The last post of my trip to South Korea! The traditional Korean wedding (＾∇＾) Our friend Carl got married to his cute wife So Hyun in Seoul. The ceremony was held in Korea House on a sunny sunday and it was beautiful! I am so honored and happy to have been present on this special day ♥
The ceremony started with a traditional Korean performance
The bridegroom enters
The bride enters
Emmaruuu
Newly wed Carl and his best man Peter
When the ceremony was over we had a delicious buffet and fun afterparty ★ It was held at LePub that I mentioned in the first post. There were drinking games, pool, darts showdowns and flamethrowing bartenders! Emma and I drank the two shots that were set on fire and let me tell you this; it sure burnt after taking the shot (ﾟoﾟ;) Since this was the last night in South Korea Emma and I decided to visit Hongdae one last time. We met up with some of our new friends from the trip and hung out until dawn. Without any sleep we checked out of the hotel around noon and began our journey back to Bangkok. It was truly a bittersweet feeling (ノД`) Why is it not possible to mix two countries into one?!
At the afterparty
Them feels when we were at Seoul Station, on our way back to Thailand
This post will mostly be about food but, of course, who says no to that? So after we visited the beach in Gangneung we only had four days left in Seoul. They were well spent with friends, food, alcohol, karaoke, shopping and last but not least; the wedding ♥ Here are some pictures from our last few days ▼
Cool chicken restaurant in Hongdae and an Emma in her natural habitat
Continued the night in Dongdaemun where we found Swedish Fika
Late night "snack" with Austin
Dak Galbi
Last but not least we have the wedding! I took a lot of photos at the ceremony so I will save them for the last part of my trip to South Korea. To be continued...
Let us continue with our adventures in South Korea! After the drunken night in Hongdae we took one day off to recharge our energy. Thereafter we visited Dongdaemun again but this time we walked around during the evening. Cozy~!
Next day we met up with another friend of mine - Yameki. Oh my, when was the last time we met? I think it was in 2011.. Anyway, we met up in Hongdae, of course, and catched up over some drinks. Before meeting up with Yameki and his cute girlfriend we girls went for some BBQ. I really like the omelette thingy around the grill ♡
While in Hongdae we ran into two of our new friends, Kim and Seungyong. They told us about their plan on taking a road trip to the beach next morning and asked us if we wanted to join. Emma and I felt a bit hesitant at first since it already was around 3am but then we thought "Fuck it, we are on a vacation in South Korea!" and said yes ヽ(^^) After our decision we took a cab back with Yameki and his girlfriend to get some sleep. But! Before sleep, let us eat some more..
As promised, our two friends came to pick us up in the morning at the hotel. We were a group of eight people so we went by two cars from Seoul and met up in Gangneung. The roadtrip took about three hours so when we arrived at the beach it was time for lunch. On the menu was seafood! And plenty of it（♡▽♡）After the big meal it was time for speed boat. I had a lot of fun ★ We were so sad that we had to head back after a couple of hours but we will definitely go on another roadtrip again next time!
It has been exactly two months since I last blogged. Meanwhile I was away I have started working at a guest house and currently lives there. There has been many changes and a lot of new things to learn so most of my energy went to work. But after a month of work Emma and I packed our bags and went to South Korea for two weeks. We attended our friends wedding in Seoul and also took the time to explore the city. It rained most of the time during the first week but our last week was awesome! We arrived Seoul pretty late in the evening so after checking in at the hotel we went out in search for food and beer.
Emma looking happy with food and beer v(＾-＾)o旦
After food we went to a bar for more beer!
Two days after, Lin arrived Seoul! We explored the shopping districts Dongdaemun and Myeongdong during the day and ended up in Hongdae at night. Had a lot of fun and made new friends at Ho bar. Gotta love that name ♥
Myeongdong
Entering the shopping streets in Myeongdong
Super Junior in Hongdae hahah (≧∇≦)
I love these kind of bars in Seoul. Super cozy~!
Ho bar is a big bar/club chain in Seoul. You can find it everywhere!
