Life In Kuala Lumpur... and other places...

Planning to visit Korea? Part 1

2009-05-24T23:12:00.004+08:00

I've had many questions over time about visiting Korea. I think many know that I have been to Korea several times and love the place very much. Anyway, my suggestion to these people has always been to avoid the tours. Tours can be tiring and stressful and imho, a holiday should be taken at one's own pace to soak in the atmosphere. So maybe, you'd wanna try going to Korea on your own?

Well if you DO want to go on a free and easy trip to Korea, my 1st suggestion is for you to focus on Seoul. The huge city (which covers roughly about the size of Singapore island and houses 18 million inhabitants), offers so much to do and see...

In this first part, I'll tell you a few things you'll need to prepare for the trip.

1) Select a season.
- It's best avoid summer (unless you want to see a lot of Korean women in bikinis at the water parks and beaches).
- Spring is beautiful for the plum blossoms and pleasant weather.
- Autumn is gorgeous for the golden brown foliage.
- Winter is my favourite... snow and skiing!

2) Select an airline.
- I prefer using Korean Air. It's coach sharing with MAS and most of the time, ticket prices are cheaper!
- Make sure you select the 1am flight from KLIA. It's perfect for arriving in Incheon at around 8am so you won't have to waste a single day.

3) Search for travel tips.
- Join a website like Virtual Tourist. It has a wonderful community that shares information on where to visit and you can even organize meetups to make new friends when you arrive there.
- Visit the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) website. It has wonderful tips and the calendar of activities in Korea. You can also find out information on public transportation (subway and buses).

4) Find a place to stay.
- Do try to find a place to stay in a convenient area in the city e.g. Gangnam, Itaewon, Insadong or Myungdong - these are all prime locations in Seoul. You can use a service like Hotels Combined or specifically click HERE to search for hotels in Seoul. With this, you can easily find a conveniently located hotel and compare prices too.

That's it for Part 1. More to come!

A Bittersweet Seoul Part 3 - Gangnam

2009-03-26T22:55:00.003+08:00

Ah Gangnam. The name literally means 'south of the river'. It's easily the most expensive area in all of Korea and houses really luxurious locations such as Apgujeong and Rodeo Street plus the financial and commercial areas of Yeoksam-dong and Teheran Street. It was quite a pleasure to walk down Yeoksam-dong and Samseong-dong to see the hustle and bustle of the city and feel the cold air on my face. With winter coming to an end, the low sun certainly gave a lot of long shadows and it was quite a pleasure to not only take photos but just sit down on a sidewalk bench and watch life go by (when it wasn't TOO cold).

This building is on Teheran Street (aka Teheranno which was named as such since Seoul has a sister city in Teheran. There's also a Seoul street in Teheran fyi). This building actually houses the HQ for the famed software producer, NCSOFT.

A Shinsegae (Samsung Group's departmental store) construction site.

The very impression Hyundai Departmental Store.

More street sights including the new Coex Atrium.

At this point, I'll just continue adding the pics for this area...

View from my room...

These are known as 'winter flowers'...

Next part coming...

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

A Bittersweet Seoul Part 2 - The Food

2009-03-24T23:23:00.003+08:00

Oh glorious food!

This is the 5th time in Seoul for me and the first time I stayed in Seoul without having touched any Kalbi!

Anyway here are some snippets of what I ate throughout my stay this time.

First off, haemul tang (seafood soup). As you can see in the photo below, it's basically spicy soup (with chilli powder) and an abundant array of seafood - from fish to mussels to clams to octopus to squid to vegetable to mushrooms to...

And can you see that weird looking intestine like thing there? They're fish guts.

The soup itself got really 'sweet' after simmering for a while and goes well with plain short grain rice.

Next is Kraze Burger. It's a Korean burger chain with a fine array of delectable burgers served with pickles and fries.

