#royalog

previous

on may 14th, T, E and i went to everland! it was a bit of a late start with us being tired in the morning. we went to eat brekky at a spot T and i had gone to before, where the breakfast is very american style--i had a waffle and it was so good! full of fruits :D there was also a cupsleeve event happening for a musical actor--ihwa dong is full of musical actor events!

we then travelled to everland using a taxi! it was such a long and bumpy ride T-T i got motion sickness before we even reached everland and got to go on any rides!

it was quite busy but i'd say not to an extent that it was bothersome? the waiting times were pretty long, up to an hour, but the lines would move so quickly as everything was so efficient. the park was also just so large that the business was not noticeable.

T and E wanted to go on a viking ride first. going on even just the swings makes me feel sick, so i decided to sit out. i had to eait for an hour so i walked around and scoped things out! it's kind of like disneyland but there were a lot of pretty flower gardens and stuffs >_<

still... a lot of uphills and on such a warm day,, it killed me T-T

i went back and stood by the ride for half an hour. i didn't notice i was standing by a smoker's pit, and that gave me a headache so i was grumpy for the rest of my wait. but when T and E got off, they were super nice! they told me we can go on any ride i want.. i found this pretty chill ride in the kids' area (oh yeah,, i'm not the best with rides >_< i have to warm up to them!). it went backwards the whole way and was train-themed. honestly, i thought it woukd be scary, but it wasn't at all! it was more just fun and chill !!

we walked around a bit and ate some pasta at a restaurant. T found a hair in her pizza so they gave us a completely new one! they were really kind and apologetic.

everland has this big killer ride that you can see from anywhere in the park. T and E love rides, so of course they wanted to go on it. i'm definitely not on that level yet. if you know canada's wonderland.. this ride was like my leviathan. i think the biggest ride i've been on at wonderland is maybe the mine buster T-T this ride was like the mine buster but so much bigger and longer.. a bit smaller than the leviathan but when we reched the drop, i could see the whole park !

so yeah, spoiler, i rode it.

my knees were so weak as i waited in line, but it was amusing seeing other people so scared for their lives, too. it was like hey ! we're all in this together !!!

on the ride, T sat next to me and held my hand. i warned her, i warned T and E that when i'm on a ride,, my screams don't sound like me. i have a bit of a more low toned voice but my screams come out like Haruto's (if you know him?). he's very low-toned but screams like a 12-year old T-T

the whole ride, i was fearing for my life while T laughed next to me because my screams were apparently hilarious. that ride was so damn long it just wouldn't end !

i hated every second but i was glad i did it. since i paid ₩64,000 to get in, i was like hey, gotta get my money's worth!

we went on another big ride that had a few loops. E sat next to me and this one and even held my hand? the rascal.

that one was more bearable because it was shorter.

oh! i forgot to mention that everland has a zoo, so we took a look at the animals ! i found han jisung (quokka) and E was way too impressed by the capybaras. they had this gated area where alpacas and capybaras were freely roaming, and the capybara literally walked right past us!

sadly, we missed the sea lions and pandas. T was sad but i was content!

we went to a gift shop before leaving (everland has the cutest souveniers. p.s. E and T wore matching headbands .... yikes)

we took the bus home and it was a bumpy ride (stream super bumpy by wei). we were exhausted when we got home but it was a fun day !! we got some snacks from the convenienve store to eat at home before we slept :-]

may 15th was YOSHINORI DAY! i found some cafés in advance and though i was so dead and tired, i managed to leave the house at 1pm after having toast for breakfast. the cafés were oddly far apart so it was a lot of walking for such a warm day, and especially for the day after wonderland, i was truly dead.

the cafés were busy and that made me happy?? usually, i've never seen them this busy. for Yoshi to be getting this much love cheered me up ^^

i saw Tina, a friend of a friend of a friend (ㅠㅠ) ! she looked pretty, as always ♡_♡ i was near hapjeong and the yg café is by there, so i made my way there and a lot of people were waiting by the yg building for treasure. i went into the yg café to buy stuff first--treasure had new merch and i wanted to cop! everything was sold out except for the photobook but it was still such a good purchase ☆_☆ it came with so many things..

after that, i joined everyone in waiting and mamaged to see ikon T-T all 6 members! they had finished a schedule and were tired, but seeing Bobby prance inside the building like that made my day:")

i waited a bit more but my body was aching because i was carrrying around my laptop and everything, plus the photobook and Yoshi day goods, so i just went home.

