Mr & Missy in Korea Day 9 (24 May 2013)

SUPER EXCITED to be finally touring JEJU ISLAND!!!!!!!!!!!! WOO HOOOOOOO

We left December Hotel around 8:30 am. Since the hotel was located in the central location of Jeju City, there was no problem with getting a cab to the airport. It was pretty near that cab fare was just 2,000-3,000 Won only. 

We had to take a shuttle bus from the airport to the car rental company's parking lot. As we we were walking to the shuttle bus, we saw cameramen getting ready to film at the airport! I wanted to stay around and see which celebrities will be filming but Mister reminded me about our packed schedule to see Jeju :( And I so very reluctantly got on to the shuttle bus which brought us to the parking lot of the KT Car Rental.

Mister was confirming our reservation and making payment. Did I mention that he booked a MINI COOPER for us??!!! I WAS HAPPY EXCITED AMAZED RESTLESS ECSTATIC EUPHORIC haha you get the idea. 

Food For Thought 2 [Motivational Article from Knowledge for Men]

Having been socialized into the age of smartphone, the way I pass time on the long bus journey is to use my iPhone.   As I was scrolling through the Newsfeed on Facebook, I came across this article called "The 10 Reasons Why No One Knows What They're Doing In Their 20s" shared by my Facebook friends.  The title was interesting enough.  I am currently in my 20s and I was bored during the long bus ride to work so why not give it a try?  

This article is from the Knowledge For Men website ( http://www.knowledgeformen.com/10-reasons-why-no-one-knows-what-theyre-doing-in-their-20s/ ) and it was really a great read. As I was reading through the article, I could actually relate to the points made by the author. However, by no means, arguments in this article are not absolute truth.  They are just opinions of their author.  Nonetheless, if it can make you think, whether you agree or disagree, it is worth a read yea?  So let me just share my thoughts on it.

The 10 Reasons Why No One Knows What They're Doing In Their 20s

1. You didn't take advantage of your college years

2. You live for the future

3. Your parents control you

4. Your environment is holding you back

5. You have taken the wrong path

6. You stopped learning

7. You do the same thing everyday

8. You've escaped to grad school

9. You're not pushing yourself

10. You're a walking stimulus junkie

Bonus. You're in the wrong relationship

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 8 (23 May 2013)

We only met at 11am at Sinchon Subway station. We had such a late start today because we would be leaving for Jeju with 7:55pm flight and I needed to pack ALL my belongings, check out of my guesthouse and leave all my luggage at the reception before starting my day. 

Thursday is Mister's fast food day.  He is pretty strict with eating junk food so he allowed himself to eat fast food just ONCE a week.  As there is no Taco Bell in Singapore and he loves Mexican food, we had our lunch there.  I love my cheese quesadilla! 

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 7 (22 May 2013)

Mister came to Sinchon Station around 10:30am to bring me to his hostel so that we could eat lunch together. I planned to edit our trip photos and arrange them in chronological order while he attends his afternoon classes 1-3pm.

Along the road to SK Global House

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 6 (21 May 2013)

Since we couldn't take our Hanbok photos the day before, we had to go back to the Korean Tourism Organization at M plaza Level 5.  We reached there around 1030am and didn't have to wait long for our turn.  Each group is given 10 minutes to take photos. 

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 5 (20 May 2013)

The next day was Monday and Mister had to attend classes till 1pm. He came over to Sinchon Station around 1:15pm to meet me for lunch.  Since it was a bit warm, we decided to try cold noodles (Naeng Myeon  냉면) and dumpling (mandu 만두 )! 

Noodle in ice-cold water! Perfect summer food haha :D 

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 4 (19 May 2013)

Thanks to our Hanok owner, we knew we needed to change our bus ticket so we checked out from Seonunjae Inn pretty early, around 730 am.  Since we have to go back to Jeonju to take our shuttle bus back to Seoul, we left our luggage at the Seonunjae Inn. Of course, we remembered to take pictures at our beautiful Hanok before we left.

