First Blog Feature & Shoppin' til I'm Droppin'

I was featured by another blogger for the first time! :D:D Check out the interview at Chiffon Dreams! She has a great fashion blog there and the interview was so fun to be a part of!

Thanks so much Tiffany! :)

As for my Korea journeys, everyday I've been busier than I thought I'd be, but that's how life rolls in South Korea! The other day was my big shopping day and I hit the streets of Myungdong with my parents - they're actually very good at helping me choose clothes (my dad walks around, carries the bags and pays and chooses when I'm too indecisive, and my mom picks out clothes or approves clothes I pick, we're a great fashion team! xD).

It was like a mini fashion show when I came home. I normally don't buy so many clothes, but my mom wanted me to prepare for future "business"y events, so here they are!

shirt - H&M ($15) (I love this shirt!!)
skirt - Zara ($19!)
shoes - from the same store I bought the bag (approx $30)

shirt - H&M
skirt - Uniqlo (fits perfectly! It was amazing!!!)
bag - store on the street?
shoes - also just on the street (only $10 and they had my size!)

The two pairs of shoes at the top were only $10 each! I seriously don't buy this much normally, but when you have size 5 feet, you don't really fit into many shoes. I bought all four pairs for a total of $80, basically $20 each! :)

I think my favorite items of the day are my colorful flats and this bag:

This bag was about $40 - a little on the pricey side but it's definitely my new best friend. :)

If you ever visit South Korea - which you will of course, Myung Dong is your place to go for great shopping!!

Here are a few of the other surprises I encountered in MyungDong and other places:

When I went up to this guy (or girl) to ask to take a photo, I didn't know where his/her head was! He/she/it was so cute!!! :D:D

I saw these guys across the street while shopping at Uniqlo:

Within fractions of a second, I thought "They must be mannequins or dolls. Wait! They're moving! Call the police! They're going to fall! But they look so happy and chill! Oh, must be some fun event for the store. Nvm about the police..."

If you love dumplings, then you must visit Myung Dong ManDoo (ManDoo = Korean for dumpling). It's a small, humble looking place, but seriously the best!!!

I also met an invisible man eating noodles; they really do exist!

I didn't buy these socks at H&M, but the bag was cute. ;D Aren't these socks the bombb??

song of the moment -
All at Sea - Jamie Cullum

Class of Fash D18 + Korea D2&3

I'm not sure where to start, but my stay in Korea has been stellar! The food, the friends, the family, the biz, the love! (except the sticky, humid weather isn't so great...)

So I'm staying in South Korea at my dad's place. We sent a lot of our pretty stuff from America to Korea, so I thought I'd snap some shots.

click images to enlarge

These guys are "smokers" or something like that, and you put a candle-y thing inside them and smoke whispers out of their mouth! It's the coolest thing! I believe they're from Austria. :)

I love this profile shot.

More home pictures to come!

My fam also ate at this awesome restaurant where they give you a bunch of everything all for $10 a person! I love food - especially Korean food!

If you like vegetables, this will especially be your thing, but even if not, hot tamales! It's good stuff!

Now on to the more real good stuff,
I used to live in S. Korea for two years in middle school and when you make friends in Korea, they're friends 'til the end - at least the ones I made. I gotta be honest - I think my friends here are the bestest friends I've ever had and I miss them from the bottom of my heart. When I'm with them, everything just clicks and I don't gots to worry 'bout nothin' when I'm with them. There's no strings attached, no worries, just pure friendship and good times. I hope we'll be friends forever. I really do. :)

Anyway, to celebrate friendship, I met up with my ol' friend Kristin! Despite the cute fluffy teddy bears, and chubby babies crying, and young Korean guys in suits, she is probably the cutest thing around in Korea. I mean, look at those dimples! Thus, here's the 3rd summer feature - and 1st in South Korea - for Class of Fashion:

Kristen Chung :)

click images to enlarge

The 'tank top' she's wearing is actually a dress that's just really short. :)

So we met up at in Bundang - to be specific, Seoh hyun (spelling?) - and ate Udon, soba, and Korean dumplings, all together for approx $11. Food is so good. :)

Then it started raining and we ran from store to store to get cover until we finally found a No-Rae Bang (literally translated: "song room") which is basically Karoake. I feel like Americans think karoake involves drinking, but I promise normal Korean Karaoking is not like that. I haven't busted out some karoake tunes since I lived there 4 years ago, so it was real nostalgic and my voice broke lots (because I haven't sung for that long either). ;)

I'm diggin' the frames.

We jammed to California Girls (the Katy Perry one, not Beach Boys) ;), Last Christmas, Sunday Morning, that one song with Eminem and Rihanna, and others. Kristin has the prettiest singing voice I've ever heard! Her voice is so pristine and on key. She really sings like an angel. And then, I really stink at it, the only song I think I aced was Sunday Morning, and maybe Last Christmas. I couldn't even work A Whole New World (Aladin)! I would go to NoRaeBang just to listen to her sing - that sounds creepy.

At Zara :)

I'll never forget ya Kristin. Please don't send me those shiny red pants from American Apparel, but please do keep in touch! I hope we don't have anymore email problems or issues putting clothes back on the clothing rack (whoaguhrowoosdlkkdjowj!!)! :)

song of the moment -
Hey DJ - Go Back to the Zoo
We the Redeemed - Hillsong

Korea 2010: Day 1&2 - Familiar Faces

It's currently 9:45 pm in South Korea and it's good to be "home." I was definitely born and raised on the East Coast, but there is something about being here, surrounded by...fellow Koreans that's just so home-y. My dad living here probably has a lot to do with it, too. ;)

Anyway, I didn't have a great start on my trip because my mom and I argued right before we left for the airport. Thus, I wasn't in a keen state of mind and I left my retainer at home. -_-

I got my braces off about half a year ago, but I still have another half to go to keep my teeth slick and straight! :D

I feel so icky and guilty for forgetting my retainer. I already had a mishap with my first braces so I had to do another 2 years of braces - totalling to 4 years. I don't want to have to go through it again, although I do like showing my Christmas spirit with the colored bands - all my brace-kids holla! So... hopefully, it'll be all right. xD

This plane was so pretty:

On the 10 hour plane ride, I entertained myself not with my Atonement and SAT Spanish Subject Test books I brought with me, but with the neat-o computer screen on the seats. I saw Nanny McPhee, 1981 (interesting French(?) story of a guy's childhood in 1981), Toy Story 2, flipped through Teen Vogue, and listened to the best of European Pop!

But the whole plane ride sensation really struck me! When I got off, I thought to myself, 10 hours ago I entered Sea Tac airport breathing the pristine, clean air and then, I - slightly dazed and ditzy because I only got 1 hour of sleep - set foot on soil of a whole new world. You'd think that the air would be similar since we're all on the same planet - well at least I did, but no. Already from baggage claim, I could feel the denser, humid, icky air filling up my lungs.

The Coca Cola mini truck was super cute too. :D

I'm still getting used to sleeping at 7AM Washington time and eating dinner in the middle of the Washington morning. So once I overcome jet lag, there'll be more travel pics galore! :D

And although it's only been a day and a half, I've already done a little shopping! xD I bought some stickers, cards, and even socks for friends. :]

I actually have a traditional Korean dress that looks almost exactly like this!:

& on a final savory note:

song of the moment -
Ebony and Ivory - Paul McCartney ft. Stevie Wonder (I was singing that all day as I got home from the plane)