1. Before your trip,

Head over to Korea Plaza (Korea Tourism Organisation) at Raffles Place (Address: 3 Church Street, Singapore 049483). They provide free brochures, guidebooks, map and other materials which may be useful for your trip planning. It was over there that we found out about the International Horticulture Goyang 2015 event which we had enjoyed very much and was well worth our 6,000 won. The employees (native Koreans) at Korea Plaza will also be able to help you with any enquiry that you may have prior to the trip. Do make full use of their Official Korea Tourism website to find out about the upcoming highlights in Korea. They organise special events for foreigners at certain times of the year, such as free visits to the palaces and more.

2. If you plan to take a taxi in Korea,

Make sure you have the address on a paper written in Korea (especially important when you are in areas outside of Seoul). If possible, include the names of the landmarks. Majority of the taxis in Korea has a GPS system, so having a Korean address would allow the driver to key that into the system quickly. This would also decrease your chances of getting into trouble with an irritably irritated taxi driver who does not understand English or whatever Korean gibberish you are trying to convey to him. By the way, if you should ever get lost in Seoul (like if the taxi driver drops you off at the wrong place which was what happened to me), try to look for the tourist information counters (the main areas of seoul should have that) or the guides who are dressed in red. Most of them can communicate in both English and Mandarin and will be able to provide you with the directions.

3. The subway stations in Seoul are huge...

And I'm not kidding about this. Jongno 5-ga subway station even has this long travelator (longer than the ones you see in Changi Airport) in the station to get you from one end to the other. Most subway stations have more than 6 exits (there was this station with 15 exits but I can't remember which one) so you can see why the stations are so huge now. So if you need to reach a certain place by a certain time, be prepared to set aside at least 10 minutes for walking within the station itself. Transfer of subway line would require some walking as well (it isn't like Singapore where you simply just get out of the train and cross over to the other side).

4. Before ordering food,

Take note that some food portions in Korea that are meant for 1 is actually enough for 2 people, that is if the both of you are girls. Observe the other diners' tables first before ordering. This would help you save some money and protect yourself from the heart pain if you hate wasting food (and I'm quite a big eater to begin with).

5. Need to instagram or post on FB?

Hop into a Bing Soo cafe to 'kope' some free Wifi (of course you have to order something in the cafe)! Usually, the Wifi passwords are indicated on the receipts or written on the tables. This would serve as a good break from all the walking as well (You will definitely need this break cos there is so much walking to do in Korea). Oh, and since we are talking about Bing Soo (the famous Korean shaved ice), I would like to recommend Seol Bing cafes! They have quite a few branches in Seoul - Noryangjin, Garosu-gil, etc. And their Bing Soos are really one of the nicest ones we've tried! You can't go wrong with Seol Bing!

6. When crossing the road,

Just cross. Nuff said. You will never get to the other side if you remain hesitant. In Korea, pedestrians have no right of way (except where traffic lights are present). Oh, and do not be fooled by zebra crossings as well.

7. Running out of Korean won?

I've read on a few blogs that it can be quite difficult to find a currency exchanger in Seoul that exchanges KRW for our SGD currency and mentioned to prepare some USD for exchanging instead. I've managed to find 2 currency exchangers in Myeongdong that accepts SGD and I do believe there are a few more out there but there's no need for me to explore further when I've already found 2 right haha. 1 of them is located in between O'Sulloc Tea Cafe and McDonalds. Just follow the currency exchanger direction sign and walk along the alley and you will see the exchanger immediately. The rates are actually reasonable (in fact, it was better than the rates in Singapore).

8. Speaking of Myeongdong, we all know it's a cosmetics heaven.

BUT to be frank, you will find the common brands (such as The Face Shop, Innisfree, Nature Republic, Etude House, Holika Holika, etc) anywhere and everywhere in Seoul - subway stations, among the shophouses, and blah. It's just that Myeongdong has the vibe and allows the convenience of comparing all the products easily at one location. Even more convenient so when there is like more than 1 outlet per brand in Myeongdong. Oh, and a gentle reminder, you might want to wait till the last few days of your trip before making your cosmetics bulk purchases. Reason being, one, you don't want to worry about the luggage packing so early into the trip; two, they often run promotions when you least expect them to happen and this could result in a lot of savings. I missed the Mother's Day promotion by 2 days and I'm still feeling rather bummed about it till now. And we would have missed Innisfree's Green Lucky Box promotion had we bought the Green Tea Seed Serum the moment we chanced upon it at the start of our trip.

9. You don't want to fall into the 10,000 won temptation trap.

10,000 won, 10,000 won, 10,000 won. It's easy to spot these price tags in Seoul. True, 10,000 won isn't a lot actually. It's like their $10 in Korea and for us, it's about 12 SGD. And how could you not jump or roll into the shop when you see a pretty dress or shirt or cardi selling at only 12 SGD? Oh, and did I mention that the quality is actually good? Hard to resist, isn't it? Well, let me just remind you that a lot of 10,000 wons will add up to, well, a lot of 10,000 wons and before you know it, 100,000 won is gone (which is 120 SGD). So think it through before paying that 10,000 won. Moreover, quite a few shops actually sell the same designs so there is no rush to get it on the spot.

10. Getting your tax refund before you fly back,

Just go to Gate 27 and use the self-service kiosks there. That would save yourself from all the queue-ing etc.