My friend brought me out of the city into Gyeonggi-do (about an hour's drive out) and we came to this traditional looking restaurant. He says it is one of his favourite places since they serve home cooked style Korean cuisine. The place is really cold inside due to the lack of heating but I liked it nonetheless. The walls were decorated with ancient Korean words that could not be deciphered by either of us.

The dishes did have a 'homecooked' vibe to them. Seen here are some river fish grilled and then lathered with sweet chilli paste. Even the dwenjangjigge tasted different (not better or worse... just more rustic).

I did of course have 2 things I normally have when I visit Seoul. First was juk (korean porridge). The tables of the restaurant are so finely decorated underneath the glass table top.

The other dish is buddaejigge (aka army stew or potluck stew) which is a kimchi and chilli based stew with lots of spam and sausages and ramyeon. I had this twice during my trip. One place even supplied bibs as the stew would bubble and splatter all over us.

There was also a quick stop at Krispy Kreme. It was a bit sweet though. We ordered a dozen of the originals with some Arizona lemonade. On another note, I must say that Rotiboy is doing well in Seoul!

I must mention that if ever you are in South Korea during strawberry season, FOR GOODNESS SAKE, BUY SOME!!! They will easily be among the largest and sweetest dalgi (strawberries) you will ever have and it is not a boast.

The best bulgogi I've ever had. We had the same thing the following day because it was so good. The side dishes here are spicy as hell but so delicious.

An aesthetically pleasing pumpkin tea after a wonderful lunch at Nolboo (which was surprisingly good for a chain restaurant though I was too busy stuffing my face to take any photos of the food).

A really special dinner of samgyupsal with rice cake slices to accompany the pork and grilled kimchi. The place was stuffy as everyone was grilling and the smell soaked into my sweaters but I didn't care. This meal was superb especially with the naengmyon (cold noodles) perfectly complementing the spicy pork. The grill was placed slanted to ensure that the fat would just roll down into the kimchi as the pork gave out its juices.

It was one the last cold mornings I spent in Seoul when I decided to venture into the Korean pizza chain, Mr Pizza. The chain had the cute Moon Geum Young (aka Korea's national little sister) as a spokesperson. The pizza I chose had cajun chicken and prawn on it. The crust I chose was made from 'frozen' dough which resulted in a crispy crunchy texture.

Ok near the end of this post...

The last thing I got before I left Incheon Airport... a really nice box of beautiful korean rice cakes (which I felt were too pretty to be eaten).

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

A Bittersweet Seoul Part 1 - The Arrival

2009-03-21T17:23:00.004+08:00

For some unwritten reasons, I decided to make a trip to my so-called 2nd home, Seoul, a couple of weeks back. It was perhaps the last bits of winter with the Northern winds from Russia blowing so the temperature was quite cold (on some days it dropped to -7 degrees Celcius). I love the cold but I certainly had rashes and flaky skin from the exceedingly dry air.

I landed in Incheon airport on the morning of the 7th of March. The road leading from the airport to Seoul was a welcome sight. It always signified a promising week of fun and relaxation in a place I am now so familiar with (and yet so alien - alien enough to still make me feel that I want to know more about life in Seoul).

This time around, I decided to leave my DSLR in the hotel and basically spent the entire holiday only lugging around the Panasonic Lumix LX-3. I had found the leather case I was looking for in Technomart on the first day I arrived and the case is so beautiful that it made me simply want to use the camera outdoors all the time. Also, after such a long time, I could feel the freedom afforded to me with the more compact form of the LX-3 and enjoy the holiday so much more instead of worrying too much with the bigger DSLR. I thought it was a compromise of image quality I could afford.

Now, most tourists think of Yongsan as the place for electronics but lately, Yongsan has had a bit of bad press and stories of rude dealers. My local friend brought me to the extremely customer friendly electronics mall of Technomart which features several floors of neverending shopping for the gadget enthusiast. I loved the experience a lot and many vendors were polite,helpful and ever willing to share information. In short, it was an extremely pleasant experience shopping there. Prior to that, we stopped by VIPS (which is owned by Samsung group and provides a stunning steak meal with a superb salad bar spread) for a mouth watering lunch.

