Winter Trip with Family - Bukchon Hanok Village, Gyeongbokgung & Murree Restaurant

Assalamualaikum. 안녕.

Previous post (here).

Few things happened this past few days.

Nenek Jawa; Ezza's grandmother from her father's side passed away last Sunday. Al Fatihah to her. And, new semester started last Monday. Jadinya telah secara tiba² menjadi busy. Pagi di cafe, petang attend tahlil. Kepenatan melampau, shall I say?

Hence, tertangguh entry balik kampong. Walaupun sebenarnya excited mau share. Tapi tulah, time constraint. Tettt!!!

21 Jan 2015
Bukchon Hanok Village

Ok lets continue to our 4th day in South Korea. Today, I decided to bring the family jalan² around Seoul only. Sudah dua hari bangun awal; travel few hours away from Seoul. So harini, boleh bangun lambat sikit. Breakfast pun ala santai. Nothing to rush.

Naik subway from Euljiro sa-4 ga & turun di Anguk Station. Antara subway station yang ada staircases super pembunuh. Amazingly, family members aku yang lain sangat enjoy turun naik tangga. Especially the three sisters. Tidak ku sangka, langsung tiada rungutan from them! Aku pula yang banyak pancit masa naik tangga. Sobs.

# First stop was Bukchon Hanok Village.
 As Bukchon is a residential area, so kenalah hormat their privacy. Tu yang sampai 3 exclamation marks.

Saja bawa diorang masuk area ni sebab hanok (Korean traditional house) ni selalu jak muncul dalam Kdrama. Kali ni pergi for real...and ambil feel.

Honestly speaking, aku belum pernah lagi jejak 8 photo spots yang famous di Bukchon ni. Maybe ada few aku accidentally jejak tapi memang ndak pernah ambil tau pasal spots tu. Next visit, akan ku gigih completekan all 8 spots. Insha Allah.

# Group photo & aku jugalah segumpal di depan sekali.
Alhamdulillah, diorang suka jalan² area ni. Apa lagi pagi tu ndak berapa sejuk. Again, walking on the hilly terrain means nothing to them. Daebak betul! Proud gila aku sama diorang ni. 

# Random pic.

Sebab selalu datang Bukchon, aku suka jalan tanpa arah...this time pun aku buat macam tu juga. Dengan kembang kuncupnya hidung aku bagitau diorang...we need no map today. Although almost all the alleys look the same, alhamdulillah I managed to 'guide' them without getting lost.

U can browse here for pictures of Bukchon I took a couple of years ago. 

# Thanks for not complaining! Ikut pi mana jak aku bawa.

# Tabahlah layan the only bujang senang. Nasib owner motor tu tiada. Else, merasa lah kena ceramah free di pagi buta. Sukasuki buat motor orang macam harta sendiri.

# Untuk kesekian kalinya, I am easily amuse with little thing such as this.

# Because Bunda loves that small stool. Like Mother, like daughter. Ntah papa jaklah yang attract our attention.

# Aunty ambil feel cherry blossom; di musim winter. Walaupun pelestik, yang penting pose. 

# Paksa Ezza pose depan this shop. I like its white brick wall. 

Sedang asyik layan view kedai comel & kreatif, suddenly Ezza decided to enter Etude House to purchase something. And the rest pun haruslah join juga. Dari cuma mau beli 1 barang, ended up keluar dengan berbakul² pink paperbags. Spent nearly 2 hours dalam ni. Kejadian paling haru betul kan! Awal pagi perabis Won. 

Aku pun ndak terkecuali sebenarnya. I spent almost 60,000 Won! Sebab aku belum sure when my next balik kampong trip will be...so aku pun pulunlah top up itu ini. And alang² juga aku beli terus kiriman Ms G. Aku memang sangat sangat jarang terima pesanan orang; only certain people akan dientertain. Banyak faktor kenapa aku malas terima. So selalu aku akan terus terang cakap; tiada pesanan diterima. Simple. And direct to the point. 

