Full to the Brim: Friends, Fun and Food

Do you ever feel like your heart could burst? Not from pain, but from the feelings of joy and love? Lately, as I've settled into Chiang Mai, stayed in touch with family back in the U.S., and then come here to Korea to visit friends, I feel like my heart is so full! I'm so thankful for all the loved ones who are part of my life. The last few days here in Soul are a prime example of this, as I got to see some of my favorite girls!

Most stories start with a food story, of course... hehe  I met my good friend HyunJu for lunch in 녹사평 (Noksapyeong) area (just west of Itaewon, the foreigner area). We had intended to go to a restaurant called Bao, where you can get made-to-order stir-fries (think Subway but with noodles), but it was closed.  So we found a place called Le Saigon just down the street. Yes, eating Vietnamese food in South Korea is still a good way to take advantage of my time here! Seoul has soooo much to offer when it comes to food!  I got this dish, 비빔국수 (Bibimguksu), which is fairly similar to my all-time favorite Korean dish, 비빔밥 (bibimbap).

The main difference is that rice noodles are used instead of rice, and instead of 고추장 (gochujang - red pepper paste) it has a sweet and vinegary sauce to pour on top. I got the vegetarian option, for 8,000 KRW, which included those nicely sauteed mushrooms. Just like bibimbap, bibimguksu usually comes with a fried egg on top, and sometime some meat, but I asked them to leave those out. I'm not sure if this dish usually comes with the chopped peanuts on top, I'm assuming so, but it's interesting that they were spooned on to the middle of the dish, right where the fried egg is usually placed. Protein swap perhaps?

So there it is all mixed up. Nice and cool, with six different kids of fresh veggies! It was great for a warm day, and perfectly filling. After gabbing over our food for a good few hours... we headed out to take goofy pics and enjoy the sunshine.

After a teary goodbye, I headed over to Hongdae. Mipa and I walked around a bit, then decided to get a sweet snack from a place called Laksheme: (accidentally) vegan donuts! They're not donuts in the sense you would normally think of; they're steamed, not deep-fried. I'm sure they're a bit healthier than regular donuts, and they just happen to be very tasty!

I got the chocolate one on the right, for just 1,400 KRW. Since it was nearing the shop's closing time, the owner actually offered Mipa a donut for free! Score! She got a cinnamon one, which had the surprise of walnuts inside.

My chocolate doughnut had mini chocolate chips inside. And both doughnuts were a nice balance of soft and chewy. They went great with the iced hazelnut coffees we had. We actually bought the coffee at a 7-Eleven, Mipa's economical little secret. ;) For just 1,500 KRW you get a vacuum-sealed bag of coffee from the refrigerator section, complete with a plastic cup and a bag of ice cubes! (You could even buy some soy milk to add in, but it tasted nice and sweet already, so we just drank them black.)

For directions and info on Laksheme, I will once again direct you to Mipa's blog (see this post).

Hongdae area is a fun area to walk around, especially on the weekend. Even though I lived in Korea for over a year, I see things with new eyes since having been away for awhile. So I couldn't help but take pictures of "normal stuff" that we walked past.

 Modern clubs, traditional sweets, cutesy trinkets...

 Creative sales displays and cafe decor...

 Varied architecture...

Plenty of health and beauty products for sale, and Doritos being endorsed by sexy young ladies...

As interesting as it is to just walk around and explore, we didn't just wander aimlessly. We headed to an art exhibit where the subject inspiration was animals.

Deceivingly simple black and white charcoal drawings of all different animals that evoked such deep emotion of compassion!

If I understood correctly, the artist was inspired by companion animals and shelter animals.  But there were a few drawings of non-typical "pet" animals, like cows and pigs, too. So I think the artist has a heart for all animals, even the ones that are usually recognized for their "meat" than their lives.
It was kinda sad to see all these images of animals looking so lonely and downtrodden. The artist said she often felt sad when she drew them.

But it's good to be reminded that these animals exist. The exhibit gave a voice to these animals: how they can be overlooked, abandoned or even abused by us humans, but also how we can love and appreciate them, because they often bring something positive to our lives. They are worthy of being cared for.

There was even a short video made from charcoal drawings about the friendship between a boy and his dog. It was really cute and touching! The whole exhibit was pretty unique, and I was happy to see animals be given some love and appreciation through art! Spread the love, spread the joy, spread the peace... Another great day in Korea.

Oh Happy Day!

Yes, this picture pretty much captures my joy and excitement at being back in Korea! I'm here in Seoul for just one week to get my Thai work visa processed and to spend time with some dear friends who I've missed so much! Food, friends, and weather 15 degrees cooler than Chiang Mai... what else can I ask for?

As soon as I got off the plane, I hopped on the train to get into Seoul, and instantly started taking pictures of evvvvverything!

I don't speak much Korean, but I love being able to read some signs! Above is a pharmacy, pronounced "yak," which I know must come from Chinese, because it's "yaa" in Thai, so I assume they have the same root. Yeah, yeah, boring side note you may say, but I'm so into languages, and every time I learn more about one, it enhances the way I learn about another one. I'm fascinated!