The day after, Emma and I met up with the soon-to-wed couple in another district called Jeongbalsan. We had Korean BBQ and hung out at SoHyuns friends pub called LePub. Really enjoyed meeting them again but at midnight we had to part ways to catch the last bus and train. When we arrived back at the hotel we met up with Lin, who did not have dinner yet so we ended up having BBQ again at 1am. Our new friend that we met from Ho bar the other day joined us then. Beer led to Soju and Soju led to Makgeolli. We introduced the Swedish drinking game Ring of Fire to our new friend Kim. Whenever we teach people this game it has always become popular! At 5am we teached Kim some Swedish too. It was beautiful ♡
SoHyun and Carl, the soon-to-wed couple（人´∀`*）
At LePub
Kim!
Swedes, can you spot our notes?
"Satans jävla kukhål" A very useful phrase when you visit Sweden d(´▽｀)
Oh my, I had a lot of fun that night. But now to the next day! We met up with Tsuomasu and his beautiful girlfriend Mitsuki in Hongdae for dinner at Doma. It had been about a year since I last met Tsuomasu so it was really nice to hang out again. Unfortunately, they had to go back pretty quick because of an early flight but Emma, Lin and I stayed in Hongdae to meet up with some Korean friends. Emma and Lin met them the first time during their vacation in Bangkok. It is really fun how you meet people from around the world and when you visit their homecountry you get to hang out again! Anyway, we visited various clubs and bars in Hongdae until dawn and.. Well, Emmas snapback says it all
Finally, I am updating this blog, from Bangkok d(⌒o⌒) Emma and I arrived the 11th of December and we started off by staying at a small but modern hotel called 41 Suite Hotel. I really recommend this place because it is near the BTS station - Phrom Phong(which is close to the more "central" stations) and the price is pretty decent considered the location, class and security of the hotel. Not to mention their staff! We really got attached to one of their receptionists. The receptionist was very kind and even helped us search for cheap condominiums around Bangkok. Great service in other words! Click here to read more about 41 Suite Hotel.
My Vine when we were about to board the plane from Sweden
One thought came in mind while Emma and I searched for hotels before our journey; why are there windows through the bathroom and bedroom in almost every hotel in Bangkok?!
Nice interior at 41 Suite Hotel
A few days after our arrival we went to MBK just to go out and do anything other than visit condominiums. At that particular day there was a Japanese event at MBK, organized by a Japanese school. We felt kind of abnormal among all the cosplayers . . .
At the same day we also met up with a childhood friend of mine to eat Korean BBQ at Korean Town, located in Asoke. Unfortunately I forgot to take photos of the place, I blame myself for being too hungry and eager to dig in. After the dinner we made our way to Nana to visit an outdoor bar which is known for their shishas. They also had belly dancing performances and singers. Truly, an eastern atmosphere (〜・▽・)〜♪
Now I am skipping ahead to when we actually decided on which condominium to move in to. It took us about a week to look at different condminiums, decide on which one to take, sign the contract and move in. I freaking love this country. In Sweden it is impossible to find a condominium with a swimming pool, gym, library, hair salon, dry cleaning, café, restaurant and 7Eleven included in the building for a decent rent. Not even sure if there actually exist condominiums like that in Sweden . . . Anyway, back to our condominium. It is a two bedroom with 47 square meters. I would love to show you how the whole place looks like, but for now I will just post pictures of our view from both our balconies, afternoon and night, and my room. I will take pictures of the other rooms later on when it is cleaned properly, lol. And maybe the other facilities in the building too?
Balcony at the kitchen
Balcony at the master bedroom
And here is my room~!
