Trip to Korea by Vago, LeX Paradise Contest Winner

A guest post share by Vago, LeX Paradise Contest winner with his experience about journey to South Korea.


Getting My Kimchi On

When I signed up for Lex Paradise contest, I didn't expect to win. That's why I was so surprised when I did. Still, what a cool thing to win a free flight from Malaysia to South Korea. Never mind that I was in Turkey...

So, I bought a flight on Malaysia Airlines to Kuala Lumpur and booked my ticket from KL to Seoul and back. I've been writing about many of the places I saw on my mini-Asia trip on http://www.vagobond.com/ but I wanted to just write a short guest post for Lex Paradise about my flight with Air Asia X and my impressions of South Korea as a whole.

First of all, Air Asia X. Without a doubt those flight attendants are the sexiest flight attendants I've ever come across. Those tight mini skirt uniforms and the bright red color. Wow. I've often regretted living in an age when flight attendants all seem to be over 50, gay, or appearance challenged – Air Asia X has said “Never mind the complaints about equality” and done something wonderful. They've made flight attendants glamorous again. This alone makes air travel more bearable.

On board, the flight attendants were courteous, friendly, and even flirty. The service was great and the onboard meals were actually tasty and regionally oriented. The airport in KL is the LCCT or Low Cost Carrier Terminal and a bus can get you there from KL Sentral for about 10 Ringgits. Inside the terminal were plenty of places to have coffee or lunch and the check-in process was easy and enjoyable to the eye, thanks to the very cute employees they also have working at the desks.My only complaint with Air Asia X was that I wasn't in business class since the seats looked incredibly comfortable but that's my own fault for not upgrading.

Korea Beach

Arriving in South Korea, I was astounded by how beautiful and filled with activities the airport at Incheon was. As I said in my video, I wanted to eat Kimchi, so I decided to go straight to it by booking a room at the Kimchi Hostel in the party center of the city, Hongdae. The Kimchi Hostel is quiet but well connected with the Hong Guesthouse and the owner invited me to go out, drink shoju, and party with the guests and staff within minutes of my arrival. First though, I asked where a good Korean BBQ place was and I sat down with an Italian guest to have a feast of Korean deliciousness. BBQ beef (kelbi), three types of kimchi (pickled cabbage and vegetables), a miso soup, salad, and a bunch of things I didn't know. It was sooo delicious.

Korean Palace

Over the next few days in Seoul, I toured palaces, visited museums, and seriously explored the underground world that is connected by subterranean shopping centers, the metro, and even underground museums. Seoul is vibrant both above and below the surface. In the nearby traditional village (reachable by the subway) I watched farmers dance and learned how to weave a straw rug.

Vago and Korean Friends

I wanted to see more of South Korea so I headed out of Seoul to visit the town of Sokcho and take a short trip up to the DeMilitarized Zone (DMZ). With two new Korean friends, I gazed out at desolate North Korea and toured the DMZ Museum. One thing I found for certain is that Korean people are polite, kind, and generous. They are almost always in a hurry though so don't get offended if they shove you out of the way.

Korean Traditional Dance

From Sokcho, I headed south to Samceok (you can read about the Penis Park at Vagobond since it might be a little much for Lex Paradise). From there a visit to Andong and then on to the coastal city of Busan where I had a lovely walk on the beach, ate more and more and more Kimchi, and finally took the bullet train back to Seoul. Back in Seoul I did some amazing shopping and of course, I ate more Kimchi with my friends at the Kimchi hostel. I was sad when my time was up, but happy that the ride to Incheon was as simple as a subway ride. To be honest, I scheduled a whole day to explore Incheon International Airport with its shopping, starlight gardens, bars, pubs, and massage.

Back in Kuala Lumpur, I was unable to find the time to go meet Lex in person in Penang, but to be sure, I am grateful for the opportunity to visit South Korea and hope to go back again sometime in the future. 


Thanks Lex! You Rock!

If you have any though to share, please do not hesitate to share it here! 


Cheer!

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Discount & free tickets to R-16 International B-boy Festival at South Korea !

The R16 World Bboy Championships & Urban Arts Festival was created in 2007 as a grand experiment to see if through the support of the government and a nation as a whole, youth created grassroots cultures like Hip Hop and B-boying can become a profitable and self sustaining industry that can embed itself within society and culture and maintain relevance in the minds of the mainstream and mass media here in Korea and the rest of the World. Through the generous support of the Korea Tourism Organization, the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and this year the whole of the Metropolitan City of Incheon, a World Class festival and World Bboy Championships has been designed to celebrate and demonstrate the power of youth and the positive possibilities a gathering of this nature can create. We can show through this event and our through our dedication and passion, that while the rest of the world is embroiled in conflicts caused by prejudice and an inability to overcome their differences, we have come to settle our differences, unite ourselves and DANCE.

