Chase My Own 4D3N-Hallyu-Dream

I've never been to Seoul before but my little sister have been there for study. I envied her very much because she stayed for a whole semester there. When she got back home, she brought lots of stuffs, unforgettable stories and wonderful pictures. She told me that she had really good time there, so no wonder she encourage me to visit Seoul and have Hallyu chase by myself. Yeah, I should. Who doesn’t want to visit the melting pot of Kpop, trendy fashion and cute boys? Gosh, I wish I could be there someday. Can I hear an `amen’?

Where will I go if I have a chance to visit Seoul for 4D3N?

Day 1

Incheon International Airport - Insa-dong Street - Cheonggyecheon Stream - Gwanhwamun Square - Slow Food (Neurige Geotgi) - Moonlight Rainbow Fountain

I prefer to take night flight from Jakarta, Indonesia by Korean Air and landed at Incheon International Airport in the early morning, so I won’t waste my first day on my flight. On the first day after long and tiring flight from my country, I’ll wander around on Insa-dong Street for sightseeing and shopping. Gosh! I might be drooling along this street. Galleries, souvenirs shops and traditional Korean dishes will welcome me with the ambiance of traditional area. Me likey (^-^)v

One of the coolest place at Insa-dong is Ssamziegil. This place is very rich in art and young pop culture and very `photogenic’. No wonder the `Seoul Song’ video was taken here and I should take pictures where Sooyoung and Donghae had a dance sequence in that video!

Do you want to escape from the loud Insa-dong crowd? Then you should visit Between Pages Café, still in Ssamziegil. This place is perfect to find inspiration. Psst…we can leave posts and notes within the café as what Seohyun and Yonghwa did at `We Got Married’, yay \(^o^)/

After having a great walk at Insa-dong, I will go to Cheonggyechon Stream, one of the hottest area! My sister told me that this is a nice place to hang out and I agree with her. I saw Cheonggyechon Stream on `Seoul Song’ by SNSD and Super Junior (which is so cool!) and I fell in love at the first sight with this place. Maybe I’ll try to get to get paint by a street painter (I do really hope he is KyunHun) as shown in the video.

I prefer to enjoy my afternoon here at Gwanhwamun Square and imagine myself play as one of the spy in IRIS and have a gun battle with the terrorist to stop them from detonating boom (ah, it must be sooooo cool!).

(picture was taken from here)

If it is possible, I want to chill around to have dinner in a nice café, Slow Food (Neurige Geotgi). The first day that I want to do in the new place is to learn and watch the people. Sitting on a café and watching people around amuse me sometimes. I couldn’t be happier to know that Hyun Bin (I’m a big fan of him) was here, filming `Worlds Within’ and `My Lovely Samsoon’! Geez, this café offer a nice view of the street and Dosan Park and its serene design. Lovely atmosphere :*

I think Moonlight Rainbow Fountain will be the perfect place to close my first day here. Enjoying the beauty of `rainbow’ at night will remind be that I’m blessed to have a chance to go here…

Day 2

Gyeongbokgung Palace – Bukchon Hanok Village - Namsan Park – Namsan Seoul Tower

“Never ever skip Gyeongbokgung Palace if you visit Seoul. It’s a must!”, said my sister. This grandest palace in Seoul was used as filming location of some Korean drama. I will definitely take a picture with hanbok here and imagine myself as a girl in the Joseon dynasty. I always love to see historical building and imagine how lives going on there long time ago.

In a walk distance, I will visit the beauty and charming Bukchon Hanok Village. I can feel the harmony of modern and traditional lives here. Stunning alleys, wooden doors, old roof tiles and the picturesque alleys of bricks wall stand out among the Seoul’s skyscrapers. Somehow I feel that although it is located in the heart of Seoul, I will still feel the peaceful feeling here. Ah, yeah Gae-in and Jin-ho from `Personal Taste’ lives together here^^

In the afternoon, I’ll step along the shaded roads and paths of Namsan Park which have appeared in countless drama series (especially my favorites, `Boys Before Flowers’ and `My Lovely Samsoon’). I do really wish I could be there with my love one (or Hyun Bin), holding each other’s hands and kiss at the famous Samsoon’s Staircase.

