Wandering the World

How to get to TOUS LES JOURS:

Get off at Guro Digital Complex, Exit 1 which is the Bus Terminal.

After going down the flight of stairs, turn to your left and you'll see TWO bus terminals. Cross the road and go to the second bus terminal (You'll see the number 2 at the end of the bus terminal)

Wait for bus 5616. It usually takes around 10-20 minutes before the bus arrives (well, for our case) but if you're lucky enough, the bus might be there by the time you arrive. ( Route of bus 5616: Guro Digital Complex -> Korea Industrial Complex Corporation (E Mart) -> Digital Industrial Complex 1 -> Manmin Jungang Church)

Get off at Manmin Jungang Church (4th stop). If you get confused in counting the number of stops, just listen very well to the voice instruction and get off when it says, "This stop is Manmin Jungang Church."

After getting off the bus, walk towards your left (follow the direction of the cars) and you'll see the traffic light. Cross the street.

After crossing, walk towards your left again (follow the direction of the cars) and it's easy enough to see the bakery from here.

The bakery is at the leftmost part if you are facing the building. If you go here the time Hyukjae is visiting, it'll be easy to see the place due to the numerous fangirls. I haven't tried visiting the place during a normal day but I guess the place is much quieter during those times.

Tadaaa! Welcome to Eunhyuk's Tous Les Jours! :)

As I have said, the place isn't big enough and there are only few tables provided. If you go inside, you'll basically see different kinds of bread all over the place.. in the middle section and at the sides. The right part is for the cakes while the back part of the bakery is where you order your coffee and pay for your food.

(Just a sneak peek of the drinks they're selling)

There is an extended part at the back with around 3-5 tables. This is also where you can see Hyukjae's photos. /proud momma is proud/ hihi~ If he happens to be in the place, they set up a mini table for him here and he usually stands there and gives you your cake or whatever your order is. :)

On a normal day, you would just enter the store and grab whatever bread you want and pay whatever's on your tray at the counter. But if Hyukjae is manding the store, they usually close all doors so fans won't easily get in and crowd the really, really small space inside. During times like these, an ahjussi stands at the front door which he opens for fans to enter and exit. He holds numbers which you can ask for if you want to get inside and buy. Fight your way through the crowd to get to the front and ask him for a number ("Ajhussi, beon juseyo!" which means "Ahjussi! Can I please have a number?").

You can ask him for more than one number (that's the case when I was still in Korea, lol) just tell him how many you want. You wait for your number to be called and hand back to the ahjussi the number to get inside the store. It really helps to know Korean at this point or have someone with you who knows the language since ahjussi only shouts the number in Korean. He also shows the number of the last person who got inside the store but it's hard to see with all the fans surrounding the shop and trying to get a number, so just stay close or ask any fan what the number already is... which I had a hard time doing since some of them are foreign fans who can't understand Korean too, or they're very busy taking glorious photos that we see on the Internet, or they're simply rude and are scared of English. lol

Once you get inside, get whatever you want and line up. Here's mine:

Sometimes, Hyukjae's behind the counter and he bags your "groceries". This is your chance to talk to him for a short while so prepare whatever you want to tell him beforehand! :)

On special occasions though, you have to buy a cake or chocolate or whatever and claim it from him at his mini table at the side.

(Yeyy, Santa Hyuk that greeted me on my birthday!)

Just some friendly reminders, try not to take so much time since other fans are waiting, too.. and asking photos, signature and the like from him are not allowed. :) He happily gives handshakes and warm hugs so go for it! ;)

For me, Hyukjae's momma is the nicest. She knows how much the fans are suffering due to the cold weather so she tries her best to accomodate everyone by allowing them to go inside. She still treats Hyukjae as her little baby.. feeding him tangerines, helping him wear his coat and checking his son if he still looks good. As the quote goes, "Like mother, like son." ;)

I remember one time I asked for a photo with her, she was feeling the "gigil" mode so she was squeezing me so hard which I found adorable.

She's also very kind to us.. I remember one time, she came from the restroom and we were standing inside the hallway waiting for our numbers to be called because the cold outside was torturous. After seeing us, she tapped each one of us and asked us if we were still okay. Kind, concerned mommy who made me feel as if she was my own mom. :')

Out of the four times I went to Tous Les Jours, I saw Hyukjae for three times. I'll be creating a fan account containing all three visits soon. :)

Yep, that's me in the white coat waiting for my chance to order!

