Korea Trip June 2013 Day 5 - Waterpia and Yong Pyong

With Hong Thai 9 Day All In Korea Deluxe package

Day 5
We had a 7am wake up call today. Breakfast was 7.45am at the basement of the Hanwha Resort. Breakfast was buffet style and was quite nice with a lot of choices.

We assembled at 8.30am to go to Waterpia hotspring waterpark. The park is actually just a short stroll away from the resort but our bus dropped us off there. By the time we reached, it was only 9am. Here's the annoying thing, nothing was opened until 10am. So we all couldn't understand why they couldn't have just brought us there later so that we could have a sleep in and rest more. Instead after we changed into our swimsuits we sat around for 45 minutes waiting for the park to open. Apparently we were there that early because they wanted people to relax and soak inside the naked hot spa which is within the inside of the locker room, or to go to the sauna. I am neither a naked swimmer nor a hot spa person, plus I had a 6 year old with me so none of these activities were suitable for her.

The hotspring facilities are impressive though. Upon arriving we had to take off our shoes and put it in a locker which had a key on it. Then you take the key and go down to the locker room to find the corresponding locker number to put all your other things in. The locker room has a water cooler, hair dryer, teeny tiny towels for showering, plastic bags to pack your wet clothingn (and all this is free!)....and.......an open shower.......The Korean ladies just like the Japanese are very comfortable walking around totally buck naked.....me.....errr...not so much. And there's nowhere to hide.....all modesty is out the window.Do not forget to bring your swimming cap (which in Singapore you can buy just from Daiso for $2). Or else you can rent the cap, or buy there, but it's not worth it. Supposedly you can even wear a shower cap or a baseball cap :p

There are various outdoor hot spas, but the water temperature was way too hot for me. Luckily there was an indoor one which had just nice warm water which was like bath water, very nice to sit in. For the kids, there is an indoor lazy river type of pool where it had a current, and also an indoor water playground as well as the wave pool. There were more stuff outside the kids could enjoy but they weren't open till around 12pm. We had to leave by 11.30....far too short to play if you have kids. The other adults in our group felt it was just adequate.

part of the 'lazy river'. It has a current. 

this is a lap pool

After this was a lunch of Pork Ribs BBQ. Was ok only. What I do enjoy about Korean food is the wrapping up of meats in lettuce leaves. I love salad leaves, so it's really right up my alley. But then again..there is so much of meat wrapped in lettuce that I can eat in a week before I get sick of it!

i like how we sit on the ground and our feet goes under the table.

BBQ time....not much taste and if cooked too long it was tough

After lunch we drove an hour to Pyongyong Resort where we checked in at Dragon Valley Hotel and had a bit of down time before we went off again. The hotel is a bit dated, and in need of a major facelift. It's just looking really tired and for me the bed wasn't so comfy either. I guess on the upside the room was spacious.

View from our room

the back of the resort

After we rested for a bit we had an optional Gondola Ride (cablecar) up to the peak of the mountain. I would definitely recommend it, the ride was about 20mins one way. The price for 2 Adults and 1 Child was KRW38,000 for a return trip. The scenery was quite pretty, lots of greenery, I can just imagine how much prettier it is in winter or Autumn when the leaves change colour.

The summit was pretty, there was a big poster from Winter Sonata, so I'm guessing they also did some scenes up there. If you're there during the summer, find some dandelions for the kids to blow, you wont get a chance in Singapore :) The gondola closes early, so you have to catch the last ride at 4pm.

lots of dandelions growing there

After we made our way back on our own timing, we had some free time before dinner. This day was by far the most relaxing day of the trip. So we went around the resort to look and see what we could find. In the building behind the Dragon Valley Hotel there's a Lotte Burger shop, Baskin Robbins and a minimart.

Dinner was of Squid and Pork somewhere nearby and it was quite tasty. And we came back to our hotel quite early after that.

the usual suspects...

DAY 1 & 2
DAY 3
DAY 4
DAY 6
DAY 7 - 9

Korea Trip June 2013 Day 4 - Nami Island, Seorak National Park, Hanwha Resort

With Hong Thai 9 Day All In Korea Deluxe package

Day4

Our wake up call this morning was 6am as we had an early flight back to Seoul from Jeju. We were to leave the hotel by 7am to have our breakfast outside the hotel at a local restaurant. The breakfast was Abalone Porridge...don't expect to see any big identifiable chunks of Abalone. Not much in flavour....another words, bland. Thankfully had side dishes and bread rolls.

Abalone....in porridge

So after we arrived in Seoul, they took us to Nami Island which was 1.5 hours away. Before we went to the island itself we stopped by for a Hot Plate Chicken lunch.

Lots of Cabbage

Then rice was added to it..so now it was like fried rice.

After lunch we took a little boat ride to Nami Island, the famous filming site of Winter Sonata. Actually I'm pretty sure it was just one scene...I haven't seen it before, so can't say I knew what I was looking for. But it's a quaint little island, nice photo op place. We were given an hour there.

The entrance to the boat loading area.

the 'boat'

sexy lady to greet us

beautiful tree lined paths

Winter Sonata poster

find the pretty ostrich

After Nami Island we headed to Seorak National Park, which was another 2 hours drive (by this time I was already getting sick of the bus). This place is beautiful, I just wished we were given more time to explore, the scenery is just truly breathtaking.

After the park, we went to dinner at a seafood restaurant which was only a short 20minute drive away. The given meal that's included in our tour package is a mushroom hotpot. So there was an optional add-on set of fresh Seafood for KRW35,000/person. This set includes, live abalone (1 per person), live octopus which they'll cut directly into your mouth suction cups and all, fresh fish sashimi, crab (1 per table), sea snails, grilled saba fish, fresh oyster (1 per person), and prawns. In my opinion, it's quite worth it.

The basic mushroom hotpot.

Side dishes for the seafood add on set.

Sea Urchin

crab

Sea Snails

Live Abalone. We didn't dare eat it alive so we asked them to grill it. It was the best abalone I've ever had in my life!

Fresh Fish Sashimi or you can dip it in the hotpot to cook it.

Live Octopus!

Our accommodation for the night was at Hanwha Resort. It's a great hotel, the rooms have a separate sleeping area, there's also a tatami mat available, living room area, and a small kitchenette. Shampoo and soap are both provided, but for some unknown reason their bath towels were really tiny....Best thing was there was a large supermarket in the basement for you to shop till your heart's content.

Top row: Bedroom (very comfy bed), Bathroom, Tv
Bottom row: closet, another closet with extra pillows and tatami mat, living area and kitchenette.

DAY 1 - 2
DAY 3
DAY 5
DAY 6
DAY 7 - 9