Eurasia: Spanish and Indian Manilan Adventure!!

- June 18, 2011, Saturday.

- Hurray to free cuts that made my first Saturday afternoon in school stress-free. To celebrate this, I asked Samuel if he was available this afternoon, so we could have our adventure today instead of Monday, when I suppose the temple in Little India would be closed due to the national holiday.

- After school, I came home, changed clothes, had lunch, and waited for Samuel to tell me if he was already near the LRT station. I soon met him around 1:30, rode the train to United Nations and walked all the way to Little India.

- I told Samuel that we couldn't visit the Hindu temple today because a wedding was taking place there. So much for schedule changes, huh. Well Samuel seemed to be interested in looking at the Sikh temple, and all the other stores in Little India. I bought some tea in Simron's. Missed the aromatic and subtely-flavored Indian tea in India. I also bought Samuel a money envelope. Haha.

- We soon ate a light light after-lunch meal in Assad Cafe. The cook who specialized in Indian food was on break when we got there, so we ate the samosas we bought in Assad Minimart. We later ate Kashmiri Fish Curry and some chapattis, and ate our "dessert" afterwards: a ladoo and a black jamun each.

- Samuel insisted on visiting the Hindu Temple, so he could see at least see what it looked like from the outside. I agreed, and so we rode a trike to the temple after the meal.

- We saw a lot of people outside the temple, and got to see a glimpse of the wedding since the front door of the function hall was open. Saw a lot of nice textile there. HAHA.

- We walked towards Instituto as the small droplets of rain fell from the sky. We even got a little lost along the way, for some strange reason. We got to the Instituto minutes later, and found out from the guad, Kuya Allan, that El Dia Espanol (Day of the Spanish Language) already finished an hour or more before we arrived. Funny, since the El Dia Espanol last year lasted until around 5pm or more.

- Samuel and I still went inside to see the "remnants" of the event, and saw some of the giant board games and "legal wall drawings" in the exhibit hall. I also showed Samuel the library, stayed there to cool off, got some free brochures, and took a look at them.

- We soon decided to leave, since Samuel had another appointment in MOA after our adventure, and I had to organize the thick readings I got earlier. Gah. I hope I survive graduate school. I really hope I do. :(( :(( :(( :((

Golden Friday

- June 17, 2011, Friday.

- I was looking forward to this day since Monday because I knew many big things would happen. The biggest of them were those I didn't expect. Today's plans were simple: to go to CKSC and go to some friends who are still in high school, so I could give them the souvenirs I got from Korea. I also needed to meet with my friend Jane, who is now a disciplinarian, to give her the souvenirs for her, Crystal, and Leanne. I also needed to visit Lalaine's younger sister, to hand her the souvenirs for Lalaine. After that, I needed to have my piano lesson, and meet Marga and Grace in Golden Fortune for another dimsum tea party.

- Aside from today's supposed schedule, I as able to meet Megan, who also happened to be in CKSC. I also met some friends from the lower batches who happened to be lingering around. I also found out today that my batchmate Clarizza is now an English teacher in CKSC. She's also the new adviser of the Writer's Guild, the club she became part of during high school.

- After my piano lesson, I waited for Grace's and Marga's text messages, so I'd know when to leave CKSC. Grace soon texted me to meet her up in CKSC Narra, where she's taking up her second degree. She told me to meet her there so we could ride in Grace's car to Golden Fortune.

- Grace and I arrived around 3:30, and waited for Marga to come. We ordered a bowl of noodles each, and ordered some dimsum after Marga told us that she's already near the restaurant.

- Marga arrived around 4:45, and the Koreanophile riot began. The so-far hot topic of course was my recent trip to Korea, especially my Music Bank experience. However, the bigger and hotter topic was Grace's birthday celebration next week. That, I have to watch out for.

- The afternoon ended with my mom calling me and telling me to come home, because they decided to eat out for dinner. Wow, talk about a lot of food. Grace was kind enough to drive me home, since my house was on her way home. Right now, I'm again tired just thinking about my class tomorrow. Good thing I have free cuts in the afternoon; my professor, same for both subjects, will not be around tomorrow. Another adventure perhaps?? Yes. :) :) :) :)

The "A" Album: Hello Friend!!