Just make sure that you have the energy whenever you visit Hyukjae in TLJ because there really are many fangirls in the place.

And well, I always end up tired after visiting and having the courage to talk to him!

The reason I did not go to Mobbit much was that during my stay in Korea, Yesung did not update fans if he was visiting Mobbit (unlike Hyukjae and the TLJ Twitter account that announces his arrival the night before) and the store has three floors and Yesung's parents and Jongjin stay behind the counter only thus, making it hard for foreign fans to interact with them and ask them for a photo (unlike Kona Beans and the three SJ mommies).

What I like the most about Mobbit is it's design (nope, not being biased here considering Yesung and Jongjin designed the place themselves). The place is really nice! From the outside, it looks like a house with window panes and vases, a red door, and the sign. Inside, there are three floors (basement, first floor, and second floor).

The first floor is where the counter is located. This is where you'll usually find Yesung's mom, Jongjin and if you're lucky or if you've stalked him enough, Y E S U N G. This is where you order and get your drink/food. There's also the nice restroom (화장실) in this floor.

The basement is a place where you can chill with your friends. I really love the ambience of this floor.. dark and serene, just perfect for studying. Don't worry, some tables have lamps that you can use for studying. You sit on pillows on the the floor so you have to remove your shoes. The floor here also looks very nice. It's glossy with fake petals of roses (which I thought were real and were trying to remove with my foot, stupid kid).

There is also a mini restroom here so that you won't have to go up and face the chaos happening in the first floor with all the fangirls trying to get nice photos of Yeye. The basement also has caves (which I believe from other fanaccounts is where Yesung stays when he has a meeting or something). The caves or mouse hole or whatever you call them are spacious rooms where you can seat with your friends. Usually, it's a four-seater table.

The second floor is where you can chit-chat with your friends or watch movies. Unlike the basement, this floor is very lively with bright lights and a projector showing old movies like Charlie Chaplin.

This is where we saw Yesung's dad. He was arranging the flower pots and the displays.. such a cutie. But I felt too shy to approach him since he looked quiet and scary. huhu~

Now that I'm done explaining how the place looks like, let's go to the directions.

How to get to MOUSE RABBIT:

Get off at Konkuk University Station (Line 2) and find Exit 2. Exit 2 has a staircase that leads you outside.

Face to your left and walk straight ahead. You'll know if you're in the right direction if you are going against the flow of traffic.

Keep walking until you see the Samsung Mobile store (about 3-5 minutes walk from the station) then go to the smaller street to your left.

Walk straight and you'll see Mouse Rabbit's banner

YUP. It's that easy! :) If you're still confused, here's a map I found online before to guide me on my way there.

If you want, here's a Jongjin-made map that didn't help at all. lol

Coffee and food here in Mobbit are not as expensive as Kona Beans'. Price ranges from around 4,000 - 6,000 KRW for coffee. I'm not just sure about the other drinks and the food.

If you don't know how to read Korean, don't fret. They have an English menu for foreigners (with pictures) and they have one barista who knows how to speak English fluently. I've seen her even while she was still working at Handel&Gretel and I've loved her ever since because of her English skills. lol and she's very nice too! :) And FYI, she's Jongjin's girlfriend. hihi~

I visited Mouse Rabbit only twice. The first time I was there, I went because I knew Yesung was there. Here's a fanaccount of that experience. The second time, I went to visit the place again even though I had no idea whether Yeye was coming or not. I wanted to see the place not too crowded.

Yesung's mom looks really, really nice and beautiful! :) She usually waits at the receiving counter giving the orders and taking the trays of people who are done with their meals. I remember one time, I asked her where I can throw my cup and she ended up taking the cup and giving me water, instead. Haha, cutie. Alas, I wasn't able to talk to her or ask for a photo since she looked very busy in her post.