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 3 (18 May 2013)

Thanks to Korea's efforts to promote tourism, there is a free shuttle bus to Jeonju for foreigners - http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/FU/FU_EN_15.jsp?cid=1797480 . Since there is only one bus per day, we need to book early though. I met Mister at Sinchon Subway station at 7:15am as the bus would depart at 8am from Donghwa Duty Free parking lot.  Donghwa Duty Free parking lot is just 1-2 min walk away from the exit 6 of Gwanhwamun Station (Line 5). 

Since I will be staying in Jeonju for one night, I checked out of my room and left my luggage at the guesthouse's reception counter.

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 2 (17 May 2013)

I met Mister at Sinchon Subway at 7:30am since we planned to go to Nami Island and the Garden of the Morning Calm. Such an early start! So I just had a simple breakfast of Korean strawberries and yogurt. Strawberries were pretty sweet and not too sour!

Homemade Meals

I will be the first one to admit that I cannot cook!  So not all of these are made by me.  But these are just some delicious yet simple meals I prepared with my flatmates or with Mister! 

Eat Clean! Drink fresh fruit juices instead of carbonated drinks haha :D

Mr & Missy in Korea Day 1 (16 May 2013)

I was a bit unsure about flying with China Eastern Airline as I have never heard of it and didn't know many people who have flied with China Eastern Airline.  But to my surprise, it departed from Changi Airport Terminal 3!  

Third Trip to My Favorite City "Seoul"

For about 6 months, from mid Nov 2013 to mid May 2013, things weren't going very well for me and I really needed a break.  And when Mister suggested that I visit him (he is an exchange student at the Yonsei University Seoul for one semester), I immediately agreed and started planning to go to Korea!

I was there for 14 days from 16 May 2013 to 29 May 2013. And that's one of the reasons why I haven't been blogging :D But I did upload a few photos on Instragram (@missynandar) during the trip!

Instragram Hashtags for my trip photos

Photoshoots with coupons (Groupon / Big Deal etc)

In the past year, I have noticed that photo-shoot coupons were becoming soooo popular in Singapore deal websites. Of course, since each shoot only costs around SGD 10-20 , I did buy a couple! hahaha But I honestly ended up spending much more than the coupon price :D  The coupon only allows you to get about 5-6 photos among all the photos that you have taken during that 60min - 90 min shoot. Photos are already taken and it would be such a waste to just delete them right? So yes, I always ended up buying at least 20-30 more photos than my coupon allowed me to. I just wanna share my experience so that you guys might be able to choose locations and poses for your future shoots!

Myanmar Passport Extension

HELLLOOO!!

I haven't blogged in a while as I have been quite busy.  One of the errands I have been busy with is renewing my Myanmar passport in Singapore.  I HAVE TO TELL YOU guys about my experience since I was pretty impressed by the Myanmar Embassy. Those of you who have been to the Myanmar Embassy in Singapore in the past couple of years would know that a visit to the embassy could be unpleasant - to say the very least. We had to jostled with the crowd, there were not enough chairs, a whole day could be wasted there, so on and so forth.  Well, guess what? All these problems are gone! No more!

Let me offer you a step by step guide on how to renew/ extend your passport if there is a need for you to do it. 

Firstly, you need to get an online appointment.

My music taste at the moment

Recently, I think I have become a couch potato! haha :D According to our new cable subscription, we now have MTV Asia and Channel V! Plus, I get to watch The Voice (American Singing Competition where Adam from Maroon 5, Blake Shelton, Celo & Christina are judges) from Monday to Friday too!!! haha I gotta start doing some stretching exercises while I watch TV. Oh well!

The good thing about listening to a lot of music is that I just get lost in these upbeat songs and forget my troubles for awhile! It just makes me feel cheerful! I am starting to love "Wings" by Little Mix.  I don't know about you but sometimes, its just hard not to let people's opinions get to me.  I have to give myself some pep talk and songs are a great way to go, you know? Let's not let people get us down! At the end of the day, the only opinions which matter are our loved ones' and they are not gonna make you feel bad about yourself.

