Anyeong Say mo? Let's go Seoul, Korea and NSeoul Tower!
Anyeonghaseo! Is Korea on your travel map to visit? Korea, home for KPOP and KDrama! In the recent years, many have been so hooked with Korean drama series and movies. I'm sure most have watched dramas like Korean version of Boys over flowers where leading star Lee Min Ho is part of the F4. Or have been hooked to Psy's Gangnam Style. Till many became so interested eating kimchi and korean barbeque. No wonder even Filipinos would dream of going to South Korea. Did you know that from Manila you can choose to any of the numerous flights to Korea? As of this moment, there's ten (10) daily flights a day from Manila to Seoul.
But for Filipinos, you are required to have a tourist visa before entering South Korea except if you'll fly to Jeju Island which they offer visa free access. Unfortunately, there's no nonstop flight to Jeju from the Philippines as of the moment. However, no worries as applying for a South Korean visa is as easy as pie. Did you know that South Korean visa is free of charge if you apply directly to the nearest embassy? For visa information, please copy this link to the South Korean Embassy site: http://embassy_philippines.mofa.go.kr/english/as/embassy_philippines/visa/requirement/.
I recently applied for a Japanese visa and the requirements for the Korean visa is pretty similar but more simplified. If you have been issued a visa by OECD countries like USA, UK, Canada and European Union, you are no longer required to submit an income tax return or ITR.
Tourist/Business Visa Requirements for Employees
1. Application Form 2. 1 piece of Passport size colored picture (Please attach on the application form) 3. Original Passport (should be valid for more than 6months) 4. Photocopy of Passport Bio-page (page 2) 5. Original & Photocopy of valid visa/s and arrival stamps to OECD member countries for the past 5 years (If applicable only) 6. Original Certificate of Employment (must include applicant's position, date hired, compensation, office address, HR landline number(cell-phone number is not allowed), HR e-mail address) 7. Original Personal Bank Certificate (must include account type, current balance, account opening date, ADB) 8. Bank Statement (original or certified true copy of bank statements/passbook for the last 3 months) 9. ITR(Income Tax Return) or Form 2316 Copy 10. Copy of PRC Card or IBP Card (If applicable only)
For visa of less than 60 days stay in South Korea, it's free. But if you want to stay longer, the fee is 1,800 pesos. For more visa application, you can refer to the website and lodge your application at the Embassy of Republic of Korea (122 Upper McKinley Road, McKinley Town Center, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. They're open from 8 AM to 5 PM. Visa can be released from 3 to 5 working days.
Luckily, I got my visa! It's time to look for flights and hotel. I actually booked a one way trip to Seoul via Asiana Airlines and returning on a separate ticket with Air Asia Philippines. For ticketing, you can search on many booking engine. I usually like expedia and priceline. You can even check for Cebu Pacific however the arrival in Seoul is quite late. As for hotel, I looked at agoda and got hotel somewhere near Jongno-3ga station which is very near Dongdaemun.
Also I booked my tours via Seoul City Tour (www.seoulcitytour.net). I booked 3 full day tours. DMZ w/ Lunch Tour, Palace Tour with Lunch and Drama Tour (Nami Island and Petite France). The tour costs around KRW 82,000.00 which includes a hotel pick-up.
Now let's fly. I flew to Seoul last November 25, 2015 which is the autumn season. My flight departed at Terminal 1 on board Asiana Airlines to Seoul. For a 3 1/2 hours of flying, we soon landed in Seoul (I'll have a separate blog about my trip with Asiana Airlines). I arrived at Incheon International Airport. It was such a massive terminal. Asiana Airlines uses the main terminal building, but still long walks to the arrival hall. Incheon airport is so huge and very modern. Immigration and custom was a swift. I headed on to the train platform. There's actually two types of train from Incheon Airport, express train to Gimpo Airport and Seoul Station. Unfortunately, I took the wrong train which took more than an hour to arrive at Seoul Station because it has so many stops.
By the way, before you buy a ticket, go to the nearest 7Eleven store in the airport (just near the train station), and buy T-Money. T-Money is a top-up card where you can load it and re-use it while in Seoul. You can use it on trains and also on buses. I bought 50,000 won of load. I realized it was too much because the transportation in Seoul is very affordable.
Anyhow, I've been telling you numbers in Korean Won. Korean Won is the currency of South Korea. 100 Korean Won is equivalent to 4.35 Philippine Pesos. While 1 US Dollar is equivalent to 1,152 Korean Won. You might get confuse for the many zeros or digits on their currency. But when I arrived in Seoul, I just thought of 1000 Won is to 43 Philippine Pesos. Just a tip for you to enjoy your vacation, DO NOT COMPUTE OR CONVERT TO YOUR NATIONAL CURRENCY.
After over an hour on the train, I arrived at my hostel which is Dongdaemun Hostel. Since it's already evening and I was quite tired, I just have to rest.
My first day is I'm totally free. No worries about language barrier because most of the signage are written both in Korean and in English. Also, Korea is becoming competitive with their language skills. I didn't find myself at lost while roaming around. People are friendly too.
I plan to navigate Seoul and visit Namsan Park and NSeoul Tower. I took the subway to Myeongdong Station which the cable car station is a walking distance. The challenge is that Seoul is a hilly area which requires people for some hiking up and down the hill. You can also go up by taking the bus (which I didn't do). The return ticket for the cable car is 8,500 won. Namsan park is very popular on Korean movies and even with a Thai movie called "Hello Stranger" which a thai kdrama fan went to Seoul. So what can you really see up there? You can buy a ticket to the observatory for only 10,000 won. It also includes free access to the trick eye museum. There are also restaurants available in the park. The park is so famous for couples where they can put their love locks which I felt kinda out of place :).
Now how about shopping? Did you know that Myeongdong is one of the shopping district in Korea? What to shop for? Well, Myeongdong has so many boutiques of famous Korean cosmetic brands like The Face Shop, Etude, Innisfree, It's Skin and so many more. So from Namsan Park, just walk down to Myeongdong. What I liked about here is they give so many free stuffs as well such as face masks and eye serum. I find the products really cheap and with great quality. So many options to eat here as well. If you like korean barbeque or bulgogi, this is the place to try.
That's all for now, and watch out for the 2nd part which I'll feature some of the best highlights when visiting Seoul aside from Namsan Park and Myeongdong.
Always remember, explore, travel while you can. Travel is the best form of education to understand cultures and customs of different nationalities. For bookings, I can help you. Email me at info.owentravels@gmail.com. For any proposals, email me at owenstraveladventure@gmail.com. Don't forget to follow me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/owentravelsBD.
By the way you can watch my YouTube vlog on my flight from Manila to Seoul via Asiana Airlines. Don't forget to subscribe on my YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/owenstraveladventure!
