Where We Stayed in Seoul: Lotte City Hotel Mapo

The place we stayed at was a gold mine.  We don't know much about Korea, but we know that one of the most famous Korean brands is Lotte (yes, the chocolates and gum).  Lotte Co., Ltd. is a South Korean conglomerate.  It is one of the largest food and shopping groups in South Korea and Japan.  Lotte Group consists of over 60 business units engaged in diverse industries such as candy manufacturing, beverages, retail, publishing, entertainment, hotels, etc.  Such a big company that they even have their own duty free called Lotte Duty Free. 

Before I moved on to telling you about where we stayed at, let share with you this Lotte Duty Free video.  When we arrived at the Lotte City Hotel, I saw this catchy and entertaining advertisement playing non-stop on their Lotte channel, I was in awe because they are endorsed by the hottest actors, singers and Kpop group in South Korea.  Everytime I see this ad, and I mean always, I can never take my eyes off the tube.  As in I feel-- "Ahhhhhh, I'm inlove." LOL.   If you like watching Koreanovelas, have found a Korean actor cute or like a Kpop group, please WATCH THIS!  I'm sure you will like it too.  This is not cheesy.  You might even like the Lotte Duty Free song.  It's so catchy, it made me want to dance haha.

 

Did you like it?

Anyway, back to my post.  Let me tell you first how we ended up staying at Lotte City Hotel Mapo.  Please note that all our preparations were mostly done online.  We researched, planned and organized everything thru the use of the internet.

One's accommodation in South Korea need not be expensive.  You have the option of staying in a Guest House (their version of Bed and Breakfast) or in a Hotel.  Guest Houses are definitely cheaper and you can easily find them by making a search online.

My Husband and I are quite particular when it comes to accommodation.  Although we know that we're mostly spending our time outdoors because we will be exploring all day, we still want to be comfortable during our time of rest.  So we ruled out staying at a Guest House.

In choosing a place to stay during travel, we take note of the following:
(1) Travel time to and from the Airport
(2) Access to public transport
(3) Safety and security
(4) Establishments in the area such as restaurants, malls, etc.
(5) Convenient location (should be near places will plan to go to)
(6) Clean rooms with basic amenities

Given these basic considerations, we studied about 4-6 hotels/apartments we can find online.  We've had bad experiences with a hotel or two before so choosing a place for lodging is a process for us.  It takes us a week to decide because we do a lot of research when it comes to things like this (I know, we're such geeks!).

For our Seoul accommodation, we initially had five hotels, then it narrowed it to three.  In the end we chose Lotte City Hotel Mapo because:
(1) it's Lotte and a 4-star hotel (so we had a bit of high expectations)
(2) if there's no traffic, the airport is about 45 minutes away
(3) it's conveniently located nearby popular places like Myeong-dong, Seoul Station, Hongdae and Yeouido (the places where we plan to go!)
(4) it's accessible to public transport: the bus stops are right infront of the hotel and Gongdeok train station is just underneath the hotel.
(5) there are cafes and restaurants that surrounds the hotel

Now for some photos.

LOTTE CITY HOTEL MAPO

Check-in is at 2pm but since we arrived early in the morning and would like to rest, we informed the hotel that we will check-in at 7:30AM.  We arrived at almost 8:00AM and they let us checked-in.  No questions asked.

They don't have bellboys or porters so be ready to carry your luggage to your room.

IN THE LOBBY OF OUR FLOOR

Upon entrance to our room, there was a glass that works as a divider and decor.

 
Our room is minimalist and modern with a bit of zen.  

An office in the corner.

The bathroom in white.  The usual toiletries and bathrobes are available for guests.

The clear sink.  Stylish (I like!).

They have bidets!

And a hairdryer which I believe every hotel should have in every room.

On my bedside table is the all-in-one controller for lights, clock, aircon, etc and even an emergency button (if you are too stressed to pick up the phone and dial a number).

Each room has two pairs of slippers.

Safety is a big deal for the Koreans, hence each room has this...

and this.

Our view is not spectacular because we are in one of the business districts of Seoul but that was fine by us.  We enjoyed watching the cars and buses passing by.

The street infront of us has 10 lanes!!!!!  They have wide roads here.

Our coffee table by the window.  Here I was spending a few minutes journaling what transpired during our day.

We don't have internet connection inside our room.  We didn't asked to be connected because we wanted to just relax and watch Korean TV (although we can't understand and there was no subtitles LOL) before we sleep.  If we needed the use of the internet, we can always go down to the Business Center where WIFI is free.  