near hyehwa, i went to a curry place. it was reallu good ♡_♡

below are some rough drafts of logs i didn't get to finish,, but i still wnated to upload thos T-T

may 19th, cu breakfast (T made me run!!!), waterfall, viewing point of lava rocks, eat at pasta and omlet, more waterfalls + solo with Annie to last waterfall, onol café, yacht tour, black pork bbq

may 20th, tea museum, innisfree, chungchundang meat croquet,, yum!, to a flower garden/botanical garden, lots of gifts for friends, food market and jokbal, crab cheese, hallabong

may 21st, check our and go up north to new hotel, go to beach, Aileen lost t money card :( Annie brought melted ice cream, ate chicken there and got a duck floatie, came back and went out for seafood

may 22nd, cu breakfast, feet hurting like crazy, went

reporting live from the worst day ever ^^ well, maybe it's an exaggeration.. but let me skip to the worst part. ah, well all of today was bad. so let's start from the top. at 5:30am, T's alarm went off in our jeju hotel. i don't even remember the name of the hotel.. T-T covernant? governant? it was fancy.. but the utilities were so little.. anyways! we rushed to pack and had to squeeze a lot into our small suitcases. T gave me a teabag to shove in and i had to hold her oranges.

i've realized one of my biggest pet peeves is holding people's stuff for them. putting your stuff in my bag because your bag isn't big enough. making me hold your things. it's okay if it's once every now and then, but when i tell you i was abused on this jeju trip and told to hold people's things constantly just so they could have a whole photoshoot or run to the bathroom. of course, i always bring a large bag because i know i'll need it, and these girls asked me to stuff their whole lives in their cause their tight little purses wouldn't fit their water bottles and portable chargers.

it's okay if it's one time but next time, bring a bigger bag. i don't care if it ruins your look. if i'm making a bigger bag work, then so can you.

anyways, somehow we left. my foot still aches like a ,,, [swear word] ,,, so i'm limping and T is speeding ahead. these last 2 days, everyone was always speeding ahead. i think only Annie would wait for me from time to time. i felt so neglected..

we missed our bus and the next one came an hour later, so we got a taxi, or else we'd miss the flight. i paid for the taxi because i felt bad for asking T to check out, but lowkey why did i feel bad? maam always asking me to hold her stuff and order food for her everywhere,, i should've been proud i spoke my mind for once!

at the airport, we check our bags and T goes to the gate while i go to 7 eleven for breakdast. i bought bbang (bread), triangle gimbap and a hershey's choco milk (heavenly, truly). then i hobble back and we board.

someone was supposed to sit in our window seat but there was no one, so T and i had extra room. T knocked out right away but i was mostly awake, listening to Eric Nam's there and back again.

once we arrived we took the 601 straight to our place. it was an hour bus ride and i was separated from T while we rode, since it was a little packed. it was boiling hot when we got off and i don't know by what kind of strength we hauled our suitcases up the uphills and to our rooms but we did!

i only had time to finish eating (since on the plane i only ate my bread,, cause of covid i felt so uncomfy eating) and use the bathroom, pack my bag and leave.

we went straight to class.

we took our korean class and then i remembered i need to apply for my insurance exclusion. basically, since i have my registration card now, i'm enrolled for korean insurance. but i have private insurance, so i needed to show them this so i could be exempt from paying the korean insurance (₩50, 000 per month).

i took my last class of the day on zoom as i took the bus home to grab my documents, then walk to dongdaemun and subway to sindorim to go to the nhis centre for foreign residents.

i went into the wrong building and asked for directions--someone kindly redirected me. then, in the right building, i didn't know which floor and had to ask again.

up to the third floor i went! i had to get a ticket and wait in line, i was #313... and was faced with a middle aged man. i showed him my documents and he said i need to get korean translations and come back. my whole heart dropped. it had been such a long day up to that point and i had skipped class to go there. so i asked why he couldn't just look at a papago translation. he said no, i need paper translations. i told him i'm out of time--i was required to pay for the nhis by may 25th, 2 days from now, and don't have time to come back. he said it's fine if i come back later.

i walked away with tears in ny eyes. it had been such. a long. day.

but i didn't want to give up.

i took the subway to a print café so i could print papago translations. honestly, had this been a younger version of me, i would've headed home and cried. i guess i've got some meat on me now--i know how to take things when it all falls apart.

at the print café, i didn't know how to print because everything was in korean. luckily, someone else was in there, too, and i asked them for help. she was so nice and made sure i got everything printed correctly. even though no use came of the documents, i'm still so grateful. she was the first person to show me such kindness that day.

i say 'that day' as if this didn't all literally happen today. it feels like a week ago because of how long the day was.

i took the subway back and the nhis was empty, no wait time! i was met with another middle aged man who asked for my documents.

let me tell you these people spoke no english. in a foreign centre. no. english.

i used my my broken korean and there was still miscommunication. according to him, my insurance is supposed to cover 1 billion dollars. it only covers 5 million dollars, but this made no sense to me. 1 billion dollars is way too high an amount. i kept asking him if he meant 1 billion won, which would be 1 million dollars. he said no, it's dollars. i'm still sure he's wrong, because i remember it being 1 million dollars of coverage that was required.

