My 102th trip to Seoul & cycling along The Han River

Seoul - After our sumptuous dinner, we took a taxi to the banks of Han River just to enjoy the cool night and evening activities.   Kiwon paid for the bicycles for us to have a nice night ride along the Han River and it was a good evening fun.

Kiwon and his bike

YoungJin on his bike

As it was a sudden decision to have a night ride, we were not prepared and much so YoungJin in his suit.   Fortunately for him, the weather was a cool 15 degrees.   He did not shed a 'sweat' on his ride along the river bank.

me on my bike

Kiwon and me

Bulgogi with Kevin Chae

Seoul - After our meeting, we adjourned to find some good Korean food.  Korean Bulgogi is the best...

Bulgogi

This is Bulgogi Korean style and the blur image is the waitress helping to cut the beef with a pair of scissors.

Kimchi Beef Rib Soup

This is my first time trying this Korean dish and I love it.  The beef ribs is so tender and the soup is not so spicy even though it looks so red and fiery.

The Beef ribs being diced 

The waitress cut the huge chuck of beef ribs into bite pieces.

Dinner with my Korean customers

Kevin and his T-Rex bone

My 9 Strange Korean Food

Seoul - I have tried 9 Strange Korean food that if you happen to be in Korea you must try it.

# 1 - Intestine Blood Sausage with Vermicelli -Soondae
# 2 - Fried Silkworm Larve - Beondaeggi - on my 63rd trip to Seoul I tried this Korean delicacy
# 3 - Eating live Octopus 
# 4 - Fermented Tuna 
# 5 - Sulphuric Duck - Yuhwang Ori 
# 6 - Puffer Fish for dinner
# 7 - Fermented Sting Ray - Heong Eo 
# 8 - Raw Beef with Eggs 
# 9 - Ground Mud Fish Soup - Chuotang

# 9 - Strange Korean food - Ground Mud Fish Soup - MUST TRY!

Seoul - This is my number 9 strange food that I have had in Korea.   Kevin Chae brought us to a Mud Fish restaurant to taste the ground mud fish soup (Chuotang)

Name of the famous mud dish restaurant

Mud Fish

Mud Fish and Loach are synonyms.  In fact it is a Chinese Muddy Loach which is a small elongated bottom-dwelling freshwater fish with several barbels near the mouth.

Deep fried mud fish

The mud fish is wrapped inside green chilli (seedless) with tempura flour and deep fried.   I tasted more of the green chilli and it was good.

Grounded mud fish soup

You add bowl of rice into the grounded mud fish soup, add garlic and spring onions to taste.  Stirred and slurp up the dark tasty soup.   To some it might be an acquired taste but I finish my bowl.

Steam pork and kimchi bean sprouts

Kimchi

This steam pork and kimchi bean sprouts, Kimchi are an appetiser dish.

Kevin, Kyoungho and Youngjin

It was good to meet up with Kevin after 6 years and hasn't age at all...must be the eating of mud fish and kimchi. 

Grilled Eel restaurant

Seoul - After our meeting, we were figuring out what to eat for lunch and I suggested Chang-Or (grilled eel) and told them that I know this restaurant.   They were all surprised.  So, I led the way to this grilled eel restaurant quite near to my hotel.

3 fresh Eels

2 Eels on the grill stove

Some Korean Eel restaurants grilled them over charcoal but this was over a gas stove and still tasted really good.

Almost ready to be eaten

Ready to eat!

I love grilled Eel and it tasted really good with the sauce and ginger, wrapped with lettuce and into my mouth.   Bashita....delicious..

Side dishes

The 2 steaming hot side dishes of steam egg and Eel soup.   The Eel is mashed up into a paste for this soup and it tasted good.  The Eel cost KW15,000 each and this restaurant serves an Eel buffet for KW29,500 for all you can eat per person.  

Summer in Seoul - nice sashimi dinner

Seoul - The first bus stop from the airport was Seoul Garden Best Western Hotel.   Dinner with Youngjin and KyoungHo was near the hotel to a sashimi restaurant.  

Apetitiser of fish and soya beans

First course of our set meal

This was the first course of our set meal which comprise of scallops, sea urchins, abalones and squids.

main course

This was really good and fresh of 3 fishes - flounder (flat fish), rock fish and sea bream.

