishes, Tania and I chose the Korean barbeque which was what we initially wanted.

I asked the waiter if they had green tea in Korean and he was surprised that I could speak Korean well and we managed a short conversation and we found out that his brother is studying in UIA here in Malaysia which was suspected by both Tania and I because he brought out appetisers for us and he introduced one of them "This is ikan bilis" in which we of course loved. He then brought out the rice and barbequed beef.

Guys. IT. WAS. WORTH. THE. WALK. UPHILL. UNDER. THE. SCORCHING. HEAT.

So, so, so sedap! If this was what I've been missing out on all this while, someone slap me ! We finished almost everything. The ikan bilis (which he said was a sweeter version of ours here) was so good and the kimchi was also very very good and the beef was so good with rice!!! I just loved it. Wanted to go again but we were short of time.

After finishing our food, he brought out this traditional Korean tea. They had no other drinks 'cept for this one because they didn't have the green tea I had initially wanted. But, guys. This tea >>>>>>> green tea. It was super tasty and I can't really describe the taste to you. It was sweet and just the right amounts of all the flavours. It's called 'Omijacha' and it literally means five taste tea (O = five, mija = taste and cha = tea) and it's exactly that, sweet, sour, bitter, salty and hot. Sounds a bit odd and awkward but it is so good, really! Promise you! I haven't been to any Korean restaurants here in KL so I don't know if they have it here.

So what I'm really saying is that if you're planning to go to Seoul in the future, please make some time and effort to go to this restaurant. It's a small restaurant but the food and the service is brilliant. Tania and I were really pleased with our lunch hehe

After lunch, we went to Myeongdong with the sole reason of buying k-pop albums. For anyone wondering where they can buy K-Pop albums in Seoul, it's not as easy as one would think! Tania and I couldn't find a legit music store. So thanks to Google, we found that there were 2 in Myeongdong station itself. Find your way to Exit 6 and there will be small shops there selling clothes and souvenirs and there are 2 stores selling k-pop albums and merchandises . Which I went crazy over.

Tania and I borong the albums there because we knew we wouldn't get the chance to get original CD's that cheap and that easily in KL. Heck, we had to buy all of our EXO albums via online.

After browsing through Myeongdong and buying some things, we headed home. I bought a bag in Myeongdong and only to find out when I reached home, that it was missing its detachable strap so guess what I did? I went back to Myeongdong. Myeongdong is relatively quite a distance to travel to from Hongdae so it was so tiring but so worth it because I hadn't been to Myeongdong at night then and it was super lively, with the food stalls and lights and the crowd was so happening. Tania wasn't with me then because she was too lazy to travel so far so she just went to Hongdae's shopping site. After grabbing a quick dinner in Myeongdong, I headed home.

It wasn't an eventful day per se, but still tiring nevertheless!

Ah! As I wanted to say about food earlier, it's actually quite difficult to get ahold of good halal food in Korea. Other than that, the language barrier can be quite stifling for a tourist. I tried to communicate as best I can with what little Korean I know, but still, it was difficult. They're not English friendly and the more you speak English to them, the more they speak Korean back to you. Hahaha, elok lah dua dua tak paham each other. To get halal food, you have to do some research but my best bet would just to head to Itaewon where there'll just be loads of halal food for you to choose from.

Seoul lovin'!

Our Seoul trip now in video form! Tania and I both had so much fun in SoKo that we decided to make a video for our own keepsake. A lot of love went into making this video so we hope you enjoy it as much as we loved making it.

We took a lot more photos than videos throughout the trip but we made do with what we had and this is the end result! Tania and I spent the day and night making this video and though the whole process was tiring, we had fun. Made us miss Korea even more! We'll definitely definitely be back!
(I realised this video is a bit shaky but that's all because of my trembly hands, I'm no good in recording videos at all!  The good clips were all recorded by Tania so you have her to thank for that!) 

All songs are Korean because it was only appropriate that we had Korean tunes for a video about our Seoul trip and they're all linked so you can just click on them to listen to the full song;

Attraction 갖고놀래 by Bumkey (feat Dynamic Duo 다이나믹 듀오)
Playboy's Diary by Primary 프라이머리 (feat 정기고, Dead'P)
That Girl by Andup (feat Crucial Star)
Question Mark 물음표 by Primary (feat Zion T & Choiza of Dynamic Duo)
Miss Right by BTS 방탄소년단

많이 많이 사랑해 주세요!

xx

P/S : We are now aware of the grammar mistake in our hashtag #nadiataniagoesSoKo thanks to our English teacher mother, but #nadiataniagoesSoKo sounds so much nicer than #nadiataniagoSoKo so we're going to just stick to that hehe 

Seoul Day #4

Tania and I decided to dedicate a whole day for K-Pop. So that was our Day 4.

