Graduation Trip To Seoul Day 4 & 5

it was our fourth day but lyla and the rest were scheduled for home on the evening :( 

yenqin took a picture of us, the three vainpots, going about in our morning routine. 

we only had one mirror and toilet so we always didn't manage to set off on the agreed time #fail 

the four of them set off first since it was their last day and they had a long list of shopping to do. 

we were headed for ewha university area, which was very near hongdae so cab was cheap. 

so here comes the most epic incident of the day..

we were on the cab to edae when rachel started to rummage through her bag for her cellphone. 

we started to panic when we couldn't find it in her bag/on the seat/on the floor. 

she couldn't remember if she brought it out so we decided to make a u-turn back to the guesthouse. 

it's samsung note 2 we are talking about and rachel uses it 24/7 to text her bf back at home. 

i got out of the cab, sprinted across 50m to the building of our guesthouse (like a mad woman), smashed the lift button and ran ( like a mad woman, again) to our unit. i was SO relieved that the phone was still sitting on the ledge. 

 stooped down to catch my breath , turned back only to see darsarina literally taking her morning stroll to our unit. THIS SKINNY WOMAN'S GOT GUTS, really.  irritating woman actually went on to say " i mean if i really lose it what can i do ? cry meh ? hehe " 

made me run and lose my demure image in the hip town of seoul.. 

I, ran across the grand streets of hongdae in a striking colourful romper, for a skinny girl who doesn't really care about skinny phone. gave her a death stare and she gave me the sheepish look. totally should have let her lose her phone and cry buckets of river  

sent them a sulking picture because we couldn't find them initially and they were rushing off to the airport. as luck would have it, we spotted tracy buying a bbq stick when we were resting in the corner. 

it was a crazy shopping day and we only managed to have our first meal of the day in the noon. 

settled for a cozy homely restaurant which offers korean cuisine (y) a pity they didn't have kimchi stew 

Edae offers a lot of woman shopping. There were a handful of shops which offer male apparel as well. 

All the cosmetic brands were there - Banila Co (our favourite!), Innisfree, Nature Republic, Laneige, The Saem , Shara Shara, Tony Moly etc etc. It would be good to make a stop there before myeong dong because the prices are much more competitive in the Edae stretch and the retailers are very generous when it comes to free gifts and samples . 

There's this particular shop that sells parallel imports. Hence, the prices of the products are much cheaper than the market retail prices. For instance, a piece of innisfree mask was sold at 950won each but the shop sells them at 3000won for a pack of 10. we managed to get hold of the highly raved EGF eye masks too :) 

these had to be my best buys from the shop! i was on the hunt for a light, day-time moisturiser and was introduced to the water bank essence. This pack which consists of 8 travel sized bottles was only sold at 20000won !! don't we all love good deals?  i've been using it ever since my return and i love how it doesn't leave any oily residue while keeping my skin moisturised. 

finally managed to locate the hello kitty cafe which is hidden behind the main stretch of buildings. 

it was still operating but the waffles and cakes were all sold out :( 

   Day Five - HongDae ;  Express Bus Terminal ; myeongdong ; dongdaemun & hongdae again.

my outfit of the day. low back dress in neon pink from thestagewalk.

it wasn't pre planned but all three of  us were decked in shades of pink coincidentally :) 

first stop of the day - shabu shabu for lunch at hongdae. 

we paid about SGD 11 per pax and we loved the broth so much :) 

that meal could have easily cost us 3x more in singapore. 

check out the mountainous serving  of bean sprouts. the restaurant actually serves every table one huge mountain of bean sprouts. it's pretty wasteful in my opinion :( none of the tables came close to finishing them. the kimchi was very yummy and we shamelessly asked for a few servings to satisfy our cravings . we also added side dishes like cheese ddeokbokk which was very well received. 

we chanced by this restaurant while we were walking so i'm unsure of it's exact location. if it helps, walk straight once you get out of exit 8 of Hongik University Station, until you see Aritaum ( a retail outlet which houses many beauty brands under one roof ). The shop is located on the second floor of the building next to Aritaum ! There are alot of restaurants in the vicinity so you can check out the area. 

After lunch , we proceeded to Tricked Art Museum which is located in HongDae. We had a hard time locating the building and it turns out to be hidden in the basement of a not-so-atas building, tucked in one of the alleys of the shopping street. We managed to locate it after some tips from locals and google mapping. & of course, we didn't fail to stop by shopping streets and bagged home a few printed skirts for cheap. I was immensely inspired by the chic fashion in seoul - plain tops and printed skirts. Many of them , even the working class, look so effortlessly chic. 

Reached TAM , got our tickets, placed our bags in the locker for 500won and off we went. 

had to show our sincerity by praying in mid to atone for all the evils sins that feli had committed. 

Rachel sent this picture to her family whatsapp conversation and her mother actually believed that she went mad with all the shopping! I have to say though, we have been struggling to control our expenses, then and now. 

our nth couple shot. we're forever taking couple shots somehow :x

it was pretty fun at the museum and the entrance fee wasn't very expensive either. it's definitely worth a visit if you're heading to Seoul. we went on a weekday and it wasn't crowded at all. 

headed off to the much anticipated express bus terminal for shopping after we left the museum! 

endless stretch of shopping which offers cosmetics, apparel & even drawings/furnitures. 

you wouldn't want to miss this stop if you're looking to shop in Seoul. the stuffs in Seoul are definitely not cheap but i can attest to the quality of those that's "made in korea". i've bought alot of printed skirts and bold- coloured dresses like hot pink and bright yellow - none of the colour runs :) that made laundry a whole lot easier. it's really unlike those from bangkok/china. 

most of my purchases are 10000won except a few which do not exceed 25000won. 

keep your eyes peeled for the amazing prints and cheap bargains hidden in the racks. 

there are a lot of bargains but you have to hunt them in the messy racks , unfortunately. 

headed off to myeongdong to exchange more money because we went mad with shopping. 

& our final pit stop for the day - Angel In Us Coffee Cafe for patbingsu and chocolate toast. 

not a fan of the whipped cream and the patbingsu wasn't very fantastic either. nevertheless it was good to chill after a long day of mad shopping. we were doing exactly what we wanted - to chill in a cafe instead of mugging and it was pure bliss . 

up you go, till the next entry.