So, there goes my post about Yesung's Mouse Rabbit! :) One of the nicest cafes I've been to in Seoul. :) Try visiting the place the earliest you can while Yesung's still not that busy and has time to waste giving off fanservice to everyone. ;)

P.S. Don't make the guy mad, okay? He's really kind but he can get really scary, too. :P

After getting off at Konkuk station and running all the way to Mobbit, we saw that there was no line and not so many fangirls around the area so with disappointed faces, we went inside and just said, "Oh, maybe he left already" The first person I saw once we got inside was Jongjin, cutie patootie little Yesung.

He was at the counter busily brewing some coffee while talking to Mama Yeye. Since it was the first time my two friends saw the Yesung clan, I had to point out who Jongjin and Mama Yeye were. We were too busy /and noisy/ gushing about Jongjin (...and how cutie patootie-ish he is) when someone from the other side suddenly stood up, looking at our direction.

I didn't care about the guy who stood up since I thought it was just Leo (the other manager) so I just stared at Jongjin and decided to get my camera to take a quick snapshot of him. The guy at the side started walking to Jongjin when my friend tapped my shoulder and told me, "Hindi ba yun si Yesung?" (Isn't that guy, Yesung?)

Pink hair. i <3 My Style cap. all black outfit. fierce, glaring eyes darted towards me and my camera. Yep, that's definitely him... and looks like I'm not making a good first impression.

So, I just bowed as an apology and immediately went down to get seats with my friends. I went back up after we got a table to check if he was the one taking the orders but the guy was still feeling a bit lazy so we waited... After around 10 minutes, he went back to the cashier so my friends and I lined-up to buy coffee.

After my friend ordered her drink, I went to Yesung and greeted him with a cheerful "Hi!". He nodded back and smiled a little. /eeeeep/ I ordered a mint latte, and he repeated the order, "Mint Latte?" AND OHMYGOD, THAT RASPY, HUSKY, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO SAY VOICE OF HIS... Hearing it up close without any microphones or sound systems altering the sound made me cringe a bit because it really, REALLY sounded good.

While punching in my order, Jongjin came out from the counter and stopped right beside me because Yesung talked to him for some I-do-not-understand-Korean matters. For about a minute, I kept looking back and forth... Jongjin --> Yesung --> Jongjin --> Yesung because being sandwiched between those two handsome brothers was H E A V E N.

Yesung even had to say, "Uhh, excuse me?" to bring me back to Earth and ask me to sign since I paid with my credit card. /INDIRECT TOUCHING THANK YOU CREDIT CARD/ I signed so fast 'cos my heart was about to burst. He gave me back my card along with a number and the receipt. I said, "Thank you!" and he smiled at me. AND THAT SMILE. THAT CUTIE PATOOTIE. EYE SMILE... omg thank you, Kim Jongwoon.

Before leaving, I asked him if it was alright to get a handshake from him. I think he's not that comfortable with the idea of you shaking his hand so he looked at me from baby hair to bangs to face to arms up to the hand that was extended for the handshake, but he still accepted the handshake with my smile.

While waiting for my order, Vanessa, who everyone knows as the "tall-pink-haired-girl", ordered from Yesung. It was so funny how he looked a bit intimated by how tall she was and everyone was laughing at their conversation. And yes, they looked like twins because of the hair. lol

Every now and then, Yesung would go work at the cashier for about 30 minutes and go back to the storage room if people start crowding at the counter area just to take photos.

I went back down to chat and talk to the fangirls in the cafe. I met Vanessa, Kim (@sjissj on Twitter), Elyse (our friend from Siwon's drama shoot) and a couple of other foreign fangirls. It was really nice talking to people from all over the world about Super Junior. <3 #newfriends

At around 9PM, my Filipino friends and I decided to go back to Sogang University. As we were walking back up, we saw fangirls lined up towards the door and Yesung, Jongjin and Jongjin's girlfriend were also about to leave Mobbit. Wow, talk about lucky timing! After they left, my friends and I left the place, too. We didn't expect to catch up with them at the traffic light because we kind of expected Yesung to have a car with him parked outside Mobbit or something. I didn't want to receive more darting glares from him so my friends and I decided to just walk behind them without making any spazzing noise that would make them feel as if we were following them. The roads were really slippery since it snowed the day before so we were struggling to walk and not slip but Yesung was so chill. He was listening to music, he had his cap and shades on, and his hands were inside his pocket. He looked chill but the way he walked (so that he won't slip, I guess) was like how penguins would walk. I can't really explain how it looked like, but whenever I remember the image, I still laugh. :))))

We parted ways with the three because we had to ride the subway at Konkuk Station while Yesung and co. kept walking towards the other road. I wanted to say, "Annyeonghigaseyo Yesung Oppa!" but I just kept my mouth shut as I watched him walk away happily conversing with Jongjin.