# Sesi distribute belian masing². Depan kedai pun jadi kan. As if ndak boleh buat di tempat lain.

# Bundle shop at Samcheongdong 

Dari Bukchon, kami jalan kaki pi Samcheongdong. Pastu ronda area sana sambil cuci mata. Main tujuan pi Samcheongdong adalah untuk tunjuk Bunda semua cafe yang comel & unik di area ni. Selama ni kerja aku gebang pasal coffee shop di Seoul jak so kali ni aku tunjuklah versi real punya. Boleh curi idea for future project as well.

Last autumn, I went to one of the hanok cafe in Samcheongdong (here). Tapi trip kali ni tiada singgah to any of the cafes there. Ish, rasa menyesal lah pula.

From there, we walked to Gyeongbok Palace. Ni pun kena jejak kaki juga sebab Bunda suka tengok Korean historical drama. Rugilah sudah sampai Seoul tapi ndak masuk one of the palaces. At least masuklah satu, buat pencukup syarat. And yes, boleh ambil feel life raja². 

# Kalau dari Samcheongdong, masuk ikut gate ni jak untuk pi Gyeongbokgung. 

# Ancient Lunar Calendar

Kami ndak masuk National Folk Museum sebab yang lain cuma mau explore the palace's vicinity. So kami ambil gambar depan statue binatang yang represent zodiak di luar muzium jak. 

# Aunty pose mahal with Hyangwonjeong Pavilion in the background.
The pavilion is situated on an artificial island in a lake & connected to the palace ground by bridge.

# Hmmm...back to their 20s I guess.

# The Pavilion from different side.
Sebenarnya aku suka tengok frozen lake yang encircled something. Just like this one. 

# Pose depa tangan adalah pose-mesti-ada.

# Mesti lagi best kalau dapat tour this palace during the snowfall. 

# Look how massive this building is.
Baru main building. Belum masuk lagi segala istana kecil, halls, gates & gardens dalam istana ni. Super luas!

# Standing before the Geunjongjeon (Imperial Throne Hall).
This is where the King is formally briefed by His officials. Foreign ambassadors pun diraihkan sini juga. Kiranya tempat ni memang central venue for various events during that era.

# Tablets
Yang ni memang banyak kali muncul dalam Kdrama. So Bunda & Angah super excited terus bawa bergambar di sini. 

Kami sempat tengok changing of guards (evening session). Pastu diorang semua pakat lari pi Gwanghwamun Gate. The main gate of Gyeongbokgung. Mau bergambar sama guards katanye! 

# Guard yang berdiri dengan tekun regardless the weather.
Kali ni ndak boleh bergambar dekat sangat sama guard. Siap ada bodyguard yang tegur kalau ada anyone stands too close to the palace guard. Last time boleh pula bergambar sebelah diorang. I peliks.

# Angah & King Sejong.

# Selfoots. 

# Gwanghwamun Square
Bila tengok ni, automatik...rindu Seoul!! 

Jalan lebih kurang di sini, then cousins aku mengadu lapar. And laju jak disahut oleh the three sisters. Masa ni haruslah ndak kan dapat sambutan kalau aku cakap mau pi Cheonggyecheon Stream lagi. Padahal aku sudah lama 'mengidam' mau view stream tu di waktu siang. Tiap kali balik kampong, ndak pernah lagi aku berjalan area stream tu di siang hari. Ndak pa, next trip insha Allah. 

We hopped the subway train from Gwanghwamun Station & alighted at Itaewon. Initially aku planned bawa diorang lunch di Han Gwa Chae, Insadong lepas meronda palace & kawasan sekitar. But considering diorang memang sudah kelaparan, teruslah aku suggest makan di Itaewon jak. Sebab dalam itinerary, harini akan lawat Masjid Seoul.

Sebelum pi makan, kami singgah bank untuk tukar duit. Won Angah makin susut. Ada try withdraw duit dari ATM tapi asyiklah ndak boleh. Bila sudah sampai bilik malam tu, barulah aku perasan kebingaian aku yang tiada tolok bandingnya ni. Instead of choosing saving account, aku secara super pintar pi pilih current account. Walau seribu ATM kami cuba pun memang confirm ndak kan dapat withdraw duit! Kesian Angah terpaksa tukar duit di bank. Exchange rate haruslah mencekik darah! Murah gila diorang ambil currency kita. Sobs!