it wasn't getting through to him, so he gave me a bill for ₩100,000 and told me to pay it at ny bank. i'm pissed and upset and frustrated at this point because it's taken a lot to get there and i have paid $1000 for travel insurance only to pay 100 more.

i accepted defeat and left. only to be met with the hell that is the korean subway durinf rush hour. when i say we were packed like sardines i mean so packed that i could feel everyone's limbs on every part of me. i was pushed and shoved and thrown around and close to tears because it's been such a long day and i just. want. to go. home.

nonetheless, i had to endure it. i got off at hyehwa and went straight to my favourite karaoke spot. it was a weekday so a lot of rooms were free. i sang my heart out to some day6 songs, yelling to clear my head.

i felt a lot better afterward ^^

i honestly had no appetite to eat.. i didn't want to eat but thought i should, since i had only eaten bread and gimbap so far. i found a place called 미정국수. it was downstairs and i accidentally went upstairs at first to a tarot place.

downstairs, these two ladies were running the place. i ordered at a kiosk and honestly don't even remember what i bought! it was a small space but not too busy. i sat at one of those tables that face the kitchen and stretch around.

the food was heavenly :") it was such a large portion for only ₩6,000 and there were a lot of veggies in there.

i headed home after that and went to gongcha for a jeju matcha milk tea. it honestly didn't hit the same, but at this point i was feeling a lot better. my family didn't answer my calls this day and i felt so isolated as T was busy with yet another friend of hers who is visiting from canada (shes a sweetie!). yet, i made the most of it.

that's what i love about seoul. it's so easy to cheer yourself up because there's so much to do! cheap eats, karaoke.. everything so nearby, too.

also, i'm learning that i can be alone. i can do it. it just takes a little more effort and holding out. i held out through all the tears and pain, many months i was feeling so alone and now i'm fine. it's been a month now of me feeling okay and comfy here--not alone and not dying for friends. i'm okay being alone here. i'n okay eating on my own and finding things to do on my own.

if i can do it... so can you ♡

p.s. the laundry machine is broken and i have to find a laundromat.. all my clothes are dirty because jeju T-T

previous log

may 7th was Yedam day!!! i probably had toast for breakfast and then went to 3 cafes. i was so shocked--at the café near the yg building (i also went there for Mashiho before), they gave me an album and 3 official photocards T-T i must also say, the apple mango tea i had there was good!

it was a super hot and sweaty day, so perfect for all the cool drinks i had.

Dami met me at the last café and we walked to hongdae together. we went to the sanrio café and i bought a cinnamoroll frame. there's also a printer where you can bring photocards, so i printed Seungmin and got kuromi on the back!

we then ate kbbq at place where weightlifting fairy was filmed. a friend of Dami's joined us. it was busy and crowded and the side dishes were so small in portion that we had to keep asking for more, which was hard and annoying because of how busy it was. otherwise, it was okay! definitely pricey. definitely prefer the all you can eat spot.

we went to some photobooths, including haru film, which is incredibly popular here because the lighting makes your skin look clear. it was a bit pricey, it is hongdae after all!

we went to zzang arcade, where Dami and her friend tried the claw machines. i was tired at this point so i laid low. Dami's friend was super nice and noticed how tired i was, so we left and went to gongcha for dessert before heading home.

the 273 is actually a blessing of a bus. it's the one that takes me to campus but it actually also takes me home from hongdae!! the subway home from hongdae is always mad crowded, so taking the bus was nice :>

on may 8th, i got my period and slept in till 12pm, stayed home and left the house at 4pm to go to daiso to pick up some converter so i can connect my wireless mouse (that i also bought from daiso for ₩5,000!) to my laptop.

i also went to artbox just before that and bought 20 toploaders for ₩6,500 so i can decorate photocards!

i went to a place near my home called greener (gr) for salad. it cost ₩10,000 and i didn't like it, but honestly i just don't like salad >_< it was very healthy and worth the money, i think! my body needed that.

it was a super cloudy and humid day and i was feeling quite lonely. i didn't want to leave but in the end, i was glad that i did. i think that on days when you really don't want to do anything, those are the days when you need to get out the most.

on may 9th, i had strawberry chips for breakfast (they're good! should bring some back for Alora~), caf food for lunch (i'm sick of it now, i get why my classmate said she hates it), and now E is here... finally out of his quarantine aha!

we had bbq for dinner after he met us outside an emart nearby. it was kind of pricey and just not bad, but E loved it.

oh, we dropped his suitcase off before we ate. it was a mission, since the goshiman (mean manager) was outside smoking. T is worried for E, since he technically isn't 'supposed' to be staying in the goshi with her. so, we had to hide behind a building, waiting for him to leave before we lug all the luggage upstairs. but, he didn't leave. so i took the luggage in my own hands and pretended it was mine. the goshiman wasn't even looking at us, so either way i don't think it would've mattered.

