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Tapgol Park: A Respite In Seoul’s Historical District
There’s a park at the southern end of the popular street in Insadong that features a gorgeous pavilion and other historical artifacts. Tapgol Park (탑골공원) is a popular place for older Koreans to gather, chat, and play games and tourists meander in from time to time as well. This is also where the bus picks up to take tourists out to Nami Island so it’s a good spot to know the location of in downtown Seoul. More than that though, it’s an important historical stop to learn about the independence movement in South Korea. Learn more about Tapgol Park in Seoul: (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive…
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Conversations With Koreans: Wait, we aren’t friends?
“Thank you”, “Hello”, “Give me… please” and a few other words and phrases are among a handful of words that foreigners just in Korea learn and among them is often the word chingu (친구), translated loosely as “friend”. Foreigners splice this word into their English sentences without hesitation and use it seemingly without understanding exactly what it means. This is probably one of my least favorite words in Korean and I’ll explain why. If you’re learning Korean or trying to speak Korean, then you’ve probably learned that there is a hierarchy in the language and how you use it. Because of this, who is considered your “friend” is really important.…
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Korean Cooking: How To Make a Korean Pumpkin Side Dish
What do you do when you’ve accidentally picked a green pumpkin instead of a zucchini from your garden and you’ve got a zucchini recipe to try? My answer: try the recipe anyway. At least they are in the same family of plants. You might be wondering how this happened in the first place and I can say simply that in Korean, hobak (호박) is used as an all encompassing term for anything in the gourd family. The gourd family includes pumpkins, squash and zucchini and while I think they are so very different and deserve differentiating words, the Korean language does not. At the beginning of the summer season, I…
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How We Revealed The Gender Of Our Baby
Living abroad when you’re going through big life changes that you’d like to share with your family can be rough. Luckily, planes, trains and automobiles exist. Though we can’t celebrate every part of our first pregnancy with my family in person, there are things we’ve been able to share through video calls and online and last week week we were able to fly to the States for three weeks to see them in person too. While we were home, we decided to make the reveal of our baby’s gender a bit of a spectacle in order to celebrate at least one aspect of this child within with everyone. (This post…
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How To Get The National Happiness Card For Pregnant Women In Korea
With becoming pregnant in Korea comes a whole new set of rules, information, Korean vocabulary lists, shops to find, doctors to meet and well, just a lot of stuff to learn about. One of those things is the Pretty Mom card (고운맘카드) or National Happiness Card (국민행복카드) which all pregnant women, foreign and Korean alike, as long as they’re paying into the National Health Insurance system can get. This card is a pregnancy benefit that pregnant women can apply for in Korea and if you’re wondering how, this is the guide for you. If you’re pregnant in Korea, one of the first things you have to do is get the…
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Summer + Live Music = Fun!
Warm weather begs people to head outside and is there a better place to head than one with live music? Check out this list with the top music festivals to get your toes tapping this summer season. Grab some friends, grab some blankets and grab some shades and head outside for some blasting good fun at a music festival near you. (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking at no cost to you. Thank you for your support.) 1. Greenplugged May 31, 2014 & June 1, 2014 Don’t be confused. This festival was originally slated to be held…
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Rocking Out with a New Member!
