Korea Trip, 5 Must do Activities

It's been a hectic last couple of months and a 2-week visit to Korea was one of the biggest trips of the year.

It was one of the rare time off during our travels which didn't include any work, although most of the time was spent nursing the boyfriend's nose surgery to correct his breathing issues due to old injuries.

We stayed at Park Hyatt Seoul, which happened to be not only conveniently located near the hospital but also one of the best hotels in Korea. We stay here every time and it never disappoints. Top notch service, amazing views, modern and spacious rooms... what more could be asked for?

Living room

Bedroom

Floor to ceiling windows

Marble bathroom

Tub by the window

Welcome gifts and handwritten letters

The hotel is located in Gangnam next to Samsung Station, which is the central business hub of the city. The station is also connected to CoEx, an extensive shopping/entertainment complex with theater, casino and aquarium. I highly recommend visiting, it's got everything you could possibly want. I went nearly every day went shopping more times than I can count, but it was my first time visiting the indoor aquarium.

Some of the must do activities:

COEX Aquarium
I couldn't take many photos because I was live recording everything, but they've got everything from local river fish to penguin shows and shark tunnels. It's amazing how big and intensive it was for an indoor mall aquarium. Because we didn't have much time it took us an hour to skim through everything, but one could easily spend 2 hours to thoroughly enjoy the exhibitions.

Shark tank with boyfriend & Ratsmah

Gyeongbokgung Palace
The main royal palace is in the center of Seoul, in stark contrast by the surrounding ultra modern buildings.

The palace was built in 14th century and in use until 1895, just before the Japanese occupation. It's about 40 hectares of land with 7000 rooms and currently being restored after the Japanese destroyed the buildings in the 1910's. There are tours and museums in several different languages as well as dressing up in traditional clothing called Hanbok.

The palace outer post in traffic

Entrance

Tourists dressed up in Hanbok

One of the ponds

Korean BBQ
KBBQ has recently become quite popular outside of Korea, restaurants popping up all over the US, Europe, even other parts of Asia. It's a do-it-yourself BBQ, mostly beef, cooked in a special grill just in front of you with tens of side dishes and sauces you can use to make a wrap. It's popular because it's casual, interactive, and delicious. Alcohol is a common side dish and often encouraged to get the most of out this social experience.

Ribeye, mmm.

The real difference between other Korean BBQ vs the ones you actually find in Korea is probably the quality of meat available. There are strict beef-specialty and pork-specialty places whereas anywhere else in the world they will *gasp* mix the meats they serve. Korean beef especially is sacred, often more expensive than any other beef imported into Korea. The quality is comparable to the infamous Japanese beef.

I went to Bamboo House for the quality meat as well as their special 'cognac BBQ.'

Beef tartar

Plum wine

Beef ribs

Cognac beef

Cognac + fire

Garosu-gil
A must go if you are in the mood for some shopping. The narrow street is filled with foreigners and aspiring models/actresses wanting to get scouted by agencies. The stores are not exactly high-end, but often local Korean trends targeting the younger crowd. There are lots of beautiful cafe's and unique boutiques that make this area popular for romantic dates.

I went to the new 'El Cube,' a compact mall with some crazy pink decoration and my favorite dessert in the world, Hugo & Victor.

Pet Cafe/Raccoon Cafe
This is a trend that's been popularized by the rising cost of living and lack of space in the urban world. It's a place where you can hang out with some cute animals while sipping on a coffee. There are plenty cat and dog cafe's, but some different types popped up like the raccoon cafe.

They are a mixture of rescues from the fur industry and former abandoned pets. Keep in mind, they are nocturnal and sleep 20 hours a day. We didn't get to play with them much but got to take photos of their acrobatic skills - they chose to climb up to the highest plumbing pipes for a nap!

My sister with a raccoon

He was sleeping.

Very.. comfortable?

There was a dog, too - a corgi!