Windows down to the floor
I only brought a small amount of clothes with me, compared to what my actual closet looks like in Sweden, so I am pretty excited about all the new clothes I will find here in Bangkok ♡ Oh, did you spot my pink drinking hat that I got as a present from the previous Gals and Shit event? Of course I brought it with me to Thailand! Haha, okay this post is getting too long so I will just stop here and update later on. Take care ★
Now on to the last post about my trip to Laos this summer (/_･､)/~ My last days there I spent some time with Jenny at a Buddha Park a bit outside of town and ate a lot of delicious food with friends and cousins. I really recommend anyone who have not visited the Buddha Park before to do so ! Unfortunately it rained during our visit there, but I will definitely revisit next time. The only downside of going there is that the road to the park is awful (>_<) I have never experienced such a bumpy ride before, haha . . . However, here are my last photos from Laos▼
This will basically be a picture post from my tourist day in the capital of Laos; Vientiane. A bit weird and fun that I actually touristed around my own hometown (￣∇￣;)
Way in to "That Luang"
"Patuxay Park"
Fail jump photo #1 shirt covers face
Fail jump photo #2 hair covers face
"Mekong Park"
A "beach" created after a dry part from the Mekong River
Ouff ! It has been a while since I last wrote about my stay in Laos. Well, let me start by telling about a night which ended with me owning a Johnnie Walker Gold Label bottle. The night started at a huge place called Gold Star where you can book karaoke rooms, drink and dance in the club "room"(which was as big as a regular club) and I think you can even have a wedding reception somewhere in the building. Jenny and I met up with my cousin Katty and a few of her classmates at a karaoke room for some food and drinks while, of course, singing karaoke. We did not stay there for long, instead we continued the night at the club "room". The fun part about the club is that during midnight they hold a dancing contest which the DJ decide the winner by listening to the crowds cheering. They let six girls get up on the stage and dance to a song and when the DJ asks the crowd to cheer for the contestants they liked they will start with eliminating those who got the least cheers and so it continues until the last standing contestant. Before midnight Katty and her classmates wanted me and Jenny to join the contest and win free alcohol, haha . . . At first Jenny and I was a bit hesitant about entering the contest but we thought that "hey, no one will ever see us again since we do not live here so why not?" and then got up on the stage at midnight（⌒◇⌒；) At the end of the contest Jenny got fourth place, winning four beer cans, and I got first place, winning the Johnnie Walker whiskey bottle ! I still do not know if I am proud over winning or not, because all the contestants had to at least dance a little skanky to get the crowds attention but I tried my best show off my "profesionall" dance skills too. I have after all been dancing since I was in middle school ┌|T_T|┘ Anyway, that is my story to how I got a pretty expensive whiskey bottle for free. Or wait, it was not really for free. I actually worked really hard for it, haha . . .
Sweaty but pleased that I won that damn bottle !
Now moving on (゜∀゜)ノ The day after we went for some noodle soup, that I think is usually eaten as a hangover recovery but I am not sure. After that I have no idea what we did but some day after that we met up again and went to support a friends soccer game. Thought we did not support that much, instead our focus went straight to a look-alike of Onew from SHINee (≧▽≦) We had to get a photo of him so after the game we asked for a picture !
The day after we "touristed" around the temples my cousin left me off at Jennys place before going to school. Jenny and I went out to search for adventure and ended up at a local restaurant, hungry for lunch (・ρ・) Thereafter we visited a shop with a super cute little dog ! We walked around for a while and then decided to go back to the house to rest a bit before we went to the shopping mall/market we visited the day before. The name of it is Talat Sao, meaning Morning Market, and is right by my cousins school so when her classes ended we went to meet her up.
The tiny little dog !
"LITTLE EMO" Jenny and I laughed so hard when we found this . . .
At Little G Café in the Morning Market
Some of Kattys classmates wanted to get togheter after school so we went to the same restaurant as the one I went to the first day in Laos. We ordered the most delicious fish dish I have ever had, papaya salad, fried morning glory and, of course, beer. But we did not stay there for long, instead we moved to another location - one of her classmates house. We stayed there for hours, eating and drinking, before we went out to club at a place called "What's Club". Weird name, but we always called the place "What'sApp" instead. No reason really for the nickname, other than the actual name of the application for smartphones. Anyway, I had a blast at the club ★ If you are looking for a club with good music and non-smoking indoors in Laos, then this is the place for you. Here are more facts about Laos 1 - When you go to a club in Laos you will probably suffocate from all the smoke indoors, except for in What's Club. 2 - There are no "dance floors" because the whole club is filled with small tables which you dance/stand/sit by with your friends. 3 - It is rarely fun to go out with only 2-3 people in Laos. It is way more fun to be in a big group of people because Lao people usually do not dance or hang out with strangers. Except for creeps who are trying to pick up young girls. Well, that is it for todays facts about Laos ( ﾟ▽ﾟ)/
The delicious fish dish
Spicy papaya salad, my favorite dish of all time ♡
At the club
Happy Jenny~
Katty and I ♥
I love the guy in the back, dancing so sexually haha . . .