Some if you might be thinking it’s about time, while others had no idea this was coming. The last three months have been a compilation of excitement, exhaustion and empathy with a being I haven’t even had the pleasure of meeting yet. The feelings of lethargy overtook me when I would usually be bounding out the door to somewhere or another. Luckily, there wasn’t morning sickness to speak of just some nausea at the smell of… well I’m still not sure what was causing it. My husband was on top of things with iron heavy seaweed soup to help me cope and boost my energy and our cats couldn’t keep away from…
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Gaya Land: Abandoned to Revived Amusement Park in Korea
Just a short walk from my in-laws house, I spotted a Ferris wheel and never one to pass up a good view we headed in the direction only to find ourselves at an abandoned amusement park. I have never been one to enter places where entrance is clearly not permitted, but this was different. The front entrance wasn’t fenced off in any way and the signage didn’t make it sound too serious if we did enter. Down in Gimhae, Korea, you can find some great places to explore that are lively and fun like the Gimhae Gaya Theme Park and the ClayArch Ceramics Museum, but there are also some derelict…
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The Bukchon Hanok Village: Where To Start
Picking a direction and beginning a self guided tour is how most approach the traditional area of Bukchon in the historic center of Seoul, Korea. As a longtime resident of the capital of Korea, I’ve visited the Bukchon Hanok Village numerous times, but I still remember that first time I went and felt like I didn’t really “see” anything. To make your time in the historic city center of Seoul memorable, there’s a lot you can do, and a lot I’ve covered in this guide to the Bukchon Hanok Village if you want to plan your own day in the area. If it’s your first time though, stick around because…
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Gangseo Marsh Ecological Park: On The Han River
The westernmost of the 11 Hangang Parks is the boggy and bird friendly Gangseo Marsh Ecological Park (강서습지생태공원). There are some really popular parks on the Han River and and some that you only find if you’ve rented bikes, or have a bike, and are passing through. Don’t miss this Han River Park and maybe take a picnic with you to enjoy an afternoon in Gangseo-gu. (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking. These funds go to maintain the site. Thank you for your support.) How To Get There Address: 279-23 27-gil Yangcheon-ro Gangseo-gu, Seoul (서울특별시 강서구…
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Korean Cooking: How to make Korean Seaweed Soup
Known as the birthday soup in Korea, though it can be eaten any old time, miyeok-guk (미역국), or seaweed soup, is one of my favorite Korean soups. Seaweed soup is a household staple but it’s also a great restaurant option too. I had it every day for every meal when I was staying at a post-natal hotel in Seoul. If you want to make your own seaweed soup Korean style, follow the recipe below. This is my go-to meal when I’m feeling low on energy. It’s the pick-me-up I need. (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking…
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30 Things I Did Before I Turned 30
It’s my birthday today! I saw a post with this same title awhile back and at first I thought, why would someone write a post like this? I’ve done a lot in 30 years and writing just 30 of those things down doesn’t seem fair to everything else I can’t write down or can’t remember, taking my first step was a big accomplishment I’m sure, but I can’t for the life of me remember it. A few weeks back though, I was sitting with a student, who is just a year younger than myself, and we were talking about accomplishments. I thought it was an easy enough question. Tell me…
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Marche@ Munchies: A Monthly Artisanal Market
This artisan market is relatively new, only starting in October of last year, but they sure have a following. Vendors selling handmade soy candles, bags, aprons and other crafts sit next to vendors selling organic treats and drinks for those food lovers out there. The Marche@ (마르쉐@) Market in the Maronnier Park in Hyewha once a month is the perfect place to spend a Sunday, especially now that the weather is nice, eating good food for lunch and meeting some really great people. (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking. These funds go to maintain the site.…
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The Time I Mooned A Nurse in Korea Because I Couldn’t Speak Korean
One of the reasons I love living in Korea is because almost every day there’s something to chuckle at. It may be due to my own misunderstanding, a Konglish word I should have guessed, a spelling error that ends up being something totally different, or just a natural inclination of Koreans that is completely opposite of my own. There is just always something. Have you ever had to speak Korean at a hospital before? Well, I did and it didn’t end well suffice to say. (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking at no cost to you. Thank…
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Nonsan Strawberry Festival: Eating In Strawberry Fields in Korea
It’s strawberry season in Korea, as if you didn’t notice the bucketfuls being sold in the markets and from trucks driving through your neighborhoods everywhere right now. When I was growing up, I LOVED having strawberry plants that I could pick my own strawberries from and luckily in Korea, there are strawberry festivals where you can do just that. Nonsan is Korea’s largest strawberry producer and the city welcomes people from near and far every spring in Korea for the Nonsan Strawberry Festival which took place this past weekend to the delight of many, myself included. Don’t miss it next year! Visitors can taste some of their delicious strawberries freshly…
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Gwanghwamun Flea Market Fun
Every Sunday from March to October, traffic is blocked going southbound and tents are erected for a big flea market on the Gwanghwamun Square just in front of Gyeongbokgung Palace. From 11 o’clock in the morning to 4 in the afternoon, visitors can peruse a wide range of goods. Vendors sell everything from old clothes at bargain prices to homemade accessories, teas, candles, lotions, potted plants and seedlings and more. What’s more, every Sunday is different. There’s something for everyone and even food from around the world on sale to munch on when the midday pangs of hunger strike. (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage…
