Starting April, not with a joke, but with a post to kick off the Okinawa memories. This post in particular is more so to document my personal thoughts and feelings, especially since this trip was the first one ever that we were all so uncertain about. 

Okinawa was 3 years in the making. Previously each time we planned to go, something would come up and we'll have to change our schedule and hence the destination. I was beginning to think I would never get to Okinawa until I actually booked our flight tickets with Jetstar. Even after that, we saw news that the famous Shuri Castle was burnt down and that felt like an omen.

In this time of Covid-19 fears, we were prepared to have to cancel our flight at the last minute. In fact, up to the day of my flight itself, we were still unsure as to whether we would be going ahead with the trip. I was worried for my parents in particular, because it seemed like Covid-19 had more negative effects on those with chronic health issues. My father is on blood pressure medication while my mom has a history of poor immunity. I had lengthy discussions with my parents prior the trip, and we noted that the Covid-19 cases in Japan were mainly in other major cities like Hokkaido, Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, etc. Nothing was reported in Okinawa. Plus, Okinawa is some distance away from mainland Japan. So we eventually agreed that we would defer the trip only if the following happened:

1) If Covid-19 cases were reported in Okinawa

2) If there was a travel advisory against travel to Japan

And this is also why, you should buy travel insurance as soon as you get your flight tickets. I bought the air tickets end-December, shortly after confirming with my then-going-to-be-new bosses that it was ok for me to fly in March. Bought the travel insurance online the week after we confirmed the flight tickets. Hence when they first announced changes to insurance plans due to Covid-19, we were not affected. 

Except, haha, the irony was that the travel advisory came out only after we flew. We boarded the red-eye JetStar flight on 3 March 2020 at 2 am and landed in Okinawa at 8 plus in the morning, Japan time. Japan is only an hour ahead of us, so that's 7 plus Singapore time. It was only that same evening that my brother and friends texted me that a travel advisory was issued that very day itself to defer all non-essential travel to a list of countries, including Japan.

Oh well. Nothing we could do about it since we were already in Okinawa. At that point, we did not have to serve any stay home orders. 

So we went ahead with our week in Okinawa, armed with masks and sanitizers, and followed the news and Gov.sg's WhatsApp updates religiously. The other thing in our favour, the Japanese were already generally a very hygienic bunch. The Covid-19 pandemic only seemed to heighten their sense of hygiene. While we did not see many people wearing masks (hurray to a sensible nation), everywhere we went, there were soaps and sanitizers abound. I lost count of the number of times we entered a store or restaurant and were offered sanitizers. My parents were definitely grateful for that.

I also followed the Japan's JNTO travel site which hosted regular updates about the Covid-19 situation in Japan. That's how I found out that Okinawa's famous Churaumi Aquarium was closed even before we flew off to Okinawa. Unfortunately, I only knew about it on 2 March, and it was too late to do anything about tickets that I had already booked. In fact, while we were there, some other attractions that I had planned for, also announced their closures and we had to change plans quite last minute.

My parents and I returned to Singapore on the 10 March. Thankfully, before the pandemic worsened all over Europe and USA. Before all the travel bans were issued and international flights locked down too. This is a crazy time. Had our trip been planned for mid-March or later, even if there had been no advisory, I think we would have cancelled our trip. What a difference a couple of weeks makes. I know of a friend who had to cut short her trip to Hat Yai when it was announced that travellers returning from 17 March onwards had to serve a 14-day Stay Home Notice. She is currently now on self-isolation.

I know this Covid-19 pandemic is going to be around for a while. As I wrote in an earlier post, it's made me reflect and realise that I have been fortunate and privileged, and I have many things to be grateful about. But until then, may we all practice social distancing, be socially responsible, stop hoarding, have good hygiene and stay home and healthy. To you, all your loved ones, and the people around you.

Week in Seoul: Lotte World Adventure

This is the last post for the Week in Seoul itinerary. I've been watching the Covid-19 situation unfold as I'm typing out these posts, and I've come to realise that there are many things that I am grateful for.

One of which was that I had these travel memories with my parents. Sure, many of us are on a travel lockdown and who knows what will happen even after today. I also don't know when we will next be able to travel but the next time we do, I'm going to be able to appreciate it even more.

In the meantime, I'd just continue to re-live my journeys through these posts. Except haha, I have very little to write for today's post.