# Murree Restaurant
Memang semua laju jak masuk. Aku jak terkedek still di luar ambil gambar segala. 

# Telek menu.
Ezza just ordered anything yang aku cakap sedap. Senang kan lidah universal ni.

Before pi sini, aku selalu baca di blog orang Murree ni famous dengan 'makanan lambat sampai' & 'servis lambat'. It was my first time dining at this restaurant. Mau bagi family rasa local cuisine yang halal so aku yakinkan diri bawa diorang makan di sini; dengan harapan janganlah lambat seperti yang diwar²kan.

Alhamdulillah, we waited not more than 15 minutes for the food to arrived after we placed our order. Except for Bunda's sebab Anakonda dia yang bertuah lupa untuk order. Memang terbaik melantun²kan perangai gitu. Punyalah sedap jamu perut sendiri...suddenly

"Why my food hasn't arrived?"

"Ya kan. Order apa tadi?"

"Dalsot bimbimbap."

"Alamak! Macam tidak terorder oh tadi. Lupa!"

Dan cengkerik pun berbunyi. Nasiblah lepas tu cuma dengar arahan suruh order lagi sekali. Semboyan ndak larat berbunyi sebab lapar. Wachaaa!

# My luncheon. Fav aku gaul nasi sama kim (seaweed) tu.
Kimchii jigae ni ndak pekat macam yang aku makan di Chilgabsan last year. Tapi the one at Murree ni pun sedap juga. 

Sudah kenyang semua...jadi marilah tunaikan kewajipan sebagai hamba Nya. Aku yang mula tu ingat mau order dessert terus cancel niat. Takut ndak larat mendaki bukit pi masjid. Ada nanti yang kena suruh mengensot macam siput.

# Syukur! Diorang sempat solat di sini.

# Jea's favourite restaurant. Lupa ambil gambar Abang Sado ko wei!
Sebabkan Angah baru tukar duit, so dia belanja ayam golek untuk dinner di rumah. Gembira diorang jumpa ayam golek di bumi Seoul ya tuan puan! Tapi rasa nan hado. 

Singgah beli Turkish delight di Salam Bakery. Sudah jalan naik turun bukit, haruslah perut start berdangdut balik. Aku beli baklava. Girl & Adek beli aiskrim Turki; RM 12 sebiji! Pasrah jaklah, mau merasa sangat kan. Biar sejuk gigil, gigih mau makan aiskrim juga. 

Then kami pi Foreign Food Mart untuk stock up groceries. Nasi himpit kami bawa dari Malaysia sudah habis so haruslah beli beras. Telur pun siap beli 1 carton sebab bak kata Adek "telur kalau campur apa jak pun, tetap sedap". Memang aku sokong! Boleh buat spagetti goreng! Ntah apa lagi yang kami beli tapi masa di kaunter aku ingat Angah bayar dalam 90,000 Won. Sila nangis! And paksa diri untuk jangan convert pi RM. Nasiblah tong² bayar. 

Dari Itaewon, kami terus balik rumah. Dinner sungguh meriah sampai langsung tiada 'nafsu' untuk ambil gambar. And aku ndak keluar lagi malam tu. Leka layan Kdrama lepas dinner. 

Aku tidur awal! Macamlah penat gila kan?? Padahal bukan jauh pun aku menapak siang tu. Alasan aku sebab esok paginya kena bangun awal. Akan pi luar Seoul lagi! 

eryantierdabdulkarim

Indonesia - d'primahotel Mangga Dua, Jakarta

Property: d'primahotel, Mangga Dua

Date:  27 August 2014 - 28 August 2014 (1 night)

Price: 371,000 IDR per night (RM 104.00)

Room Type: Single Standard Room (with breakfast)

Nearest Attraction: ITC Mangga Dua, Mangga Dua Square, Mangga Dua Mall, Pasar Pagi Mangga Dua, Ancol, Kota Tua

Booked via agoda.com.