I managed to find the Samsung Yepp YP-P3 MP3 player with HAPTIC technology which was only launched in certain places in the world. I also managed to find the Audio Technica ATH-EW9 which are wooden earphones that are so beautiful and irresistable.
You can read my mini review here.

After a few hours of tiring shopping and comparing of prices, we went for a very very good dinner of barbecued pork.

Now, I've always been having great food at Kangsane, Ampang but Korean food in Korea (I guess that goes for any other country as well) always tastes stronger, fresher and more appetizing.

Anyway, after that dinner, my friend brought our group to this REALLY REALLY memorable restaurant. The place was packed and we had to line up to get a car park. It was about an hour's drive from the center of the city. We were already full from dinner so we just wanted to have some coffee. The place was set in a forest clearing and it had large huts made from wooden logs. As expected, the huts were all full and many had to be put on the waiting list. We grabbed some seats around the circular hearths that dotted the areas in between the huts. Many people were just enjoying the warm flames with coffee or soju with roasted sweet potatoes. It was -7 degrees that night and we loved keeping each other warm with blankets around us as we rubbed our hands over the fire.

You can also see the standing heaters that customers stood around to escape the cold.

That night, I slept well in my hotel. The chosen abode for my week in Seoul was the very nice Art Nouveau City Hotel in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu. I got 50% of the normal rates for a Crystal Suite which had a kitchen and even had an upper floor (studio style) for extra guests.

Certainly, staying in Gangnam-gu gives one a skewed perception of Korea. It is the poshest district in all of Korea and houses the financial district. Everything here costs more and there are lots of pubs, cafes and clubs nearby to cater to the needs of the office workers in the area. You get to see lots and lots of beautiful women here (they're almost all slender, with long black hair, fine features and smooth pale skin).

I spotted a lovely pub/bistro that sells German Erdinger beer. It is called "Beautiful Beer". The waitresses were dressed in tight school uniform like outfits with short short skirts and I think it's safe to say that it was a nice place to be :) We went there a couple of times to enjoy the setting the good abundant beer. No photos of it though but I do hope to go there again on my next trip. We also spotted a place called "Sexy One Bikini Bar". I'll leave that to your imagination :)

End of part 1...

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

Boys Over Flowers

2009-02-16T21:34:00.004+08:00

The ULTRA HOT KBS series Boys Over Flowers is now airing on KBS world, Astro 303. It begins today and will run every Mondays and Tuesdays at 9pm. Fyi, it's the Korean version of the famous Japanese manga, Hana Yori Dango (which also spawned a Japanese series and the almost legendary Taiwan version, Meteor Garden). This version is said to be the best though... so check it out! I'm just watching it a bit (before I get annoyed with all the pretty boys) because I wanna check out the unbelievably cute Goo Hyeseon! And of course wait for the encore telecast of Emperor of the Sea...

Tribute To Baek JiYoung

2009-02-12T00:01:00.002+08:00

The Dance Queen of KPop is back. After her triumphant wins on the Korean music charts with "Like Being Hit By A Bullet", she comes back to her roots with "Ipsureul Jugo" (Give Me Your Lips). The song is so infectious and addictive... I can't stop listening to it on my MP3 player and on my car CD player!!!

Please check out the HD version ya for best effect!

The stunning Pilot M90

2009-01-01T17:38:00.003+08:00

Imho the best pen of 2008! And check out those lovely Iroshizuku inks!

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

Check out RED ARMY WATCHES and happy 2009!

2009-01-01T12:10:00.004+08:00

Just opened in Tropicana City, RED ARMY WATCHES... a retail outlet with very affordable mechanical watches. Click on the photo below for the gallery of photos.

If you have a Purists account (you can just register for one for free), you can view my report by clicking HERE.