EVENT	DATE	TIME	LOCATION
OFFICIAL PRESS CONFERENCE	July 2nd (Fri)	13:00~15:00	OLYMPIC PARK HOTEL / OLYMPIA HALL
R-16 x KANGOL Warm-Up Party	July 2nd (Fri)	18:00~24:00	LOTTE HOTEL WORLD / MEGA CC
R-16 KOREA 2010 solo B-boy  /Poppin/ Lockin Battle Contest	July 3rd (Sat)	18:00~21:00	OLYMPIC PARK / OLYMPIC HALL
R-16 KOREA 2010 Crew B-boy  performance& Battle Contest	July 4th (Sun)	18:00~21:00	OLYMPIC PARK / OLYMPIC HALL
R-16 KOREA 2010 Urban  Arts Festival	July 3rd(Sat) ~ July 4th(Sun)	13:00~19:00	OLYMPIC PARK / MEETING PLAZA

As for each event venue, is shown below: 

For more detail map on each location, please click below : 

- Press Conference - Olympic Park Hotel

- Event Place - Meeting Plaza 

- Main Event Hall - Olympic Hall

Are you a international visitor or international students in South Korea? Planing some trip to South Korea? Available on 3-4 July? If  Yes! you are eligible to get discount & free passes for R-16 B-boy festival 2010! 

If you able to attend on both of the day, please log to R-16 International B-boy Festival website to register yourself! don't wait and do it now before it last!

Feel free to email me or leave some comments ; )  Thank you. 

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Pottery I made in Ceramic Village, Korea

Hi guys, had you browse through my previous post about Ceramic Village in Korea ? If you not yet, feel free to take a look how I manage to produce my own poetry with all my writing on the surface. I believe you see my nick name "LeX", chinese name "陈奕良" on the poetry. My hand writing somehow not that neat, but kind of artistic, Hahaha ! 

As for this photo is the another side of the pottery with my full name "Tan Yih Liang" Korean name "랙스" and at the bottom "soju" (Korean famous traditional alcohol drink). Actually this is the soju bottle, I slowly liking to drink soju with all my friends in Korea because is cheap and with high concentration of alcohol @_@. 

So, drop by at Korea to visit some exciting festival ( you can check it here ) , take a break to drink soju and make your own soju bottle  in Ceramic Village.  

If you do plan to make one for your-self too while you in Korea, please visit Icheon Ceramics Village 

Feel free to leave some comments. ; ) 

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2PM 1st Concert Ever !!

Hi guys, heard about Korean Famous Boy Band "2PM" ? 

Their producer JYPE announce 2PM will hold their 1st solo ever concert in Seoul and Busan this coming July and August !  

The concert schedule : 

Seoul Concerts

Dates: July 31, 2010 (Sat) 7PM

August 1, 2010 (Sun) 5PMVenue: Olympics Gymnastics StadiumTicket Price: 

Section R 88,000 won / Section S 77,000 won / Section A 66,000 won

Busan Concerts

Dates:: August 7, 2010 (Sat) 7PM
August 8, 2010 (Sun) 5PMVenue:: Busan BEXCOTicket Price: : Section R 88,000 won / Section S 77,000 won

Ticket Reservations: Auction Ticket (1566-1369)

Ticketing Schedule

* Ticketing Schedule for 2nd HOTTEST Fanclub Members

Seoul Ticket Sales (Fanclub)

5/26(Wed) 7PM ~ 5/27(Thurs) 5PM

Busan Ticket Sales (Fanclub)

5/26(Wed) 8PM ~ 5/27(Thurs) 5PM

* Ticketing Schedule for the General Population

May 28, 2010 (Fri) 8PM

* People who are not 2nd HOTTEST members can get tickets during the ticketing schedule for the general population.

How to Purchase Tickets?

- Everyone must log in to Auction Ticket.
- When you click the "Reserve" button, a window for fanclub confirmation will pop up.
- Confirm by typing in your name and ID.

* All names and IDs used to confirm will be checked with the names and IDs that were used when applying to the 2nd HOTTEST fanclub no matter what.

For example: 

The name used when joining the 2nd HOTTEST fanclub: Hwang Chan Suk

Real name: Hwang Chan Sung

The name that should be used for ticketing confirmation: Hwang Chan Suk

* When typing in a Korean name, do not put any spaces in between character.

* For foreigners: You must type in the name and ID used when joining the 2nd HOTTEST fanclub to be confirmed.

Also, if you applied with an English name, a Chinese name, and a Japanese name at the same time, only the English name will be confirmed, so please fill out the form with your English name.

For Example : 

Name used when joining the 2nd HOTTEST fanclub: Kelly
Real name: Kecy

The name that should be used for ticketing confirmation: Kelly
* Your purchase will not be confirmed if you type "Kelly" in Korean.

If you joined the 2nd HOTTEST fanclub with a foreign name typed in Korean, please fill out the ticketing form in Korea.

For Example : 

Name used when joining the 2nd HOTTEST fanclub: 사쿠라
Real name: さくら

The name that should be used for ticketing confirmation: 사쿠라

- You can finish reserving your tickets by selecting your seat. 

(Maximum 4 reservations under 1 name)


This is to give fanclub members a chance to reserve tickets in advance. Those who cannot can reserve tickets during the general ticket sales.
Please read the concert notice carefully and be always on the lookout for possible changes.

Source: HOTTEST Daum Cafe


You can reserve the ticket here 2Pm Concert Ticket


If anyone need some help on the tickets issue, please let me know though my email on my profile page. See what can I do for you. 


Hope you can enjoy the 1st ever 2PM concert.


Thank you

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