# A new hotel it is.
The hotel doesn't have a cafeteria but guest is entitled for a coupon breakfast at Starbucks. 

The taxi driver didn't know about this hotel & I was the one who guide him. Located just opposite the road of WTC Mangga Dua.The hotel is very very very near to the well known Mangga Dua Square. Take only less than 10 minutes walking. 

# Reception-cum-lobby area

# Single room.
Pretty spacious. Boleh seludup lagi dua or tiga orang; tapi kena tidur atas lantai lah.

# They provide electric kettle.
And I had my ngeteh session alone in the room that night. 

# Spacious bathroom for a single room.
Basic amenities such as dental kit, soap & shampoo are provided.

# Elevator or staircase? Of course the first will be my ultimate option. 

Check out time is at 10am but considering I'm gonna leave for the airport around 3pm, I requested for a late check out & paid an extra 120,000 IDR. If I were to leave at 5pm, I have to pay the full rate. 

The receptionist helped me called the taxi for me. They do provide an airport transfer (for a small fee) but the driver was already booked at their other branch. If I have known earlier about this, I would have booked for the airport transfer during check in. My fault, I didn't asked about this beforehand.

I hope in the future they will vary the selection of breakfast other than just croissant or glazed doughnut. Overall I don't have any complain about this hotel. It is a new hotel so basically everything is new.

"Masih bau perabot baru'.

eryantierdabdulkarim

Indonesia - Grand Serela Jalan Riau, Bandung

Property: Grand Serela Jalan Riau

Date:  24 August 2014 - 27 August 2014 (3 nights)

Price: 928,000 IDR per night (RM 238.00)

Room Type: Grand Room Family King (free breakfast for 4 people)

Nearest Attraction: Bandung Indah Plaza; Factory Outlets (FO) in Riau Street, Dago Street & Merdeka Street.

Booked via hotel's website.

# Hotel's facade

# Lobby

# Hallway

# Our room.
2 single bed downstairs.

# One queen bed upstairs.

# Pretty spacious down there.
The space under the staircase was where we put all our luggage. 

# For refreshment they provide coffee/tea making facilities & refrigerator.

The restaurant which is located at the same level as the lobby; opens until 3am daily. There is a wide selection of food & the price is quite affordable.

# The bathroom.
Not so clean though. Moldy walls & tiles. But the heater works perfect.

The room is cleaned on daily basis. And we got new towels everyday as well. Initially, we got 4 free breakfast coupons for this room. But considering there were 6 of us, we bought another 2 coupons. The receptionist lady was generous enough to give us a discount for the additional coupons. Alhamdulillah.

This hotel is easily accessible. Taxis are readily available. But too bad we didn't have enough time to explore the many FOs along the road.  Having said that, this hotel is suitable to those who came to Bandung to shop! Practically, all those FOs are just a stone away from the hotel.

Also according to their staff, there are many eateries nearby this hotel. Next visit, perhaps? 

eryantierdabdulkarim

Winter Trip with Family - Nami Island, Gangwon & Honam Jib Dongdaemun, Seoul

Assalamualaikum. 안녕.

Previous post (here).

Tettt! Memang semangat lain macam kan kalau sudah start entry balik kampong. It's like I was injected with some fast-and-furious hormone. 

Kena bergerak pantas sebab si Jea sudah hint entry untuk accommodation aku for this trip. Normally aku update pasal tempat tinggal ni lepas habis entries for the trip. Ni kalau suddenly penyakit M datang, haruslah aku kena dulukan pasal accommodation tu.

20 Jan 2015
Nami Wharf, Gangwon

Harini misi untuk jejak sisa tapaki Winter Sonata. Tiap kali balik kampong, belum pernah miss datang sini. Next time insha Allah kalau ada rezeki balik lagi, aku kena skip lah Namiseom ni. Fokus tempat lain pula. Cover area kampung².

