Seoul and Hell Pizza - A Day Out

Today I met a friend in Seoul for the afternoon, we met for lunch in Apgujeong because I really wanted to go to Hell Pizza.  Hell Pizza is a New Zealand pizza chain that has recently opened three stores here in Korea.  I've been wanting to go for awhile but wanted to go with another Kiwi to fully appreciate it.  My friend is recently back in Korea after a trip round South-East Asia so this was a good chance to catch up.

We were wondering if it would taste that same, although my friend has not lived in New Zealand for about six years so did not really remember it anyway. For me it was a bit different as I've only been here just over a year. One of the apartments where I lived in Wellington was really close to a Hell Pizza store so I ate it more that I usually would have. I'm not actually much of a pizza fan, I only really like Hawaiian flavor but I do like Hell's Pizza and its great that it is New Zealand owned and operated (in New Zealand).

There are three stores in Seoul, South Korea now. Two were opened first and then they have since added a third.  You can visit the Hell Korea website here for directions and details if you are interested (its in Korean but you can use the maps at the very least).  The locations are Apgujeong, Cheongdam, Jamwon (Bampo area). We went to the Apgujeong one and it was pretty easy to find although we were following some directions from online which seem to be a bit out of date so I will update here.

Directions to Apgujeong Hell Pizza:
Take the orange subway line number 3 to Apgujeong Station, take the exit number 2, when you come up out of the exit turn around and walk a couple of meters and then go around the first corner that veers off to the right.  Once you round the corner continue to walk straight for a while, you will pass a Dunkin' Donuts then a KB bank and then you should see the familiar black.  You can't miss it, there are lots of delivery scooters out the front.




Hell Pizza - Apgujeong in Seoul, South Korea

Our Experience in Hell:
The place is pretty small as I think their main business, as with most Pizza, is deliveries - while we were there we watched the bikes go out numerous times.  There are a couple of tables inside and a bench along the window that you can sit at so if you do go there you can eat in like we did.
The menu contains most of the favourites, its not as big as the New Zealand menu as Koreans apparently don't like a lot of choice.  I was happy however as my favourite was there - the 'Greed' pizza which is basically a Hawaiian (ham, cheese and pineapple).  My friend got the 'Wrath' one and we got some wedges to share.  All in all it was a pretty good meal, the pizza tasted just like it does back in New Zealand and the wedges were good too.

It was a nice (albeit expensive for Korea) lunch and I was a very happy Kiwi. I had been really feeling like something from New Zealand so it hit the spot.  Will definitely go back there some time.



Decor

After a long lunch we wandered around Apgujeong but there is not that much there unless you want to have Plastic Surgery (its the place to go for cosmetic enhancement). We decided to go over to Itaewon and go to the bookstore and foreign markets etc.  We taxied over to Itaewon because by now we had been walking for a while and it was hot. It only cost about 6,700won so that was pretty good, thankfully the car was air conditioned so we could cool down.

Itaewon:
In Itaewon we visited the English book store 'What the Book?' - you can find the link in my useful links list on the side. I couldn't really find any books that really jumped out at me and I have lots to read at home anyway so I was very good and resisted the urge. I did buy a magazine - crazy expensive (11,710won) but a bit of a treat as I don't go to Itaewon very often.

After that we wandered again and then decided we were thirsty and needed a nice air conditioned cafe for something to drink and a sit down.  I decided on iced chocolate for me and then looking around saw a sign for a chocolatier cafe. I figured they would have iced chocolate and boy was I right.  Turned out they had several different kinds, I was not sure which one to pick - they also had lots of handmade chocolate and desserts available.  It was an upstairs cafe and nice and big and airy and I think it might be a chain.

It's called Cafe Jubilee and it's on the corner above QuiznosSub (at an intersection on the main drag). I had an iced chocolate the 'pure' one simply because it was the first one on the list and I was overwhelmed with having more than one choice. It was OK, kinda thick and not the best I've had but not bad or anything.  I think I will try a different one next time I go there and I am sure I will go again.  I noticed on the way out they had some little ice cream desserts that looked nice.


We split a choice of six chocolates, the selection at the front counter are all numbered and you pick how many you want and then which numbers to make up your selection.  We had the Dark Truffle and the Heart and then I had a hazelnut one and my friend had a caramel one.  They were all really good - the heart one was a pretty red colour and was not what we were expecting taste wise, you would think it would be something red but it was passion fruit (which actually makes sense).  It was our favourite anyway, nice presentation and nice taste.

We finished off the day by checking out a couple of the foreign markets, I didn't really need anything but I picked up a few things anyway - some Milo cos its always good to have some in your cupboard if you need some comfort, some Salt and Vinegar chips I think they are a brand from England (they were pretty good, I was eating them as I wrote this) and some Tim Tams - you can get these at Home Plus but when I bought them I found they were from Indonesia and they obviously make them different as they did not taste as good.  I checked the back of these and they are from Australia so they should be the good ones.



