South Korea Trip Day 3: 11 February 2014, Tuesday
韩国之旅第三天：2月11日2014年, 星期二 - 浪漫与享受
Attractions for the day:
Nami Island 南怡岛 [Google Maps Link]
Seorak Waterpia 雪岳水上乐园 [Google Maps Link]
Accommodation for the day:
Hanwha Resort Seorak Sorano 索拉诺束草韩华度假村 [Google Maps Link]
It's our third day in Kimchi land. We had to wake up early to check out of the hotel. After checking out, we headed for breakfast, which was Abalone Porridge, at a nearby restaurant. But while checking out, I thought I had my wallet with me, but after reaching the restaurant, I was very sure I must have misplaced my wallet. The only place it could be was somewhere in the hotel room. We got our tour guide to contact the hotel staff to search the room for my wallet. Luckily they were able to find it. Until now I still don't know where I might have replaced it. It most likely must have dropped somewhere between the bed and the bedside table. The hotel staff even took a cab down to the restaurant we were in. I paid the cab fare of course. But I was really lucky to have gotten my wallet back. Phew! We didn't really enjoy the breakfast and all the more didn't have the mood to take any pictures of the porridge.
After the drama, due to having to wait for the hotel staff to bring me my wallet, we were almost late for our domestic flight back to mainland Korea. Luckily it wasn't too much of a rush for the whole tour group. We caught our flight back and got on our coach, where we were brought to a place for lunch. Lunch for the day was hotplate chicken. It was a lot of meat with lots more seaweed and cabbages.
Domestic flight back to mainland Korea.
We stopped here for lunch.
Hotplate chicken for lunch.
Good way to get some warmth.
Plenty of seaweed makes it super delicious.
Straight after lunch, it was another long ride to the place where we would take a boat ride to Nami Island, or Namiseom, the place where the famous Korean drama, Winter Sonata, was filmed at. Neither Dear nor I watched the drama, but we know that this drama swept all across Asia and melted the hearts of millions. While waiting for our boat to move off, we looked at the waters around Nami Island. There were even huge pieces of ice floating on the surface. And surrounding this plot of water body are the hills and trees which gives the place a very tranquil and calming serenity.
On our way to Nami Island.
A large piece of ice floating on the surface of the water.
We love boat rides, don't we?
And we're reaching!
The boat ride was very short actually, as it was just a mere ten minutes before we reached Nami Island. The whole island looked like it just celebrated New Year's Day, as there were plenty of decorations telling us so. And there were plenty of other "art pieces" on the island as well. There was an igloo, snowmen, ice blocks stacked into a wall with heart shape carved out of it etc. Quite an interesting place. I'm sure it would be awesome to celebrate New Year's Day on Nami Island.
There were a lot of animals on the island as well, such as ostriches and squirrels. It was a really romantic place with rows of neatly planted trees, with balloons decorating the whole path. The ground was rather wet and slippery as the melting snow or ice lined the walking paths. We had to be extremely careful as we were wearing sports shoes, which did not provide much friction on the snow and ice.
Weird-looking water fountain.
They had just celebrated the arrival of year 2014.
An igloo was built too.
Some traditional Korean sculptures.
A poem by General Nami.
Here lies General Nami.
What are ostriches doing here on Nami Island?
Lovely balloon decorations along the rows of trees.
Caught a squirrel wondering around the place.
Something is really wrong in Singapore's version. Terima Kasih means 'thank you'.
These bears must have escaped from the Teddy Bear Museum.
A cute kissing snow couple.
Finally, we reached the exact place where the lead characters of the drama, Winter Sonata, were filming the famous scene. Two rows of trees standing tall and proud against the snow-covered ground. Our tour group spent quite a long time taking loads of pictures at that area.
It's Winter Sonata all over again.
The iconic spot.
They made so many scenes out of the popular Korean drama.
A hut with plenty of fruits on top.
Dear striking a nice pose.
This makes a nice handphone wallpaper.
I used this picture as my desktop wallpaper.
We are trying to make a heart shape here.
We ventured further down the path and reached an area which had very calm waters, which acted like a mirror, reflecting the hills beyond it, creating an artistic image. It was also the point where we turned back and backtracked all the way to the dock area to catch our boat ride back to main land. Goodbye Nami Island!
Cool image made by the hill and its reflection in the calm waters.
How can we not take a picture with it?
I'm floating with joy through the trees of Nami Island.
These cute bugs welcome us to Nami Island.