It had been over ten years ago since both me and my childhood friend, Jenny, were in Laos at the same time. This year we reunited in our home country ♥ Jenny is also a so-called "eurasian", half Lao and half British. We met up for breakfast/lunch at the Pizza Company and togheter visited Kattys school. The school my cousin was attending teached tourism and guide information so, on the afternoon Jenny and I followed their class to two different temples. The day started with a little rain so it was quite "chilly" but later on the sun came out and it was hot again (_ _;)
Reunited with Jenny in Laos !
Bigass glass of ice coffee at Pizza Company
On our way to the temples
It means luck if you find a flower with five petals from this kind of bush
The very old, yet beautiful, temple
I wore shorts that day so I had to borrow a kind of skirt called "sin"
Jenny with her favorite creature - Dragon
On our way out from the first temple
And to the next one !
There were several "halls" like this around the temple
Look ! So many mini buddha statues on the walls
You are not allowed to take photos inside the temples, therefore only pictures outside
We went to a shopping mall/market after our sightseeing and found this H&M, haha . . .
Now on to the next part ! My second day in Laos I think I went out for dinner at a pretty fancy restaurant called Khorp Chai Deu - meaning "Thank you". Or it might have been the day after that, I can not recall. Either way, the restaurant is located very central in the city and serves Lao, Thai and a few western dishes. You can even listen to various live bands that play every night at the restaurant. Another fact about Laos is that there are so many talented musicians playing at bars and restaurants every night. They play maybe one and a half hour at one restaurant and then moves to the next location for another hour or two. It is very fun and heartwarming because the musicians communicate with the audiance and receives song requests ♪
Cousins heading out for dinner
One of my favorite dish in Laos - Laab
These two girls singing are so talented
Katty and I were so underdressed compared to our other cousins, haha . . .
Now fast forwarding to the day when Katty was free from school and we spent the day togheter. We started with going to a Korean restaurant for some BBQ ! It was so delicious（♡▽♡）I am starting to drool just by thinking about it . . . After we finished at the restaurant we went back home to take a walk along the Mekong river, which is right by our neighborhood. You can even see Thailand across the river ( ＾▽＾)σ When the sun had set our next and last plan for the day was to visit the night market by the Mekong river.
Oh boy ! There are so many things that I want to write about after my stay in Laos, my fingers are so eager. Let us begin with my arrival ( ^_^)／ My cousin, Katty, picked me up at the airport when I arrived around 1PM and when we reached home I went around the neighborhood to greet aunts and uncles that barely recognized me after my last stay four years ago, haha . . . Thereafter me and Katty went to the market near our house to buy food since I was craving for papaya salad (;´ρ`)
I remember how happy I felt at that moment. Reunited with my family and eating the kind of food that I once upon a time ate everyday. Oh god, this is harder than I thought. I am writing my first post about Laos and I am already crying because I miss it so much（┬┬＿┬┬）Okay, time to get my shit togheter. Later on the evening I sat outside our house along with other neighbors and drank Beer Lao. A few facts when drinking beer in Laos is 1 - You drink beer with lots of ice, because it is too hot in Laos and also if you do not have ice you will be wasted before others even get tipsy. Beer Lao is extremely cheap and Lao people drink a lot of it several days a week. 2 - Lao people cheers a lot. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot. This is why you need ice. You drink practically all the time and the beer never ends, because people keep pouring beer in to your glass all the time. Well, that is it for todays lesson about Laos (^-^ ) After a few hours of drinking me and my cousins decided to continue the night at a restaurant and thereafter a club called @ Home. Genius name, actually ! "Where are you?" - "At home!" lol . . .
