Tag Archives: Osan

The Sand, Sea, and Cool Ocean Breeze

I’m starting to realize now why people take photos of landscapes, sunrises, sunsets, etc. They take that photo because they are worried they may never see or get to experience another moment like the one they are in. They capture it to preserve it, and hopefully they are able to capture a smidge of the beauty the real moment possesses.

There is a point to all of this random rambling, I promise.

As I sat on the beach, feet dug deep into the sand I realized, i’m enchanted by the beach.

The sand, sea, and cool ocean breeze….

We are so blessed to have the opportunity to enjoy it so freely, as we do on most of our weekends.

Last, but certainly not least…I had to share our very rustic dining accommodations for this weekend. I know, I know, you are jealous. All joking aside, Allen’ chicken kabobs with pineapple and veggies are heavenly!

Grab the map coordinates here

Scenes From Saturday

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From top to bottom:
1. We giggled at the korenglish sign…all jokes aside, trash is serious business here!
2.*Refreshing* Very berry smoothie from our favorite charming back alley cafe in Songtan
3. What a stud, that man of mine.
4. Hmmm…well, I suppose this is true?
5. The most delightful peach bread pudding topped with vanilla ice-cream!
6. Miss Bean you are so silly! You just make us smile and laugh everyday 🙂

Okonomiyaki

I know we have said this before…but in all seriousness… We THINK we have found our favorite place to grab a bite to eat near the Osan Airbase.

Yes, we buzzed south again for the extended weekend so Mr. B could get in more scuba training.

Here are some of our drool worthy pictures from dinner on Sunday night.

The restaurant is called Okonomiyaki. Curious, we googled to see what the word Okonomiyaki stood for. Good old Wikipedia states, “Okonomiyaki (お好み焼き o-konomi-yaki?) is a Japanese savoury pancake containing a variety of ingredients. The name is derived from the word okonomi, meaning “what you like” or “what you want”, and yaki meaning “grilled” or “cooked” (cf. yakitori and yakisoba.” (who say’s Wikipidia isn’t a viable source? LOL!)

2012_01_15 Okonomiya

2012_01_15 OkonomiyaJan 15, 2012Photos: 28
 

Hope you all have a wonderful day off! Happy Birthday, Mr. Martin Luther King, Jr.!

Headed South

2011_12_16 Christmas Scuba Party

2011_12_16 Christmas Scuba PartyDec 17, 2011Photos: 12
 

To Songtan that is. We left Friday night after work, loaded up the car, and headed south for the weekend.

One of Mr.B’s scuba friends had a birthday dinner planned. We couldn’t imagine not going as some of these people have become like extended family.

We arrived just in time for dinner. We headed directly to the restaurant called Churrascaria Rio Grill. This place was a Brazil steakhouse and we were eager to try it out as we didn’t have the best experiences with a Dongducheon Brazil Steakhouse.

What a treat! This place we actually pretty good! The meat was great, service great, and dessert….mmm…Perfecto!

We had all sorts of meats. We learned that Churrasco is a style of grilling meat over a fire pit, that originated in southern Brazil. At Rio Grill, various cuts of meat are put on a skewer and slow roasted over hot coals to mouth watering perfection. Tonight we had choices of, picanha steak, alcatra steak, frango chicken leg, linguica sausage, baby beef, and custelao rib.

We were so busy engorged in our food that we completely forgot to snap any good food or restaurant pictures to share. Yes, folks it was that good! Well…I did manage to pry my fork from my fingers and mouth while switching for my spoon to eat dessert and snapped a quick pic with the iPhone.

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Amazing, right?!

It was vanilla ice-cream with like a bananas foster sauce. Trust me, order it!

After dinner we were getting ready to go check into our hotel when I decided I really needed to bite the bullet and purchase my very first pair of long underwear. Yes, you read That statement right. Korea’s winter is no joking matter. The temperature plunges well into the 20’s and the wind just whips against your body. So yes, it was a total necessity to survive this winter without turning into frosty the snowwoman.

With my newly purchased knickers in hand, we went to the hotel and checked in. It was around 11pm and after the drive we decided to relax.

The next morning we woke up, grabbed breakfast, headed out and about to do some errands. We had fun walking to the Ville area where all the shops are located.