Prawns baked in sea salt

spicy soup

Our last dish was the spicy soup with steam rice.  The spicy soup was too spicy for me but YJ and KH was slurping up this spicy fish soup.

# 8 Strange Korean Food - Raw Beef with Eggs - Must Try!

Seoul - We met Kiwon @ Kwang Jang Market and this is one of the most popular market in Seoul.    I like market because it's the heart of the city and generally the best food are here.   Kiwon told me that we will do a food trail of 4 famous food stalls here - cool!

A 100 years old market

Food stalls everywhere

stuff squid and sausages 

more food stalls

Our # 1 food stall trail...

Korean pancake

 This is the most famous Korean pancake @ Kwang Jang Market....

2 different types of pancakes

# 2 on our Food Trail....

Famous raw beef seasoned with 2 egg

The beef was so tender and delicious - so far my favourite dish but high in cholesterol..

Raw beef Bibimbap

# 3 food trail....

Korean sushi

Kiwon, Youngjin with me on the food trail

# 4 and last of our food trail....

raw seafood with urchins

I was very full and satisfied with this market food trail and really love it.

After which, we went for a electronic baseball game....

Baseball screen

Kiwon taking a swing

Final score after 9 innings : Kiwon 12, Youngjin 6 and me 4

Cherry Blossom time along Yoido

Seoul - It was really good to meet up with an old friend - Chae who now lives in Seoul.   He took me along Yoido across the bridge to view the beautiful Cherry Blossom.   There were many people both locals and tourist along the long stretch of Cherry blossom boulevard.   It was a beautiful sight.   The city created an atmosphere by blocking a small artery road with street performances and hawkers selling Korean snacks.  

As weather was a cool 15 degrees celcius but sunny and I did not bring my jacket along.  

crowds of local and tourist gazing at the flowers

Chae and me

Bibimbap

My lunch was cold beef Bibimbap and it was delicious and good....and stroll back to the hotel was all the exercise I needed to close the 10,000 steps a day.

'The Painters' Drama performance

Seoul - I booked a Korean popular performance 'The Painters: HERO" and went with my channel partners and Youngjin.   The Painters Hero is an innovative non-verbal performance that stages the entire process of painting combined with incredible visual effects and a witty blend of mime, dance and comedy.  The performance was located at a historic location in downtown Seoul Cinema.

The performance starts at 5pm and I was surprised that the theatre was packed with mostly tourist from China.     The 4 performers was talented and can dance, paint and entertained at the same time.  It was an enjoyable and laughable show.

All the paintings were drew by the performers with rare talent.

Korean Traditional Food - wow so much food !

Seoul - Lunch with channel partners was the first at this restaurant.   I have tried Korean Traditional food but they way it was delivered was very cool and efficient.

The waiter brings in a huge tray on the trolley like the above mentioned with all the food.  The trolley will be at the same height as the table, then she will roll off the huge wooden tray onto the table and push to the end of the table.

I thought that was a lot of food for lunch until the next trolley of food arrive and that too was rolled off the trolley onto the table.

2 huge trays of food

That's a lot of food meant for a King.  Though there were lots of side dishes, each dish was small in portion but you can ask for re-fill for any of the side dishes.    The only meat portions were the sautéed pork, stir-fried octopus, slices of fish head and fermented baby crab.    Fermented baby crab was the only dish I stayed away fearing a 'bad' tummy ache but in fact I have tried it before.

Cheong Guk Jang - fermented bean soup

Seoul - Lunch with Youngjin was at a traditional soup restaurant and it was crowded.   Youngjin asked me many times Cheonggukjang "ok", I said ok not knowing what to expect.  I have tried many weird and smelly good in Seoul, so I was very prepared.   My first time tasting Cheonggukjang and I like it.

CheongGukJang 청국장 is fermented soybean soup aka Stinky soup.  Actually, I like fermented food and the smell does not put me off.   I like fermented food because of the many health benefits and also we have them here in Singapore - tempe, belachan, fermented bean curd (which I love with my porridge), chincaluk, etc..

very hot Cheonggukjang 

I always buy danjang paste and bring home to make soup.  I understand that they are the same but the difference is Cheonggukjang beans are uncrushed and are fermented for a longer period of time.