...and then she shopped!

Summer is approaching at a rapid rate and up until a few hours ago, I still only had the clothes I had brought with me from South Africa. All being aimed at the colder side of life as it was the end of winter when I arrived. Luckily, I don't look like a fool wearing long sleeves in 27º weather- most people here are still bundling up as if it is winter. I of course, was melting. And it is only going to get hotter. (Recently discovered that Daegu- only 20 min from me, is the HOTTEST place in Korea. Joy.) So, Briony and I decided that a shopping weekend was in order. She could keep me in check and make sure I didn't buy anything silly. She is also knows me as well as I know me, and knows where all the good places are in Seoul.

Found my awesome Space Fish advert! :D

So, I headed off to Seoul bright and early on Saturday morning, having been paid on Friday. It was almost overwhelming being surrounded by so many Waegooks (foreigners) in Seoul. In Gumi, us foreigners have a weird habit of staring at each other- assuming we MUST know each other as we are few and far between. Then, after a few minutes of blatant staring, we will carry on our merry way or run over and greet (depending on whether we know each other of course). It is an odd habit- but EVERYONE does it! So, arriving in Seoul, I played my usual "spot the Waegook" game and was so surprised when no one reacted to me being a foreigner, it was the most normal thing ever...

Lantern Art at Seoul Station for Buddha's upcoming birthday!

While waiting to meet up with Bri, I made an amazing discovery: Paris Croissant!! Some may have heard me rant about the joys of Paris Baguette. Well, the difference is as clear as the name. Croissant is the better, more genuine and class big sister of Baguette. There was real cheese, pastries, monkey bread, macaroons and... THE BEST COFFEE in Korea. Aaaaaand, all was really well priced! So, after enjoying a cup of coffee and grabbing two macaroons to go (frambois and pistachio, and earl grey and orange), I headed off too meet Briony in Myeongdong- the fashion district of Seoul. It is AMAZING! So many shops- many Western size shops too! We started shopping...

Paris Croissant Macaroons- best flavours I have seen.

Best coffee in Korea- winning mug too!

Tasty treats at Paris Croissant

And boy were we successful. I officially have an AMAZING summer wardrobe! We dominated the sales (where they were), justified purchases and had an absolute ball. I can honestly say that this was the most enjoyable shopping trip I have had in a long time! We did stop for some bubble tea which is DIVINE! Basically, iced black, milky tea with big tapioca balls in the bottom. Delicious and refreshing!

Bubble Tea

After shopping up a storm, we went to Itaewon, the foreigner (and food) district of Seoul. I need to spend more time there, it is amazing! There are so many foreign food restaurants, all of them generally owned by a local of wherever the restaurant is from. So, all the food is really good. There is even a Braai Republic! It was super busy, so we eventually chose a restaurant where there was a seat for the two of us- an Italian restaurant with... CHEESE!!! I probably miss cheese the most of all western food. So, we ordered a gorgonzola pizza and a pasta to share. And some red wine (down side, the glass held a glorified tasters portion of wine- up side, it was pretty decent). It was a divine meal! Oddly, the pizza was served with honey sweetened whipped cream, but hey, still great!

It is very common here for couples to buy matching outfits.

On our way to dinner, we passed Ben's Cookies- a British Cookie factory that apparently makes the most divine cookies. So, we bought a few for dessert/train trip home/ the week. They are pretty amazing! After a long day of amazing shopping, we decided to catch the bus back to Cheongju (Briony's city, about an hour and a half from Seoul). The public transport never stops amazing me. It is perfectly normal and safe for two girls to catch a bus at 10.30pm. We arrived back with swollen feet, arms (the shopping bags were heavy), absolutely exhausted and ready for bed.

Hilarious Cakes straight from the 70's that would make Mrs Shamley proud (NOT P. Croissant)

Sunday, we decided to have Vietnamese for brunch so that I could finally try Pho (pronounced Faaah) soup- a divine traditional soup with meat, noodles and yumminess. Loved it. Now all I need is to try Shabu Shabu. Everyone raves about it...have yet to taste it! We then did some last minute shopping in Cheongju before I headed back to Gumi to meet up with some of my lovely Saffa friends for dinner.

Briony's City (Cheongju) Emblem (the hair spells cheongju in Korean)

Dinner in Gumi was divine and after a lovely catch up, we decided to...do some SHOPPING (the bug has bit). So, we had a great time lugging my shopping bags around and adding to the pile. Found some AMAZING dresses, but unfortunately a lot of shops don't let you try on clothes (a lot of Korean girls wear LOT of makeup and can end up dirtying the clothes). So, because I don't always fit into Korean sizes, we were all a lot more reluctant to purchase. Did get a few things of course :P

My loot :D

So now, I am back in my comfy bed, reminiscing over my amazing weekend. Every now and then I am completely overwhelmed by this amazing adventure. It has become my daily routine as I settle in to the way life works here. But every now and then, I imagine myself 20 years from now, telling stories about that time I lived in Korea. And that to me still seems unreal. Loving it here- great people, amazing experiences and (now) great clothes!:)

This weekend coming: DJ Fest!! Buddha's Bday long weekend! WIN!:D

So awesome- here when you buy beauty products- you get free samples- perfect for travel size!