A Journey to the K land! Day 7 Part 2 - 8 Feb 2013

After we left the Garden of the Morning Calm with 1:00pm Circle Tour Bus, I felt so warm and cozy inside the bus which had a heater. I even fell asleep for a few minute! Haha

Gapyeong Circle Tour Bus Schedule 

5,000 Won for an all-day pass bus ticket

A Journey to the K land! Day 7 Part 1 - 8 Feb 2013

I had beef & seaweed porridge for breakfast to help me recover faster from this terrible flu! 

A Journey to the K land! Day 6 - 7 Feb 2013

It's official that I had a flu! My runny nose was like a tap. I lost my voice. My throat hurt and even swallowing saliva was so painful. Strong wind didn't help either.  We decided to cancel our day trip to Mt. Seoraksan and just hang around the area.  We had porridge for breakfast and just walked around in Myeong Dong, doing cosmetics shopping till 12 noon. 

After dropping off our purchases in our room, we then headed out to Dongmyo Station on Line 6. There was a E-Mart and we wanted to buy sticker wall papers. We had our lunch there too!

We had to pass by Cheonggyecheon stream while walking to E-Mart. It is located at the basement of the "Lotte Castle" condominium.

A Journey to the K land! Day 5 - 6 Feb 2013

We left our place only around 9:30am today as I wasn't feeling so great. We had breakfast and walked around Myeong Dong till 10:30am when M Plaza opened.  M Plaza housed a Korean Tourism Organization which offers free rental of Hanbok (Traditional dress) for us to take photos.  But we had to make reservations and we didn't want to waste our time by having to wait. That's why we rushed there as soon as the doors were opened at 10:30am. We can rent Hanbok, hair accessory and a pair of shoes for 10 min. 

A Journey to the K land! Day 4 Part 2 - 5 Feb 2013

After lunch, it was already around 2pm and we took the subway back from Suwon to Yongsan where the famous Dragon Hill Jjimjilbang is. If you are wondering what Jjimjilbang is, it is a gender-segregated bathhouse in Korea. There are women only floors and men only floors and in such areas, its common to see people walking around naked! Plus, you are not supposed to wear anything in the shower area. There are also unisex areas where both males and females can hang out together. From Yongsan subway station, come out from exit 1. After you leave the train station building, turn right and cross the street. You will see Dragon Hill right beside "My Wedding Hall Buffet".

 This Dragon Hill is particularly famous because several Korean dramas and variety shows were filmed here.

A Journey to the K land! Day 4 Part 1 - 5 Feb 2013

2,000 Won Kimbab breakfast before heading to Suwon

A Journey to the K land! Day 3 - 4 Feb 2013

It snowed yesterday from 4pm till very late into the night. So when we left our place, we were greeted with a view of the winter wonderland! 

A Journey to the K land! Day 2 - 3 Feb 2013

We left our place around 830am as we wanted to reach the boarding point of Nami Island Shuttle bus by 910am. Jongno-3-ga was just 2 stations away from Euljiro-1-ga but Seoul subway stations are so big and we had to walk a lot. That was why we decided to leave early. And luckily, we left early.  We reached the bus at 9:10 am on the dot! Well, the bus would leave at 9:30 am but we had not paid for our tickets yet. So if there were a lot of people, the bus driver would give priority to those who had paid for their tickets followed by those who reached first. And that's the reason why we wanted to reach early.

http://www.namisum.com/

A Journey to the K land! (Feb 2013 - OOTDs)

The title says it all (:

A Journey to the K land! Day 1 Part 3 - 2 Feb 2013

After a great time appreciating peacefulness of the old palace, we headed to the Bukchon Hanok Village. It is "a residential district since the Joseon Dynasty which offers various traditional cultural programs including craft classes and exhibitions" and is made very popular among the tourists by the drama "Personal Taste". 