Can you see our reflections on the Business Center divider?

The basement area of Lotte City Hotel Mapo has a supermarket (where we bought lots of Lotte chocolates), cafes and a bank (where we had the rest of our money changed).  The basement is also connected to the Gongdeok Train Station.  Very convenient for tourists like us. 

We loved our stay at the Lotte City Hotel Mapo.  The rates were reasonable and staff were very accommodating.  Check-out time was 12:00noon but since our return flight was schedule at night, they safekept our luggage until it was time for us to go.

LOTTE CITY HOTEL MAPO
http://www.lottehotel.com
Gongdeok-Dong, 467 Mapo-Gu
Seoul, South Korea 121805

UP NEXT: Exploring the streets of HONGDAE

The Morning We Arrived in Seoul, Korea

This week, I start sharing our Seoul adventures to you but before I blabber on, let me answer a few questions sent to me via FB and twitter:

Is it cheaper to fly to South Korea via Manila or Sydney? Based from our calculations, it was cheaper for us to travel from Manila to Korea.  So what we did was booked our plane tickets via Cebu Pacific and fly from Manila instead of stopping over in Korea to and from Sydney. Our flights and accommodation were all booked online and were settled even before we were in Manila.

Do Filipino citizens in Australia need to apply for a Korean tourist visa?  Yes.  My Husband still holds a Filipino passport so he had to apply for a visa.  He was asked to present a show money of AUD$5,000.00, our flight itinerary and accommodation bookings.  Before you do anything, please call the South Korea Consulate General (+61-2-9210-0200 - Sydney; +61-2-627041000 - Canberra) to confirm what you need to do. Visa or denial of visa is granted after 5 working days.

Why Seoul?  Part of our travel plan everytime we go overseas is to grab the chance to explore an Asian city.  The last time we were in the Philippines, we went to Hongkong.  When I picked up my Husband in Dubai, we had a quick stopover in Singapore.  When we planned our Manila vacation, there were three cities we thought of exploring: Singapore (again), Tokyo or Seoul.  The choice to go to Seoul won because (1) it was a chance to have a break from Manila's heat--April is Springtime in Seoul and it would be lovely to see some Cherry Blossoms; (2) We love Koreanovelas!!!  And one of the reasons why we love watching them is because of their lovely scenery and (3) exploring Seoul seemed cheaper compared to going to Singapore or Tokyo.  All these three major reasons for choosing Seoul proved to be a good decision.

We took the red eye flight on a Monday morning.  We left Manila at 1:15AM and touched down at Incheon International Airport at 5:45AM.  We liked taking the red eye flight because it meant we will arrive in South Korea in the morning and we'll have time to rest and be able to explore the city right away.  

I slept soundly during the flight and only woke up because the pilot announced that we will touch down soon. When the Husband opened the window, Korea's sunrise greeted us a good morning.

It was 6 degrees when we arrived, a chilly morning in Incheon.

We had to ride a small train which transferred us to the Arrivals area of the airport.

This escalator machine talks but I only heard Korean words.  Maybe there was an English translation but I didn't have time to listen.

Their airport is massive.  They say an airport is a reflection of a country, in this case, it is true.  This country is all about wide and high spaces--much like their airport.  It takes a lot of walking to get from Point A to Point B, hence, the help of walkalators.

Their walkalators have these signs.  If you incidentally step on the left side, the walkalator will make a loud noise, telling you that you are at the wrong side.

This writing table used by passengers for filling in their travel forms amazed us.  Other than pens, they have reading glasses available for passengers to use.  What's more amazing is that there are three reading glasses with three different grades.  So cool!

Lining up at the immigration took awhile.  But passing by the Customs was a breeze.  We had a quick side trip to their foreign exchange centre before going out of the Arrivals section. 

And then we were out!  And finally we saw this part of the Incheon International Airport, a place we've seen in numerous Koreanovelas.  My Husband and I were laughing like crazy when we realized that we are finally in South Korea and we felt like we are living a koreanovela we've seen on TV (yes, we are lame like that haha, it doesn't take much to make us happy).  I kept on saying, "Oh my God, we are here!".  

They have gardens in the middle of the Arrivals area.

First order of the day was to find a way out of the airport.  We checked out the electronic map and the Information Centre. 

The electronic map seemed user-friendly enough.  The ladies in the Information Centre can speak English.

