Korea, 29 October 2010, Day 2, Mt Seorak

After our leisurely breakfast (which was to become a norm for this holiday), we left for the Mt. Seorak National Park. Also known as Seoraksan, it is the third highest mountain in South Korea. In November 1965, the Seorak Mountain district was designated as a Natural Monument preservation area; in December 1973 as a park preservation area; and in August 1982, as a Biosphere Preservation District by UNESCO.

Approaching Mt Seorak...

While the full autumn colors were not yet in bloom, it was already beautiful with the reds and yellows. Unfortunately, the streams were dry.

 

Now we know where tap water comes from, at least, in South Korea:

Us, outside the cable car station but with an hour's wait to go. Yes, it's wheelchair-friendly! 

That's a cable car, passing ours.

Us, at the cable car station at the top.



See the spectacular rock formations, forestry, and Sokcho town in the background.

Korea, 29 October 2010, Day 2, Maremons Hotel

Although Maremons Hotel is a four-star hotel (we discovered that Korea has a different hotel-rating system from what we know in Singapore), be prepared for no porter service. The various floors are served by lifts. If you stay at cheaper hotels, check on the lifts and accessibility issues before you book. Our room could accommodate two wheelchairs, and was acceptably clean, so that was very good. The bathroom is alright for one wheelchair, has separate shower area but not roll-in shower. Our bathroom was not stocked with fresh bottles of toiletries. There were strands of hair on a shampoo bottle. Thankfully, as always, we had brought our own toiletries.

We also discovered, when we returned the second evening, that they had not done any housekeeping to the rooms, although they provided fresh towels. As we were checking out the next day, we did not insist that they do the housekeeping.

Nevertheless, it was a nice stay. Our room afforded good views.

Sunrise at 6:38 a.m.

 

Maremons Hotel Sokcho is sited on an upslope, and afforded a great view of the port. Here's a view of Daepo Port from our room. Neubei Hotel (shaped like a ship) in the bottom left of the photo.

Korean BBQ picnic tables in the park behind the Maremons.

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, Dinner in Sokcho

On getting back down the slope, we bought some seafood and green chilli fritters at 15 pieces for 5000 KRW.

At the Dongmyeonghang Live Fish Market, you can choose from the wide range of live seafood which you can then ask for them to be cooked at the restaurant located above the market.  There is a separate charge for the cooking.  We didn't eat there as we didn't want the wheels of our wheelchairs to be dirtied from the wet market floor.  However, the restaurant is actually accessible to wheelchairs as there is a ramp up to the second floor.

We originally decided to eat at one of the numerous other seafood restaurants that line the roads in the area, but ended in a regular Korean food restaurant instead. It was difficult to bear the thought that we were in the seaport of Sokcho with its abundant fresh live seafood, and we were not eating any of it!

We ordered a beef rib soup, which turned out to be the best amongst all the other places that we tried in Korea (and we did try many as our helper, who was travelling with us, did not have very adventurous culinary tastes). 

We also ordered a pollack soup.  On the way to Sokcho, we saw pollack (a fish) being sun-dried at many places and were told that pollack is one of the area's specialty.  It was a light and fairly plain soup.  Not untasty, but a little too mild tasting.  They actually didn't do it poorly.  We were served pollack soup on a few other occasions at other places and they all tasted about the same.

We also ordered a squid sundae, and some other stuff which were decent but nothing to rave over.

We ate our food with the fritters that we had bought earlier.  The restaurant did not stop us from bringing in outside food.

The restaurant was a homely little place, albeit under-patronised. The owner and the workers ate at another table and watched TV.

Location of restaurant

Having had dinner, we drove to the Maremons Hotel Sokcho, where we would be staying two nights.

What a day! Great start to a holiday!

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, Sokcho Breakwater

As it was too early for dinner when we reached Sokcho, we took a walk at the Dongmyeonghang Port where the fish market was located.  Along it is a breakwater which runs far out into the sea.  There is a steep slope to get to the top of the breakwater to start the walk on the esplanade, so do maneuver the wheelchair with care.