First things first! SM Town!! SM Town at the Coex Atrium is basically a 5 floor space where it is just completely decked out with SM Town artists so that includes EXO, SHINee, Girls Generation, Super Junior, and f(x).

Tania and I coincidentally matched with our stripes and blue that day. Very fitting with EXO's latest concept hehehehe #loveofourlives

My K-Pop obsession started with me falling completely head over heels for EXO so it was only appropriate that we went to SM Town.

I bought my outfit from the streets of Hongdae. Those striped pants are my new favourite thing in my closet.

Guys, I proper freaked out, ok. I wanted to be all cool yeah this is no big deal but who was I kidding?!?! Upon seeing the big SM Town sign with SHINee's new album poster on the building, I almost wanted to barf out of excitement.

I just couldn't believe that I was here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After taking photos outside, we rushed in and we're so glad we arrived just as it opened because that meant there wasn't a massive crowd. We couldn't stop ooh-ing and aah-ing at everything and we took so many photos with everyone's posters on the walls. It was so cool lah, anyone reading this who isn't a kpop fan won't understand my giddiness but I was just so completely over the moon to be in SM Town! That was the whole point of coming to Korea, hello!!?!?!?!???

!!!!!!!!!!! LEE TAEMIN STOP IT 

First floor was the gift shop but we kept that for last because we knew that if we were to go there first, we'd be spending ages in there so we didn't wanna waste time and moved on to the second floor.

Where one would go crazy... and broke...

I actually regret not getting one of SHINee's caps! 

Wanted to buy everything in store but so many things were sold out!! There weren't Kai posters left on our first trip to SM Town.

Second floor was SM Town studio where at a relatively hefty price, you get to experience being an SM artist with hair and make-up, music video recording and even actual singing recording. Very cool concept but we didn't do that 'cause um lol. And you need to make a reservation too beforehand.

Closest to ever holding Kai and Sehun lol 

BAE, you so ridiculous lah Taemin please be mine

Third floor was the café and they had cupcakes and cakes and drinks all SM themed. There were even cakes of EXO, SHINee and Red Velvet how damn cute guys please take note that this is my dream birthday cake I'd like it very much for you to have this in mind next time 'round ok

Future birthday cake, guys, please.

Fourth floor was the SM Town Theatre. There was an actual theatre where they were showing School OZ, a production by SM starring the singers themselves. There was also a photo booth where you take a photo """with""" the singers (hologram but beautiful) and we took twice each hahaha, if we could, we'd take with all of 'em!

There were also a huge huge screen just showing SM groups music videos so we were there for a long time just 'cause we were dancing and singing along.

Tables and chairs all had autographs of the SM members and it was just SO SO SO damn cool knowing that they were sitting where you were sitting!! 

We stayed on the 5th floor so long because we were busy grooving to SM's tunes (although we've seen the music video so many already)

My 2 favourites ; Lee Taemin and Park Chanyeol.

How cute does Taemin and Minho look like goddamnit!

We then, left SM Town to go entertainment-agency-building hopping. We went to Apgujeong Rodeo and walked under the hot hot hot hot sun. Man, the weather was something else. I'm pretty sure it was a lot a lot a lot more warm in Seoul than it is in KL. It hardly rained and the air was still so there wasn't much wind to cool us off. So warm!
Anyway, so we walked to JYP first and took photos before then finding our way to SM Entertainment building. Hahaha, sanggup tu. Again, we couldn't believe we were standing around buildings where some of our favourite groups record, dance, practice, eat, everything!!! We loitered around in hopes of maybe seeing one of them come out but we were out of luck so we decided to walk back to the station to go home.

There was a Dunkin Donuts just outside of JYP and it's just filled with posters of JYP artists (alongside some others from different companies) and their signatures. We saw fans also in DD, with presents all wrapped and ready to be given to their favs. We were hoping to catch a glimpse of someone coming out of the building but we wanted to get a move on so we gave up after drinking our mango smoothies.

Casually infront of THE BUILDING WHERE THE PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR MY KPOP OBSESSION LIVES?!?!?!

By then, we were so so so so tired because we had been walking up and down, back and forth. But ugh, we had SO. MUCH. FUN. I don't know how else to tell it to you, the whole day from start to end was just ridiculous amounts of fun and a lot of "I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M HERE?!?!!!!" so you can only imagine Tania and I just going loony seeing all things k-pop.

If this could be my wall in my bedroom, I'd be happy. Ridiculously overjoyed, actually.

With main bae

Overall, it was an amaaaazing day and a really really good one, the kind of good that when you come home, you're just so happy that that day just happened.

Over gila kan?

xx