My Aunt Lydia was our first, and most likely our last, visitor! We'd been really wanting someone to come here so we could experience Korea together. Someone who we could reminisce with, someone who would get our Korean jokes, someone to take around and show all of Korea's neat little goodies. :) We were all tickled pink when she said she was definitely coming!!
At the airport....
Brother and Sister :)
Day 1: "Camp Coiner" beef and leaf for lunch.
Ipark mall
Lotte World Complex
It's the first day, she has had a goodnight's sleep so we jump in the car and go out to lunch. We took her to one of our personal favorites. Camp Coiner is what we call it....because we don't know it's real name. :) Lydia's first taste of authentic Korean food! I think she liked it ;)
Trying to figure out chopsticks
"Keep trying Auntie! I know you can do it!!" :)
Bella with her Auntie!
Posing with our free after lunch coffee :)
After we ate lunch, we went to Ipark mall and the Daiso which is like a Korean version of a Dollar General and to a cute little coffee shop.
Mom, Lydia and I split off after coffee and we took Lydia to the Lotte World mall to window shop while Dad took the tired kids home. :)
These things are some kind of German pastry.
They were so interesting and really yummy!
Closer look....
Walking around the food area can be the most fun.
What is this??!!?? It looks like a unicorn horn...
Koreans LOVE cute! They will make anything cute if they can.
This is how they packaged and sold the melons. :)
Although they may like cute....they have strange fashion taste! ;)
This was so funny! Us girls were heading back home on the subway, when this guy's bag started rustling and moving. We stared at it for awhile before this cute little turtle popped his head out. Once he felt it, he pushed him back in the bag and we couldn't help but laugh a bit. :)
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Day 2: Gyeongbukgung Palace
Bukchon Hanok Village
Hello Kitty Café
Insadong
We are trying to pack in as much fun as we can without tiring everybody too much. :) On this day we went to the Gyeongbukgung Palace and had a picnic lunch there. After that we walked through a cute little downtown-y area. Of course we had to go to yet another coffee shop, so we went to the Hello Kitty Café. I'd been wanting to go there for awhile...we've just been waiting for a good time, this was the perfect time! :) We finished the day off with Insadong and the ten dollar purse store! :)
Posing with Mr. Stoneface! :)
Awwww...they're so cute! :)
This picture is so sweet! I love it!! Do you think they look alike? :)
Touring the grounds....
This is one of the streets through Bukchon.
You almost felt like you went back in time. It felt all vintage! :)
Hello Kitty café!
This place was pink overload!!
I just had to go see what the bathroom looked like! PINK...I should've known. :)
Auntie's latte. ADORABLE!
Only Dad could pull off being in a Hello Kitty Café eating from a cute cup of ice cream with strawberry syrup and still have all his manliness intact!
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Day 3: Namdaemun market
Girls date to Busan Galbi and Paris Baguette
Dad had to go to work this day, so we took Lydia to Namdaemun market.
Posing with their Hotteoks. YUM...
Oh yes....let's begin!!
Paris Baguette after a girl dinner date to Busan Galbi.
Paris Baguette has the best pastries ever!! :)
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Day 4: HIKE!
We scaled a mountain! Ok, so maybe we just hiked a mountain....but at some points I felt like I was scaling a wall! :) It was definitely to toughest hike I've ever done, but we had so much fun and felt so good afterwards.
This picture beams with sunshine....I love it!
Thanks to the person who put in the little metal cylinder things! :)
This picture is too funny not to post! Caption it...
Yay! Pretty much at the top...
It was pretty smoggy....but the view was still splendid!
Brilliant! This guy hiked up the mountain with a cooler strapped to his back and at the top was selling popsicles! I bet he walked off the mountain a millionaire....because everybody was running over and getting some. I just can't imagine hiking up that mountain with a ton of popsicles on your back!
Me and Daddy at the tip top point!
Don't look down! :/
On the way back down the mountain.
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Day 5: Dondaemun/Cheonggycheon stream
Myeongdong
Wizard of Oz play
the Doota for dinner
We declared this day "hat day." So, all us girls donned a hat! I can honestly say we looked pretty cute! ;) We made a short little stop in Dongdaemun so that Dad could find a hand tool that Lydia wanted. After that, we went down to the little stream that runs through that area to just sit and chill. We had a little while before we had to go to the play. Once we got thoroughly tired of watching the fish, we walked over to a CVS (convenience store) and picked up some snacks and walked around Myeongdong for awhile.
I think all our hats display our personalities!! I'm actually wearing Dad's hat! :)
Chilling by the stream
Mom looking stunning with her rice cake! :)
Caught in the act of taking a selfie!! haha....
YUM!! Potatoes on a stick.
These things were so delicious....
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Day 6: Met Dad for lunch on base
Starbucks
We were nearing the end of Lydia's visit. Everything was winding down. We went to base to meet Dad for lunch, go to Starbucks, and take the kiddos to the park.
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Day 7: Farewell.....
Saying goodbye can be so hard! We loved having Lydia stay with us and we didn't want her to leave!! But all good things have to come to an end. :( We had a blast! It was pretty much a vacation for us too.
Thank you airport for making things confusing! Her bag was too heavy. We made a big mess right there in the check-in area as we opened her neatly packed suitcase and rearranged everything. We got it though. The only question I have is....If all she did was take stuff out of her suitcase and put it in her carry-on...wasn't all the weight still on the plane?!? Yeah...smart thinking there plane people! :)
Lydia, thank you so much for coming to see us! We now have someone who understands the love of manjoos, who gets odjie-mamma jokes, who knows what real Korean food is like, and shares love for Paris Baguette (we will find one in the states and you can meet us there!). :) We loved having you!!
K.K.M.D
Psalms 119:93