There were many stalls selling seafood fritters at the base of the slope.  Unfortunately, it didn't strike us to buy some and munch along the way as we didn't think we would be walking all the way to the end of the breakwater.  But we did, and by then it was too far to walk back to buy the fritters.  :-(

Nonetheless, this proved to be one of the nicest walks we had ever taken in the sunset, whether along a jetty or breakwater. The changing hues in the sky were just beautiful. It was chilly, and the fragrance of the fresh salt seasprays wafted in with the low breezes, as in the background the lights of the fishing village signalled the advent of night.

The Sokcho North Breakwater Lighthouse at Dongmyeonghang Port

The end of the breakwater with Jodo Island in the background.

 

The 800m long breakwater.

The red Cheongho Daegyo (Cheongho Grand Bridge) as seen at dusk.

We made our way back just before 6 p.m. as darkness fell. 

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, Ulsanbawi

As we approached Sokcho, the Ulsanbawi (comprising 6 peaks, with a 4km width each, forming a single piece of granite) on Mt Seorak came into view.

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, Highway Rest Stops & Toilets

After leaving Imjingak, we headed for Sokcho, where we were spending 2 nights.  En route, we ate at a food court at one of the highway rest stops.  This was one of three highway rest stops that we ate at on our trip.  They serve standard fare Korean food at reasonable prices (3000 to 4000 KRW for a bowl of ramyeon).  We were quite pleasantly surprised by the food standards, having had to bear with those at the Malaysian highway rest stops.


All the rest stops had clean wheelchair-friendly toilets. The toilets usually have electronic bidets with heating for the seats -- that is, if you know how to use them. Instructions are only in Korean and the icons were difficult to decipher. We fiddled with them for quite some days in our hotel rooms and at the public toilets to no avail until we checked in at one hotel which had English instructions.


Even trying to flush these toilets proved to be a challenge. At our first stop, no matter what we did, we couldn't get it to flush. Finally, in exasperation, we thought we had to do the unthinkable -- cover the WC and leave the cubicle, and hopefully locate the cleaner. But, the moment we put down the cover ... it flushed! Voilà!!

We were also pleasantly surprised that, unlike Singaporeans, able-bodied Koreans do not use disabled toilets. Even the seniors do not use such toilets. They would rather queue at the common toilets.

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, Imjingak Park

The Unification Pond in the shape of Korea with the 3-storey Imjingak Building in the background. Here’s a teaser since we didn’t manage to capture the full outline …

The Freedom Pond

That’s us on the stretch of the Freedom Bridge (a former railroad bridge which was used by repatriated POWs/soldiers returning from the north) open to the public. Overhead, flock after flock of migratory swan geese flew by in their trademark "V" formation.

That’s the viewing platform to see the railroad segment of the Freedom Bridge.

Here’s the Freedom Bridge (the railroad segment).

Korean aunties singing and dancing on the Freedom Bridge to a Korean song about unification.

A fence of prayer ribbons written with hopes of peace and unification, and messages to loved ones and others across the border... messages which will never be received.

The remnants of a train that was caught in the crossfire in the DMZ during the Korean War. (See the bullet holes?)  Thankfully, it was transporting just coal and a few crew members, and no lives were lost. It remained at the same spot for the next 50 years till it was retrieved.

Parts of the original railway track.

This is the plant that grew out through the train as it languished for the next 50 years. It was transplanted when the train was retrieved and in testimony to its resilience, continues to thrive (we don't see the leaves because this was taken in Autumn).

One of many rock structures in the park. This one is entitled “Gazing at the Homeland”.

Mangbaedan, the place where people who had fled from North Korea and settled in far east Russia visit and perform ancestral rites by bowing toward their hometown every New Year’s Day and Chuseok (15th day of the 8th lunar month). Every year many events for unification are held at Imjingak.

Rites being performed when we were there.

The Peace Bell Pavillion

An unblocked view available at

http://www.richardtmoore.com/gallery/5598692_RHPME/2/345579331_e3C3k#345579331_e3C3k

The Stones of Peace Wall – a collection of stones from many war locations around the world, but none from WWII Singapore :(
Hey, Singapore may not have mountains, but stones, we have ...