2015 Resolutions:

1. Less on myself
2. Be mindful of my emotions
3. Live . Love . Laugh
4. Think about consequences first
5. Spend quality time with family
6. Enrich more lives
7. Improve personal finance management
8. Tame the inner bixch
9. Read more, write more
10. Believe and create

test

1. Before your trip,

Head over to Korea Plaza (Korea Tourism Organisation) at Raffles Place (Address: 3 Church Street, Singapore 049483). They provide free brochures, guidebooks, map and other materials which may be useful for your trip planning. It was over there that we found out about the International Horticulture Goyang 2015 event which we had enjoyed very much and was well worth our 6,000 won. The employees (native Koreans) at Korea Plaza will also be able to help you with any enquiry that you may have prior to the trip. Do make full use of their Official Korea Tourism website to find out about the upcoming highlights in Korea. They organise special events for foreigners at certain times of the year, such as free visits to the palaces and more.

2. If you plan to take a taxi in Korea,

Make sure you have the address on a paper written in Korea (especially important when you are in areas outside of Seoul). If possible, include the names of the landmarks. Majority of the taxis in Korea has a GPS system, so having a Korean address would allow the driver to key that into the system quickly. This would also decrease your chances of getting into trouble with an irritably irritated taxi driver who does not understand English or whatever Korean gibberish you are trying to convey to him. By the way, if you should ever get lost in Seoul (like if the taxi driver drops you off at the wrong place which was what happened to me), try to look for the tourist information counters (the main areas of seoul should have that) or the guides who are dressed in red. Most of them can communicate in both English and Mandarin and will be able to provide you with the directions.

3. The subway stations in Seoul are huge...

And I'm not kidding about this. Jongno 5-ga subway station even has this long travelator (longer than the ones you see in Changi Airport) in the station to get you from one end to the other. Most subway stations have more than 6 exits (there was this station with 15 exits but I can't remember which one) so you can see why the stations are so huge now. So if you need to reach a certain place by a certain time, be prepared to set aside at least 10 minutes for walking within the station itself. Transfer of subway line would require some walking as well (it isn't like Singapore where you simply just get out of the train and cross over to the other side).

4. Before ordering food,

Take note that some food portions in Korea that are meant for 1 is actually enough for 2 people, that is if the both of you are girls. Observe the other diners' tables first before ordering. This would help you save some money and protect yourself from the heart pain if you hate wasting food (and I'm quite a big eater to begin with).

5. Need to instagram or post on FB?

Hop into a Bing Soo cafe to 'kope' some free Wifi (of course you have to order something in the cafe)! Usually, the Wifi passwords are indicated on the receipts or written on the tables. This would serve as a good break from all the walking as well (You will definitely need this break cos there is so much walking to do in Korea). Oh, and since we are talking about Bing Soo (the famous Korean shaved ice), I would like to recommend Seol Bing cafes! They have quite a few branches in Seoul - Noryangjin, Garosu-gil, etc. And their Bing Soos are really one of the nicest ones we've tried! You can't go wrong with Seol Bing!

6. When crossing the road,

Just cross. Nuff said. You will never get to the other side if you remain hesitant. In Korea, pedestrians have no right of way (except where traffic lights are present). Oh, and do not be fooled by zebra crossings as well.

7. Running out of Korean won?

I've read on a few blogs that it can be quite difficult to find a currency exchanger in Seoul that exchanges KRW for our SGD currency and mentioned to prepare some USD for exchanging instead. I've managed to find 2 currency exchangers in Myeongdong that accepts SGD and I do believe there are a few more out there but there's no need for me to explore further when I've already found 2 right haha. 1 of them is located in between O'Sulloc Tea Cafe and McDonalds. Just follow the currency exchanger direction sign and walk along the alley and you will see the exchanger immediately. The rates are actually reasonable (in fact, it was better than the rates in Singapore).

8. Speaking of Myeongdong, we all know it's a cosmetics heaven.

BUT to be frank, you will find the common brands (such as The Face Shop, Innisfree, Nature Republic, Etude House, Holika Holika, etc) anywhere and everywhere in Seoul - subway stations, among the shophouses, and blah. It's just that Myeongdong has the vibe and allows the convenience of comparing all the products easily at one location. Even more convenient so when there is like more than 1 outlet per brand in Myeongdong. Oh, and a gentle reminder, you might want to wait till the last few days of your trip before making your cosmetics bulk purchases. Reason being, one, you don't want to worry about the luggage packing so early into the trip; two, they often run promotions when you least expect them to happen and this could result in a lot of savings. I missed the Mother's Day promotion by 2 days and I'm still feeling rather bummed about it till now. And we would have missed Innisfree's Green Lucky Box promotion had we bought the Green Tea Seed Serum the moment we chanced upon it at the start of our trip.

9. You don't want to fall into the 10,000 won temptation trap.

10,000 won, 10,000 won, 10,000 won. It's easy to spot these price tags in Seoul. True, 10,000 won isn't a lot actually. It's like their $10 in Korea and for us, it's about 12 SGD. And how could you not jump or roll into the shop when you see a pretty dress or shirt or cardi selling at only 12 SGD? Oh, and did I mention that the quality is actually good? Hard to resist, isn't it? Well, let me just remind you that a lot of 10,000 wons will add up to, well, a lot of 10,000 wons and before you know it, 100,000 won is gone (which is 120 SGD). So think it through before paying that 10,000 won. Moreover, quite a few shops actually sell the same designs so there is no rush to get it on the spot.

10. Getting your tax refund before you fly back,

Just go to Gate 27 and use the self-service kiosks there. That would save yourself from all the queue-ing etc.

2015 Resolutions:

1. Less on myself
2. Be mindful of my emotions
3. Live . Love . Laugh
4. Think about consequences first
5. Spend quality time with family
6. Enrich more lives
7. Improve personal finance management
8. Tame the inner bixch
9. Read more, write more
10. Believe and create

test

Just put anything here such as bias, tutorials and what so ever