My Goodies

The last thing I bought was just on a whim as I was so enamoured with it.  You have to say one thing about Americans they think of it all.  Where as the rest of the world would think why put marshmallow in a jar the Americans say, "the hell with you" and go ahead and do it.  So I give you 'Fluff' its marshmallow in jar and apparently you can put it on bread (cos I've always wanted a marshmallow sandwich?), in drinks and on desserts; the possibilities are endless and I was intrigued. There is even a serving suggestion for a 'fluffernutter' which you mix it with peanut butter on a sandwich - ummmmm I think I will pass on that one all the same. Thank you America for making all my (never even imagined) dreams come true.


Marshmallow Fluff (America in a Jar)

 

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Music Monday #5

This week I wanted to showcase some Korean punk for Music Monday (a little bit late due to my internet connection being really slow).  I have not had very much experience with it and have not been to any gigs as I don't know any other people who like this kind of music here in Korea.  It's hard enough finding friends to come with me to gigs back home as most of my friends have very different tastes in music. Anyway I have discovered some of the bands online through websites, forums and facebook - that's the great thing about the Internet.

Now you may be thinking - 'Korea', 'Punk' hmmmnnn how does that work, but the punk scene is pretty active in Seoul and has been for a number of years.  There a quite a few Korean punk bands all playing different variations from hardcore, skate punk, ska, skinhead and more.  Their influences are from around the world including England and America and there is something for everyone.  Some of the songs are in English, some in Korean and the rest a mixture of them both, it just depends on the band.

This is just one of the bands that I have found that seem to be doing relatively well here in Korea.  I will post some more in the weeks to come.

럭스 Rux - 그딴거 다 상관 없어 (No Matter What)



Here are some links to a couple of articles about the punk scene in Korea if you are interested (they are a few years old but have some good background information none the less).
http://www.thememagazine.com/stories/punks-in-korea/
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/n_feature/2011/11/01/5/4901000000AEN20111101008500315F.HTML
http://blog.korea.net/?p=5262

Seoul Metropolitan Subway

The Seoul Subway system is one of the best and busiest in the world. It consists of 16 lines and around 546 stations.

Just looking at the subway system map can make it seem daunting but in fact it is relatively easy to navigate. Lucky for us most of the signs are in both Korean and English and the pre-recorded Subway Station announcements that tell you the station, any transfers and which side to exit are all followed after the Korean by the English translation.

The subway connects almost all destinations of Central and Greater Seoul and due to heavy traffic on the roads it can often times make travel faster.

The cost is minimal, around 1000-2000 won and you can buy your ticket at the stations using the ticket machines (which have English). You can also purchase a rechargeable transport card such as T-Money  - these have the added bonus of being able to be used on the buses and some taxis and they also offer a small discount on ticket prices.

The metro stations are one of the best landmarks for navigation in Seoul. You will find that if meeting someone it is easiest to arrange a meeting at one of the stations as you can designate the number exit to ensure that you are both in the same place.

Seoul Metro Map

There are a few websites that you can use to plot your journey, they usually will tell you the fastest way or the way with the least amount of transfers. There are also some smart phone apps that you can use that do the same thing.

Websites

https://www.seoulmetro.co.kr/eng/

http://www.smrt.co.kr/program/cyberStation/main2.jsp?lang=e

Apps

Jihachul - Apple and Samsung

Seoul City Metro (Lite version for free, Pro version costs) - Apple

Korea, Seoul Metro Navi - Samsung

Suwon

Suwon is on the Dark Blue - Number 1 line.  There are four stations that service the Suwon area - they are Sungkyunkwan University Station, Hwaseo Station, Suwon Station and Seryu Station.

Suwon Station is the main subway station for Suwon, the station itself shares the building with AK plaza which is a large shopping mall.  There are many shops and restaurants both in and around the station and there are buses and taxis available right outside the station if you need them.



Music Monday #4

Today's Music Monday offering goes back to my favourite genre - punk which was where we began with Music Monday #1 and Bad Religion.

This band however is a new favourite, I'm really loving them right now and they are most played on my iPod.  Front man Dave Hause has an awesome voice and they have a great sound. The earlier stuff is a bit more punk and recently they have been branching out with a more diverse sound, they have always been more on the melodic side of the punk spectrum rather than hardcore (some might say pop-punk but I don't think it's quite there).  On their album 'Build and Burn' you can hear the rock and even a bit of country influence there.  They have also done some covers on an earlier EP - Springsteen and Strummer which they put their own sound into and sound great (I liked their version of Johnny 99 better than the original).  All-in-all they are a great well rounded sounding band and I hope they have a long future.  Also hope they come to Korea so I can see them live, I have to say I think they would play a mean live show.

So if you don't know who I am talking about - the name of the band is 'The Loved Ones'.  I had a hard time picking a song to showcase here (because I like quite a few of them) but I decided to go with one of their older ones as it was one of the first I heard.