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, Breakfast at Imjingak Park

9.30am: Piping hot food on a cold autumn morning caught our attention from afar. We tried one sea snail each. The type that you had to suck to get the flesh out -- the "chu-chu" snail or bali-dong in the chinese dialects. However, these were baby ones of only about 1 inch long. Although the tips were intact, the flesh nevertheless came out easily, and it tasted beautifully sweet in the mouth. But it would be too much work if we were to eat a whole serving as the snails were simply too small. We ordered some regular ramyeon and also some fish paste wrapped in beancurd skin and then fried brown. They were served in a bowl of piping hot clear soup, much like the Yong Tau Foo soup that we get in Singapore. The fish paste in beancurd skin is our equivalent of our fish paste ngo hiang except that it had a chewy and more bouncy texture which makes it surpass our local version.
We were kind of hungry, so no photos...

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, The Road to Imjjingak

The road to Imjingak (Sector 6 of the De-Militarized Zone). Imjingak is popular with tourists because it is possible to visit the site without obtaining security clearance. The riverbanks at the shallow bends were dotted with hundreds of migratory birds.


The view from the car - Yeongjong Bridge (linking Incheon to mainland Korea)

The cables suspending the bridge

A view of the Great Incheon Bridge from Yeongjong Bridge

Guard Posts along the river bank facing North Korea

Barb wire fence line the entire boundary facing the North Korea bank.

Kijong-dong, a propaganda town on the North Korea bank seen as white flecks from a moving vehicle.
Close-up shots of Kijong-dong available from Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kij%C5%8Fng-dong

Kijong-dong features a number of brightly painted, poured-concrete multi-story buildings and apartments with electric lighting -- features represented an unheard of level of luxury for rural Koreans, north or south, in the 1950s. The town was oriented so that the bright blue roofs and white sides of the buildings would be the most distinguishing features when viewed from the border. However, scrutiny with modern telescopic lenses reveals that the buildings are mere concrete shells lacking window glass or even interior rooms, with the building lights turned on and off at set times and the empty sidewalks swept by a skeleton crew of caretakers in an effort to preserve the illusion of activity.

Korea, 28 Oct 2010, Day 1, Close Encounter with Korea Immigration

6am: Korea, here we come! Or so we thought ... we barely made it pass immigration.

Immigration was extremely concerned that the domestic helper would not leave Korea. We were taken aside for separate interviews, to ensure corroboration of facts. I finally had to give an undertaking to ensure the helper left the country, failing which, I would myself be detained.

But, we finally made it, anyway! Yippeeeee!!!

All that took almost an hour and our poor Korean guide, Tommy, and the boss of WowCorea, Elvis, who had personally turned up to ensure that we would be properly settled were kept waiting. They had brought 2 vehicles with them so that we could test out which would be more convenient for our use!
Here's the car we chose:

 
After some trial and error, we managed to pack 2 wheelchairs, all our luggage, and ourselves, into the car.

We were now all set to go!

Korea, 27 Oct 2010, Day 0

If you're travelling with your domestic helper, check visa requirements and apply for one early. Be prepared to make multiple trips.

For your travelling arrangements, go with WowCorea, a Korean tour agency based in Seoul. They took great care of our needs, and went to great lengths to assist us. You can count on them for everything, even in exigencies. http://www.wowcoreatour.com/

That's the three of us with Elvis (extreme left, back row), Tommy and Jina from WowCorea.

Make the Korea Tourism Office your next stop. We were very blessed to have the General Manager, Mr Park, help refine our itinerary for us.

We booked a Singapore-Jeju-Singapore air ticket, but broke the journey during the stopovers and was able to fly Singapore-Incheon, Seoul-Jeju, Jeju-Seoul, Incheon-Singapore for the price of one air ticket. :-)

We flew Asiana Airlines which, unlike other airlines that would consign all wheelchair users to the back of the plane, allocated seats in the first row giving us precious leg room. :-))

We took off at 10:35 p.m. -- Korea, here we come!

Marriott Vacation Club, Mai Khao Beach, Phuket

June 2010


We stayed at the Marriott Vacation Club, Mai Khao Beach. They had a good wheelchair-friendly apartment properly equipped for wheelchair users. The apartment has 2 bedrooms and our friends very kindly let us have the  master bedroom.