- June 15, 2011, Wednesday (Last day before the first day of graduate school.)

- My artsy friend Audrey introduced me to Almond a few days before the study tour to Korea. Audrey said that we might get along because both Almond and I are pianists. I've spoken to Almond a few times via Facebook, and wondered what it would be like to meet him in person.

- Audrey informed me a few days ago that they would be meeting today to edit Almond's music video. The video was Almond's entry to a contest, and hopefully, he'll win that avocado shaker.

- Today, I dropped by Shirby's store and Danica's house to give them their Korean souvenirs, and went to Starbucks to wait for Audrey. Since her house was near Starbucks, I did not have to wait long before Audrey came, together with Almond. Almond was surprised to see me, especially since Audrey didn't want to tell Almond that I would be coming.

- We all had lunch (my second actually) in McDonald's, where I gave them the souvenirs I got for them in Korea. They played around with the little drum keychains. Hahahaha.

- We later went to Audrey's house, and Audrey showed me all of her interesting and comical illustrations and books. Almond on the other hand was on Audrey's Mac, trying to perfect his music video. Audrey was helping Almond most of the time, while I flipped through pages after pages of colors and lines.

- Almond's video was almost finished around 6:20pm, but he had to go home already. He'd only need to tweak up a some things here and there, but the whole video was already put together. Both of us left Audrey's house around 6:30, and went our separate ways.

- Although I was already happy to see Almond and Audrey (aside from Shirby's mom and Danica,) I met a bunch of people I knew on the way home. Well, it's not a "big" way to end my summer break, but it sure was a great way to end it!! :D:D:D:D

Ateneo Annyeong Adventure: Korean EBS Study Tour With Comm Majors And Koreans!!

- June 5-11, 2011, Sunday to Saturday.

- Sir Sev, our department chair in Comm in Ateneo, had been looking for me everywhere during my tri-national adventure a month ago. I was able to reply while waiting for our Bangkok-to-Manila flight in Suvarnabhumi airport. It was the only place where I could access free internet.

- In the countless emails and messages that I received, I was told that Korea's Educational Broadcasting System (EBS) was going to sponsor a study tour to Korea. I, together with 5 other Atenean delegates, would be sent to an all-expense-paid trip to Korea, to work on 2 3 to 5-minute documentaries, to be shown in EBS. This was done in celebration of the Korean War memorial day, and because many Filipinos were sent to Korea to fight alongside South Koreans against the North Koreans. (Yes, it was sponsored, meaning the whole thing was an all-expense-paid study tour. Heehee.)

- Sir Sev, blockmates Mel and Guada, seniors Lexie, Ali, Ceej, and I all flew to Korea on the noon of the 5th of June via Korean Air. We arrived in Korea around 5 in the afternoon (4pm here in Manila) and were welcomed to the country by Director Kim Hyun and Jin Hoong Chung from EBS. To their surprise, as well as all the Koreans I've encountered in Korea, I was able to speak Korean (all thanks to my basic Korean class in Ateneo.)

The lovebirds.

With Ali.

This funny Moriones guy.

With Ceej.

Codelegates Ceej, Ali, Mel, Guada, and Lexie.

Ice cream buddies.

It was quite hot.

Guada and Ceej inside the plane.

With seatmate Lexie.

Korean Air food.

Airplane bibimbap, was not as good as the ones on land.

Free ice cream. Who doesn't want free ice cream??

Pictoral with SNSD.

We met Director Kim and Jin.

- From Incheon, the private bus we rode on drove us to Suwon, Gyeonggi-do. We were in Suwon for two nights before going to Seoul, and we all stayed in the Korea Education and Research Institute for Partiots and Veterans (KERIPV.) The 6 Korean students, as well as Yu Jin Han (Jinny) from EBS (she's a girl) and Eun Ye Shin (production director from EBS,) welcomed us, and gave all of us warm hugs and handshakes. Upon checking in the rather fancy dormitory, all of us, including production director Kim Han Jung, PhD, had a galbi-tang dinner at a nearby restaurant. Galbi-tang is the Korean counterpart of "nilagang baka." Just a note on Korean dishes: Korean servings are huge. A big bowl of soup that would feed one family during a meal is just an individual serving in Korea. Good luck to our tummies.