As we walked towards where we'll buy bus tickets, we passed by this counter where you can rent phones.  In Korea, there are no pre-paid phones (only post-paid) so if you really need a phone, you need rent them out.  My Husband and I didn't rent a phone because we learned that most areas in Seoul have WIFI. We got in touch with our loved ones via FB or twitter while we were there.

There are three ways to get out of Incheon Airport: Bus, Taxi or Train.  We decided to take the Limousine Bus which won't involve too many stops and will drop us right infront of our hotel.  There is an "ordinary" bus which is cheaper but will involve more stops.  Taking the train will involve a lot of moving from one platform to another or worse, getting on a bus too.

The Limousine Bus costs 15,000 won (about U$15.00) per head.

The cost is worth it because the seats are likened to a business class seat in an airplane.  The seat has reclining functions and made it comfortable to sit back and sleep.

The ride going to Seoul took more than an hour because we were on the road during morning rush hour (about 7ish in the morning).  Photo below indicates the right side lane has slow moving traffic.  Those vehicles stuck in slow moving traffic are on their way to Seoul.

However, seeing Cherry Blossoms outside our window made up for that.  We were surprised to see the city enveloped in blooming Cherry Blossoms.  We thought we were too late.  We were told that Cherry Blossoms usually bloom on the 2nd week of April and only lasts for a few days.  We arrived on the 3rd week of April and thank God, there were still lots of Cherry Blossoms.

Our first day in Seoul was cold and drizzly.  The weather was gloomy but when we saw this sign that said....


...my Husband and I were both smiling, feeling a certain warmth.  We have arrived, finally.  An unexpected dream has come true.

UP NEXT: Where we stayed in Seoul.

Welcome HOME.

I'm slowly easing myself into work as I've finally came back last week.  I was a bit overwhelmed when I got back because everyone were so happy and relieved to see me, plus the fact that my presence at work is badly needed already (we are launching a "new" training program in July).  I was warmly welcomed with big and long hugs by everyone and some of our external trainers (whom I have become friends with throughout the years) even called me just to say hello.  I'm truly, truly touched.  

Welcome Note on My Desk (18 May 2011)

One of my workmate-friends, even emphasized, "Welcome back HOME".  This was due to the fact that I told them that I'm still a bit homesick.  Another one said, "But this is your home."  That is true.  Sydney is home.  Manila is home, too.  I take pride in having two homes and I never take that for granted.  Which is probably why at this time, I let myself miss Manila a bit more even if it meant hurting a bit. 

Anyway, with each day that I'm feeling better (due to flu that I got when I was in Manila), I'm gradually increasing my appetite for work.  Slowly, I go back to "my normal".

Welcome KISSES (Cherry-flavoured Kisses from one of my friends at work)

Speaking of Home, I would like to thank everyone who visits my little home here in the blogosphere, "A Wife's Charmed Life".  I've been "quite absent" in the blogosphere lately, I'm even tweetless in twitter.  Since I'm still trying to get myself 100% healthy, I avoid doing numerous tasks at the moment and that includes blogging while doing chores at home.

I have so many things to write about, it's so overwhelming.  We captured thousands of photographs and been to a couple of great places.  I would like to write about them soon.  But where do I start?  How do I begin?  Where the hell did my mojo for writing go????  I am asking myself these questions for the past week because I want to start blogging again. My mojo for writing is out there somewhere and I'm faithfully waiting for it to come back while I get 100% well.  But I hope it comes back soon.

In the meantime, I've started replying to emails and will continue doing so in the coming days. 

I have received several requests for an exchange of links and I plan to get on to it soon.  If you have linked me up in your site, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.  Let me know where you've linked me up and give me the link to your blog and I will add you to my Love Links page.  I don't mind being linked up and I don't mind giving the favor back to you.  You can let me know by leaving a comment on this blog post OR by leaving a comment in the Love Links page of this blog.

Thank you for your time.  I wish you a week full of abundant blessings!

 

Meetups with Blogger Friends

I'm slowly going back thru all our photos from our vacation.  It's taking awhile to blog and share them as I arrived in Sydney with a nasty flu which doesn't want to go away (probably due to fatigue as well).  Anyway, I'm feeling much better this week and I'm looking forward to going back to work tomorrow.

One of the things that I looked forward to when we went to Manila was to meet some of my blogger friends.  The online world is such an amazing place.  I've met so many wonderful people thru blogging, plurking and tweeting. 

I would have loved to meet all my online buddies but with a hectic schedule, I'm thankful that I got to meet a few of them.