we had bingsu for dessert and then walked home. i felt so sad that my feet took me to the river nearby and then i turned around halfway to walk up the stairs into ihwa village to see the night view.

being a third wheel so intensely on that day made me spiral.. i cried and teared up quite a bit. seeing the gorgeous night sky made it even harder..

i miss(ed) the grandpa i never met a lot. then, i looked up and saw the moon. i wondered if the moon was him, or if he was on the moon somewhere and it made me cry more..

but one thought i had while looking down at the city was, i hope everyone is doing okay. everyone in this chunk of the city that i could see right there and then, i closed my eyes and sent them all my good energy. i wished them well, that good things would come their way. somehow, wishing them well cleared my heart, too :o

on may 10th, i had caf food alone for lunch, and went to the yg café to study. really, i didn't get much done. i saw 3 people enter yg, though,, one of them was Yoshi ?? the red hair was a give away.. i also saw a blondie leave/enter and i don't know if it was an ikon or winner member :")

i called Alora while in the yg café because i felt lonely and needed study motivation. they told me i've cried more in korea on exchange (5 months) than i have during my time in canada (10 years). i can't stop thinking about it because theyre right.

oh! i had a peanut butter donut and it was so good :") yg café donuts go a little too hard O.O

we went to hai di lau hot pot (?i don't know how to spell it T-T). we being T, E and i. it's near our home and is apparently very expensive and a rare find? so T has been wanting to go, even though she already went with her 'chingu' friend group (intimidating, het cis abgs).

i felt really ugly that day so i bought a bucket hat before i had to face T and E again. i really like the bucket hat!

anyways, i felt like the hotpot was overpriced for something,, meh ?

we then went to baskin robbins and bought this large tub of ice cream because it had a pokemon character T wanted. it was WAY TOO BIG and we didn't finish it, so we had to take it to go T-T the pikachu flavour was so good though! banana with choco chips and popping candy.

on may 11th, i went to myeongdong after class with E and it was lowkey a flop because the whole time we just walked a lot. i didn't really know what to show him and he didn't have anything in particular that he wanted to see..

we met with T to have the all you can eat bbq in hongdae! E loved it but honestly i think i'm getting a little tired of it because we eat it so much :")

E and i were so tired of walking that we pretty much went straight home from hongdae after eating. but! we did go to the karaoke place nearby >:) it was packed and we got sent to the tiny room where the mics don't work and the machine always chooses random songs.. but it was still fun! E is a good singer ^^

we returned home late, but still wanted to go for a walk. T was done for the day but E and i headed out... and the walk turned into a secret hunt for flowers! at 11pm!!

it was a flop T-T we aproached a store that was closing near home, and the owner told us they were out of flowers for the day. she redirected us elsewhere, but everything was closed. i think we walked for an hour and a half? the weather was nice, though!

the closer we got to home, the weirder our conversations got. we started to discuss if curry is a soup/sauce, if soups are sauces and vice versa. i also get roasted now for apparently eating mayo sandwiches, but that's for another time.

on may 12th, i had a fried shrimp and curry dish alone for brunch. i then headed out to get gongcha but met T and E who were also walking to campus. so, i also got something for T. coming back, they had told me to meet them at the gs25 near the uni store, so i headed that way. when i was already there, they told me they were actually at the caf T-T these two places are a bit far apart and it was boiling, so naturally i was just a bit upset.

as usual, i was alone for the day again. i thought i would just head home since i was feeling exhausted, but as if the stars aligned, the person whom i helped find the uni store so long ago contacted me and we were able to meet!

it had been quite a while and his hair was blonde now,, i forgot to ask him about it! we went to starbucks and i had a black tea lemonade.. for some reason i thought it would taste weird but it was good! tasted like adding lemon to tea.. duh >_<

we sat on campus and had our drinks while talking. he gifted me a really pretty jewellry box that he received in korean class!! he was like, when you go back to canada, you can look at this and remember that you friend gave this to you. i'll definitely be doing that, with how sentimental i am :")

from there, we went to a lotte department store to eat at an all you can eat buffet called ashley. it was super good! i just wish i could've been more hungry so i could eat more. i feel like my dad would love it. it was like mandarin but a lot better.

these robots would come to pick up our dirty dishes when he pressed the bell on our table, it was super cute !

after eating, he spontaneously asked if i want to go rollerblading. honestly, i was feeling tired but i thought why not! let's give it a go!! so we bussed there and it was in a place full of other sports activities, like golf, etc.

the rollerblading room was empty, save for one person. we were a bit confused so we asked them for help before going ahead and skating.