Bus buddies!!

Korean buses usually have lights like these.

Jin.

Oh lookie!! 

Suwon Hwaseong Fortress from the bus.

Meeting the Korean delegates.

Dinner!!

Toasting with Dr. Kim Han Jung.

Galbitang.

- After dinner, we went back to the dormitory, listened to PD Kim's short lecture about the war in the conference room, distributed Filipino/ Atenean souvenirs to the Koreans, and met up with our groupmates to plan on the documentaries. Guada, Ali, and I were teamed with Ji Eun Choi, Minjeong Kim, and Caesar Choi, while the other 3 Ateneans were teamed up with Yong Chan Kwon, Layla/Salangyi Kim, and Hana Kim. Each team was supposed to make one documentary about the Fil-Kor friendship. The meetings ended around 11 at night. (Instead of sleeping early, some of us decided to meet up for the documentaries, or go to each other's rooms to hang out.) Btw, during the day, Ali was nice enough to lend me her phone, so I could text my parents regarding my enrollment in UP Diliman. I know a text message from abroad is expensive, but no one aside from her had signals despite roaming, and it was very important for me to contact my parents. Thanks Ali!!

Tada!!

Dr. Kim Han Jung's speech.

Mel and Guada in the room.

- Our second day, memorial day, was our main tour day. We first visited the War Memorial Museum, where we saw old uniforms, statues, and other things that had to do with the Korean War. There were also big war vehicles (tanks, ships, etc.) at the back of the museum where people can play around. After leaving the museum, we were on our way to lunch.

A small exhibit in KERIPV.

From the outside.

View from KERIPV: a quiet Suwon.

Memorial statue in front of KERIPV.

Trying to do a musical.

At the War Memorial Museum; here are some data.

It was the anniversary of the Korean War, so there was an event in the War Memorial Museum.

Filipinos who helped in the Korean War.

Soldiers demonstrating their warm-ups.

Replica of the famed turtle ship used by Admiral Yi Sun Shin to win wars against Japan.

Ceej, me, Ali, Hana, and Lexie in front of the flags of the UN forces.

Hey!! It's Former President Filel V. Ramos' uniform!! He donated this to Korea.

Closer view of the turtle ship.

Another memorial statue.

She looks like Dora.

Old warriors.

At the lobby.

At the open area.

There are a lot of things to do and see inside (and outside) the War Memorial Museum/

Plenty of old war transportation.

Inside a tank.

Sir Sev being "hit" by a tank with a light-and-sounds gun.

With ghost Hana behind me.

With Yongchan.

Do you see what I see??

I still can't see it though.

Mel the captain.

N Seoul Tower was quite visible from the museum (it's quite visible around Seoul anyway.)

Guada posing.

Half-mast Korean flag in honor of the anniversary of the Korean War.

The "63 Building," one of Korea's famous contemporary structures. It's located in Yeouido. It's the tallest gold-cladded structure in the world.

Sleeping Minjeong and Ji Eun.

- During the rather long bus ride, we had a game of manito. To play the game, a person should pick a name from a bag, and the person should do nice or special things to the name the person picked. In our case, Filipinos needed to pick a Korean name, and vice versa. The game would last until our last dinner, when we'll reveal the person we picked. Before revealing, people would vote for the person who they think picked their name. The person with the most votes wins.

- We later had lunch, which served as a good opportunity to be "discretely good" to whoever we picked. I picked Hana nuna. Because I was kind to her, she already asked if she was my "secret friend" (the person picked.) Of course I pretended to say no, so she'd keep wondering. Well, it's also because I am nice to everyone, and I treat everyone specially.

Waiting for our samsyeopsal lunch.

Photos and more photos.

Ali seems too happy.

- After lunch, we arrived at the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ.) Even at the gate of the compound, we could already sense tension from the soldiers, since being near the 38th Parallel (North-South Korean border) was no joke. Too bad we weren't able to visit the blue houses, where half of the house (conference room I think) occupied North Korea, and the other half, South. It would've been cool to walk to and fro North and South Korea in one small room. Well, at least I can say that I was able to see the mountains of North Korea from afar during the visit to the observation deck. I couldn't take pictures of North Korea because I might get shot from across the border. No joke. After the visit in the observation deck, we went to the soldiers' barracks to see their rooms, and some of the weapons they used.