A Journey to the K land! Day 1 Part 2 - 2 Feb 2013

After resting for about 1hour at the Green Residence, we left for the Cheongyecheon Stream at around 1+pm.  Since we stayed very near Euljiro-1-ga station, the stream was within a walking distance. Just walk straight for about 10-15 min from Exit 2 or Exit 3 of Euljiro-1-ga station.  

walk straight for about 10-15 min from Exit 2 or Exit 3 of Euljiro-1-ga station

A Journey to the K land! Day 1 Part 1 - 2 Feb 2013

After we cleared immigration and customs, it was just before 7am.  I quickly opened my luggage to take out all my winder wear.  Although we were still inside the Incheon airport, the temperature had significantly dropped.  Outside, it was below 0C! The wind was so strong! 

There are a couple of ways to get to Seoul without spending so much money on a cab. If you don't have a lot of things, you can take subway as that is the cheapest.  However, Seoul's subway stations are quite big and there are quite a lot of stairs so this mode of transportation is only for those without much stuff. 

A Journey to the K land! (Feb 2013)

If you know me, you would know that I loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Korea! (South, I mean) I love the shopping, the fashion, the food, the street snacks, the make-up, the skin care everything! Of course, their stars are C.U.T.E & H.A.N.D.S.O.M.E & H.O.T too! Have you seen Kim Hyun Joong? My God, he is cute! 

Behind the scenes of the drama "Boys Over Flowers"

2009

Food For Thought 1 [Graduation - 6 July 2012]

Since we were about 4 years old till our university graduation, we were students, hating schools and counting down the days to graduation (most of us anyway).  We thought we would be free from exams, assignments, classes and we would be able to enjoy more freedom with the money we earned.  Whenever our seniors who were already working told us to treasure our student life, we were quick to argue with them.  Up till that point, our goals (again, most of us) were to fit in with the crowd, do well in exams, get a high CAP score, and secure a well-paying job, preferably in banks. With our first class honor or second upper honor, we fantasize about working in an important role which can make a difference to the corporation.  

Myanmar Day 9 & 10 - Yangon - 27 & 28 May 2012

This day was just for relaxing, packing, Mister learning to ride a motorcycle and going to a supermarket to buy snacks to bring back to Singapore. We could not afford to wait until tomorrow to pack as our flight would be departing at 8am and we were required to be at the airport by 6am. 

Our driver was Mister's motorcycle teacher! 

Man, he was a quick learner! In a few minutes, he was driving around my neighborhood - FMI City. That was what he was doing for most of the afternoon anyway :D

Myanmar Day 8 - Yangon - 26 May 2012

My mom prepared See-Kyat-Kout-Swae (Myanmar minced pork noodles) for breakfast.

Myanmar Day 7 - Yangon - 25 May 2012

We reached Yangon around 6am and I didn't want to trouble my mom to fetch us so early in the morning. So I arranged for the taxi pick-up service even before we left Kyaukse.  It was 6am, the car was air-conditioned, it was a pre-arranged pick-up/ on-call service. So I thought 8000 Kyats (around USD 10) for a 30-min trip to my parents' place was worth it! Besides, the taxi driver had worked in Malaysia and Singapore in the past, so he could speak English. If you are interested, I have included a picture of his name card (:

Myanmar Day 6 - Kyaukse - 24 May 2012

After non-stop travelling, we decided to relax! So we slept in, did some sight-seeing around Kyaukse, played with my niece and packed our bags since we would be leaving for Yangon with an overnight JJ Express bus.

The only highlights of the day were
1) sightseeing around Kyaukse on Dual-Sport motorcycles which were driven by my daredevil male cousins
2) picking mangoes at the mango plantation!