i had to sit down to rest a bit because it was hurting my feet so bad and i was doing a poor job since i was scared and hadn't skated for a while. just then, someone approached me. they asked me where i'm from and we had a long conversation. they work at the place!! they were so pretty T-T

they told me they went to study abroad in the U.S, which is where they picked up on english. they also asked about me and my experiences, and recommended i teach english in korea! they also asked me if i had any korean friends/significant other but i said no, it's so hard to meet korean people. i told her they must either be super busy or must hate me. she told me it's first reason--they're just busy!

then she said something that deeply touched my heart for some reason. she said 'i hope you won't have a scar on your heart because it's so hard to make friends with korean people.' it left a lasting impact on me..

the rollerblading place was just a big, dark room with disco lights and kpop mvs playing in the background ^^

we bussed home after that, and my friend came all the way to my house with me! we missed the first bus because we were distracted, but managed to catch another one. this spot was like high up in the mountains or something..

we saw the worker who spoke to me--she said she had finished work and was going to a friend's place an hour and a half away to comfort her after a breakup. this person seemed so sweet..

we bussed home and my friend walked me all the way to the doorstep, where we hugged goodbye and i stepped in. then, i remembered i needed to withdraw money for T, so i left the house again while on call with my mom. then, i met E and T after their han river date at hyehwa station, so i could directly give T the money. the atm was closed, so we got ice cream from luscious scoops again at always. there was a bug in T's ice cream and E asked for a new one!

we then walked home and that was it for us ^^

on may 13th, i had bibimbap at the snack place near us for brunch. i really like the bibimap there! the lady working looked at me weird when i said what i wanted as soon as i stepped in. i guess she didn't expect that much from a foreigner?

i studied at jeongju café after eating. i was sleepy and didn't get to study for long before i had to hear back home to meet T and E for a party.

sidenote, the café washroom was so whack. public bathrooms here are hit or miss. it's either incredibly clean or super dirty, not even any toilet paper or soap (the gongcha in anam is like this T-T)

i went to olive young since i had time to kill and bought a clean x stray kids perfume. i bought Bangchan's scent--rain--and i was given a magazine that stray kids were on the cover of!

i also bought some hair gel just experimentally. i've tried it and honestly it's pretty good!

i bought some apple bread at a convenience store because i was craving (these days i crave bread a lot!) and finally headed home.

before the party (it was someone's birthday in itaewon), we ate at nbb. i could die for the sugar butter fries!

the subway to itaewon was a bit busy, snd itaewon was slightly bustling when we got there, too. we got ever so slightly lost but eventually found our way!

it was happening on the birthday girl's rooftop, which had a pretty good view of the nightlife below.

i mostly talked to E, Lyly and Van during the party. T was socializing a lot, bless her.

we saw some familiar faces but they didn't say hi to us so we also didn't. mind you, there were like 15 people present. super small and weird to not say hi.

we left early, since T had an online meeting at 10. on the way back to the subway, i saw dan bam or ggul bam (sweet night), the pub from itaewon class!! they were showing the drama on a TV and had the webtoon on display and everything!

i have a feeling we won't go back..

finally at home, i could hear winner.. skku (the university close to where i live) was having their festival (all unis have this), and winner was a guest. of course i couldn't go because of the bday party.. so hearing winner broke my heart. i was like , why can't i be there! since the festival was free.

anyways. then we slept zz.

previous log

on may 1st, i wanted to go to the verivery exhibit that jellyfish set up after their comeback! Melissa also wanted to meet with T and i, so we decided to meet in Gangnam altogether.

for brunch, T and i ate... something near us, i don't remember T.T and then we headed to Gangnam!

the Gangnam station has an underground mall of sorts and we looked around. i got a ,,, *something* for one of my friends,, can't say because i'll spoil it :") and a we bare bears chain for my phone!

once Melissa arrived, we actually parted ways since the others didn't want to aee the exhibit. i went alone, it was just outside exit 9, and was surprised to find it was only one room! it was so cool though, and it was nice to see so many verrers >_<

every person who came in received a ticket and a photocard! i pulled Yeonho the first time around !!

i went back to the underground mall, since Melissa and T were there shopping for eye contacts :O we looked around underground a bit more before heading off to knotted bakery!