Kali ni aku tetap pilih subway untuk pi Nami. Tengok gaya susah-mau-bangun-pagi cousin aku, memang shuttle bus adalah a big NO-NO. Jap lagi ada yang putih mata bila sampai Tapgol Park tapi bas nan hado. ITX pun ndak boleh sebab train pi Gapyeong bukan ada every hour. Tu kena refer schedule train. And jadual tu cuma available at certain stations only. So subway adalah option paling best, selamat & murah! 

More info about ITX (Intercity Train Express), sila rujuk sini. 

Dari Gapyeong Station, kami naik teksi jak pi Nami Wharf. Membazir kalau naik tour bus sebab aku 100% yakin diorang akan spend banyak masa di Nami. And idea untuk pi tengok Winter Light Festival di Garden Morning Calm akan ditolak dengan jayanya. 

Sebab. First, temperature di GMC memang sejuk gila! Second, light festival doesn't sound really intriguing to Aunty & Angah. Sebab sudah tengok pun lampu liplap di Everland. 

Kerana tahu cadangan akan ditolak mentah², maka aku decide naik jaklah teksi. Baru 8,000 KRW untuk 2 buah teksi. Kalau naik tour bus, fare is 5,000 KRW per person. Untung IF only after Nami kami pi Petite France & GMC. Kalau semata pi Nami jak, memang teksi lah yang paling berbaloi. 

# While aku beli ticket, diorang hijacked camera aku. Ntah apa jak gambar diorang ambil. Yang pasti, non of them ada muka aku. Adakah tidak terlintas untuk diorang snap gambar aku tengah beli tiket? Sobs.

# Dalam feri. 

# View dari atas deck ferry.

Boleh tahan ramai juga orang time ni. Bersesak dalam feri so aku bawa Ezza & Adek pi luar. Pastu naik pi deck atas. Then sampai di deck, aku nampak orang bertudung. Jadi aku senyum lah. Suddenly..

"Bibie kan."

Ok, aku terus blank. Dalam otak laju² aku panggil balik memori lepas. Kot lah kan kawan lama tapi aku ndak ingat. Ndak kah haru kejadian gitu.

"Awak tak kenal. Saya refer blog awak pi Korea ni."

Saat tu juga aku rasa mau terjun sungai! Malu sama cousins aku dua ekoq tu. Malu sama that lady juga. Tapi aku sempatlah shake hand & tanya nama dia. Hi Izzi! Thanks for recognizing me. And thanks for reading blog picisan ni. Izzi also introduced me to her travel partner. 

# Ahli rombongan akhirnya jejak Namiseom.
This destination is mainly for Angah. Die hard fan of Winter Sonata! Sanggup tu beli set CD original! Last time, set CD bukan murah. Whats more when it's an international drama.

# Ukiran ais sepanjang jalan pi Nami Library.

Sampai jak Nami, Aunty & Adek request untuk lunch dulu before ronda². Gila kentang perut diorang ni. Aku rasa macam heavy juga breakfast kami pagi tu. Journey to Nami pun bukan lama. Less than 2 hours. Siap dapat duduk lagi sepanjang perjalanan. Suddenly, lapar? 

# Cotton-white vacation!

# What I don't understand...Bunda loves to menyorok behind me everytime I take pic of us. Ish! 

# New eatery at Nami Island besides Drama Cafe which is famous for its dosirak (nasi goncang).

# My first time here. Thanks Farry bagi review haritu!

# Widen ur eyes to read the menu. Selalu kalau gambar penting, akan jadi blur. 

# My lunch.
Kimchi bulgogi bibimbap (10,000 KRW). I super love the miso paste soup! 

# Yang alert camera...and yang khusyuk makan.

# Nami Library.
Tunggu yang lain solat.

# Book Cafe.
To enter the surau, kena lalu cafe ni dulu. Last autumn sempat ngeteh & layan waffle here.

# Feeling Winter Sonata sangat bila tengok ni.
Too bad no seleji. It would have been great if seleji turun masa ni. 

# Unggun api untuk panaskan badan. Tapi aku sesak nafas everytime dekat benda alah ni. Asap wei, asap!

# Getting to know the cast in Winter Sonata. Yang pasti, si Girl memang ndak tau pasal this drama. 

# Mau lah juga selit muka sendiri.
No more daun kuning along this path...pokok sudah togel.

# 3 sisters yang hyper & semangat gila.

# Percubaan posing gaya Kung-Fu mabuk. 

# Yang di depan tu bukan tau yang di belakang tu wujud. Gah!

# Pun mau juga ada gambar duduk atas seleji. Lepas tu sibuk panggil cousin aku. Minta tolong sebab aku ndak boleh bangun sendiri ok! Sedih dengan keberatan kebadanan.