There were many decorations throughout the whole island.
We even saw a Merlion replica here.
They carved a heart shape in the ice blocks for people to take pictures with.
Goodbye Nami Island.
Another poem found engraved on a rock.
After we reached the mainland, our coach took us on a long journey to Sokcho city, where our accommodation for the night is Hanwha Resort Seorak Sorano. But first, we were supposed to be taken to Mt. Sorak National Park, but because of the heavy snowfall, our tour guide told us that the driver said it was not possible to bring us there. Not to disappoint us, we were brought to an area where there was an abundance of snow, with rows of trees in the background. There we were allowed to alight from our coach and spend some time taking pictures with the mesmerizing view.
It was Dear's first time touching snow and of course she was ecstatic over the experience. It was also snowing lightly at that point in time. We were able to catch close-up pictures of individual snowflakes. Everyone also played with the snow like little kids. I, too, had not touched snow since 2005 so it was almost like a totally new experience for me as well.
Just look at the landscape with its snow-covered trees.
Massive snowfall taller than Momo dear.
Momo dear is ecstatic to witness such beautiful scenery.
How often can we take such photos?
Dear fascinated by the intricate designs of each snowflake.
Magnified many times to see the individual snowflakes.
Look at those icicles! They could probably kill someone if dropped onto that person.
We then hopped back onto our coach and we were finally brought to the resort. After checking into our rooms, where we had a magnificent view of the snow scene from our windows, we changed into swimwear to have some fun at the nearby hot spring theme park called Waterpia. We couldn't bring any cameras as we were gonna play with water in the theme park.
A nice comfy bed.
Our room overlooks the carpark with a magnificent view.
A little kitchen area for us to do some cooking.
Toilet looks clean.
Futon for those who wish to experience sleeping on them.
After the curtains were drawn, it's a really comfy environment for a good night's sleep.
While waiting for the rest of the tour group to gather, Dear and I were playing around with the snow outside the resort, while snapping some pictures with my mobile phone. When everyone arrived, our tour guide led us to the theme park via the long corridor within the resort. Right at the very end, we exited into the carpark, and walked a short distance in the snow to the theme park.
The outside of the resort.
That's quite heavy snowfall.
The entrance to our resort.
The other side of the exterior of the resort.
We were invited to be on the Korean Walk of Fame.
The theme park seemed extremely huge. We were told to change into the slippers that provided. We placed our belongings like our shoes and winter wear into the lockers provided and then headed down the stairs to the entrance of the pool area. Male and female changing rooms were on opposite sides of the main entrance area. Therefore a few of us guys went into the changing room, which was quite huge as well, with well over a few hundred lockers. We each were issued a key which we wore around our wrists, to store our towels and clothes. Then we met up once again at the other side of the changing rooms, where we met up with the ladies. There it led to the giant indoor playing area, with water playground and a man-made waves area. Another section of the changing room led to a jacuzzi and shower area. A few of us then waddled in the man-made waves area for a while, before playing around with the water playground for a while. Then we ventured out into the open area by following a path via water. Yes it was like a river which snaked out into the open, where snow was seen on both sides of the "river bank". The water we were swimming in was quite hot, but our exposed heads above the water were experiencing the cold harsh winter air. It was also getting really dark at that time but we witnessed snow gently falling onto the water and onto our faces against the spotlights that were shining all around the resort. It was an amalgamation of steam and snow, hot and cold, warmth and winter chill, all at once. The few of us then followed the river, where it led to certain parts of the theme park with jacuzzi, while some parts had mini waterfalls. We then braved the freezing temperatures by getting out of the warm water and attempting to explore other parts of the theme park. We found a hot spring area where they had temperatures shown using electronic boards for each hot spring. Each hot spring could accommodate 3 or 4 adults at best. Some of the hot springs were like 40 or even 50 degrees celcius. We tried almost every single hot spring we could find, but some were really too hot for us to handle. We finally settled in a hot spring area which featured several small tubs, which could fit 3 people each. There we enjoyed the hot spring water for a rough ten minutes or so, after walking through probably sub-zero temperatures for a minute or two, with only our swimwear on. After relaxing in the tub, we even discovered a small hut which had fish in a pool of water, apparently meant for fish pedicure sessions. However we found a sign which probably meant we had to pay to use the facility. Then again there was no one there to charge us anyway. We then left the hut and continued swimming in the river and back to the indoor areas. We estimated the time we needed to go back and wash up before meeting the whole tour group at the lobby later in the evening. The few of us then walked back through the snow, when the sky was already pretty dark. What an adventurous and awesome experience it was for the few of us. Never had Dear and I experienced such fun in the water. Certainly a wonderful memory that would be etched in our minds forever.