A typical kimbab restaurant. Open 24 hours a day, usually just about $1.50 per roll (rice and veggies rolled inside a sheet of seaweed, and sliced into little rounds). I felt a little like a tourist, taking pictures of all these everyday sights. But the truth is, it feels so good to be back here, and I just want to capture the things that make me know I'm back in Korea and cause me to smile. Thailand has bits of Korea all over the place (K-Pop playing in the mall, influences from Korean fashion, Thai girls talking about how cute Korean guys are, some Korean restaurants, tourists who are unmistakably Korean, etc.), so this country and all the great memories I have are never far from my mind. I knew I missed Korea, but it wasn't until I was plopped squarely back in that I realized how great it would feel to be back!

This week I'm staying with my friend Mipa, vegan baker/blogger/businesswoman extraordinaire. (Click here to see her blog, or here to see or order from her online vegan bakeshop.) She gave me a warm welcome back to Seoul, taking me on an outing around her neighborhood to see the markets and have lunch at a vegan buffet. Here's just one of the market stalls selling fresh veggies.

The Chinese market had these fun-shaped steamed buns.  Yummm.

Here's the vegan buffet restaurant we went to: Ahn Hyun Pil Healthy Buffet. (Check this page on Mipa's blog for location and info.)

It normally costs 9,000 Korean Won per person, for all you can eat, which is a pretty good price. But we had a special "welcome back to Korea" discount. As we were walking to the restaurant, I happened to notice some colorful pieces of paper ruffling on the sidewalk - 7,000 Won! So we put that money towards our bill and each only had to pay 5,500 Won (about $5) - woot woot!

This was my first plate of food, with our shared plate of greens, cabbage, seaweed and add-ons like fermented natto bean paste and some vinegary soy beans. Everything was so fresh and simple and natural. Nice hardy purple rice, different kinds of kim chi (cold cabbage, baked cabbage, radish), mushrooms, mountain greens, tofu, and jeon (kind of like a thin savory pancake).

I realllly missed kim chi. And the stuff served here was certainly not a let down. I have to say that everything on my plate was super flavorful.

And fun too! I liked wrapping some tofu or wheat-meat along with rice and natto bean paste inside the leaves. And not only did we both go back for second plates...

... but we got a little dessert of warm bread with a sweet and nutty spread, sprinkled with soybean powder.

It was pretty good, but Mipa and I are planning to make our own homemade bread soon. We've already made a few meals together, and man, I am lovin' it! This was our scrumptious dinner that night (which I just watched Mipa make, hehe): curried veggies and tempeh, brown/purple/wild rice and kim (sheets of salted seaweed).

And for breakfast we made these awesome oatmeal banana pancakes (recipe on this blog site):

With fruit and tea on the side, eaten outside on Mipa's sunny patio, it was a great start to my second day in Seoul!

Home Cookin'!

I actually did some cooking at home recently. In my NEW home, that is. Just moved into a new apartment on the campus where I'll be working as an English professor starting in June. Since the campus is a little outside the city of Chiang Mai, there isn't as much easy access to restaurants and street food. I will definitely miss the back gate of Chiang Mai University, with the nightly street vendors and plethora of restaurants, but I am happy to have the chance to cook at home again. On my first night in the new place, my flatmate took me to the nearby market to buy some vegetables and rice.

She also let me use all her utensils and cooking stuff, which is great because I don't have much! But what much do you need? A pan, some oil and soy sauce, fresh veggies, rice....  I actually bought the rice at this little shop down a dark alley behind the market that had huge barrels of rice for sale by the "leet." I got one leet (I think it's a take on the word "liter") of brown rice for about $1. Don't worry, it wasn't as scary as most dark alleys would make you assume, but the convenience store only sold big bags of white rice so I really didn't have a choice! Not having a rice cooker, we used this pot, with water in the bottom and a lid on top, to steam the rice.

While the rice was cooking, I prepared the veggies. I don't know the English name of this green vegetable.

And in Thai, I only know the name of its relative: phak sayotay. This particular one I'd never tried before, but my roommate said it's similar, just a little more bitter.  Hmm... bitter, who likes bitter? I decided to give it a try. I'm pretty sure it comes from the greens of a pumpkin plant; the little curly-q's are the giveaway. Chopped straw mushrooms and Chinese cabbage were the other two main ingredients. First, I sauteed some garlic in oil, then added the mushrooms, then the cabbage and greens.

I added some water to help steam and soften the vegetables. That also helped to make a bit of a sauce. Then I added some soy sauce. And to balance the bitter a little bit, I added a teaspoon or so of raw sugar. Here's my roomie, Ajaan Aoy, giving me a hand.

The brown rice was taking over an hour to cook, so I eventually abandoned that plan and just ate the veggies with some leftover white rice, because it was getting so late.

I like the vegetables to be just a little crisp; definitely not mushy. It's a pretty simple meal: rice and veggies. A nice inaugural cooking experience in my new home. Were the greens bitter? Yes. But I loved it! Ajaan Aoy told me that, biologically speaking, eating something bitter enhances your appetite. This could very well be true... or else I was very hungry! Either way, each bit I took of the bitter greens tasted better than the previous. Having the sweet sugar and the salty soy sauce made for a really nice flavor medley. I could try making this again with the added component of spicy. Maybe saute some chilis with the garlic... mmm...

I was quite satisfied with the dish as it was. And the next day, I definitely ate the leftovers with the brown rice that eventually cooked!