At one of the observation decks.

Inside the barracks.

He looks like my friend.

Organized cabinets.

With Salangyi.

Be carefullllll.

These military guys are actually men who are undergoing their mandatory military service.

Sir Sev be careful with that!!

A photo with the guy who looks like my friend back in the Philippines.

Melona on a mildly hot afternoon.

- Later, we went to Imjin River (Imjin Gang) for a short cruise via a traditional boat. Too bad we weren't able to understand what the captain/storyteller was saying; he spoke in Korean. I soon found out that the historical river served as a battle location during the Korean War. Aside from that, I also found out that the long river crossed both Koreas, which made the river cooler.

An old man in a male hanbok.

Working it.

Ali too.

KOrean flag.

Pretty much rocks and mountains. 

Mel doing his drama.

I like how our boat was very traditional looking.

One of the riskiest shots I've done.

Hi there Lexie.

Turtle hill: they say it looks kind of like a turtle. The head is supposed to be at the right side.

Trying to stay awake. 

A girl's teddy.

Just us.

Now they're just sleepy.

- Before having dinner, we had a short visit to the Filipino memorial statue, so we could pay our respects to the soldiers who fought in the Korean War. We took pictures and offered flowers. After visiting that statue, I thought that the Filipinos should be more aware of these unknown heroes. All the other statues of other nations who helped in the war had bouquets of flowers offered to them by their respective countries, while only a flower or two were offered to the Filipinos.

Memorial statue. 

A bit hard to capture everything in a single shot.

Hmm, one of the soldiers seems to have a modelling background.

Ali and her gladiator pose.

We placed some flowers. 

- We soon ate dinner and went back to KERIPV to prepare for our Filipino cultural performance. The first part of our performance was a traditional Filipino performance. While Anak was being sung by Sir Sev, Lexie, Mel, and Guada, I danced an Ifugao dance at the beginning, Ceej and her Pandanggo sa Ilaw in the middle, and Ali's Singkil at the end. Anak was cut after the second verse, and the second part begun. We danced Sorry Sorry, and soon, my specialty, Gee. I scarred the Koreans' eyes for life. Haha. After the rather controversial performance, we had a game of charades. Our team won, and each of us Filipinos won Korean jackstones. Haha.

Preparing for our performance.

Ceej and her Pandango sa Ilaw.

Ali and her Singkil.

Preparing for Super Junior.

Sorry Sorry.

Gee.

Playing some charades.

EBS did a feature on the Filipino ethnic groups before.

- We soon prepared our things since we'd be moving to Seoul the following day. Before sleeping, Director Kim told us that he'd be going around Suwon for a morning walk in the morning, and everyone was encouraged to join, although not required. Many opted not to join because the call time was 6:30 in the morning. Still, some of us wanted to us, yours truly included, since Director Kim will be visiting Hwasong Palace, the palace in Suwon. (Since it was going to be early in the morning, we'd only get to explore the outer parts of the palace, and we wouldn't be allowed inside the palace since it would still be closed.)

- The next morning only Ceej and I decided to have the morning walk with the director. He brought us to Hwasong Palace, went around a bit, and he soon gave us a small surprise - he brought Ceej and me to the Hwaseong Haenggung (Hwaseong Palace,) where some scenes of Dae Jang Geum were shot!!!! Well it was too early, so the palace was closed. We were pressed for time too, so we won't have time to go in through. We rode a taxi back to KERIPV, had breakfast, and had an "expression" workshop with highly-awarded dancer Young Doo Chung. By the way, the director gave me the map of Suwon he was holding that morning. "It's a gift," he told me.

I like how quiet Suwon is, and is actually a nice place to stroll any time of the day.

Under a bridge.

See even the birds like it here.

We're here at Suwon Hwaseong Fortress.

With Ceej and Director Kim.

Inside one of the guard houses.

A Korean lady praying.

The fortress outside.

Oh look a tiny bird!!

Guard house.

Suwon through a hole.

One of the oldest churches in Suwon.