The Loved Ones - 100k




If you like the band you can check out more of their music on their myspace page. 

Food and Drink Korea #1 - Convenience Store Drinks

Today I am going to introduce some commonly found drinks in Korea.  You can get these or variations of them at your local Convenience Store.  Convenience stores are ubiquitous across Korea  - from where I live I can get to at least six in under 5 minutes (not kidding) there is even one in my building so I don't even have to go out if its raining.

These are just four drinks that I have recently tried, I will follow up with some more and maybe some snack foods in the future. As I have said before I am very picky so I don't like coffee or tea and this limits my choices a bit in the drinks department here in Korea.

1. Hot6 (핫식스)
This one is a carbonated energy drink and is relatively new to the market.  Prior to a year or so ago there were no 'engery drinks' per se in Korea.  They had their own vitamin drinks which we will look at in number 4. but when I first got here just over a year ago you could not even get Red Bull in most places, there was only one Convenience Store that carried it in my area.  I believe this was due to the ingredients which were not allowed but I am not 100 per cent on that.  Anyway now most of my local stores stock Red Bull and there are some local variations making their way onto the market.  The one they are pushing the most is this one Hot6 so I thought I would support local trade and give it ago.  I have to say I did not like it, it was too bland and kind of tasted faintly of flowers.  It was relatively sweet but not as sweet as Red Bull.

2. Honey Water (꿀물)
I like honey and water so I thought I would give this a try.  Way too sweet and this is coming from someone who loves sweet things.  According to the bottle it has 20 % honey which was maybe a bit much.  It pretty much just tastes like what it says honey flavoured water.

3. Woongjin Aloe Juice (자연은 알로에)
This one is my pick of the bunch and my new favourite non-caffeinated beverage. There are a couple of other brands of Aloe Vera drink on the market  - one is Del Monte but the one pictured here is the best I have tasted. I did not like the Del Monte brand one at all.  The drink tastes a bit like a sweet green grape juice, its refreshing and has little chunks of aloe vera in it.  The chunks might put some people off and I was dubious at first but they are really soft and small and you don't really even notice them.

4. Bacchus-F (박카스)
This one is a non-carbonated Korean energy drink. It has been around for a long time and was originally sold as a herbal remedy for colds and hangovers.  Korea has a few of this kind of vitamin drink, there are ones that have vitamin C in them for example and taste like orange.  I had tried the vitamin C ones first and they are quite nice, a sweet flavoured orange taste and I could immediately taste the similarities when I tried this one however I did not like it as much and I found it a bit too bland like the Hot6 one.  It is kind of sweet but it does not have the citrus flavour that the other ones do so is not as nice.

Music Monday #3

This week it's back home for Music Monday.  A little bit different as it is not a video clip but the movie trailer for the new documentary about my favourite New Zealand band.  If you are a Kiwi then you will have already guessed the topic of today's post - Shihad.

Shihad are New Zealand's greatest rock band and this month they have released a documentary about their journey - the highs, the lows and above all the music.

I have not seen it yet but its on my list of things to do when I go back home for a visit in July.  So please have a look and a listen and see what you think.


Shihad - Beautiful Machine (Documentary)

Music Monday #2

Welcome to the second installment of Music Monday.  This time I thought that seen as though this is a blog about living in Korea I would show you just a taste of K-Pop.  If you don't know what K-pop is - well then what rock have you been hiding under :)

K-pop is apparently taking over the world, well especially if you talk to a Korean person,  it is in fact the most popular music in Asia at the moment and most of the K-pop groups have large followings in Japan for example.  The are also trying to move into the American market and some groups have released songs in English just for this.  Girls Generation arguably the most famous girl group recently made an appearance on 'The Late Show with David Letterman'.

It's pretty much just what it says - Korean Popular music.  However its a bit different than pop in the west, first off - well it's pretty much a religion over here, the majority of your average everyday Korean is going to love K-pop.  Secondly they do not do things half-arsed - its bigger, flashier and more put together than what you are used to. Third they like groups better than solo acts, also the bigger the group the better (I guess they figure if it is big you will be able to relate to at least one member) and finally these groups are made by big companies - they recruit the talent, put them in groups, train them for years and finally release them to the world as a brand new act, they work very hard and don't get much time off.

Also as a side note - my personal opinion - some of the boys in the boy groups are almost indistinguishable from the girls.  Often you see a picture of one of the 'famous stars' promoting a beauty product and not knowing who they are you have to ask yourself - hmmm is that a girl or a boy (case and point in this video today - guy with the long hair could totally pass for a girl especially with the makeup).

This video is a new one from what I would say is the most popular K-pop band (you may disagree).  They are called Big Bang and have been around for a while now.  This is one of the popular new singles of their new album.  Lots of my students at school are all quoting it and making references to it.  I did not know it was what they were quoting until I saw the video a couple of weeks ago after making a music lesson for one of my classes.  Anyway here it is and I think its a great one to show just what K-pop is all about.

Big Bang - Fantastic Baby