# Angah jugalah menang posing!

# Sesi main baling² seleji. Kunun mau buat snowman...

# Seeing them enjoying their time here...cukup puaskan hati aku. 

# Pose depa tangan.

# Stepping upon the frozen lake.

# Saranghae! Uri gajog.

# Queuing for the ferry.

# Last picture in Gangwon. Before departing for Seoul. 

From Nami Wharf, we took the taxi back to Gapyeong Station. Pastu baru ambil subway pi Seoul. Kejadian bingai jadi dalam subway. Aku sama cousin lagi dua orang berdiri tepi pintu sebab tiada seat. And si Err tertidur...dua kali aku terduduk di lantai! Boleh imagine, berdiri tegak...then tertidur & the next thing I knew I was already sitting (style mencangkung) atas lantai. Siap peluk pole. Apakah perlu scene bongok begitu? I told my cousins kalau jadi kali ketiga, memang aku akan duduk terus atas lantai. Luckily not long after tu, ada orang turun & I got to sit. And sambung layan mata! Phew!

Seoul

Next! Sesi jamu perut di Dongdaemun. Honestly, this was my first time pi makan ikan bakar di situ. Selama ni memang selalu jak baca entries di blog orang betapa ikan bakar di Dongdaemun ni boleh menggamit rindu. 

So trip kali ni, aku includekan sekali menu ni knowing Bunda & my aunties memang suka ikan bakar. Sebab aku memang tau direction pi area ikan bakar ni so aku decide untuk turun di Dongdaemun History & Culture station; keluar jumpa Dongdaemun Design Plaza. Lintas jalan depan Doota. Then jalan kaki sepanjang Pyounghwa Clothing Market. 

Gapyeong Station ---> Sangbong Station ---> Wangsimni Station ---> Dongdaemun History & Culture Station (Exit 1)

Untuk yang plan mau pi sini, bolehlah follow complete direction dari blog si Orga (sini). I gave this direction to a friend of mine who came to Seoul Nov last year. Alhamdulillah senang jak dia jumpa kedai ni.

# Akhirnya berjaya jejak DDP di waktu siang.

# Sebenarnya masa ni weather a bit gloomy. Awan pun tiada. And malam tu kunun forecasted Seoul akan dihujani flurries. Tapi sampai ke Subuh...tiada bayan flurries pun. 

# Lepas jak posing gini...
"Ok, no more pictures. Makan dulu."

# Muka² kelaparan
Di pintu masuk sudah nampak ikan tersusun atas grill. Haruslah lapar tambah melantun².  

Tengok kami yang ramai, Ahjumma terus tunjuk tangga. Satu hal ni yang aku mensampah! Sebab kena buka boots! Jap lagi mau keluar kedai, satu kerja mau sarung balik boots tu. Fuh!

# Honam Jib; closed at 7pm everyday.
My first time here. Sangat sedap. Lepas makan, semua keluar dari kedai dengan senyuman lebar. Yang pasti, perut suka sebab sudah dijamu. Sambal sotong tu memang kebabom!

Cuma aku sakit jiwa part mau sarung boots. Padan lah muka mau sangat berOOTD kan. Silalah bertabah. 

Malam tu ndak keluar pi mana². Aku plan mau pi ngeteh tapi once sudah baring atas katil, rasa malas berkaliganda. Paling jarang aku just stay di bilik kalau travel. Normally aku paling tabah mengejar last train tau. But this trip, baru jam 8pm aku sudah di bilik. 

Hmm, certainly bukan faktor usia. Twit!

eryantierdabdulkarim