(tbh, we were kind of unsure what to do thos day. gangnam is very much a party spot and if you're not there to party, it may be a bit hard to plan your day)

the knotted bakery was above a kakao friends store, so we decided we would take a look around after eating at the bakery. it was super busy and we had to wait for seats, but otherwise it was cute and fine! the donut flavours were unique.. i got a mint choco one but it was honestly way too overpowering.

back at kakao friends, i saw they had a nijntje section and fell in love with a nijntje bag they had,, (oh sorry nijntje is miffy's original, dutch name >_<). i bought it! for ₩45,000... i love her :") i've already gotten her dirty though oops.

we then went to a taco place for dinner. i got avocado bacon pasta, and it was good! i just think white cream sauce is not for me >_< the vibes were so good! it was busy and bustling and loud,, i like it that way :")

we then shared a plate of pancakes for ₩5,000 each after splitting it at a place nearby. ngl, very pricey for such a small serving.. but it was good! we got a berry one :> the whipped cream was berry flavoured and there were some frozen fruits!

after that, we headed home :>

may 2nd was monday. classes were still online so T and i quickly rushed out for budae jjigae for brunch at a place nearby. it made us so sleepy!

after our classes, we went to daiso and then to the airport to pick up E, a friend of T's who came here to visit. long story short, there were some complications and E has to quarantine. we were super hungry, so we ate burger king. i got a shrimp burger and it was not bad! same with sweet shaker fries.

an episode i just remembered: when waiting for the subway, i think to go to the airport (waiting for our transfer) we witnessed an old couple get separated! the old man got on and left his wife behind, since the doors shut right after. she pounded on the doors but the train left. honestly, she stayed super calm and i was surprised :O she called him and they arranged to meet at the next stop. i'm still hoping they found each other okay!

we trekked home on the subway for an hour and ate ice cream at luscious scoops. i had a hoji tea flavoured one. it was obviously strong but good!

on may 3rd, i had to meet in anam for a group project so i went there and had a really hard dunkin donuts granola bar on my walk to the bus stop. almost snapped by braces off!

i met them at the bean tree cafe. it was cosy! i had a strawberry latte and then went out for some food with one of my group mates. it was similar to budae jjigae but the noodles were like pasta, there was chicken and no sausages. there were dumplings! i forgot the name of the dish T.T

i met with T and Aly who were also in the area afterwards, and we went to daiso and did a photobooth. we then went to gongcha with and i had a choco banana smoothie, it was good!

on may 4th, wednesday, class was in person again. after attending the classes, T and i went to gangnam so she could return something.

before we went to gangnam though, we ate at a nearby restaurant and i had galguksu. so good!!!!

in gangnam, we went to the knotted bakery again and i had a walnut donut! so good !! we then went to fantagio, since it's in gangnam. seeing the building was a bit surreal.. to think astro walk in and out of there everyday!

we had banh mi at a place nearby. it was kinda pricey :// we then cane home and had ice cream from luscious scoops again, i think. T really likes it there for some reason, it's cute.

on may 5th, it was children's day! so T and i had a han river 'picnic'.

we had food from a nearby snack place for brunch. T had sundae and naengmyeon and i had bibimbap! it was really good :")

we went to the han river, rode bikes... we paid for an hour but biked nonstop away from the rental place for an hour only to realize we were many km away at the time we had to bring the bikes back,, so we sped back but didn't have to pay extra! the man was really kind :")

the scenery was so beautiful, even though it was a bit scary to bike because it was so busy, that we completely lost track of time! it was so nice to see so many people out and enjoying the sights :")

i ate a corn and T and i shared takoyaki. i also got a chocolate-covered banana... and dropped a bit of it :") don't worry, i picked it up! no littering in korea!!!

it was so hot so we left and randomly headed for hongdae. there, we went to a café called art.. something? T has been wanting to go there. the vibes were nice, but the menu didn't really have anything special for us.

then........ we decided to get our ears pierced. it was a bit of a spur of the moment thing, but i did tell Tracy i kind of wanted ny ears pierced a certain way. we went to heart attack, a place with super good service! T's friends who got their ears pierced recommended it.

i got 3 piercings and it was so swift.. didn't hurt too much!

we headed home after that, and pretty sure we got some celebratory ice cream, too.

on may 6th, yesterday, T went to Busan with her other friends. i went to yongsan-gu and waited for Dami at cafe bell:us, since she said she would join me.

i usually order in korean, but the barista was responding to me in english. he was probably trying to make things easier for me or trying to practice his english, but i was a little offended. imagine if i had been a fluent korean speaker--would he still have spoken to me in english just because i looked foreign?

i got an iced earl grey tea and a walnut cookie. both were really good! i spent almost ₩10,000 on them in total, but that's kinda the norm here.

when Dami came, we went to post poetics and awesome needs room. i've seen Jiwoo from kard going there so i wanted to check it out!

post poetics had a lot of unique, western books, mostly filled with art and photography. awesome needs room sold mostly hats and bags, but it was too pricey for us.

yongsan-gu is an expensive area, and there's a lot of young, rich people there. ut's actually where the blue mastercard hall is! where ptg had their fanmeet!!

we then stumbled upon music library. we didn't know what it was and were confused, but the english-speaking staff helped us out. it's a library where you check out vinyls and can listen to them on-site! they have vinyl players and headphones for you to use. Dami and i listened to Nirvana, Troye Sivan, Arctic Monkeys and Joy. it was super fun!!

