Seoul

I'm off to Seoul this weekend. Here's some travel info I found...

General
Korea uses American style sockets and voltage. You will need an adapter for your appliances.

Weather
Thu        Fri         Sat        Sun        Mon        Tue
T-showers    Partly Cloudy    Mostly Cloudy    Partly Cloudy    Partly Cloudy    Sunny
High: 26°C    High: 28°    High 29°    High 27°    High 28°    High 27°
Low: 18°C    Low: 18°    Low 19°        Low 20°        Low 20°        Low 20°
Summers are generally hot and humid, with monsoons taking place from June until September. August, the hottest month, has an average temperature of 22 °C to 30 °C (72 °F to 86 °F) with higher temperatures possible.

Language
Hello/Good Morning/Good Afternoon/Good Evening/How are you? Annyeonghaseyo? Ahn yawng hah seh yoh?
Hello (Answering telephone, Getting someone's attention) Yeoboseyo? Yaw boh seh yoh?
Goodbye (Say to someone leaving) Annyeonghi kaseyo. Ahn yawng hee kah seh yoh.
Goodbye (Say when you are leaving) Annyeonghi kyeseyo. Ahn yawng hee kyeh seh yoh.
Nice to meet you. Manna boeeo ban gapseumnida. Mahna beh bahn gahp sum nee dah.
Thank you. Kamsahamnida. Kam sahm nee da.
You're welcome. Cheonmaneyo. Chawn mahn neh yoh.
Yes. Ye/Ne. Yeh/Neh.
No. Aniyo. Ah nee yoh.
Help me. Dowa juseyo.
I don't understand Korean. Hanguk-eo neun motamnida. Hahn gookaw noon motahmnida.
I don't understand. Moreugesseumnida. Moh ruh geh sum nee da.
Do you speak English? Yeong-eo hashimnikka? Yawng-aw hasheemneeka?
Write it down on paper, please. Jong ie sseo boseyo. Johng ee eh saw boh seh yoh.

How much is it? Eol-ma ye-yo     
It is expensive. Bi-ssa-yo    
Give me a discount, please. Jom ggak-a-ju-se-yo    
Can I try it on? Jom ibeo-bado doel-ka-yo?    
Clothes. Ot     
Pants. Ba-ji     
T-Shirt. T-sheo-cheu     
Shoes. Shin-bal     
Skirt. Chi-ma     

blue     Haneul saeg. Hah nul sak.
brown     Gal saeg. Gahl sak.
gray     Hoe saeg. Hwee sak.
green     Nok saeg. Nohk sak.
pink     Bun hong saeg. Boon hohng saek.
purple Bora saeg. Boh rah sak.
red     Ppalgan saeg. Pahl gahn sak.
white     Huin saeg. Hween sak.
yellow Noran saeg. Noh rahn sak.
black     Geomeum saeg. Gawmun sak.

0    yawng
1    eel
2    ee
3    sahm
4    sah
5    oh
6    yook
7     cheel
8    pahl
9    goo
10    sheep
11    sheep eel
20    ee sheep
100     baek
1,000    chun
10,000    mahn
20,000    ee mahn
100,000 sheemmahn
1,000,000 baekmahn

RM1 = 270 Won
SGD1 = 619 Won

Item            Price
small bottle of water     Won 500.00
litre of petrol         Won 1, 500.00
souvenir t-shirt         Won 5,000.00
movie ticket         Won 7,000.00
movie ticket         Won 7,000.00
local newspaper     Won 700.00
half litre of beer         Won 1,000.00
litre of bottled water     Won 1, 100.00
loaf of bread         Won 1,600.00
street snack (Tteobokki)Won 2,000.00
food court lunch     Won 6,000.00

Average Meal Prices
Low          Mid          High     
W2300-3400     W3400-12000     W12000-20000

Transportation
Subway
The Seoul subway system is probably the best way to get to major points of interest around the city. It is pretty inexpensive, and faster in most cases than taking a taxi. About the hardest thing is figuring out where you are going. But, if you have directions in advance, learning to navigate the subways are actually pretty easy. About every popular destination in Seoul has a train stop so get a stored price ticket and zip anywhere through town. Every arrival will be announced in English and Korean. Signs are also written in English and Korean.

Things to do
Dongdaemun (Great East Gate)
It is one of the largest shopping districts in the world and has just about anything the heart could ever want. Built in 1905, the market consists of 30 shopping centers and about 30,000 stores, and more than 50,000 manufacturing companies joined together to trade textiles, clothes, shoes, sports goods, stationery, toys, household goods, and accessories. What makes this place really special is it is where most of the other shopping areas in Korea get their products.
Dongdaemoon Staduim Station (Lines 2,5,4) Exit #14. Seoul city tour bus stop number 19.

Namdaemun (Great South Gate)
This is a huge indoor/outdoor market that is very crowded and stimulating! Just about every "designer" fake you can imagine is here, with a big emphasis on Loius Vuitton. There is something for everyone from clothes to Korean knicknacks, shoes,furs and lots of leather goods.
Hoehyeon (Namdaemun) on Line 4.

Itaewon
Do not shop for souvenirs in Itaewon unless you have money to burn. If you do decide to shop here, be sure to barter. If you start at half the marked price, you may end up with a fair price. Itaewaon does have a huge variety of souvenirs such as faux mink blnakets, traditional masks, paintings and drawings, lamps, pottery, and just about anything else you can think of... Prices are just cheaper elsewhere. In Songtan, 45 km to the south, most things are about 1/2 price. In Insa-dong just a few km north, quality is much higher.

