Who doesn't love barbecue parties? Especially now that the weather has cooled down a bit, and partying outdoors all day can be fun without having to worry about heatstroke. Ha-ha-ha!
And last weekend, just when the monsoon rains have stopped ruining everyone's morning (and weekend!), friends have gathered (again!) at Joy and Archie's garden for a barbecue party. Why? Because it's Archie's birthday!
(Archie and Stephen at the barbecue grill)
(Shrimps, kare-kare, pancit, adobo at iba pa!)
Joy and Archie live in Seongbuk-dong, the same area where Bae Yong-Joon, the superstar from Winter Sonata, is rumored to have a huge house. This area is on the northeastern side of Seoul, and is on a hilly area where I don't see any high-rise apartment buildings, only houses with their own gardens and basement parking.
(My first plate)
I like this neighborhood; it's quiet. And if you want to visit this place, you should know where you're going because, on my first visit here, I got lost because the roads looked like a labyrinth of huge houses without any landmark. So, I made sure I took photographs of where I was going while I was in the cab, and had a map to navigate with.
So, this time, I was the one directing the cab driver while going up to Seongbuk-dong from the Hansung Station, after I took the Blue Bus 140 all the way from Hannam-dong. The ride took about 30 minutes as there was no traffic. I perfectly knew where to direct him, and he seemed acceptable to the idea of a foreigner being his navigator that day.
(Joy's halo-halo with Magnolia's ube ice cream)
And while everyone was enjoying the barbecue, the kare-kare, pancit, adobo and everything else that were on Joy and Archie's buffet table, another friend, Christine, told me that Faceshop was having a sale on most of its cosmetics and skincare products. Christine should know; her work includes overseeing Faceshop. The last time I went shopping for Faceshop pasalubong was last December when friends from Manila, Loren and Arlene, were in Seoul for a short winter vacation. So, from platefuls of Filipino cuisine at Archie's party, to spoonfuls of halo-halo and ginata-an, I was already thinking of what to buy from Faceshop to bring home as presents.
(Ginata-an prepared by Teresa)
And a couple of days after Archie's barbecue party, I swung by Faceshop in Itaewon to get a few cleansers which were all discounted at 50%. Those cleansers which used to sell at KRW3,300 each, now only cost KRW1,650. This was a great deal of a sale that I shared the news with the Seoul Drama Queens, who then asked me to get them some of their favorite Faceshop items, too.
So, over the past week, before the sale ended, I had gone back several times to Faceshop, not at the Itaewon store, but the one at E-Mart because it's near my office, to complete my friends' pabili list. The salesgirls there seemed to recognize me already.
I'm not sure when is our next barbecue party, but I'm sure when is Archie's next birthday. Ha-ha-ha! And I don't know when is Faceshop's next sale, but for sure, my friends got themselves a good deal for their favorite cosmetics and skincare products, which are in my safekeeping until they pick them up here in Seoul next month. With discounts ranging from 20% to 50% and considering these things aren't cheap, it was an unbelievable deal. During the sale period, vanity was cheap and discounted. Ha-ha-ha!
So, thanks to Joy and Archie for the barbecue party, I enjoyed Pinoy cuisine topped with halo-halo, and thanks to Christine for telling me about the sale, which afforded me and my friends huge discounts for presents. And for some, vanity. :-)
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