Day 6 in Seoul: Lotte World Adventure --> Shopping at Lotte mall

Day 6 was the last full day we had in Seoul before we returned to Singapore via a mid-day flight on day 7. Interestingly, I actually don't have a lot to write about day 6 because we spent the first half of it in Lotte World Adventure and the other half shopping at the Lotte malls.

I actually forgot to take photos within Lotte World Adventure. Again, we took a lot of family pictures but I forgot any for the blog.

There are various options to getting the tickets to Lotte World Adventure. The hotel where we stayed had discounted tickets, you can also purchase discounted ones off Klook or KKday. Just check which one suits you before you head off.

There are 2 segments to Lotte World Adventure, indoor and outdoors. While the indoor park feels like it's catered more for families with younger children, there are still enough interesting rides for the more adventurous adults. I had my thrills on rides such as the French Revolution (an indoor roller coaster), the Flume ride (indoor water drop ride) and Pharaoh's Fury (motion vehicle).

Outdoor thrill rides included the Gyro Swing, Gyro Spin or Gyro Drop. It's like the 3 musketeers and they're all located near each other, very hard to miss. There's also the Bungee (a drop ride) and the Atlantis (a roller coaster flume ride). You can check out the rides on their website which I will provide at the end of this post.

When I was there, queues for the thrill rides were comparable to the ones in Disney at peak. I think, again, we went at a time when school kids were on holiday. So I had to opt for the Express Pass for some such as Pharaoh's Fury. You'd have to employ the same strategy for the Express Pass that you would at Disney parks, i.e. get those first before you join manageable queues for others. It was only much later that I found out I could actually purchase a Magic Pass that allows me to join the express queue for 5 or 10 rides without having to rush to the Express Pass machines.

The indoor and outdoor segments are connected by a monorail that you can ride. We took it from the 3rd floor of the indoor park to get to the outdoor side. And took it back when we were done. The monorail also gives you a good bird's eye view of the entire Lotte World Adventure.

And the monorail isn't the only ride that my parents took. They passed on the thrill ones and didn't mind waiting for me while I grabbed those. But I also took some other simple rides with them such as the Balloon Ride in the short clip below, a river cruise, a VR ride called Across Dark. Mom actually wanted to do the Petite Pang Pang which was a kiddy ride. She loved how cute the train was but unfortunately it was strictly for kids and their parents only.

Over the many travels, my parents and I have worked out a way where everyone could enjoy theme park rides. When we first started travelling together, my parents were scared and passed on most rides, which madde their times in theme parks less fruitful. However, they have since come to realise that there are still some thrill rides that they could manage and would join me for those. However, when it came to roller coasters or flumes, we'd designate a rest area or shops for them while I'd go grab the ride. This way, once I'm done, I'd know where to look for them. And oftentimes, they didn't mind resting their legs for a bit as well.

By mid-day we were tired of the theme park already. We all agreed that we preferred the Disney parks and would have gladly stayed for an entire day in Disney. However, by mid day, we were kind of sick of Lotte World Adventure. Hence we left and decided to go shopping at the Lotte malls instead.

The Lotte malls were so huge, we returned to continue with some really last minute shopping the next day before our flight. What did surprise me was that there was a GU store at the mall. I wasn't expecting to see Uniqlo's sister store in South Korea, but surprise sure did not keep me from buying quite a bit at GU! In fact, one of the fuzzy hoodie I bought is now a regular staple for my freezing office.

And that ended our week long trip to Seoul, our first time to South Korea. It was memorable, and at the end of it, my parents were more keen to return to South Korea. We were discussing when to visit Busan or Jeju in the week following our return. Unfortunately, plans are now up in the air given the Co-vid-19 situation but we'll definitely be looking forward to when we can visit again.


Tourist Information

Lotte World Adventure

Website: http://adventure.lotteworld.com/eng/main/index.do
Address: 240 Olympic-ro, Songpa-gu, Seoul
DID: +82-2-1661-2000
Operating hours:
Monday to Fridays, 9:30 am to 10 pm
Saturdays and Sundays, 9:30 am to 11 pm.
Please check website as there may be changes on the day itself.

Week in Seoul: Lotte World Tower (Seoul Sky observation deck)

Day 5 in Seoul: Jongmyo Shrine --> Lotte World Aquarium --> Lotte World Tower (Seoul Sky)

Now Lotte World Tower was one of the main reasons why I decided on choosing Lotte World Adventure over Everland. And yes, I know I got my Seoul panorama already at the N Seoul Tower, but somehow it felt a little bit more magical at the Lotte World Tower.