Myanmar Day 5 - Bagan & Popa - 23 May 2012

We woke up around 7am and tried to finish eating breakfast by 8am.  The restaurant owner where we had our dinner the day before had arranged a horse carriage to pick us up at our hotel at 8am. It was just 5000 Kyats / USD 6 for a one hour ride! We were pretty excited about it as it was a truly interesting way of sightseeing all the noteworthy pagodas and relics in Bagan. However, my aunt and cousins did not find it very interesting since horse carriages are one of the common methods of transportation in their hometown - Kyaukse.  So they just decided to rest at the hotel while we explored. The horse carriage guy was very punctual! He actually waited for us at the front of the hotel even before 8am!

Myanmar Day 4 - Bagan - 22 May 2012

As the drive from Mandalay to Bagan is about 4 hours, it is best to set out early in the morning so you can avoid the hot afternoon heat. Otherwise, trying to sightsee hundreds of pagodas in 40C heat can be frustrating. So we left Kyaukse around 5am and stopped at Meik-Hti-Lar Pit Stop for breakfast.  The food was slightly more expensive compared to other places BUT that pit stop opens 24 hours, it was really clean, the service was efficient and there was free Wi-Fi. So I guess its worth it yea.

Myanmar Day 3 - Mandalay - 21 May 2012

After we got ready for the day, our driver had not arrived yet.  So we decided to walk from my aunt's place to my grandma's place.  It was just a 5 min walk.  But hey, it was still a chance for Mister to see the bustling town in broad daylight! haha

Kyaukse Clock Tower

Myanmar Day 2 - Pyin Oo Lwin - 20 May 2012

We had no complaint with with bus ride except that one of the passengers snored sooooooo loudly! Being a heavy sleeper, the sound didn't really bother me but Mister is a light sleeper and he couldn't sleep at all!!!  Although I tend to miss my alarms, being a heavy sleep has its own benefits. Not bad at all :D

Anyway, enough of me digressing. My relatives picked us up around 6am and we went straight to Pyin Oo Lwin, or more commonly know as May Myo among the locals. It is a scenic hill town 42 miles east of the city of Mandalay. What began as a military outpost over a century ago is now a thriving resort town for locals and tourists alike as the weather is slightly cooler. As soon as we reached Pyin Oo Lwin, we stopped for breakfast. Gotta take care of our tummies first!

Myanmar Day 1 - Yangon - 19 May 2012

The flight landed in Yangon just before 12 noon. Mister said a very clean and pristine airport environment even reminded him of Singapore’s Changi Airport :D But rumor has it that the company designing Yangon International Airport is also the one which designs Changi International Airport. Contrary to his expectations of some hiccups, immigration was fast and efficient as was luggage retrieval. 

Mister's First Trip to Myanmar (May 2012)

Although we have started dating since 2008, Mister has not been to Myanmar, not even once. Of course, that is not acceptable yea :D So we planned! 

Since I was already planning to go home for a short visit after my final exams in the NUS (National University of Singapore), I asked him to go with me.  As we were planning his trip, he had doubts like "would he be granted a tourist visa because he held a US passport".  [Nope, I am not dating an Ang Moh. He is just an ABC - American Born Chinese :D] I had to repeatedly reassure him that he would be given a visa and there is nothing to fear at the immigration. Of course, as I told him, he easily obtained a visa.  By the way, Myanmar Embassy (Singapore) is located near Orchard Road. The address is 15 St Martin's Drive, Singapore 257996. 

Start of Something New

I have never thought I would be writing blogs some day. I mean even as a teenager (at a age when it is very common for girls to keep diaries), I didn't have any diary or journal at all.  I am just lazy. BUT now I realize that my memory is not as good as I expected.  I forget things easily. AND I certainly do not want to forget great memories.  So here I am!!! 

Plus, I have come to appreciate blogs, especially whenever I am planning for my overseas trips. I like to google about tips and directions and really, blogs are helpful! After spending so much time and money and effort to go to another country, of course I would want to make full use of my trips and would not want to miss out on anything because I was busy getting lost in a foreign land yea? Besides, being from Myanmar, I was asked about travelling to Myanmar quite often recently.  So I thought "it's time for me to give back & contribute". I shall be sharing about my experiences with travelling, dining, using beauty products and just anything which is on my mind!

Read on!