Surprise, surprise, she said she'll be taking us to Nami Island instead, where Winter Sonata was shot. To those who still live in the Dark Ages, Winter Sonata "launched" the Hallyu (Korean wave) with Choi Ji Woo and Bae Yun Jung riding the waves...I still haven't seen this sad series, so "toink" me later.
Anyway, Jed and I woke up early on Wednesday since we'll be meeting Louise at Anguk-Dong Station, exit no. 1. It was drizzling a bit outside and we had no umbrellas, but the weather was still fantastic compared to humid Manila. There was a store in Anguk-Dong station selling umbrellas, but it was expensive (for our budget) at 5000 won, so we decided to skip it and pray the weather would clear up soon.
We almost missed Louise again, because we were waiting at the wrong exit...How the..!! Anyway, we called her up at her mobile and met up at the right exit.
After a short stop at a convenience store, we rode a subway to Cheongnyangni where we bought train tix to Chuncheon. The trip was well worth the two-hour ride mainly due to the scenes of mountains and lakes. I took pictures here and there while catching up on old times with Louise. Jed, on the other hand, slept. ^^
A short taxi ride from Chuncheon train station brought us to Naminara Republic dock where we took a ferry boat to Naminara Island. Naminara wasn't what I expected. First, I have never seen Winter Sonata so I was kinda expecting a rural setting. But it was beautiful. Even teeming with students on field trips and ladies on a herbal-gathering conference, the place had the serenity and peace of a secret garden. 
After visiting the UNICEF-funded book exibit (where there was a little booth for the Philippines), taking pictures of a diorama of Louise' hometown, watching the so-called National Folk Dance Group of Egypt (which we seriously doubted was really the national folk dance group of any country, the way they were dancing), buying souvenirs from the shop and taking pictures of kimchi houses, we walked off to a pretty secluded spot by the lake. It was so picturesque that Jed and I couldn't help ourselves but take pictures. I felt like a professional photographer. You could point your camera anywhere and just click and it would be a wonderful picture. Anyway, we sat there for a while, contemplating the beauty of the surroundings, eating peanut butter oreos and chocolate chip cookies while students riding bicycles passed by. Occassionally, a speed boat and jet ski would roar by and we'd wave. 
Much as we would like to live there, we needed to return to the real world. The real world, however, was a ferry boat ride away, and we had to fall in line behind throngs of school children equally excited as us. Some of them were very precocious, warming up to tourists like us, dying for a little english conversation. The confident ones would try to grab as much attention as possible, while the more bashful ones would just look on and laugh. On the ferry boat, I took pictures of some of them as they tried to imitate Rose and Jack in Titanic. They were very eager and took pictures of me as well..."Pretty, pretty". I absolutely adore these kids! They have good taste! ^^
We rode a taxi and a bus to Chuncheon and had dakgalbi. By this time, we were famished and in bad need of nutrition. It was also close to 5 pm and we neither had a proper breakfast (just a piece of toast for me and I barely finished it. I was used to a hearty rice-viand-chocolate drink fare at home) nor a decent lunch (I wouldn't call a pack of cholocate cookies "lunch"). The lady (Eonni, Louise insisted, and not Ajumma, because it wasn't too polite to call a someone "old lady") who served us was very warm and even Louise was surprised that we get nice treatment from Koreans. Jed and I told her that so far, everyone we've encountered had been gracious and kind to us... so maybe the story about Koreans being unfriendly was just a myth. We strolled around, but after a while, it became apparent that no amount of thrills would encourage our tired bodies to go further. I got a little shut-eye on the train-ride while Jed and Louise teamed up. It was blissful two-hour ride and I felt well-rested after that. We got a little mixed-up at the subway station but still managed to arrive home.
It was too early to call it a day (10 pm), so after a brief rest, Jed and I managed to summon our last ounce of strength to hurl ourselves out of bed. We decided to check out Dongdaemun Market. Jed invited Benye and he tagged along.
Spring nights in Seoul are like December nights in Baguio for me. It was chilly that I was almost glad for the long long walk to Dongdaemun. Almost. I wondered what masochistic tendency made me want to check out Dongdaemun after an entire day walking in Nami Island.
It was like Tutaban cluster mall, only a tad more organized. I had nothing particular in mind to buy, maybe a few souvenirs for family back home...But even in it's "cheap" bargain mode, it was pricier compared to goods sold at home. Benye offered to buy me a bag. He said I could choose any type I wanted and he'd buy for me. This made me feel kinda weird, and I of course refused. He was sort of offended and wasn't a good company for a while until he paid for some purchases Jed and I made. While Jed was looking for shoes, he asked me a rather shocking question that led to a very uncomfortable situation the rest of the night.
Anyway, the trip to DDM was okay, except that some of the shops were closed. We were actually disappointed that there wasn't too much attraction. We got a bit lost on the way home (which added to my "misery") and was glad to call it a day then.
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