The Lotte World Tower is the tallest building in South Korea and currently the 6th tallest in the world. It has a total of 123 floors and stands at 555.7 metres tall. The Seoul Sky observation decks are on levels 117 to 123 of the Lotte World Tower. 

The magical experience started with the Sky Shuttle, their fancy name for the fancy elevator that takes you to the 117th floor. There are monitors on the ceiling and walls of the elevator and you're entertained with a show while riding it. 

The really cool stuff starts on the 118th floor, where the Sky Deck is; the highest indoor glass floor in South Korea at 478 metres. Yup, all that stands between you and the roads 118 floors below is a sheet of glass. My mom took a good 5 minutes to muster her courage to step onto the glass-floored deck, but thereafter, haha, she started taking her own selfies! In fact, she grabbed my hand when I first stepped onto the glass floor as she was worried about me falling through. There were some others who refused to even stand near it.

My parents were very impressed and we spent quite a while there taking selfies and family photos. There were too many people around that day, else I would have loved to lie on the floor for one shot!

We then moved up to the 120th floor for the Sky Terrace, the outdoor observation deck. Cool, strong winds and a majestic, panoramic view of Seoul! There's a doorman who helps to control the crowd on the Sky Terrace so it doesn't get too jammed up since the area isn't too big.

There are photo zones on the various floors. Pretty cool, you scan the QR code and take a picture and then pick it up or download it onto your phone!

Tip: Get your photo taken on the 118th floor where the glass floor is. Way cooler.

Once we toured the place, we settled down to watch the sun set over Seoul. Twilight Seoul was pretty and it was really cool when the night lights started being turned on. We left only when mom started to grumble about hunger and it being time for dinner.

Tourist Information

Lotte World Tower (Seoul Sky)

Website: https://seoulsky.lotteworld.com/en/main/index.do
Address: 300 Olympic-ro, Songpa-gu, Lotte World Tower, Seoul 05551

Week in Seoul: Lotte World Aquarium

Given how bad the Co-vis-19 situation has become, I am so glad I made it to Seoul last year. My parents and I had a blast and upon our return, were discussing when we should fly to Busan or Jeju. I guess all these plans would now have to be put on hold while globally we sort out this pandemic.

So it's nice to be able to look back while writing these Seoul posts. Looking forward to start on the Okinawa ones before I start missing being able to travel.

Day 5 in Seoul: Jongmyo Shrine --> Lotte World Aquarium --> Lotte World Tower

Once we were done settling in the luggage in the new hotel room, my parents and I crossed over to the malls and headed for Lotte World Aquarium. I'd be honest, the goal was really the Lotte World Tower. However, we had time on our hands and decided to just explore the aquarium before catching sunset at the tower.

Lotte World Aquarium is located within the Lotte World Mall, and you can purchase discounted tickets off Klook or KKday with options for a combination deal with the Lotte World Tower. Otherwise, I thought the admission fee itself was quite hefty given the size of the aquarium. The Lotte World Aquarium is the biggest in South Korean and is segmented into different zones representing different ecosystems.

Their most prized exhibit would likely be that of the beluga whales. Except when I got there, I felt sorry for the whale. It didn't seem to have a lot of space given it's size.

I don't have much photos from the aquarium for the blog. Heh. We took a lot of photos, but mostly of ourselves and not so much of the aquarium. Having been to several more notable aquariums, while the Lotte World Aquarium was nice, it didn't really impress me that much.

I was amused though with a display of a robotic fish! Complete with flashing lights too! Now that's something I don't usually see in a lot of aquariums.

Other exhibits that were less common in similar aquariums included the otters and sealions. We managed to catch the tail end of a sealion show as well.

Other than the lack of photos for the blog, I realised I also took very little notes on the aquarium. Not surprising why and I'm repeating myself. It's similar to many other aquariums.

Still, Lotte World Aquarium is a nice place to while away a couple of hours. We enjoyed ourselves in the 2 hours we spent there. However, if you're tight with time or packed in your itinerary, you can consider skipping this, especially if you have visited other aquariums before.

Heh. Don't you think those fishes in the photo above look like grumpy old men?


