안녕! here to do a little recap on some stuff that i have not blogged about in Korea. two trips/outings that i went on before coming back. first one was to Gimhae, my buddy, Olivia's hometown. she promised to bring me to visit since the beginning of the semester. so, after her exams ended, i took the bus over and she brought me around. 

for lunch, we went to a famous 돼지국밥 (dweji gukbap) place in Gimhae. we had to take a number and wait for our turn. yea, that's how famous it was. thankfully, we didn't have to wait long.

introducing the lunch we waited for. its technically pork slices and rice in soup. its special because it can only be found in Busan. so if you go to Seoul or other places, you won't find it. i like it because it isn't spicy, it has meat and rice, my two favorite food and its the best thing to eat during winter.

 

after lunch, we took the bus and ended up at a museum. it was quite a small place and it was showcasing the history of Korea.

this is Korean hopscotch. :D

we had a drink in a coffee shop nearby because it was so hot! and then, we headed over to a park which i think is one of the famous tourist attraction in Gimhae. 

this mirror makes us look thin! haha. we loved it so much. i had to leave in the evening as i had another appointment. was really glad to have spent the day with her in her hometown. it was a very good experience and another good memory. *^^*

and about two weekends before i was supposed to leave, i took another trip down to Gyeongju. this time for the sole purpose of visiting the Sex Museum/Love Castle. hehehe. look, its not everyday and everywhere that a sex museum is within my vicinity. might be a bit NSFW, so yea. 

yes, i'm hugging a large colorful penis. *go me!*

and sitting on a penis swing.

whoa! double the fun! hahahahaha.

i might have hugged one, sat on one, had one in each hand but still, taking picture with a ginormous one was a bit too much. (;-_-)/ btw, that 'ejaculation' is activated by sitting on a seat near when i'm standing. you sit on it long enough, he will spray. （￣～￣;）

if you are interested in this kind of thing, the fee to go in is pretty reasonable. i heard they have reduced it as it was more pricey before this. its not that big but there were quite a lot of things to see. they showcased artifacts from long ago that were sexually related. very cool! i don't know, i personally enjoyed it. would have been better if i understood Korean as there were quite a lot of information and i couldn't understand a single bit. (∩︵∩)

other than the sex museum, i went cycling around. that is the thing to do in Gyeongju. i really wanted to go to the water theme park but it wasn't exactly in the plan.

 

that's about it so far. everything bloggable in Korea has been blogged. i miss the place so much but it will remain as a beautiful and amazing experience for now. because i will return again. count on it.（○゜ε＾○）

  

have a great week ahead. ^^ God bless!

i realized i never got to blog about the friends i made over there, so i'm gonna do that now. ^^ disclaimer: long post is long.

it wasn't very easy making and keeping friends because of the language barrier and the culture difference but i think i did manage to make some good friends. i am very very glad and blessed to have met them. unfortunately, i only managed to make friends in my second semester there which meant we only had time to hang out for about 3 months. such a short time, 아쉽다. D:

most of my Korean friends were also my 'buddies' from the Buddy Program in English Cafe.

this was my Monday buddy, 충희 and if i'm not mistaken, he studies food and nutrition. he's really tall, i think about a head and a half taller. haha. whenever we went out together, he had to bend down to listen because i was speaking so softly and i had to tilt my head up whenever he spoke. :D


we managed to hang out about two times before i came back. my most memorable time with him would be when he brought me to this awesome place in Seomyeon to have supper and 막걸리. we had pineapple 막걸리 (makgeolli/rice wine) and this pork dish (bacon?) which was the best thing i've ever eaten over there. i finished the entire plate by myself and also a salad that had apple mayonnaise dressing. very special and super yummy. 