The roll-in shower area comes with a proper shower chair (has backrest & adjustable height).  However, as it is a portable model, do check with the hotel to confirm in case it has been removed.

The bathroom is huge, but the WC area does not have any grab-rails (if we remember correctly).  The wash-basin has some knee room below it so it is possible for the wheelchair to move closer to the basin.

The apartment is also very spacious. The bed is a little high though, 50-55cm high.

See link  for photos.  http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/hktpa-marriotts-mai-khao-beach/

Swimming with Fishes in Phuket

Well, okay, so we didn't really swim with the fishes. We just sat in the water and waited for the fishes to swim around us. :-)

When our longtail boat reached Koh Hae (Coral Island), one of the workers on the island -- a Myanmese National -- promptly came to offer his assistance when he saw us being helped out of the boat. He helped carry us up a small flight of steps to the restaurant area, where we had our lunch, and after lunch to the beach and into the water. When it was time to leave, he helped us get from the beach back into the boat again. He wasn't looking for any tips and had declined it when it was offered. But we insisted that he took it. It was very hard work, and he really didn't have to. It must have been about 50 metres each way.

It's very arduous work to push or drag the wheelchair over sandy beaches. It might be easier to sit on the plastic chairs belonging to restaurant and be carried lock, stock and barrel to the water edge.

Fishes were quite aplenty. And if you fed them just a little (you can buy bread pieces from the restaurant), they'll be teeming all around and nibbling at you in no time.

The water was very clear and the waves a little strong but still manageable, although our companions were always on hand to ensure that we wouldn't get swept off balance. As we could only sit on the seabed, we had to stay very near the edge of the water, which unfortunately was where the broken corals were deposited. So be prepared for abrasions and cuts.

Notwithstanding, it was an afternoon we would never forget.

Longtail boats, Thailand

Post on trips done in June 2010

Travel by longtail boats is one of the more economical ways to travel by water. A 3 to 4-hour hire would cost about THB1500. Cost would vary from operator operator as well as depend on the condition of the boats.

We took a longtail boat from Phang Nga Bay (beside Sam Chong Restauarant) to James Bond Island and Koh Panyee. The boatman and his friends at the jetty were very helpful. They helped our friend carry us up and down the boat. We didn't alight at any of the destinations. We were happy to just sit in the boat ride. It would have been nice, but too much trouble for everyone else, especially since there were two of us on wheelchairs.

We also took a longtail boat from Rawai Beach, Phuket to Koh Hae (Coral Island). Likewise, the boatman helped us get on and off the boat. This time, however, we disembarked at Coral Island as we were spending the afternoon there -- to swim with the fishes! :-)

Kway Chap in Phuket

Original post June 26, 2010

We missed a turn in Phuket town and stumbled upon this at 9 p.m. while looking for a dinner place. We just parked along the road and switched on our hazard lights.

It is at the Patipat-Krabi Intersection (just west of the Chinatown precinct). The name of the shop was in Thai. We asked for a business card and they had none. It was patronised only by locals and we were the only tourists. It was very crowded but we managed to get a table because some people were leaving just as we arrived.

They serve “Kway Chap” except that you can also ask for say, pork ribs (with soft bones/cartilage encased which was cooked till soft yet still crunchy) or minced meatballs only. You can choose from staples such as kway chap (broad, flat rice) noodles, instant noodles, glass noodles, porridge/congee and rice. It's difficult for a foreigner to order. Best to point to the individual ingredients. Please note that there appears to be a standard version for a mixed combination which is a mix of all the different types of innards (only one slice of each) but which excludes the coagulated blood and vegetables, and as a result, we had to place a second order by pointing to the order on our neighbouring table.

All those who do not know, different innards take different lengths of time to cook to the correct texture, and every item was cooked to perfection. Five of us ate eight servings plus one more serving of only roast pork. :-) Total bill? THB 255. Our regret was that we couldn't pack the food back to Singapore.

If we were to describe it in Singaporean terms, we would say it is a Bak Kut Teh Soup base with your choice of what goes into the soup and not the kway chap as we know it in Singapore.

http://jamie-monk.blogspot.com/2008/11/kuay-jap-noodles-new-restaurant-in.html

Laem Hin Restaurant, Phuket

Original post June 26, 2010

Another of Jamie's great recommendations (link below).