Cousin and aunt demonstrating sticky rice and Beer Lao, haha
Now to the next stop in Pattaya ! We stopped by The Avenue to get our nails done and then wandered around town in search for a decent restaurant. Our main plan for visiting Pattaya was actually to experience Walking Street, but unfortunately we had to leave earlier than planned so we did not have time for it（；へ：）
My nails are the one with leopard prints
Piña colada for realz
My friends and I got pretty upset about not being able to party in Pattaya so we took a ferry the day after from Rayong to the island Koh Samed and partied all night long ★ Thereafter it was time to go back to Bangkok a few days before we took the flight home. Made a small last shopping and even got to eat at the luxurious rooftop restaurant Breeze at Lebua. Went up to Sirroco's sky bar too ! Fun fact is that Hangover part II shot a scene there (^▽^) Well, that is pretty much what I did during my stay in Thailand this time. Next time I go back might not be too long away~
Amari Watergate hotel
Platinum shopping mall outside my window from the room
The last weekend before heading home we went to Pattaya. Our first stop was Nong Nooch tropical garden(^○^)／ If you have not been there before you should really pay a visit. First we went to watch Thai traditional dances and martial arts show and thereafter the elephant show !
Muay Thai
Elephant says hi~
Got a picture togheter with a tiger Σ(o>艸<)
After the shows we went for a thirty minute tour around the beautiful garden. There were so many things to see and if I have the chance to go back someday I will surely do it because three hours is not enough time to experience everything they have to offer.
First night of the new year we went to a beautiful outdoors restaurant called "Classic Forest". They serve all different kinds of Thai food and even typical Western dishes, such as spaghetti. My friends and I ordered some various dishes and shared it togheter ! Fried rice with seafood, papaya salad, deep fried squid and one super, SUPER, spicy dish with seafood ( ﾉД`)ｼ And for dessert, we had banana flambe with vanilla ice cream.
The day after we went to Bangkok for shopping ! I was too busy spending all my money so I only managed to take one picture of my snack during a break from the shopping spree (´-ω-｀;)
Still a little jetlagged but I will use my free time to blog as much as possible before the hectic reality kicks in. So, where to begin? I flew to Bangkok all by myself and that is one of the most boring things I have ever done in my life. It took me a total of 16 hours because of the transfer. Since I only managed to sleep 3 hours in total I was pretty tired when I arrived to Rayong. During the night my dear friends(who I met up in Rayong) and I went out for dinner and thereafter I just went to bed (。-ω-)zzz The day after we went to the island "Koh Samed" by speedboat and hang out on the beach.
"Poop!"
And then it was new years eve ｡.:*☆ I got pretty sick during new year so I tried drinking a little whiskey, but of course that did not work so I ate some painkillers and luckily my fever went down before midnight. There were fireworks and lanterns which we lighted up with a wish~
Phew~ Finally done with packing my bags for Thailand. Had to run some errands after work so I was not home until midnight and that is when I started packing ε”ε”ε”ε”(ﾉ´･д･)ﾉ In 6 hours I will probably be on my way to the airport and at noon I will be up in the sky again. It is actually the second time I go to Thailand this year ! As last time I will be staying at Oriental Beach in Rayong. Can not wait until I get to eat all the delicious food again ♥
Now on to the night part of sunday ☆ After our Starbucks visit we started to head to Piccadilly Circus, but on our way it started to rain heavily. Since we were standing outside of a pub when the rain started pouring it was kind of a sign for us to go inside there. Our thought was to go inside, buy one or two beers while waiting for the rain to stop but of course that is not what happened. We ended up staying at the pub for 3(or more?) hours and ordered in total 9 pitchers which contained 4 glasses each, some beers, whiskey and big plates of snacks (*^^)o∀*∀o(^^*) Well, you can say that the tour around London by night got alot more amusing after the visit at the pub !
This day we went to explore London (・ε・)ノ When we arrived at the shopping district in London, Oxford Street and Bond Street, we all were starving. The Marlborough Head got to be our first stop and of course me, Kimii, Lina and Sebbe had to order Fish and Chips ♥
Lina and Sebbe on the subway
Emma and Kimii, the badasses
Svante, being a tour guide
Our first stop - Marlborough Head
The next stop after our huge meal was Victorias Secret. Their flagship store was amazing ! Too bad I did not have £40 to spend on a bra . . . Maybe one day, lol. Before we reached VS we also stopped by Forever21 and thereafter we went to various shops until it was time for a short break at Starbucks.
Towards the VS store ヾ( ￣▽)ゞ
Kimii and I found a cheap pair of Jeffrey Campbell fakes, wohoo~
The cashier at Starbucks misspelled my name（┬┬＿┬┬）
DAMN, writing only one post about sunday is too long(for me) ! I will continue with the rest of sunday in another post (´-ω-｀;)