A nice stream.

Street signs.

Some traditional structures.

A local grade school. 

A little playtime before going ahead.

Here at the Suwon Hwaesong Haenggung.

I love the door so so much.

The first Korean series that really made me "love" Korea - Dae Jang Geum.

A map of the palace.

The golden Buddha within the fortress premises, as seen from afar.

I can't believe these were just on the ground for everyone to step on. Such detail!!

Oh look someone left a mushroom!!

Early Korean martial arts.

A Winnie the Pooh bobble head in our taxi.

With Mr. Young Doo Chung.

- We later had a long bus ride from Suwon to Seoul, and arrived at EBS for our studio tour and documentary workshop. We first had lunch, before going to the conference room for our workshop. During the tour, we were able to meet one of the reporters of EBS. We didn't know who she was, but we took a picture with her still. Hahahaha. She was pretty. Haha.

In EBS.

- During the workshop at the conference room, I discovered that Koreans indeed have a different definition of the word "documentary." Aside from the usual serious documentaries, Koreans also like to show short documentaries, around 3-5 minutes long. These documentaries are trivia loaded, but normally wanting to invoke awareness, feelings, and actions. One short documentary was shown to us, about how other countries think of Korea, and vice versa. This was to show how accurate textbooks are in Korea and other countries.

Studio tour!! 

Trying the microphone.

Studio.

Tsk tsk.

News anchor.

Set of a children's show.

Ali drawing Sir Sev. 

I'm te little one beside Sir Sev. HAHAHAHA.

Guada adding some more details.

Adding special effects.

EBS's radio station.

With Ji Eun inside the empty studio.

My favorite part: the prop room.

Need to have hard hats!!

I really wanted to take this home.

Oh look tiny Korean Air airplane!!

Editing room.

Same level as the lights.

Pretty reporter girl.

- After the studio tour, we were transferred to our apartelle, Somerset Palace. Somerset, by Ascott Residences, was conveniently located near many touristy places, as well as two train stations. However, I wasn't able to maximize my stay there, because we were pressed for time. Sigh.

- Before going out that night, I encountered Russian gymnasts (collectively named as "Rhythmic All Stars") who happened to stay in the same apartelle as we did. I knew they were Russian because I heard them talk inide the elevator. Soon, the Russians went to their own rooms, and one Russian walked in front of Mel and me. Because I am oh-so-friendly, I kindly asked the Russian if she was Russian.

Gilbert: Russkaya?? (Russian??)
Russian: Da. (Yes.) (Turns head sharply, and walks away.)

Mel and I looked at each other, and commented on how the Russian seemed snobbish. Then again, she didn't know me personally, so I didn't really mind her. She answered my question anyway. Haha.

- Our Korean friends invited us to dinner somewhere in Jongno (the district where Somserset was located,) shopped for a while in a bookstore, and proceeded to Cheonggyecheon. Cheonggyecheon is dubbed as one of the most romantic places in Korea, because the man-made river was bedazzled with lights, and enveloped with a cozy aura. However, that romantic feel disappeared after seeing all the police men in every corner of the street....and most of them were in Cheonggyecheon. Apparently there was a demonstration that night (either student or political, I forgot.) Now, I really wonder why every time I go to another country, there's always a strike that almost always ruins my traveling experience. This time, I wasn't able to go near the "Spring" statue at the opening/start of the river.

N Seoul Tower again.

In the middle of Jongno.

Ali with my favorite pajeon.

A nice bookstore.

The spiral statue behind me is called "Spring."

There was some demonstration going on.

Bright waterfall.

Philippine delegates.

- We soon arrived at the hotel, and met up with our groupmates for a short production meeting, since the following day would be our first shooting day. Both groups met shortly. In our group, Ji Eun and Minjeong gave us short instructions and plans for our video .Caesar was not around that evening because he had to do some important schoolwork. Mel came to our meeting room (Guada, Minjeong, and Ji Eun's room) after he met with his groupmates. Since we finished early, Ji Eun and Minjeong invited us to play "yutnori." Yutnori is a traditional Korean boardgame where the goal of each team was to go around the board 4 times. Instead of dice, sticks were used to determine how many steps the piece was supposed to have. We played until our team won. Yay!!