we then went to a place Hongseok recommended for oxbone soup. it. was. so. good!!!!!! it was packed in there and very authentically korean. it may be hard to navigate if you have very little korean knowledge. i'm lucky Dami was there! there were so many side dishes and you could add as much salt, gochu, spring onions as you preferred.

we then headed to daiso and artbox and for some reason i bought way too many stickers, a photocard book, other things T.T i even bought these kakao friends earbuds since i lost one of my airpods,, the sound quality is not the best but it looks cute :")

we went to a gongcha, i had a mango juice and pearl, and then headed home!! from my place, getting to yongsan-gu was just 2 busses away :>

today, may 7th, is Yedam day! i'm feeling a little anxious as it's 1pm and i haven't left the house yet. Dami may be joining me but she hasn't woken up yet i don't think, so i'll probably just get going myself :")

i have 4 spots i wanna hit and unluckily they're all far away from each other :< but i have a route planned!

sidenote, one of the reasons i wanted to come on exchange was because i'm so overattached to my friends. i thought coming here would be a good break and breather for both of us, but even here i still worry about them a lot :") i'm definitely the only one who feels like this.. it makes me sad that things are so one-sided, especially because they don't know how loved they are and i am incapable of receiving even half of what i give in return. i just hope they take care, and i feel a little stupid not being able to function without them. even here, i always wait for their texts. even with T, she's just been gone a day and i feel so anxious. it's a journey though, i guess! i think i'm realizing i need to maybe put some physical space between myself and my loved ones more, and learn how to function entrely on my own.

previous log

if Eric Nam's there and back again is the soundtrack to my qurantine, day6's discography is the soundtrack to april? maybe even march too??

april 24th was a sunday study day! we had a late start since T had a meeting, so we had brunch at a nearby okace called 돼지 (pig) something?? their speciality was poro bulgogi, so we got that and it was good!! a whole set with rice and an omlette,, it was spicy tho and T couldn't enjoy it :(

we studied at ogod.a (as always T.T) and worked hard until T started getting hungry, so we found a Chinese restaurant (it looked really fancy for no reason O.O). we got jjajang bab there (black bean rice) and a seafood dish. it was pricey but good !

we then had bingsu :> it was the strawberry yogurt one this time? not bad, but too fruity/sour for my taste. matcha is still #1 for me :D

april 25th i had my first exam. it was for my contemporary literature class and was online, but i still struggled a bit T.T i think i ran short on time even though we were given the essay prompts in advance and had a lot of time to prepare.

i went to salt24 (a bakery) after my exam and also got strawberry juice from milano coffee (a small spot near home). the nutella croissant i got from salt24 was heavenly,, i want it again T.T

we (T and i) then we went to pc bang to study + buy astro tickets. we met T's friend, Lisa, who was in a mall somewhere. the mall had a pc bang in it, so we went there! it was a struggle for us to find each other, but we managed :> the pc bang was huge :") we were lucky Lisa is good with korean, because making an account and paying for the 4.5 hours we wanted to stay there would've been hard otherwise.

we found spots and did our best to study. i had a splitting headache for some reason but still persevered :") at 8pm we bought the astro tickets ! for some reason even though we were at a pc bang, the website was so slow T.T T managed to get tickets though, and for both days, too! i'll only be going to the first day, since Jinjin has his solo that day.

verivery had their comeback showcase, so i spent the rest of our time in the pc bang watching the showcase and studying. i also ordered shin ramen+cheese and milkis,, the milkis was good :") yogurty 맛!

we went home after that :>

april 26th Chanhee day!!! it was my death day for exams though. i had the 2 exams i was most scared for that day, and missed my bus and was late to my 9am exam. that was a great start T.T

i was super nervous as the bus kept hitting red lights... but it worked out T.T i arrived at 9:05 but actually the exam also started late, at that time. plus, although the exam was difficult, i finished early anyway!

i went to gongcha after and got a grapefruit yogurt tea? it was not bad :P but i don't like white pearl T.T

i attended my korean class while in gongcha, and then ate gimbap at a nearby convenience store. i was too nervous to eat a proper meal before my english enlightenment literature exam.

that exam was a flop. i was short on time and lowkey didn't know what i was doing but it's fine :> to cheer myself up, i went to the Chanhee cafés after!! they were so pretty!!!!

i also met some lovely people at the first cafe (new lovers club). so we went to the rest of the cafés together!!

i returned home alone and ate nbb for dinner before returning to the goshiwon, where T and i studied for korean before sleeping :>

april 27th i went to campus for my 10:30am class and also for the korean exam, but the exam turned online because the prof has covid :( so i went to sk future hall, where T was, and took the exam there. it was okay!

