Anything & Everything

Korea 2016 Day 2 Breakfast at Tosokchon Gyeongbokgung Palace Lunch at Tongin Insadong and Ssamziegil A gorgeous day in late-autumn Korea Breakfast at Tosokchon Nothing starts off a tourist day in Korea better than a late breakfast of speciality cuisine. Tosokchon , a famous restaurant with a seating capacity of over 400, offers samgyetang , a dish consisting of a whole young chicken stuffed with rice and spices and served in a warm ginseng soup. The ginseng used is thought to prevent illness, but also provides a unique herbal flavour that is considered an acquired taste. Nonetheless, a foodie family means that (almost) no food is off-limits, and the convenient opening hour of 10am meant a nice sleep-in and a guaranteed hearty breakfast. Rather a shoddy picture of an unassuming entrance We got a table immediately, seated in one of many small dining halls at low tables with cushions. Modern chair-seated tables are also available, but we were not being ch...

A couple of weeks ago I returned from a family trip in South Korea, which is becoming an increasingly popular holiday destination. As a recently-developed country, South Korea still holds a lot of its traditional heritage, while simultaneously thriving actively towards the modern, resulting in the most incredible mix of history and cutting-edge technology. Still, regardless of how well-suited it is for its youngsters, one can't be prepared enough for how it is to be in a different country. Despite fair amounts of research and preparation, my expectation for this East Asian country to be comparable to Japan inevitably led me to experience culture shock. I advise any ideas of the two countries being similar to be removed from your head, or you may be left a little dumbfounded. So to prevent such a thing from occurring, I present a list of travel tips and things I wish I'd known before travelling to South Korea. Toilets Rubbish bins People, language, and communication Getting...

What I've learned over the years from manga and Japanese classes is that, as land and housing in Japan is often very expensive, most income one earns is usually spent on material items and catching up with the latest trends and fashion. This goes for both men and women, demonstrated when the fashion styles of most everyday people in Japan were almost indistinguishable, such as the women's winter look of a large coat, stockings, and boots. However, as the Japanese are often so willing to spend higher amounts for the latest looks it doesn't come as a surprise when most of the shopping available are high-end brands like Gucci, or very cute boutiques that offers variations of the general trending clothing. I, for one, am not a person who follows fashion trends, much less spend $150 on a jacket that could be offered at half the price, which made me wary of shopping in Japan. Department stores did not help the case. What I initially thought would be a multi-storey wonderland of...