Nothing real eventful to report. We ate lunch for the first time at Blue Opera. Overall, a pretty neat atmosphere inside the restaurant. The tables are cozy, all seated with small love seats. The lunch menu was pretty westernized with a nice selection of teas and adult beverages. Food consisted of soups, salads, pastas, rice, etc. the cherry tea caught my eye so of course I had to order a cup.

Hmm… It tasted like they put a few sugar packets into the maraschino cherry juice jar and served it piping hot. it was awesome, at first. Then after commenting how I’ve never met my match where I’ve ate or drank something that I considered to sweet. Well, I spoke much to soon. This drink made me eat my words. I ended up with a slight stomachache because I drank half of the drink and it was just too sweet. Guess I now know the feeling that normal people have towards my candy corn and super sugary icing.

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Cherry Tea

After lunch on the way back we froze out little butts off because the wind was no long at our backs. Brrrrr! Korea you are so cold!

We got back to the hotel, warmed up, and suddenly there was a wrapped gift sitting on the bed. Mr. B told me to open it. He laughed and said quickly it was the book I had been searching for over the past few weeks. I of course did not believe him because we just came from the bookstore together where they did not have my book. What a sneak! Also I have to point out that Mr. B didn’t keep his word. We agreed no gifts because we were going to the Philippines for Christmas and we had agreed that was our gift to each other. Some days I just have no idea how I got so blessed to be married to this sweet man. I love him to the moon and back, even if he is a little sneak ;).

Mr.B was tired and wanted to take a quick nap. I had big plans to finish my book and play with my new gift. We got our act together in time for our next dinner meet up, 6 PM. Mexican at La Casa Del Mexicano! Woot-Woot! We headed back to the Mexican restaurant we snapped pictures of a few weeks ago when we last visited Songtan.

I changed my order up from the last we had been here and was daring enough to order fajitas diablo. A tad bit spicy, guess the two little peppers pictured beside the dish should have been a good indicator. I still loved it! Mr. B ordered the something he had last time. No cilantro for this man. We all had birthday celebration drinks consisting of beers, frozen mango margaritas, and regular margaritas. We topped everything off with a delicious light Korean cake from Paris Baguette. What a fantastically fun dinner. The birthday boys wife gave everyone potted plants with a beautiful hand panted flower (she painted) on the pot. How amazingly sweet are these people?

After dinner was over we grabbed drinks with some new friends at a little Irish Pub called Muddy Murphy’s. This place is small but boast with plenty of comfy character. We enjoyed getting some drinks, laughing, and chatting. Eventually our new friends had to get back on the road and get home. We parted ways but decided we have to meet up again very soon after the holiday madness settled down.

How was your weekend? Anything eventful to recap that makes you smile when reminiscing?

Fantastic Find, Fabulous Time!

Sitting here recapping my Saturday before going to bed.

Mr. B is scuba diving today, I woke up caught the 7AM bus with some friends and their baby G down to Songtan to do some shopping and eating. No real game plan, totally out of my norm, but it’s nice to have those days every once and awhile.

Fantastic find – Lunch! We ate at a quant little Japanese restaurant called
Izakaya.

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Food was delish! (However, i may just be bias because i could eat sushi or rolls everyday of my life…Yes, I am indeed obsessed!)

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Service was excellent and super friendly!

I was able to share with our friends From In, the coffee shop that Mr.B and I absolutely adore when we visit the area.

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We all enjoyed my favorite vanilla chai. Mmmm! They loved it just as much too 🙂 Ah! I just love sharing good things and small finds with people!

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Look! Now Mrs. P can cross eating bungeoppan off her list (Remember the little fish pastries).

Snapped some pictures of baby G. What a beautiful little guy! He’s such a well behaved and smart little guy. I loved that he was so trusting with me that on the way home he zonked out in my arms. Is there anything more peaceful looking?

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What a fabulous time!

How was your Saturday?

Holiday Weekend Getaway, Dr. Fish, Custom Tailored Suits, and Amazing Coffee!

