Doraemon @ Yongsan Electronics Market

I guess it was appropriate to welcome the robotic cat right next to the electronics market of Seoul. The Yongsan Electronics Market in Seoul, Korea, is the central market for everything electronic - from smart phones to digital cameras, to computers and everything else that runs on electricity.

I actually saw these Doraemon mascots in front of Yongsan's I-Park Mall the night before. Even as the darkness was enveloping the area, people were still eager to take photos with the mascots. 

But it was a different story the day after. Under the hot noon-time sun, hundreds of people, most of them on their lunch break from nearby offices, flocked around the mascots and were busy smiling for selfies with Doraemon while they tummies were grumbling.

The mascots were installed to promote an expo to satisfy the Doraemon craze, and probably this weekend, hundreds more kids are flocking to the Yongsan Station to have their turn for selfies, too.

To get to IPark Mall, take the subway to Yongsan Station (Line 1), or get off at Sinyonsan Station (Line 4) and exit at Exit 3. Hopefully, the 100 cats will still be there.

Rolling In The Deep: Seoul's Sinkholes

The first time I saw the footage of this accident on Korean TV last weekend, I immediately recognized the sidewalk! It was the bus stop before the one where I used to alight when I rode the Blue Bus 400 on my way to the Yongsan Station (I no longer take this bus though). And it's right next to a construction site.

The footage showed a couple (a guy and his girlfriend according to the news) falling into a sinkhole after getting off a blue-colored bus, and there's only one blue bus that stops on there: the Blue Bus 400!

Here are the videos of the accident from YTN News:

Luckily, they survived the three-meter fall with a few scratches after getting medical attention at a nearby hospital. The ground below the sidewalk got eroded by the excavation being made by a construction company, which is building a 39-storey apartment complex in the area. According to the news, the Seoul City government may impose a penalty on the construction company due to this accident.

This actually happened last week during the lunar new year holidays. I guess that day the couple was supposed to be enjoying their holidays. Instead, they ended up at a hospital.

             (The sidewalk around this construction site 
                           is currently off-limits)

Last year, the news about sinkholes appearing in the Jamsil area near the construction site of the Lotte World Tower scared the residents living there. But this time, sinkholes now have now shown up here in my Yongsan District neighborhood. Although the construction company already covered the sinkhole, the sidewalk is still closed to pedestrians.

But if even if they become passable, I wouldn't venture walking through that side, lest I want to suddenly disappear into the ground. 

               (Another construction site on the other side)

Weren't the two just lucky it happened during daytime and there was someone who called for help? What if it was a lone pedestrian just passing through the area late at night? Or worse, what if the passer-by was a mother with a baby?

With all these fatal accidents happening lately, I guess nobody should take this piece of news lightly. It would be a very pricey lesson to learn if you happen to be a victim of one of these avoidable accidents.

From reckless drivers who don't obey the traffic lights or care about pedestrian lanes, to motorcycles competing with everyone else on the sidewalk, and now, sinkholes, too?!

I used to say that motorbikes, puke and cars compete with pedestrians for space on Seoul's sidewalks. I think I should now include sinkholes to the list.

So, the next time you're walking on the sidewalk next to a huge construction site with deep excavation, do watch out. You don't want to be rolling into deep.

The Face Reader 관상 At The Red Carpet

Last week, I already saw the huge movie poster for a Korean movie, Face Reader  관상 , plastered on a cube in front of the Yongsan Station for all the passers-by to see. I thought that was it, a paper advertisement. I didn't know that days after, a red carpet event was going to be held right next to the poster.

On that day, as I was walking back to the office from lunch, I stopped by and asked a couple of girls sitting by the red carpet set-up what was going to happen. They told me that at 6PM that day, the stars of the movie were coming over for the event. It was still noon, and yet there were already a lot of fans claiming their spot along the path the stars were going to walk by.

Hmm. Another movie event in the neighborhood. A few years back, I saw Tom Cruise and Nicolas Cage promote their respective movies here at CGV's Yongsan Station. Tonight, I decided I'd go local. Ha-ha-ha! I planned to walk this way after office.

                     (Lee Jeong-Jae signing autographs)

And as I got out of our office building, I could already hear the blaring speakers coming from Yongsan Station, signalling perhaps the arrival of the movie stars.

But when I got there, the stars had already arrived, and must have already walked the stretch of the red carpet, which by now, could use some dry-cleaning (ha-ha-ha!), and signed a few autographs. I'm not really into autographs. I got a few autographed CDs of K-pop stars given to me and an Australian Open t-shirt signed by 25 top female tennis players, and I can't remember now where I dumped those. Ha-ha-ha! 