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

Btw have a happy and healthy 2009 with your family!

A Christmas In Melaka

2008-12-30T00:46:00.001+08:00

A walkabout in fine weather and blue blue skies... click on the 'London' photo below for the full series!

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

3 cycles and elevator story

2008-12-22T12:48:00.002+08:00

Well I completed 3 cycles today and looking forward to more. I am blessed with a wonderful family and great friends. For that I am extremely thankful. The past year has been kinda taxing especially with the loss of loved ones. Certainly made me appreciate my loved ones so much more. In any case, my best wishes to all and have a safe and fruitful year end holidays!

On a more random note, I was thinking about how elevator buttons work. You know how some people always depress the buttons again and again with hope that the lift would somehow speed up and arrive quicker? What if back in the past when they invented the elevator (and subsequently, the elevator call button), pressing the button when it's activated/lit up simply deactivates the button and cancels the command request for the lift? That means, press once, and the lift will come. Press it again before the lift comes, and the request for the lift is cancelled.

This certainly puts paid to any movie scene where the damsel in distress frantically presses and bangs on the elevator buttons while being chased by the murderer/ghost/monster!

Hurray for Pepper

2008-12-08T02:38:00.002+08:00

Pepper Lunch just opened a branch in Pavilion opposite JCO. Prices are a bit high for the Malaysian wallet but it still tastes great :)

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

Surreal

2008-11-15T10:44:00.002+08:00

More than a decade ago, I used to collect comics (I think every guy went through this phase). It was that time that I used to read Wizard Comics magazine, a comics review/preview mag. There was a section for penpals and I vaguely remember sending in my name and address for snail mail penpals. I forgot about this as months went by.

Then one day, I received a letter from the US. I did not recognize the originator but I ripped the envelope open anyway. Inside was the letter and a photo of a naked lady in a very weird pose. You can imagine I was feeling quite surprised and intrigued.

Upon reading the letter, I found out that the writer got to know me from my Wizard posting and wanted to be friends. She also told me that she was a starlet in the porn movie industry.

Of course, any guy would just reply without much hesitation... and we exchanged a few mails over the subsequent months... but after that, she just stopped writing and nothing else happened.

Habis cerita.

An Evening With Caran d'Ache

2008-10-24T19:32:00.001+08:00

Superb evening with the famed Swiss penmaker, Caran d'Ache at Lafite! Click on the photo above for a report.

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

With The Chopard Owners

2008-09-30T00:10:00.003+08:00

Was quite an interesting evening I had last weekend. The dinner was spent at the atmospheric and picturesque Tamarind Springs with the co-owner of Chopard, Mr Karl-Friedich Scheufele. Click on the photo above for a peek into the proceedings.

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

ITTF Women's Table Tennis World Cup 2008

2008-09-11T01:35:00.000+08:00

Most amazing experience for table tennis for me... RM30 for season tickets to the Women's World Cup. Superb performances up close especially after just seeing the same players duking it out at the Beijing Olympics. Check out my photo report by clicking on Tie Yana's photo up there!

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

Fake as hell!

2008-09-03T00:35:00.001+08:00

Bwahahahaha... kaninah...

Omega resurrected

2008-08-10T17:25:00.002+08:00

It's always good to have an old friend back. One of my first Swiss mechanical watches... the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra... back from its first service looking brand new :)

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

Fuck You LAH

2008-08-07T10:13:00.002+08:00

Asyik road block, road block, road block aje...

Why don't you go solve the nation's problems instead of adding to them?

Duped...

2008-08-01T12:56:00.002+08:00

Let's say you have some things you refuse to eat e.g. chicken gizzard.

So one day you go to the mamak and ask them what some unidentifiable dish was (looks like some deep fried cripsy bits). And you ask the guy manning the dish counters what the dish is made of. So through some miscommunication, you think he said, "Sotong goreng". So you chuck some of it on your bryani and proceed to munch on it. It's delicious... now what if you discover that it's actually chicken gizzard?