Yutnori!!

- The following day was the most hectic day, at least for me. It was our shooting day, and both teams separated for the day to do their own thing. The other group decided to do an awareness campaign by distributing stickers to Seoul. However, while the other group was going around Seoul and visiting places, my group was stuck in Sejong University to shoot our tideous post-it stop-motion animation. Although until now I could've wished to have visited the places the other group went to (Seoul Tower, one traditional village, Myeongdong, as well as a repeat strike-less visit to Cheonggyecheon,) I am still extremely happy because Ji Eun and Minjeong brought Guada, Ali, and me to Insadong. Insadong is a cultural street 5 minutes away from our hotel. The whole street sold many traditional souvenirs for lower prices. We also had dinner in a restaurant located in a small alley. Ji Eun and Minjeong ordered rice cooked inside bamboo, as well as Korean grilled meat with the fancy vegetables at the side to wrap the meat with.

Just before leaving with our groupmates.

My first encounter with the Korean metro.

Here at Sejong University. They have a nice campus.

Ali's tourist shot.

Work work.

"Sejong Daehakkyo"

Our very tedious work.

A guardian.

By the way, that's the museum.

With Eun Ye Shin.

It's not what it looks like actually, but I took this photo just for the fun of it.

Cool kids.

TADA FINISHED FINALLY.

Proud with our work.

Plenty of demonstrations that day.

With the landmark marker of Insadong: the giant black brush. 

It's really a massive brush.

My favorite place so far.

Our bamboo dinner.

- We later returned to the hotel, and met up with our Atenean friends from the other group. They had success in touring Seoul, but we had success in shopping. The other group was brought to Myeongdong, the high-end marketplace, so they weren't able to buy too many things, or souvenirs at least. Yay!!

Doing our homework and goofing around at night.

GS25-bought tteokbeokgi.

What are you doing Mel.

- Since we finished shooting the previous day, the whole morning to early afternoon was dedicated to editing and doing the subtitles (after Guada, Ali, and I snuck back to Insadong to do more shopping.) It took longer than expected, so we weren't able to visit the Seoul Tower, traditional village, and Gyeongbok Palace - the biggest, most-visited palace with soldiers and palace women in costumes, and the famous Sejong statue and Admiral Yi Sun Shin statue both located outside the Gyeongbok Palace.

Didn't expect to see them in Korea!!

A nice antique toy museum/store.

Cabbage patch!!

Star Wars!!

Am I reaaaaallyy????

Work work morning.

View from the room.

- Although we missed out on a lot of places, we were able to visit Myeongdong (for like fifteen to thirty minutes.) Seoul Tower was a bit far, but that was the closest I've been to Seoul Tower. In Myeongdong, I asked Caesar to accompany us to the Myeongdong Cathedral, one of the most beautiful gothic-style churches in Korea. He gladly accompanied us there, took photos, went inside and out just to see how it looked like inside, and went on to (window) shopping.

Myeongdong.

Myeongdong Cathedral.

Very gothic.

Korean street food.

Another N Seoul Tower shot.

- Caesar told us that it was about time for us to go back to the hotel, since we needed to meet up with Jin and Yu Jin, and the Ateneans from the other group, for our evening of fun in Lotte World. All of us had a lonnnnng train ride to Lotte World, ate a Mexican dinner at Dos Tacos, and promptly went to the indoor-outdoor theme park.

- For people who have been with me with Enchanted Kingdom or other big theme parks, they would know that I am not a big fan of the "big kid" rides. Other than I'm scared of them, I have a case of motion sickness. Because of this, I opted to stay behind in the larger rides, and just attempted to take pictures of my companions. In one ride, Jin told us that the ride would just be a slow boat ride, when it turned out to be a smaller version of Enchanted Kingdon's "Log Jam." (It was too late when we found out about that.) We told Jin that he was a liar, although Jin told us that he didn't really know in the first place. Hahahaha.

Beanie shot.

Mandatory photo.

They have a lot of shows.

Lotte World mascot.

Look a parade!!

The castle reminds me of a certain famous castle.

Them in the ride.

Crazy head-band sisters.

I can't deal with rides like this one.

Are they OK??

Lexie is apparently OK.