COEX Mall – Underground Shopping City
COEX Mall is a huge shopping arcade located beneath Samsung-dong Trade Center in Gangnam-gu. The mall offers shopping, culture, and entertainment, attracting mostly young people in their teens and early twenties. Located nearby are the COEX exhibition halls and international conference rooms, providing convenient shopping for business people.
Take Subway Line No.2 to Samsung Station between Exit No.5 & No.6. (The Millennium Plaza, Megabox Cineplex, COEX Intercontinental Hotel, and the arcade all connect.)

National Folk Museum
The large National Folk Museum of Korea on the grounds of Gyeongbok Palace is a nicely-done museum showing the daily lives of Koreans throughout history. Inside of the building are displays and dioramas while the outside has authentic pagodas, houses, and farming tools. There are three main exhibits in the museum: Korean Culture and History, Korean Lifestyle and Commodities, and Korean Life Cycle.
Located behind Gyeonbokgung. Take Subway Line 3 to Gyeonbokgung Station or Anguk Station.

Insadong (Mary's Alley)
"Insa-dong," as referred to here, is the stretch of avenue extending about 700m beginning at Tapgol Park. Here, in the myriad fine craft stores that line both sides of the street, you can find anything from simple hanbok (traditional Korean clothing), to beautiful Goryeo era vases. Insadong is where you can find traditional Korea within Seoul. Wander around the place and enjoy the street full of art galleries, craft shops, antique stores and restaurants.
Seoul Subway Line 1, Jonggak Station, 3 minutes by foot. - Seoul Subway Line 3, Anguk Station, 1 minute by foot - Seoul Subway Line 5, Jongnosam(3)ga Station, 3 minutes by foot

Lotte World
If you have kids or really, really miss Disneyland Lotte World is about as close as you'll come in Seoul/Korea.
Jamsil Station (Line 5, 8) in Songpa-Gu

Contacts
Malaysia Embassy Seoul    +82-2-7959203
Singapore Embassy Seoul    +82-2-7742464
Police                 112

Bachelor no.15

Dear Friends,

My very good buddy is currently on Cleo's Top 50 Most Eligible Bachelors (refer to Cleo May issue).

Although he's not the best looking of the lot, nor the best dancer, nor the best hair, nor the most well-known, nor the nicest smile, nor the best teeth, nor the best answers (he should have asked me to write it for him), nor the most charming, etc etc. However, he's one of my best buds.

Therefore, please do vote for the underdog.

Hey all, Our very own MMN member Raj Arirajah is competing in this years Cleo most eligible bachelor contest. Raj's MMN Profile

Which Superhero am I?

Your results:
You are Hulk

Hulk 60% Spider-Man 60% Robin 57% Green Lantern 55% The Flash 55% Supergirl 55% Superman 50% Batman 50% Wonder Woman 35% Iron Man 35% Catwoman 30%

You are a wanderer with amazing strength.

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...

Which super villian am I?

Your results:
You are Apocalypse

Apocalypse 74% Juggernaut 65% Dr. Doom 64% Magneto 61% Venom 61% Lex Luthor 54% Dark Phoenix 50% Green Goblin 49% Kingpin 49% The Joker 45% Mr. Freeze 43% Mystique 37% Catwoman 35% Riddler 33% Two-Face 33% Poison Ivy 19%

You believe in survival of the fittest and you believe that you are the fittest.

Click here to take the Super Villain Personality Test

Little Wonders by Rob Thomas

A song I'm listening to lately.

The Warlords clip

It's a heroic tale of three blood brothers and their struggle in the midst of war and political upheaval. It is based on "The Assassination of Ma," a Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) story about the killing of general Ma Xinyi. The story was filmed by Zhang Che in 1973 as The Blood Brothers.

Yo! Fool!

World of Whorecraft

Whorecraft is the first fantasy adult website of its kind to extend stories of sorcery, swords, and fantasy worlds a step further with sex!

The whole idea was spawned from playing different computer games and daydreaming of alternate endings for fantasy sex. PERVERTS!

Whorecraft is specifically targeted to anyone who's ever imagined their fantasy world characters coming to life in a sexual way.

 

Greek Gods Family Tree

Weird Al interviews Eminem

eBooks

Lately, I've had this fascination with eBooks (electronic books). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebooks

There's quite a number which are freely available on the internet. Even legally.

http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/
http://blogs.pcworld.com/techlog/archives/002676.html
http://books.google.com/

Anyway, I've a bunch of books I've downloaded and the only way I read them is thru a PC. What'd I'd really like is to curl up on the sofa and read it like a real book. However, there're very few options out there at the moment.

The Sony Reader is a bit bulky and expensive USD300. http://www.engadget.com/2006/01/06/sony-reader-details-and-pics/

The good thing is the technology is getting there. This e-ink looks to be pretty amazing.

http://www.biblio-tech.com/BTR901/January_2001/e-ink_for_e-books__.html

However, it's still gonna take a while for the technology to get there and a while more for the price to reach affordable levels. Can't wait though... Just imagina carrying around hundreds if not thousands of books on a device and the option to read any of those books anywhere you want. Faster, damn it!