“You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness.  You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism”.  Erma Bombeck

We are truly thankful that we are free to enjoy family and close friends picnics, watch our children do flips in the pool, take time to spend a day at the park and conclude the day of festivity by watching the dark night sky light up with a beautiful display of fireworks. This is all because of brave men and women who believe in in and love America so much that they are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice in the name of our individual FREEDOM.  While we are enjoying our freedom these individuals are protecting us all in the name of FREEDOM. We hope you take a few moments to reflect on the meaning of the 4th of July and what it means to you…

With that being said, we hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend this 4th of July. We sure did! We ended up heading down to Songtan where the Air-force base located. Mr. B had his mind made up that he wanted to purchase a custom tailored sport coat from a place called V.I.P Tailor that we had heard and seen amazing suits from.

Mr. B ended up picking out a beige linen material that looked really sharp! The quality was really impressive! HA-HA! I even ended up breaking out of my non-spending money shell and got measured for a suit jacket with matching skirt and pants.

We highly recommend the V.I.P  Tailor to anyone looking for a suit or business attire. Due to the weather our photos and video are a bit grainy because we decided to only carry our iPhones. We did capture a short video of the owner Song Ji Yun showing customers the difference in spotting quality hand stitched and pressed clothing from that of bad quality and glued and pressed ones (will post and share later). Once we learned we were pretty impressed and now are always looking to see what the tailors are selling.

Now we must tell you that Miss Yuns personality is a bit much  at times but she does know her stuff and her customers are always repeating and referring others.

After we accomplished ordering the suit, we had the entire weekend to do whatever without a set schedule or plan and that really felt nice!

As we said the weather wasn’t the most ideal but we made the most of it. The rain showers went and came all weekend so at times we didn’t need to carry around an umbrella and we did get lucky enough to go check out Asan Bay. The bay is located about 20 minutes away and has a nice little boardwalk that runs parallel with the water. When we say boardwalk we don’t mean the boardwalk like at the beach loaded with all sorts of vendors and eateries. There are some vendors and there are plenty of seafood eateries to pick from but it’s on a much sporadic level. We decided after snapping some pictures and walking around that we would like to come back and eat at the one restaurant.

So next we have to tell you about our Dr. Fish experience! We have reviewed a few blogs that suggested restaurants and things to see and do while in Songtan and a few talked about Dr. Fish. Dr. Fish is the

Garra Rufa  fish. The fish is a small species of freshwater fish that was originally found in the North and Central Middle East (we were told most commonly, Turkey).

Dr. Fish is commonly used for treatment of skin patients with problems such as psoriasis and eczema. What the Doctor Fish does is gentle nibbles and sucks on dead skin leaving soft skin underneath (these fish only nibble on the dead skin). As the fish nibble away at your dead skin it releases an enzyme secretion and Dithranol which helps skin regenerate faster. So basically it’s like a natural exfoliate.

Once we found the place and got there we all had thoughts of, “What do you mean the fish eat your skin? Are you serious? Does it hurt?!” soon enough our questions would all be answered.

First you scrub and rinse your little toesies off, roll up your pant legs and find a spot to sit around a hot tub shaped soaking pool (that is filled with cool water and the little fishies)…That’s it!!!

Next put your feet in the water and relax…You might giggle, scream, tense up, it all depends on how you react.

Mr. B laughed at first and said it felt like teeny bubbles, I thought it was a little weird for the first minute and sort of didn’t know what to think, but then it was quite relaxing (after getting past the fish sucking fast to my feet). Doris didn’t like the fish on the bottom of her feet and would say “get out of there!” and move her feet slightly. Hector was the same as me and didn’t quite know how to react.

We took some video with pictures to share our crazy experience. Again, we apologize for the quality.

The Nail Shop is called Escape Spa; the phone number is 031 – 665 – 9751. The staff members speak excellent English and are extremely helpful and professional. We only paid 6,000 Won per person for the Dr. Fish treatment (typically lasting 10-15 minutes) however our toesies were in the tub for a good half hour.

We ended up trying out the Meat House restaurant. Another suggested restaurant on numerous bloggers places to try. We all really enjoyed it! Priced at 12,000 won per person, all you could grill and eat meat, Korean foods, and choices of beer, wine, cider, and soda. What wasn’t to like?! We all agreed we would go back. However next time we found an authentic German restaurant that we will give a shot.

We want to end this blog post on a sweeter note. We found a quaint coffee cafe located in the tucked away streets of the Ville area in Songtan. The cafe is called From in. The space boast a rugged and cool feel with unfinished cement floors, walls, and celling.