I'm just happy taking photos.

Smile!!

LOL PSYDUCK.

The prized photo of the night.

Just like Enchanted Kingdom's Anchor's Away.

Chibi Maruko Chan!!

- After Lotte World, we went back to the hotel, worked on out workbooks all night, and rested for the most awaited day for us Koreanophiles. While doing the workbooks, we all realized that the following day was our last full day in Korea, and the next would be our departure day.

My first gyerang hanbok.

- Our 6th day started out with me sneaking out of the hotel again to go to Insadong to shop more, and have my picture taken in a photo studio wearing a king's costume. Guada and Ali didn't come with me because they were busy with their workbooks and some drawings to be given as presents.

Daewang!!

- The whole group met around 10:50 in the morning, went to have lunch, beside EBS, and went to EBS for the documentaries' screening, and our "graduation" ceremony. The president of EBS himself, Mr. Kwak Duk Hoon, gave us our certificates, as well an EBS goodie bag containing an EBS memo pad, EBS pencils, sharpeners, erasers, and a big Korean wooden mask.

Father and son??

Giant mandu.

With Mr. Kwak Duk Hoon, president of EBS.

He was talking to me, and found out that we had the same surname (my Chinese surname, when translated to Korean, is "Kwak.")

Presenting the token.

My goodie bag.

- After leaving EBS, all of us had a long taxi ride to the highlight of the trip: Music Bank in KBS. For those who don't know, Music Bank is a live weekly hit chart that showcases a wide array of Korean idol groups. Although my Korean fandom has faded a teeny weeny bit, I'm still glad that I knew some of the groups who performed there. (Although this won't top the free SHINee concert I went to....just because SHINee's my favorite aside from SNSD. Haha.)

- Picture-taking was not allowed inside Music Bank. Although one of the men-in-black people informed me about that rule after he caught me catching pictures, I still felt that I still had to get as much shots as possible. How did I do it?? That's my secret. Bleh. :)) :)) :)) :)) It's just all about perfect timing. Hahahaha.

KBS!!

Squeeze Lexie.

Judgmental look..

Here we are!!

Oh cool FT Island during rehearsals.

After School!!

Second round.

I was really expecting to see Song Jungki, but apparently they changed the hosts. 

Beast.

Curtain call.

Saw this inside the restroom. Yes, I agree, I love SHINee too.

Giant Korean flag while walking in Yeouido.

Walking on sunshine?? Probably not..

Ramen van.

"Yeouido."

Another popular building.

More street food!!

Legit tteokbeokgi. 

Odeng.

- We returned to the hotel afterwards, and had our last dinner in a small alleyway in Insadong. We did some voting on who we thought was our secret friend, and Mel and Ji Eun won. (I don't have any objection to the results, but it was weird because I was told by the Koreans that many of them thought that I or Ali was the one who picked their names. Maybe the Koreans thought that I was friendlier to another Korean, so they decided to vote for someone else. Haha. I dunno.) Mel and Ji Eun both won a Poporo (a penguin character from EBS) stuffed toy. I guess it was also great that Mel won no only because he was friendly and funny, but because he had a little sister and a little niece; he could give Poporo to either one of them. Hehe. Aside from this, we also revealed all our secret friends. Hana was surprised (or not surprised) to know that I was the one who picked her. Haha.

- The Koreans also gave all their secret friends a gift. Ji Eun, who picked my name, gave me a hanbok card with a message, telling me that even if I wasn't able to buy my hanbok, she hopes that the hanbok card would make up for it. Well, the hanbok card, my emperor picture, and all my casual hanboks really made the trip a hanbok-win trip. Aside from that, she also gave me a how-to-speak-Korean book. It's funny because I saw the book in their room the other day, but I never knew it was mine, and better since after I saw the book, I hoped that I could have a copy of that book. Aside from being a phrasebook, the book also had a map of Korea in front and at the back. Heehee. Ji Eun and the others also gave each of us a ballpen-and-bookmark set.

Layla/Salangyi serving makgeolli.

MOAAAR PAJEON.

The informal closing ceremonies.

Thank you Ji Eun nuna for this wonderful present!!