Tourist Information

Lotte World Aquarium

Website: http://www.lotteworld.com/aquarium/en/index.asp
Address: Located within Lotte World Mall
Jamsil 6(yuk)-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul
DID: +82 2-3213-5000
Opening hours: 10 am to 10 pm

Week in Seoul: Lotte Hotel World

All right! I just returned from a jaunt to Okinawa that's been 3 years in the making! Thankfully I'm almost done with the Seoul posts so I'd be able to start on the Okinawa ones soon after!

Good thing I've learnt to take and keep my notes during my travels. Need to work on the photo-taking though. I still have a tendency to forget sometimes, especially when I'm too excited. For instance, in today's post, I have no idea why I even forgot to take the exterior of the hotel! All I have are interior shots and not very good ones too! Argh!

Week in Seoul: Lotte Hotel World

Once we were done with the hour-long guided tour at Jongmyo Shrine, we returned to the Ibis Ambassador Seoul Myeongdong to pack up for the change in hotel. I had decided to transfer to the Lotte Hotel World for the last 2 nights mainly because it was close to the last few attractions I had planned for the itinerary. 

To be honest, I have a thing about hunkering down in hotels that are near to attractions on the itinerary. It makes it easier for us to return to our rooms to drop off things or for a rest, especially since I often travel with my elderly parents. I don't mind transferring hotels, so long as its not for every night.

Check in was a fuss free affair and we were even advice on breakfast options when I enquired. I loved how the reception didn't just push the hotel's options, but very politely shared about the options available at the nearby mall as well as within the underground link to the train station. 

Shortly after our arrival, we were being ushered to our room. I have a feeling the hotel staff prides themselves on good service. The young chap who helped us with our luggage to our room chatted with us and in that short trip, shared with us that he had been to Singapore (and loved it!) and gave us a couple of recommendations when he found out where we were next headed to. Very well-done; friendly and without feeling intrusive. Observant too! He realised I was taking photos of the room and made an effort to stay out of the way, with the luggage too! Thumbs up for really good staff recruitment and training.

Before he left, he assured us that most staff spoke an additional language and encouraged us to seek their assistance should we need anything, even recommendations. 

The furnishings and décor in the room itself was kind of old and outdated,  definitely in need of a renovation to update it. But, honestly, that was non-consequential to me. What was more important was that the room was clean and the beds comfortable. Although the room looked a tad on the small side for a triple, it was sufficient that we could lay out all 3 luggage without feeling cramped.

The toilet was spacious and gave off a vibe of old luxury. There's a bath tub on the other side of the room that my photo failed to capture. Definitely comfortable.

The view from our room was awesome. We could see Seokchon Lake and the Lotte Tower. It was too difficult to capture the Lotte Tower from the window so I gave up after a few attempts. Figured I could do better once I'm out on the ground instead.

Like I mentioned earlier, it was the hotel's location that sold me on it. Lotte Hotel World is connected to Jamsil station, which means it would be a breeze if we needed to travel out. The 2 days we were there, we just walked through the underpass via the station to the shopping malls. Obviously, if we could see Lotte Tower from our room, that's very close. The Lotte World Adventure theme park is also a 5 minute walk from the hotel. 

Yup. See what I mean. Decent place to hunker down if you're hitting the Lotte-series of attractions. Lovely hotel with lovely staff, and if I'm ever returning for the abovementioned attractions, I'd be back here. 

Tourist Information

Lotte Hotel World

Website: https://www.lottehotel.com/world-hotel/en.html

Address: 249 Olympic-ro, Jamsil-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul

DID: +82 2-419-7000

Week in Seoul: Jongmyo Shrine

Day 5 in Seoul: Jongmyo Shrine --> Lotte World Aquarium --> Lotte World Tower

Day 5 was another leisurely one because we were going to transfer to another hotel, the Lotte Hotel World. We decided to use the morning to visit a UNESCO World Heritage Site before returning to Ibis for the last time to check out and transfer hotels. 

Jongmyo Shrine is like the king of all shrines in Korea. It is where the spirit tablets of deceased kings and queens are enshrined. To date, rites are still being performed for the deceased royals. According to the brochure I picked up, that is the main reason why Jongmyo Shrine was designated a UNESCO World Heritage.

Unfortunately, it was only after we arrived that we were told that entry was only allowed with guided tours and we had to wait for the next English tour! They were very strict about it and turned away many tourists. I've included the visitors information from the brochure as well in the picture below for your reference to plan the time you should arrive for the tour. 

I was kind of annoyed because this totally escaped me despite me doing some homework prior the trip.