The menu is hung high on a chalk-board with tons of drink choices that could appeal to anyone stopping in. Plus From in features delectable mini dessert pies, mini cheesecakes, and tiramisu.

Seating is a hodgepodge of cute wooden and wicker tables and chairs with pillows for extra comfort. When we were there for the first time at night the sliding glass doors were propped open to let in the cooled summer night air. The music that filled the air was a perfect fit with cafe mixed songs like unchained melody, fly me to the moon, and Ricky don’t lose that number.

Mr. B the coffee aficionado ordered a shot of espresso, and a caramel macchiato. He said that they were done perfectly and would go back. Of course we did end up going back the very next day. We much rather would give business to this little mom and pop shop than Starbucks any day. I ordered a hot vanilla Chai tea and I’d rank it the best one I have ever had.

We got to know the owners daughter after chatting with her a bit. She spoke fluent English and Korean. She told us that she is an American citizen but was only born there and lived there until the age of two. Her father is American and her mother is Korean.

She was so accommodating! She even told us how she made the Chai taste so good! We got a card and told her we wanted to give her a shout out on our blog. Please see below. (We will have to snap better pictures next time because the ones we have on our phones doesn’t give it justice)

Memorial Day Weekend Get Away (part 1)

This weekend it is Memorial Day Weekend in the United States, this is a time we pay tribute to the men and women who have lost their lives defending and protecting our country. Before I start the blog off, I would like to take a moment to thank the people who are currently serving or have served our country, those who lost their lives during their service, and I also want to pay tribute to the families of these truly amazing people as well. Thank you all for your selfless services that you have given us.

Ahh Memorial Day weekend, beaches, bar-b-ques and bright sunny skies! Okay, Okay! Not quite… we are in South Korea…yes, we do have beaches here and we did opt to head south for the weekend but not quite that far south.

This weekend we stayed over with some friends in Songtan. Songtan is part of Pyeongtaek and is located South of Seoul. It took us a little over 2 1/2 hours to get there but we all agreed that because we had such a great time laughing and talking that the time just flew by and did not feel like it was 2 1/2 hours.

Once we arrived at our hotel we checked in dropped off our luggage and headed for a bite to eat. We found ourselves in the Sinjang-dong shopping mall area. This area is very popular for bars, dance clubs, shops, and restaurants. It is said that approximately 230,000 tourist visit this area every year.

Songtan Map of shops
Songtan Map Restaurants and Hotels

We have heard that many Americans like to visit this area to pick up handbags; custom-tailored clothing, shoes, mink blankets, DVD’s, etc. because the prices are incredibly low and can often be haggled even lower. Many of the Koreans that work in this location are bilingual or at least speak and understand some English. We were also greatly surprised that many of the businesses wanted US dollar and not won.

Of course we found many American staples like McDonalds, Baskin-Robbins, and Popeye Chicken, however, there were many, many small individually owned restaurants as well.

After shopping and walking all the many alleys and streets of the shopping area it was after dinner time and we thought we better make our way back to the car to head to the Italian restaurant located about 20 minutes away that Larry had recently checked out and loved.

Puffins is also located in Pyeongtaek, just outside of the US military base Camp Humphreys. Our bellies were eager with anticipation due to Larry describing how incredible his meal was there. Once we arrived at Puffins we immediately loved the style and atmosphere of the restaurant. The booths have large throw pillows and the tables have Patron oil filled candles, the lights hanging are tiffany style, the walls are covered in various shots of New York and Marylyn Monroe. It really was a 1940’s American feel throughout. However, then the sweet Korean waitress approaches the table and you snap out of the daze and realize that you are still indeed in South Korea.

We were impressed at the level of service throughout the entire meal. The waitress was quick and really spoke very good English. The menu is HUGE and features almost all American fair foods and drinks. I mean this menu covered everything from soups, salads, pasta dishes, to enchiladas and Quesadillas.

Larry was right! This food was out of this world, delizioso! We started off with an order of Bruschetta. Note that they do bring you fresh warm bread while you wait for your meal as well. We all ended up ordering the lasagna because Larry had raved about it. Larry had a Seafood Linguine Fra Diavolo both dishes were incredible and there was no Korean twist to the dish whatsoever. We cannot wait to come back and visit Puffins again!