Xingkit was my first meetup.  We met in plurk and then when our ka-plurks moved to twitter, we continued our chitchats there.  Thru our exchanges, we found out that we used to be a part of the same yahoo community (Weddings@Work).  We're not sure if we had an encounter there but we are happy we met somewhere in the blogosphere.  She blogs about her mommy adventures and the funny little milestones of her cute daughter (whom I've met too!).

I don't know whether it's the longevity of being tweethearts but the moment we saw each other, it was as if we've been friends for a long time (ang daldal namin haha).  She's so friendly that even my mom liked her! 

We had lunch at Sbarro and we both love their Baked Zitti.  We found out that we are somehow neighbors (her place is like 10 minutes away from where I live in the Phils).  It's a comfort that when I visit the Phils the next time, it will be easy for us to see each other again.

Meeting Jane and Julie was like meeting old friends.  The minute they arrived at UCC Cafe (Podium) for afternoon tea, we hugged!  Like Xingkit, I met them via plurk in 2007 and from then on, we have plurked, tweeted and visited each others' blogs. 

When it comes to blogging, Jane and Julie are two of my idols.  I'm truly amazed at how dedicated they are when it comes to blogging.  Jane blogs about her journey as a yogini, personal thoughts and what's hot and new in the Philippines.  Julie blogs about her personal thoughts, interests, passion in special education and homeschooling.  She's also a photography enthusiast like me.

When bloggers get together, we can't help but bring out the thing(s) that make our existence in the blogosphere possible.  Here's me and Jane, tweeting while chatting.

Jane and Julie introduced me to this delicious dessert at UCC Cafe.  I forgot the name but it had apples, apple syrup and cinnamon.  I loved it!

Special thanks to Julie for giving me a pearl bracelet.  Really sweet and thoughtful of her.  I now consider this a friendship bracelet.

I met K when she visited Sydney a year ago and hit it off so when she learned that I will be visiting Manila, she invited me to have lunch and catch up.  We've been tweetmates since last year thanks to our common friend, Lena.

It was lovely to see her again.  I hope she visits Sydney again soon!  Like me, she loves to travel and has a passion for photography.

We had lunch at Bizu Patisserie and I had this yummy pasta with Chorizo.

Two meet-ups in one day.  After our lunch with K, dinner was spent with three more blogmates/tweethearts: Tintin, Bea and Twistedsavant.  Our dinner was one of the funnest dinner I've had with friends.  I don't know if it's because we've been tweetmates for awhile but even if we've come from different worlds, we just hit it off like we've been "barkadas" for a long time.  No awkward moments, just fun and laughter all throughout the night.

We had dinner at Kanin Club and enjoyed the sumptuous dishes we ordered.  My favourite that night was the Seafood Kare-Kare.

The sweetest thing was being given this Banoffee Pie from Banapple.  My heart melted when I saw what was written on the cake (awww).  I knew I wouldn't have time to dine at Banapple but thanks to Bea and Tintin, they made it possible for me (and my family) to enjoy this super delicious cake. 

Dyanie is another sweet soul I met via plurk.  She blogs about her travel and food adventures.  We met for early lunch at Bonchon so my Husband and I can have a taste of this famous South Korean-based fried chicken franchise restaurant.  Dyanie is like a younger sister to me.  Even if she's offline, she keeps in touch by sending me text messages.

Bonchon Chicken is delicious, however, it is not as juicy as other fried chickens that I've tried. 

Dyanie gifted me with a Red Velvet Cake from UCC, which my Husband and I enjoyed for dessert after our hearty lunch.

Kenny is another longtime blogmate.  It is a wonder how thru our blogs, we got to know and inspire each other.  I love how she writes her thoughts, milestones and mommy anecdotes.  I admire her passion for collecting the most number of Starbucks Citymug that's why a few days before I left for Manila, I asked her what citymug from Australia she'd like to own.

However, she surprised me by giving me two mini Starbucks citymugs too!  Kenny is a joy to be with.  She has a bubbly personality and her stories are funny and entertaining. 

And another surprise was that she wrote about our meetup here.  Awww, so sweet!

I always tell my family how blessed I am when it comes to finding friends online.  Other than sharing a love for the blogosphere, I meet people who are genuine and inspiring.

After my holiday in the Philippines, I'm more in awe of our Filipino bloggers.  Given that the internet speed in the Phils is not as fast as other countries, I admire the patience and dedication of Filipino bloggers who blog and share their life and knowledge online.  Now more than ever, I'm thankful to all my Filipino readers.  Maraming maraming salamat!  Saludo ako sa mga Filipino bloggers!