The proof of the pudding is in the eating. And it is more than just good. It was absolutely fabulous.

Jamie's notes on getting there: It's a few km north of Phuket Town (if coming from Phuket Town direction on the main airport road, you need to go past the turning and do a U turn. If coming from Patong direction, head to Tescos, turn left on the bypass road and right at the end of that road where it meets the airport road. Sign at the turn off - picture below, then you drive a few km through a Muslim village before getting to Laem Hin at the end of the road.

Would like to add that after the turn into the road leading to the restaurant, there is a fork some distance down. Take the left fork to the restaurant.

We had this Chayote vegetable -- some shoots with tendrils. It was so good, we ordered a second helping.  Don't know what this is called in Thai.

Then there was the ultra fresh deep-fried Garoupa (fish) which was so good on its own we kept forgetting the special sauce that was served with it -- all because we asked for the sauce to be on the side so that the kid with us could have the fish as well.

The wing shells were fresh but had some traces of sand. But still we would recommend it. You just need to discard the tail end where the sand is deposited.

The hoi-tip oyster omelette used baby oysters which are rarely found in Singapore now.

The clear Tom Yum seafood soup was brilliant. The membranes on the cubed chunks of fish head retained their crunch, even the flesh on the chunks were crunchy. They could have given us more soup though and one of us thought the soup was a little too sour.

The food was so good we promptly decided that we would return for dinner on the same day, except that our plan was thwarted by over-enthusiastic shopping at Patong. Since that was our last night in Phuket, we will have to wait until our next trip. :-(

http://jamie-monk.blogspot.com/2010/05/laem-hin-seafood-still-favourite.html

Samchong Seafood (Phang Nga Bay, Thailand)

Original post June 26, 2010

If you are going to Phuket, you should check out Jamie Monk's blog (link below).

We went to eat at Sam Chong Seafood Restaurant in Phang Nga Bay, on yet another of his great recommendations!

We ordered a grilled seabass with the spicy condiments on the side so that the kid with us could also eat the fish. It was grilled with plain salt but with the fish scales intact. Our immediate reaction was that it was going to be too fishy for us. As it transpired, it was grilled to perfection -- fully cooked and yet still retaining all its juices. It was so fresh, two of us preferred eating it by itself without the accompanying condiments. This was clearly a sea catch and not a farmed fish. As such, it had no muddy taste which is almost the mark of the bulk of the seabasses sold in Singapore.

Our neighbouring table ordered a deep-fried garoupa in garlic and pepper which also looked very good but which we did not have the opportunity to try.

The squid was grilled with only a dash of salt and pepper. Again, it was so fresh and juicy that every bite just brought so much pleasure -- eaten on its own, without the accompanying condiments.

The kangkong (or morning glory, as they call it) was a little "old". Cooking style was okay, but nothing to rave over.

By the way, if you are driving up from Phuket Island, just follow the signs pointing to the direction of Phang Nga then turn right at the Samchong junction which will take you to Ban Samchong. No need to go through Khok Kloi then Kalai before reaching the Samchong junction, which is quite a detour. If you're driving south from Phang Nga, you also just head in the direction of Phuket Island until you reach the Samchong junction, in which case, you turn left.

Finally, you will find the restaurant very well signposted, except that the signs were all in Thai. :-)

We also took up Jamie's recommendation and hired a longtail boat and went out to James Bond Island and Koh Panyee and went through a mini cave, but which nevertheless had some interesting limestones formations. The hire cost us 1500 BAHT for a three-hour ride. We got caught in heavy rain and thought we must be crazy to trust the boatmen who assured us that there would be no rain although the sky looked quite overcast. When we got to the stretch of sea between James Bond Island and Koh Panyee, it was quite comforting to see that we weren't the only crazy tourists out in the choppy waters that afternoon. But it was a good ride, we had fun, and we enjoyed ourselves -- getting wet under our torn and flapping disposable raincoats, notwithstanding.

http://jamie-monk.blogspot.com/2009/02/restaurant-tip-samchong-seafood-phang.html