                           (Kim Hye-Soo from behind)

But right here, at the red carpet, I just wanted to take photographs of the Korean stars and their fans, who all had drawn out their cameras, smart phones and autograph books. Me? Just my Samsung Galaxy S4. Ha-ha-ha!

                                (Baek Yoon-Sik)

And as I stood there, with my left hand holding my phone and my right pressing the camera button, I tried to look closely if I recognize the stars.

                                     (Cho Jeong-Seok)

And recognize I did, four of them: Kim Hye-Soo, perhaps the most beautiful and sexiest actress in Korean cinema; Song Kang-Ho, the lead in the monster-in-the-Han-River movie The Host; Lee Jeong-Jae, the face I recognize from The Housemaid; and Baek Yoon-Sik, from the movie, The Taste Of Money, where Maui Taylor, a Philippine actress, was found dead floating in an indoor swimming pool with only her underwear on.   

From their huge poster, I 'face-read' their looks and Kim Hye-Soo's was definitely a standout. Unlike some of the surgically altered faces I see in Korean television, hers is unique and really beautiful, from any angle. One guy's nose though really looked fake. One doesn't have to be a plastic surgeon to tell whether a face has gone under the knife. If the look isn't natural, something must have been done. Some have such high, narrow noses; others have really pointed chin due to implants; and if you see that a nose seemed to have been clipped and the base isn't parallel to the ground (ha-ha-ha!), then some doctor got rich because someone was vain, or wasn't happy with what he or she sees in the mirror every morning.

                                  (Lee Jeong-Jae)

And as the movie stars on the stage greeted, waved and invited their fans to watch their movie, Face Reader, I thought that this must be an interesting film to watch. Do they have a version with English sub-titles?

As I left the red carpet, after figuring out who was who, and whose looks seemed altered, I asked myself, 'Now, who's the real face reader?" :-)

The Korea Grand Sale And My Discounted Groceries!

Just in time of my return to Seoul, the Visit Korea Committee launches the Korea Grand Sale!

How timely! My refrigerator is empty! I need to get some groceries! 

Yes, people, the Korean Grand Sale does not only include shops selling clothes and shoes, it also includes....E-Mart! Even the information officer at #1330 didn't know about this. I called #1330 to inquire how much worth of groceries do I need to purchase in order to get a discount from E-Mart. She initially didn't know. I told her E-Mart was on the list. In 2011, I was able to get discounts for my groceries. This year, I intend to get some again! 

And after I got the Korea Grand Sale coupon at the customer service counter at E-Mart, I just needed to buy KRW80,000 worth of groceries or household items so I can get a KRW5,000 discount. That's about a 6% discount!

And now that I got my groceries secured, I might as well move on to some discounted clothing, too. 

While the shops in Myeong-dong have all their winter clothes and jackets on sale, I was zero-ing in on those spring and summer shirts. I already have a lot of winter clothes and jackets that could last until the next Ice Age. I was more interested in those shirts and pants that I could wear in the tropics while on vacation.

And luckily, H&M still have some of those shirts left! They sold those for KRW15,000 last December. Now, they're down to KRW5,000! Discounted summer shirts in time for global warming. Ha-ha-ha!

 And not to be outdone, ZARA also has discounted items in the men's section, too. Some summer shirts and pants, but no likeable shoes, though. 

Of the discounted items I was able to get from the Korea Grand Sale, I am most happy with my groceries. Why? They already fed me and kept my home clean. An instant happy shopper! Ha-ha-ha! And I still have to wait for summer to wear those shirts!

So, if you haven't availed of the Korea Grand Sale discounts yet, make sure you visit their website:

koreagrandsale.co.kr

And check the list of participating shops and outlets. You might be interested in those winter clothes. 

If you're heading to Myeong-dong, check out the shops starting from the Uniqlo store next to Exit 6 of the Myeong-dong Station, then work your way down from there.

Now, do I get more discounts from the Korea Grand Sale for blogging about this? Ha-ha-ha!

It all ends on February 28, by the way.

PS. I saw this kiosk selling some hard biscuit (at KRW3,000 each) coated with different flavors. I asked to buy the chocolate variety, and the guy put it in a small bag and hammered it into pieces. Well, the biscuit was very hard. No wonder he hammered. And I didn't taste any chocolate. Not worth it. I should have gone for the 'keran-pang', that hot bread with a whole boiled egg inside. Next time.