I took a video of Yesung, too while I was in the shop for some remembrance. :)

Let me write about Kona Beans first since it's the place I went to EVERY SINGLE DAY during my last three weeks in Seoul.

How to get to KONA BEANS:

Get off at Apgujeong station, Exit 2.. or ride a bus and just get off at Apgujeong Station.  

If you're using the subway, you're in the right exit if you're heading towards the small store of Nature Republic or if you see Kris' billboard along the exit (If it's still there by the time you get to Korea lol)  

Make a u-turn after going up the stairs and NO, DO NOT CROSS THE STREET.. instead, turn to your right. To make sure you're in the right path, you are going with the flow of traffic and walk a bit farther and you'll see a BASKIN ROBBINS store on your right. I believe this is where most idols and stars get their BR ice cream. lol so take a little peek of the place before proceeding.

Walk a little more and you'll get to the Hanyang Apartment/Apgujeong station bus stop.

Wait for bus 143 or 472. I think the other buses stop at Kona Beans too since it's just straight ahead, but just to be sure, wait for those two since those are the ones I have tried. :D You are riding the correct bus if you see the Hyundai Oil gas station.

  Get off at the NEXT STOP. The stop's name is Apgujeong Hanyang Police Box (압구정동한양파출소앞) Check the window... If you see the Blacksmith cafe, get off at that stop.  

Blacksmith is at the corner of the main road... walk through the alleyway. You'll be passing by stores like 7-11, Jindo and an Angel-in-Us coffee shop.  

Behind Angel-in-Us coffee shop is KONA BEANS! Yipee!

WELCOME TO KONA BEANS!

Just some stuff you might want to know...

SJ Mommies' schedule: Monday - Leeteuk's mom Tuesday - Kyuhyun's mom Wednesday - Sungmin's mom Thursday - Leeteuk's mom Friday - Sungmin's mom Saturday - Kyuhyun's mom Sunday - shuffle

That's the schedule Sungmin's dad told me and that's the exact schedule I took note of. I visited Kona Beans EVERY DAY for one week with my friend, Angelica, just to take note of the mommies' schedule. lol

The coffee here is a bit expensive. I always order their caramel macchiato and it costs around 5,000KRW for the regular one and about 6,000KRW for the tall drink. Cakes cost around 4-6k KRW per slice. They also sell cocktails, teas, juices, smoothies, etc.

Good things about the place are the lovable owners and its SJ playlist!

Mama Teuk likes roaming around the place talking to fangirls and making sure everyone was feeling warm (We went there during the Winter season so it was really, REALLY cold). She often sits down in the corner to read letters, books and some stuff. Before you leave, she would assist you and make sure you remember to pick up all the stuff you brought with you.

Mama Kyu is the cutest. She likes being busy. She's responsible for watering the plants, arranging the fan gifts and making sure everything is in place. She also makes the coffee you order sometimes. It's kind of hard to talk to her since she likes making herself busy but she's very kind once she remembers you. By our third visit, she was the one who approached us and asked if we were doing well and if we weren't feeling cold.

Mama Ming is very kind too. Instead of just reading like Teuk's mom or watering the plants like Kyu's mom, Sungmin's mom actually likes talking to fans. :) So if you're fluent in the language, go ahead and converse with her! If you ask for a photo, she does not like having her photo taken solo.. she prefers having the fans take a picture with her. :)

Sungjin and Sungmin's dad often drop by Kona Beans whenever it's Sungmin's mom's turn to mand the place. They come in very late, at around 9PM, so that the three of them can go home together. Sungmin's dad is very, very nice! He likes talking to fangirls who are very jolly (ssikssikhada, he would say) and he tries his best to speak in English just to converse with international fans. Sungjin is more of the shy type. He likes staying either in the Mama seat corner or inside the counter to help in the bar or the cashier. My friend and I were really lucky to actually converse with him once for like an hour since he knew how to speak English. Sungjin does not take photos with fans.. but he allows fans to take a photo of him.. Yes, HIM ALONE.. to serve as a souvenir, maybe? idrk lol

Back when Leeteuk wasn't in the army yet, he would often visit the place and we were able to order from him once!