i ate in sk after the exam and it was weird,, no one really eats there and i had a full meal with side dishes and everything. i felt like people were watching and i just wanted to leave.. i went home after that and T and i ate at rolling pasta after her day was done. it was SO GOOD and we also had gongcha after :> i had a strawberry,, chocolate cookie? smoothie? ngl it was too sweet for me T.T

april 28th, we did part 2 of the korean exam at home and then went to campus to access the bank. after that, i took a clasa in gongcha while drinking mango juice+pearl (so good T.T). we then walked around anam and decided to eat banh mi, but it ended up being more just like a sandwich but we were hungry >.<

we went to dongdaemun mega box to watch dumbledore and the theatre was empty but gorgeous :> seriously, korean theatres are the dream !! the foodz are yummy, the seats are comfy, it's so clean.. wow! i ate fishcake and a potato hot dog (corn dog) from street food vendors and it was so good!!!!! we went home after the movie ^^ oh, i believe it was on this day when i bought Bang Chan's bubble,, random sidenote haha

april 29th was stray kids!!! aasfhjjkll i went on a run in the morning :> then T and i ate brunch at a Chinese restaurant, had ice cream at baskin robbins before parting ways (T went to get yet another tattoo and i went to jamsil stadium to see my beloveds).

oh, before eating brunch, i scoped out daisos for binoculars for the concert (it's kinda normal to bring binoculars to concerts here) but couldn't find them T.T lucky for me, the view was still so good :")

alone and nervous, i approached a group of international stays and befriended them!! they were from singapore and had come here just for the concert,, insane. we went to the venue to get our tickets, which were like a credit card,, such good quality,, and then went to a nearby burger king to quickly eat before the show!

it was packed outside the venue and there were a lot of international stays! everyone was so giddy, it was cute!

once i entered the venue and found my seat, someone asked to switch with me so their friend could sit next to them. i ended uo moving 3 rows closer (despite getting a little lost and sitting in the wrong seat several times).

the stay so i sat next to made conversation with me and we became friends! they were a korean but did their best with their english,, which was actually really good :") their bias was Minho!!!

the concert was,, don't even get me started. it lasted 3 hours and they. popped. off!!! they would perform like 7 songs in a row without taking a break... memorable moments:

red lights being the 3rd song performed, right after venom and they had ropes attached to their necks T.T

Seungmin running around the stage constantly, doing one last lap before they left the stage for the night, too

Hyunjin's red hair bleeding all over his neck and shirt collar

'아기 슈그림 빵' (baby custard bread) because Jeongin now had blonde hair but is he baby?? for flashing his abs T.T

Felix doing his best and having to sit out on some performances because of his injury but still vibing

stays cheering loudly for Bang Chan before he said his closing ment and him pointing ay himself several times and not believing the cheers were all for him

JYP being in the audience.....

the fun games that they made us play as we waited for the encore (there was an audience cam where a member of the audience would randomly get chosen and shown on screen and they would have to recreate a skz photo/dance the choreo)

Bang Chan's family being in the audience

so many voice cracks/stuttering and Jisung always saying 'let's try that again. 1, 2, 3, action!' when the members messed up their ments because they were tired/excited

Seungmin saying seeing the lightsticks after so long was beautiful

Jisung saying performing in front of us made him remember why he decided to be a singer

Hyunjin's dancing being ethereal even from afar

Bang Chan picking up Minho and bringing him to Seungmin so he could slap his butt

skz having a live band behind them for half of their songs and endlessly thanking them/shouting them out

now mama let me tell you. the way home was awful.

it was 11pm when the show ended and subways had stopped running. like 3000 stays needed to get home and there were only 2 busses running..

i missed the first one because itnwas full, so i walked to an earlier stop to be able to make it. i got on, but we were packed in their like sardines. i am not joking nor exaggerating, but it was to a point where bus doors would not open.

the girl in front of me kept dropping things and had to bend over in an already crowded space to retrieve her things.. it was kind of annoying but oh well!

i got home at 3am.

but it was all worth it :>

on april 30th, i ate brunch with T and went to somewhere near iksan dong to meet Lyly, a friend of a friend of a friend of T's, at a café. they're known for their donuts but i omly had room for am expensive tea T.T

we caught up and it was so cold,, i was wearing a T shirt in 10 degree weather.

we then went to the lantern festival for the birth of the Buddha and was lowkey a flop in my opinion,, i was cold as i mentioned and needed to pee,, we had to sit there for an hour before we even saw anything. plus before any of this, somehow we were given super heavy lanterns.. we just put them down somewhere because it was too much for us.

the lanterns were okay,, i went down into jonggak station exit 3 to pee and met Dami for some food. we had skewers nearby and then walked around, getting some bread from a convenience store before returning to where the lantern parade was and seeing confetti being pumped into the sky while these dancers performed on stage! it was like falling cherry blossoms :>

then we parted ways. bussing home was difficult again because it was late, but i managed!