he's really cute because he would come late to our buddy time sometimes and he'd buy me drinks to make up for it. there were also some random times where he'd just drop in and pass me a bottle of drink that he bought. he's a really nice and kind guy. his English was passable and i think he kinda saw me a younger sister. heeeh. （＾_＾）

this is my other Monday buddy; Olivia or 재민. she's my age if i remember clearly. i think we really connected because we had quite a lot of similar interests (aka Korean actors or in general, fine-looking guys) and we would flail over them. she was the one who introduced A Gentleman's Dignity to me, one of the best Korean dramas i've watched. we didn't really get to hang out much because Korean students doesn't seem to have a lot of time but before i left and after her final exams, i managed to visit her hometown, Gimhae which i'll blog about soon. 
 

there are just some people that you meet and feel that "hey, here's a good person and a good friend." and that's what i felt with her. she's the optimistic, bubbly kind that made me feel comfortable to be with. plus her English was good since she majors in English literature. oh, i miss her. (≧∇≦)

introducing my Tuesday buddy; Jin. this is unfortunate to say but i think as of right now, he is the most handsome friend i've had. he's yea, pretty much the best looking guy friend i have. oops, don't be offended okay. i love you all the same! ^^


he's 4 years younger than me which makes him 19. just started his degree course and majoring in tourism. his was also the best English among my other buddies which made becoming friends much easier. we hung out quite often and we went visiting places around Busan together too. the best time i've had has to be the time we went to Songjeong beach. everything about that day was so perfect and so beautiful; the memory like a painting to me. i'm really glad to have met him. (◕‿◕✿)

 and now, my Thursday buddy, Lina or 경린. i love this girl, she's crazy, drinks alcohol like its water and wears her heart on her sleeve. she's one of those who feels everything, laughs loudly, gets super excited about stuff and grabs your hand when you walk together. she is exactly the kind of friend i wish i had here in Malaysia. i think all girls need a friend like her. i wish i could have brought her back with me. but more than that, i wish i can be more like her. she was the only one who cried during our final farewell. that girl ah.


 every time we met up for the buddy sessions, it'd involve lots of laughing and giggling and her hitting the guy sitting next to her. she's the mood maker and i think i knew what it meant to brighten up a room through her because that's exactly what she does. i really wished we had more time to build a more meaningful relationship but still, i'm very grateful to have met her. ｡◕‿◕｡

my second Thursday buddy, 재빈 오빠 or Jebi. ^^ here's another fun person to be with. you can't blame me for liking Korean guys when they're like him. you know, the sweet talker, the ladies man, the kind that says things that makes you blush and your heart warm. okay, so maybe not your cup of tea but so mine. ♡＾▽＾♡


Thursdays were my favorite day then. and they were the ones that made staying in Busan so worthwhile especially after the break up. if it weren't for friends like them, i wouldn't have been able to face going to English Cafe or going about as if life was okay.

well, these are all my English buddies. there are others who i don't have pictures with, 주연/Ju Yeon, 유미/Chloe and Ellen. Ju Yeon was another girl who was really nice and made me feel like we're close despite the language barrier. When we were in Korea, she couldn't express herself in English and so she'd lapse into Korean but she was so excited about whatever she's talking that i would let her. i met up with her while she was here in Sunway for an exchange program. her English has greatly improved. haha.

Ellen taught me perseverance, patience and hard work will pay off or at least, that's how you should approach learning. she would come see me everyday to go over her English or correct the work she's done in the textbooks. she was so persistent with it and i felt bad looking at her work so hard whereas English came so easy for me. i really wish her all the success in world, i know she will do great things.

Chloe is another girl who was really nice and friendly and made the effort to be friends. we weren't very close but idk, i just like her. but i guess they can be different people when they aren't with me. being a foreigner tends to bring the nice out of other people. lol. oh well.

and now introducing, 동수 or Jun who is in the same gang as Lina and Jebi. he's a really nice guy but for some reason, he's not the kind of guy i would date. Lina and I actually discussed this because he's really quite a good catch but both of us just don't feel it. ( ・◇・)


there's also 미현/ Mi Hyeon who is in the same gang. they call her the chic girl and i agree. she's super cool about stuff and very kind too.