Sungmin also visits every now and then.. He visited Kona Beans twice during my stay in Korea. Too bad, I didn't catch him on both days.

So, there goes my Kona Beans long post! Hope you find Kona Beans and get the experience you've been wanting!

5 days left and I'm off to South Korea. Come to think of it, I shouldn't feel scared because I'm quite familiar with the country.. I can read, write in Hanggeul, I understand basic sentences that can help me survive /a bit/ and I've been to the country twice before. But honestly, I feel very scared and lost.. it's like I'm scared for the day to come because I don't know what to expect. I'm scared to leave my home and live alone. /insert dramatical music/

There are quite a lot of things bothering me. Survival. Money. Getting lost. Concerts. Kpop. Studies. People. Friends. Language Barrier. Home. Family.

I remember saying back then after being in love with Kpop, "Why can't I live in Korea? Why can't I study in Korea? Why can't I be in Korea so that I can see my idols almost everyday and watch every concert?"

Apparently, it isn't that easy. Living in Korea isn't the only requirement for you to watch a concert of your favorite artist. You still have to be online 24/7 to check information about the concert. You should have fast internet connection to reserve a ticket which costs quite a lot (about 3000-5000 PHP or 77-88 USD). You need to line-up really early to get a good spot. Some shows for free are usually very, very far from Seoul. While some require you to call them or reserve through the internet (first come, first serve basis) and based on experience, this is really a pain in the ass. TRUST ME.

Maybe for a Korean, all of these look easy peasy but for a foreign student like me, it's not. So now, the hope of watching my favorite idol groups on music shows and concerts is slowly slipping away. /damn stupid, useless, first world problem/

Moving on...

Second thing on the list is getting lost. Based on my experience, Koreans aren't really as kind or helpful as Filipinos. Maybe it's because they're not that fluent with English or maybe because they're just really busy. I am not street smart so I easily get lost and get megafraid once things start getting unfamiliar to me. Me + Lost + Different country. Not really a good combination.. I might end up bursting in tears in the middle of Seoul asking for my mama. :((

Third thing is I'm not the type who misses people easily or gets emotional about being homesick and stuff. I've tried living without my father for four months and well, I've lived in my aunt's house in the province for almost a month. Aside from those, I haven't really experienced living far from my family for a long time and knowing that I can't call them to pick me up any time because I miss them, I feel very scared. I have been the family's baby ever since I was born so I'm used to the feeling of calling my mom or dad or sisters once I feel something's wrong. Hopefully, I don't get that homesick feeling that I will later on regret while sobbing myself to sleep, all alone. :(

So aside from getting lost and missing my family, I think what I'm most worried about is my allowance. Those usual worries of, what if my money isn't enough to feed me for four months? What if I starve to death? What if I only get to eat ramyeon every night? Those kind of worries. And I won't enjoy Seoul as much as my friends will.. Given that I've been to almost all the tourist sites in Korea (Lotte World, Carribean Bay, Namsan Tower, DMZ... name them and I'm pretty sure, I've been to them), I probably won't go, enjoy the tours with them. Given my limited allowance, travel isn't really part of the plan.. So while my Sogang mates are off enjoying the sceneries of Seoul, I'll be inside the dorm.. doing my part-time job, Rarejob. Another thing is my parents already advised me not to go shopping. :( So while everyone's returning to the dorm holding paper bags from all the shopping, I'll be saving my money for food and concerts.

I sometimes get that feeling, Why did I even bother joining this JTA program? Am I really there to study or am I just going there for the sake of meeting my oppas and saying that "I STAYED IN SEOUL FOR A LONG TIME, BITCHES."? Ugh. I hate this feeling of doubting myself and over-thinking. I don't really know. Let's just hope for the best and well, hope I come back to the Philippines on my birthday (December 24 - exact date of my arrival) with a smile on my face. :(