- After dinner, we had a noraebang session at a nearby karaoke place. I acted crazy, and even crawled on the floor like a fast version of Sadako while singing Lady Gaga's Born This Way. HAHAHAHA (To have a picture of the Koreans' faces after that crawl would be priceless. HAHA.)

Ceej rocking it.

With Hana nuna.

I have no idea why I wanted to bite my necklace.

Director Kim singing.

My wild noraebang face.

Singing with Hana.

Minjeong getting it on.

That pose.

Ateneo girls singing.

The danger duo.

Passed by Jogyesa on the way back.

- We soon returned to the hotel after a fun night, packed our bags, and rested for our last day - the "Seoul tour" day. All of us had a hard time packing because all our bags are loaded with stuff we bought in Korea. Lexie and I even had to sit on our bags just so we could close them!!

- The following day, we left the hotel at around 10am, and first went to Changgyeong Palace. The palace was built by King Taejong, the father of King Sejong. Although the palace was beautiful, I still thought that it would've been better if we toured the great Gyeongbok Palace, which was a few minutes (even walking distance) from out hotel. Well, at least we were still able to visit a palace. Haha.

Hello Changgyeonggung.

Haya!!

The Kung Fu Panda Brothers, as they claim.

Jin on a tree. Can't get any random-er than this.

The big pond.

Storytelling time I think. Nice hanboks!!

Old and new.

Yup, it's story time.

Various scattered structures in the palace grounds.

Very nice wooden windows.

Small throne hall.

Inner courtyard.

Mel as a soldier.

To the exit.

Inner gate. 

Nicely-pattered/colored ceiling.

Map of the palace.

- We had our last lunch in Itaewon, and we were driven next to the center, where more shops can be found. All of us first went inside a mall, and explored the place. After realizing that most of the items there were quite expensive, we decided to go out to the streets and discover treasures in the small stores and stalls in busy Itaewon.

Octopus!!

Final Lunch.

I will miss Ji Eun nuna.

As well as this octopus friend.

Itaewon!!

Blockmates!!

- Just when I thought I wouldn't be able to buy anything anymore, I went inside a "costume-and-souvenir" shop, and bought myself a....wait for it....A HANBOK!!!! The hanbok I bought was inexpensive because it wasn't made of silk, and had little embroidery. I fit it quickly, paid for it, and ran off to buy a blue Chinese polo-pants set in another store. Definitely a shopping-win early afternoon. Too bad our Korean friends had to leave after our Itaewon shopping-win trip.

Passed by Gwanghwamun Square.

Passed by Gyeongbokgung!! Apparently there was a big ceremony that I don't know what.

- Before going to the airport, we had another hour of shopping in Time Square, more popularly known as Shinsegae. Now, I wasn't really able to buy anything there, since the things there are expensive (sort of like their counterpart of Rustan's,) and because I only had 2,200 Won in my wallet.

Shinsegae.

- We later said our final goodbyes to Korea, Jin, and Yu Jin. All of us ate a light meal in the airport before taking off to Manila. I will need to go back to Korea again some day so I can finally visit the must-sees there. Again, although I wasn't able to see, or set foot in the must-sees, the whole experience was fun, tiring, rare, hilarious, and new. I am very thankful that Sir Sev thought of me first upon receiving the email from Jin about this study tour, and that I was allowed by destiny to go to this trip by letting me reply on time in Thailand's Suvarnabhumi airport. Until we meet again, Korea.

Cultural experience.

With a woman wearing a nice hanbok.

A VERY CUTE KOREAN TODDLER.

THAT HAIR.

Epilogue: During the plane ride home, I was able to see a glimpse of Japan and its shores, much to my surprise. Taiwan and China were at the other side of the plane, so I wasn't able to see them. It really pays to check the skymap once in a while. Heehee. Upon landing in good ole' Manila, we were surprised by long lines in the immigration, and the slow movement of the lines. Sir and Lexie had US passports, so they were in another line - a faster one. We, who had Filipino passports, had to suffer the long and slow lines. We even dubbed it as Moses' trip from Egypt to Israel in Exodus. Hahahaha. Anyway, I'm just glad I came home in one piece, and hopefully, ready for masteral classes. Haha.

Japan from the plane.

Watching Indian stuff.