(picture was taken from here)

Next thing to do is to take cable car to get N Seoul Tower. If I were Geum Jan-di, I would love to be trapped forever here with Gu Jun-pyo ^^

(picture was taken from here)

If Paris has Eiffel Tower, Japan has Tokyo Tower and New York has Liberty, then Seoul has Namsan Tower as the icon. I won’t forget to `Lock my love’ on fence (since I have no boyfriend yet, maybe I’ll lock myself with Seoul, lol). Here at N Seoul Tower. Watching the sun set and seeing the lights start to turn on in the evening at terrace are more than enough for me :’) Ah, yeah! I shouldn’t miss the Teddy Bear Museum at N Seoul Tower. There will be hundreds cuddly teddy bears dressed up in hanok. Totally cutey :3

Day 3

Myeongdong Shopping Street – Caffe Bene – Four Seasons House - Hongdae

Today is shopping day and I will start with Myeongdong :D The first thing that I remember from this place is the kissing scene of Lee Shin and Chae-gyeong from `Princess Hour’ :3 It was such a legend! Hahaha…

(picture was taken from here)

Here I will spend cash on Korean fashion and stuffs. From my personal opinion, Korean fashion style can be mentioned as the fashion trendsetter throughout Asia. Oh dear Harajuku, you’d better watch out! Here in Myeondong, since I’m using some Korean cosmetics brand I will buy a lot of them because they are quite pricey in my country. Btw, I shouldn’t miss the stunning interior of Myeongdong Cathedral (no wonder, You’re Beautiful was filmed here).

Next, I want to have great gelato and waffle at Caffe Bene. In this café, I can feel the warm atmosphere and the wooden furniture are nice. My favorite scene of `Secret Garden’ was taken here. Yes, the foam kiss :DD Gosh, I’m jealous with Jil Ra-Im.

Foam Kiss scene at Caffe Bene

(picture was taken from here)

I have to visit is the Four Seasons House. If you are Hallyu lovers, never ever skip this place! This house displays materials, props, and pictures from Director Yoon Seok-Ho’s four-part seasonal dramas, ‘Autumn in my Heart’, ‘Winter Sonata’, ‘Summer Scent’, and ‘Spring Waltz’. See! For me, this might house might take my memories back when the first time I fell in love with Korean dramas and my first love is `Autumn in My Heart’. I can imagine the soundtrack of all of the dramas on my ear when I visit each room. I can feel the charming, romantic atmosphere, as if I had stepped into a scene from a fairly tale.

(Picture was taken from here)

The rest of today, I will spend my time at Hongdae. This is actually where Korean youngsters hangout. Café, bars, theater, street performance, graffiti works are everywhere. No wonder if locals mentioned this district as the hippies’ area. I realize that most scenes of `Marry Me, Marry!’ were taken here because Jang Geunsuk’s role was a vocalist of an indie band and his band performed here.

`Marry Me, Marry!' Casts

(picture was taken from here)

Day 4

Namdaemun - Incheon International Airport

My last day here :( Since I have to be at the airport earlier to catch up my flight in the afternoon, there will be enough time to go to everywhere. Probably I will go to Namdaemun market in the early morning because this market opens for 24 hours!!! This biggest traditional market in Seoul sells everything, so I'll buy some gifts for my friends who adore Korea as well.

The last place that Incheon Airport. This is the saddest part. A lot of dramas have shot scenes here. A lover goes from this airport and the other is on a desperate chase to before it’s too late. Duh, I wish Hyun Bin will run and try to stop me from leaving…

(picture from here)

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One that I should underline here is I feel amazed that in the modern surrounding there are still many historical assets and buildings in Seoul. This shows me how Koreans are really concern and protecting their own culture in the modern time. The efforts from the government and other parties to promote South Korea tourism through drama and movie are very well done and successful.

Though it will be my first trip to South Korea, but I believe it will not be the last trip. I would definitely come back soon and visit more :)

*soon after I wrote this blog, my friend texted me, “Icha, I’M ACCEPTED! I’ll continue my study in Seoul. I’ll leave this fall. OMG, I know you’re dying to go to Seoul, so come and visit me! I’ll show you around.” So this is a sign or what?"