1) Would you stop eating it there and then and confine the remainder to a corner of your plate?
2) Would you swear that chicken gizzard is now the best thing ever and will love it till the day you die?
3) Would you run to the sink to upchuck?
4) Would you finish the gizzard but never try gizzard ever again?

The above thoughts were crafted after a lunch with some weird looking deep fried dish that was super tasty. Am not sure what it was (i.e. don't wanna know)...

Why ah???

2008-07-31T13:01:00.001+08:00

Sneezing is like eating peanuts or chips... you never stop at one...

Ping Pong Crazy!

2008-07-22T13:44:00.008+08:00

More acquisitions...

First off, the Kokutaku Cho Super Cho Tokusen 10mm JPEN table tennis blade. I heard that only 150 pieces are made each year and like my current 9mm Super Cho Tokusen, uses top grade kiso hinoki (Japanese Cypress) from trees at least 300-500 years of age. This one is too precious to use and I will just be keeping it somewhere...

Next is something I wanted to try for a long time. I wanted to try the most difficult style (but also the most traditional to the Chinese) - Chinese Penholder with short pip (pimple) rubber. So I decided to get a DHS (aka Double Happiness) Hurricane Hao which DHS created specifically for Wang Hao (current No 1 player in the world).

I put a DHS Hurricane 3 with the newer (and softer) #19 sponge on the forehand and the well known short pip rubber, Friendship 927 802-40 on the back. This configuration will allow me to play my traditional looping style and also give me the option to use short pip straightforward play when needed. I can even choose to twiddle for some surprises.

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

An Evening With Stepan Sarpaneva

2008-07-09T10:41:00.001+08:00

Share in my experience with the watchmaker from Finland!

Click on the photo to read about it...

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan

Melaka, Malacca Makes It to UNESCO

2008-07-08T13:07:00.002+08:00

News link here.

Congratulations to my beloved hometown... once known as Sleepy Hollow!

"Melaka and George Town, historic cities of the Straits of Malacca (Malaysia) have developed over 500 years of trading and cultural exchanges between East and West in the Straits of Malacca. The influences of Asia and Europe have endowed the towns with a specific multicultural heritage that is both tangible and intangible. With its government buildings, churches, squares and fortifications, Melaka demonstrates the early stages of this history originating in the 15th-century Malay sultanate and the Portuguese and Dutch periods beginning in the early 16th century. Featuring residential and commercial buildings, George Town represents the British era from the end of the 18th century. The two towns constitute a unique architectural and cultural townscape without parallel anywhere in East and Southeast Asia."

The Subtlety Of Manglish

2008-07-04T10:10:00.001+08:00

"He's one of a kind!"

is so different in meaning when compared to...

"He's very one kind lah!"

Hinoki Is Gorgeous

2008-07-02T10:35:00.002+08:00

Whoever thought that table tennis blades can be items worth investing in. This blade made with kiso hinoki (japanese cypress) - wood that's at least 300 years old. Such wood, when harvested, is kept to air and dry over a year before being refined further into the shape of the blade you see below (with a luxurious thickness of at least 10mm). Hinoki used for such blades need to be of a certain age in order to achieve the uniform tight grain you see in the pictures below. The Butterfly Kim Taek Soo gets its name from a famous Korean table tennis player and is perhaps the most famous high end single ply japanese penholder (jpen) grip blade from Butterfly using the aforementioned precious wood. Butterfly also produces 2 other high end hinoki single ply jpen blades namely, Cypress Max and the super rare Cypress Special (which can only be obtained from Butterfly via special order). More on the Butterfly Kim Taek Soo here.

In any case, look at the very cute keyholder from Xiom. It looks to also be made from hinoki (though most certainly of lower hinoki quality). The back has Ryu Seung Min's signature - the current Olympic champion and Xiom's ambassador.

Copyright (c) Kelvin Tan