The 'rents come to visit (Day 1-2)

I had the pleasure of having the greatest 2 people in my life over here in Korea with me while I am doing my studies: My parents. Truth be told, it might not seem to others that my relationship with my parents are that great because we aren't like usual families. My parents have different working schedules, and I tend to go out quite a lot, as such we hardly have home-cooked meals like many families. Neither do we eat with each other every single day.

But we always make it a point to be together at least once a week. I remember having Friday dinners or Sunday grocery shoppings with them. Well, one thing I know, is that I always find myself in a place where I can always count on my parents no matter what happens, and whether I reach a point where I have nobody else to count on.

My parents are one of a kind, they fight with me, argue with me, tolerate me, love me all because I know deep down, they care about me and want me to turn into a person that they want. I heard this saying before: "Parents want their kids to turn out/do what they couldn't do or become in their lives". Ever since coming here, they're the ones that I missed the most, and couldn't wait to see. My parents have been with me ever since I was born, and never have I been away longer than them for more than 3 weeks (army).

I don't know how to explain it.. No matter how independent I have been, I know that they're only a cab ride away, a phone call away, or even a walking distance away (Since Singapore is so small) but never have I expected myself to miss them so much being so far away.

Anyway, better stop before this becomes an emotional post. Hahahaha.

I went to pick my parents up on Thursday at the airport. I can still remember my reaction the moment I saw my Dad's face through the glass doors beyond the arrival gates. Then after that I saw him waving to another person, thereafter seeing my Mum walking over. After which, they both walked towards the glass doors and they saw me. I waved frantically and then went over to meet them.

Thereafter, we took the long train all the way back from Incheon International Airport to Myeong-dong, Seoul, where my parents would be staying for the next 3 nights. It was a really long ride but we got to catch up so it was pretty great. I mean, the whole point of them visiting wasn't about them telling me about their lives or vice-versa, but more of just spending time in each other's company, and being in each other's presence.

I can say that they've been greatly missed.

Their flight was supposed to arrive at around 3:30pm, and I reached there roughly around 4:10pm because of the bus ticket problems and then when we reached Myeong-dong it was already night time. The thing that I miss most about Singapore is that it hardly even takes 2 hours to go from one end to the other. Hahahaha.

Anyway they were staying in Nine Tree, a hotel in Myeong-dong. Well in the beginning I didn't think much of the place but when I went up and saw the room I was so jealous. Comparing the bed to the one that I have, it's a really big difference. Being able to sleep there for 2 nights also really perked up my spirits.

 

Spacious room with a double bed, single bed and television

Toilet was well-stocked, nice bath-tub and sink

 

They even have a seating area to wear your shoes and hang clothes

Dad enjoying some television before we leave

Spent the night walking around Myeong-dong and finding some dinner since we didn't have much time to travel around to other areas. Settled for a certain restaurant because we couldn't decide what to eat and I didn't know what my parents would like or dislike. Settled for a nice looking restaurant and ordered Jjimdak (찜닭), Korean Pancake (파전) and Bibimbap (비빔밥) and not to mention a bottle of Soju (소주) for them to try the alcohol in Korea.

 

 

Needless to say, my dad didn't really like it (hahaha he's a picky eater) but my mum on the other hand, was open to trying new things and I guess she was pretty okay to it, because let's face it, Korean food is just another rendition of the whole "Asian food" so I guess no matter where we go in Asia, the food roughly "feels" the same I guess. After which I bring them to one of the places that I always went in Summer: Korean Dessert Cafe (설빙)

I thought that they would like it, because my mum kept mentioning that she wanted to eat desserts like that in Korea, and when we finally came... They hardly ate much! I ended up being really full and we only ate half of it.

Headed back to the hotel after that since it was around 10pm and I had to rush back to Cheonan for class the next day. (Seriously, commuting is a bitch sometimes) How I wish I studied in Seoul and I wouldn't need to waste so much time, not to mention money travelling. Anyhow, we went back to the hotel, showered and laid in bed watching television the whole night till I fell asleep.

The next morning I got up to go to school, and my mum insisted on walking me to the bus stop. Since we were near Namsan and she wanted to go explore, I pointed her in the direction of the mountain and headed off back to school. My mother, ended up making a friend -_- and found her way up to Namsan tower and thereafter back down to the hotel. (What a mum)

I came back on the evening itself to meet my parents again. We took the time to walk around Myeong-dong a bit more and then headed to the Cheonggyecheon river where I showed them the man-made river that's widely well known in many countries. Walked down to the next station and then took the underground metro to the land of foreigners: Itaewon (이태원)

After walking for a bit, decided that it'd be better to come during the day for better photos

Then whilst in the train station, the parents decided to do a little snack shopping before we continued on our way. I made a few recommendations and then packed it up for a mere sum of 5,000W, whereby it's counted cheap for the amount that we got, considering it costs a bigger bomb back home in Singapore.

I went on raving and raving about the steak served in Copacabana Grill, the Brazilian Grill situated in Itaewon, but my mum didn't really fancy the blood red juicy awesomeness of the steak so we went elsewhere to get steak. I really like eating my steak medium rare, however my dad and mum takes it medium to medium well because they can't stand the sight of the redness, much like the gf.

 

Walking down the street some more and ended up settling for this homely looking restaurant that wasn't as packed as the rest. Went in to see some white guys eating there so we assumed it has to be of certain standard for them to eat here, or for the shop to still be around in a place like Itaewon. Ordered 3 steaks: ribeye, filet mignon and hamburger steak.

Ribeye

Hamburger Steak

Filet Mignon

The meat was served in a hot pan together with mashed potatoes, some macaroni and cheese, brown sauce and 2 sticks of asparagus. The meat was cooked nicely and tasted fresh. The asparagus had a lot of flavor with a slight hint of charred goodness. Overall not bad a dish. This place is called New York Bistro.

The food took quite a while to come so we had some time to talk and wait. The weather was cool, the lights were pretty and the air was nice. We finished up our meal, and then took the train and headed back to Myeong-dong to rest for the night because there will be a lot of walking the next day.

Really missing my parents as I'm writing this... but I guess it won't be long till I can go back to Singapore to see them again so no worries ^_^

Stay tuned for day 3-4 in the next post! :D