Since we had a lot of time on our hand, mom decided to haul us back to Kwang Jang Market for a second round of shopping and eating before we came back for Jongmyo Shrine. That cheered me up too as I had really loved Kwang Jang.

Having said that, I was glad for the guided tour. It was very informative and the guide brought to life with her descriptions, what we were viewing. I'd admit that it would otherwise have been a very dull visit as the place was very solemn.

The guided tour itself was only about an hour long but it was more than sufficient to cover the grounds, with the guide's explanations focusing mainly about the rituals, Jeongjeon which was the main hall of the shrine and Yeongnyeongjeon, a sub-hall built to enshrine a king's ancestors.

Guided tours are held in 4 languages: Korean, English, Japanese and Mandarin.

Tourist Information

Jongmyo Shrine

Website: http://english.cha.go.kr/html/HtmlPage.do?pg=/royal/jongmyoShrine.jsp&mn=EN_02_05

Address: 157 Jong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul 03135 

Please refer to pictures above for information on operating hours, timings of guided tours, admission prices and regulations pertaining to visits. 

Week in Seoul: N Seoul Tower (also known as Namsan Tower)

Day 4 in Seoul: Kwang Jang Market --> N Seoul Tower

After the bout of morning shopping at Kwang Jang Market, my parents and I spent some time back in the hotel. We returned primarily to drop off the huge shopping load and we polished off our yummy packed lunch from the market in the comfort of our room.

Once we were sufficiently rested, we headed off to yet another famous K-drama location: the N Seoul Tower, also known as Namsan Tower. Now, this is one location every hardcore K-drama fan should know. From Boys over Flowers to My Love from Another Star, The Legend of the Blue Sea to the more recent A Korean Odyssey and Hotel Del Luna. And that's a list just off the top of my head. I'm very sure there's a lot more shows that were filmed there.

The easiest way to get from our hotel to N Seoul Tower was to hop onto the Namsan Sunhwan Shuttle Bus No. 5. However we opted to take a taxi up with the idea of taking the cable car up. Unfortunately, the cable car was closed for maintenance when we arrived and with it, my fantasy of pretending to be on a date with a cute oppa died.

So we ended up having to walk up a really steep slope to get to the tower. And that slope "killed" my mom because of her poor knees and mobility. She was so tired by the time she got to the top, she needed another break. Those of you travelling with elderly, please do take note of this; check before going and make sure the cable car is in operation.

Taking that break with mom was easy though, especially since there were stunning views from an observation deck built into the side of the Namsan mountain.

The few maple trees there were also just turning their leaves red.

Since I had time while waiting for mom to catch her breath, I compared prices and options between KKday and Klook using their apps that I had already installed in my phone.  Eventually I bought some discounted tickets off the KKday app and made use of them to gain entrance to the tower once mom was feeling ready.

There is also a Hello Kitty museum at the base of the tower, and some of the options offered a combined deal of the N Seoul Observation Tower together with the Hello Kitty museum. We weren't exactly in the mood for the 5-apples tall kitty and just bought the tickets for the observation tower only. Fans of HK should however, definitely consider the combined deal.

I will admit to spending some time in the Sanrio shop next to the museum though and bought home a lovely Little Twin Star coin bank.

We were treated to a light show before taking the lift up to the tower's observation deck.

More panoramic views of Seoul abound while at the observation tower. The observation tower also hosts a couple of cafés and restaurants, including a revolving one. You may wish to consider having a meal there while watching the sun set. I can imagine the night lights would be a spectacular (and romantic!) backdrop to your meal as well.

We did a round admiring Seoul's skyline from the observation tower but got bored rather quickly. So we headed back down to check out the love padlocks on the tower fence. There are vending machines selling these locks should you wish hang one with your loved ones.

Mom and I however, preferred to spend our time taking tons of selfies and wefies together with these colourful locks instead of buying them. There were also designed photo spots around that were really Instagram-friendly. While we were taking photos, dad entertained himself watching a performance at the square.

It was late afternoon by the time we were done. We then took the No. 5 shuttle bus back to Myeongdong, where we stopped by Paris Baguette for coffee and some yummy sandwiches before heading to Shinsegae for more shopping.

Tourist Information

N Seoul Tower
Website: https://www.nseoultower.co.kr:8501/eng/index.asp
Address: 105 Namsangongwon-gil, Yongsan 2(i)ga-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
Operating hours: Mondays to Fridays and Sundays - 10 am to 11 pm, Saturdays - 10 am to 12 midnight