L to R: Jebi, Mi Hyeon, Lina, me, Jun

hi, guys! missed me? （^０＾）i know i know, i should be having all the time in the world (which i do) but why am i not posting anything? i... have no explanation. ㅋㅋ but i'm here now. 

lets see. what have i been up to lately? i'll start with the Haeundae Sand Festival. it was awesome! i wished i had the time and the right company to witness everything that happened in the festival but alas, i only have but one body and i can only be in one place at a time. 

you may wonder why i would say this. this is because apart from the main event, they had other stuff going on named aptly fringe event. i guess it ensured that more people came flocking to the festival but i wasn't able to enjoy every bit of it. also, maybe because i was a tad too short to peer over people's shoulders. still, they had a lot of things going on and it was a really good festival; there was a little bit for everyone, children, adults, families, couples, locals, foreigners and all. i must say, S.Korea does know how to put on a great festival.

here are some pics to paint the picture.

whats a sand festival doing if it doesn't have ginormous sand sculptures?

and this was during the opening festival, a live performance of sand art. i didn't know it was live till i saw the lady at the corner of the stage. :D

this was during the air show and it was one of the coolest things i've seen. i mean, they were so in sync and aligned! it was amazing! it was spectacular!

and who am i supposed to enjoy all these if not with my friends? ^^

there were lots of other things that happened, they had a parade and band performances and a flying robot and lots lots more. haha. oh oh, during the opening ceremony, First (a mixed idol group that i know nothing of) and No Brain performed! 

i foresee this being a long post. so, buckle up, sit tight and enjoy~ ^^

next up! take a guess?

yup, i can now safely say that i've lived and breathed Busan because i went to a Lotte Giants baseball game. :D and the best part? Lotte Giants won! the game was confusing to me since this was my first time and what little i knew came from the movies. thankfully, my Korean friends helped out with the translations. ㅎㅎ

and another proof that i have fully immersed in the Korean baseball culture; presenting the plastic bags!

we do look quite adorable, no? ^_^

and now, Silla Holic time! as mentioned in previous post, Silla Holic is the name for this year's university festival. this is why i like S.Korea, you know. they have uni festivals where they serve alcohol and have competitions on who can smoke the fastest and of course, have celebrities over to perform and all this for free!

this festival was my first and last time experiencing one, so i took it upon myself to thoroughly enjoy it sort of. haha. the idea of the festival was that each department has their own stalls where they sell a variety of food and a steady supply of alcohol. the food are mostly meat, ramyun and other street stall food. the alcohol were mostly soju or beer or a combination. there were also stalls selling jewelry and like the picture below, artists offering their services for a donation of 100won and above. i looked prettier that day compared to the caricature sketch! hrrmphhh~

at the Chinese stall. ^^

the festival was held on the field and the blue tents are stalls. other than the performances by celebrities, they had things going on like dance, band, orchestra performances and Voice of Silla and lucky draws.

and now! the celebrities! Leessang was a crowd favorite but i only got to see them from afar. Baekchigi was not as well known but there were fans around. 10cm was another popular one and of course, Ailee. she was super adorable! and all around me, the guys were going, "she's so cute!". ㅋㅋ she started off with Beyonce's Crazy In Love, sang her two title songs and some OST song. hearing her sing live was mind-blowing. i got goosebumps! the only setback was the short time all the performances were. i think the longest performance was 10cm. most of them last only half an hour or so. D: still, can't complain now, can i?

yes, you have reached it. this is the end. phew~ heeeh. that's pretty much what i've been up to these past three weeks. i'll be going back to Malaysia next week. pretty torn up about leaving, on one hand, i miss home but on the other, i will definitely miss Busan and all the friends i made here. D:

oh well. tis' life, is it not? hellos and goodbyes. 

have a good week ahead! God bless~

“One makes mistakes; that is life. But it is never a mistake to have loved.” 

– Romain Rolland