After washing up, we gathered at the lobby, where we boarded our coach which brought us to a seafood restaurant. Almost everyone of us were coaxed into upgrading our dinner menu from the mushroom steamboat by our tour guide, Andy. I was thinking we might as well just try the Korean style seafood dinner since we may not be there again. There was even a live octopus, with its tentacles placed into some of the tour members' mouths, then being cut off by the restaurant staff. That was really fresh seafood, but kinda cruel too. Dear and I merely took a picture with it, before it got passed on to the next member and having more of its tentacles cut off. Poor octopus... The whole seafood dinner consisted of plenty of dishes. Just see the pictures below.
Verdict: We didn't like the seafood dinner set at all. There were even some sea squirts (which I later found out its name), which tasted metallic, like iron. I don't know how I could have swallowed such eeky seafood. The abalone was so tough that many of us had a hard time chewing on its springy meat. Many of the other dishes were pretty normal. The sashimi platter looked so unappetizing, unlike those you see in a Japanese sashimi restaurant. Most of the tour members complained about how the meal was not worth the money we spent. Oh well...a first and last time for many of us I guess...
After washing up, we gathered at the lobby, where we boarded our coach which brought us to a seafood restaurant. Almost everyone of us were coaxed into upgrading our dinner menu from the mushroom steamboat by our tour guide, Andy. I was thinking we might as well just try the Korean style seafood dinner since we may not be there again. There was even a live octopus, with its tentacles placed into some of the tour members' mouths, then being cut off by the restaurant staff. That was really fresh seafood, but kinda cruel too. Dear and I merely took a picture with it, before it got passed on to the next member and having more of its tentacles cut off. Poor octopus... The whole seafood dinner consisted of plenty of dishes. Just see the pictures below.
Verdict: We didn't like the seafood dinner set at all. There were even some sea squirts (which I later found out its name), which tasted metallic, like iron. I don't know how I could have swallowed such eeky seafood. The abalone was so tough that many of us had a hard time chewing on its springy meat. Many of the other dishes were pretty normal. The sashimi platter looked so unappetizing, unlike those you see in a Japanese sashimi restaurant. Most of the tour members complained about how the meal was not worth the money we spent. Oh well...a first and last time for many of us I guess...
Our seafood set consists of many dishes.
Grilled fish.
Sea squirts - I'll never eat this again.
Some pancake consisting of onions and eggs.
Not sure what fish this is.
Fish roe on cucumber.
Western style grilled crab with cheese.
Abalone on fire.
Lotsa sashimi.
That's the closest I've been to a live octopus.
Dear is scared of the octopus.
Fancy some handrolls?
After the unsatisfying meal, we were brought back to the resort, where we explored the supermarket at the basement before heading back to our rooms. I bought some hot ginseng drink to warm our bodies again. It's a really nice drink. And cheap too.
Dear and Popoyo.
Some warm ginseng to heat up our bodies.
Hanwha Resort Seorak Sorano
Address: 111 Misiryeong-ro 2983beon-gil, Jangsa-dong, Sokcho-si, Gangwon-do, South Korea
Website: http://www.hanwharesort.co.kr/irsweb/resort3/eng/index.asp
For a list of the hotels/resorts available for booking in Gangwon Province via Agoda.com, click here.
To make a hotel booking at Hanwha Resort Seorak Sorano, click here.
Links to our South Korea Trip 2014
Day 1 - Jeju Island 济州岛
Day 2 - Jeju Island 济州岛
Day 2 - Jeju Island - Trick Art Museum 济州岛 - 幻觉艺术博物馆
Day 2 - Jeju Island - Jeju Glass Castle 济州岛 - 玻璃城堡
Day 2 - Jeju Island - Teddy Bear Museum 济州岛 - 泰迪熊博物馆
Day 4 - Yongpyong Resort 龙平豪华度假村
Day 5 - Everland 爱宝乐园, Lotte World 乐天世界
Day 5 - Everland 爱宝乐园
Day 5 - Lotte World 乐天世界
Day 6 - Ice Gallery 冰雕艺术体验馆, Myeondong 明洞, Namdaemun 南大门, Jump Show JUMP 演出
Day 7 - Mapo Agricultural and Marine Products Market 麻浦农水产物市场
Souvenirs
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