Cafe YLab

If you're a fan of coffee, cakes, vinyl toys and mangas, Cafe YLab (와이랩) is probably paradise for you. Although comic books cafe is pretty common in Seoul cafe scene, this was my first visit to one. Ended up to this place after walking around Hapjeong (합정) neighborhood (as always) and accidentally saw their banner in front of the entrance. The one thing that made me want to actually go into the cafe was to see that huge Iron Man statue that stand next to the entrance. Pretty awesome right? Cafe YLab is pretty cozy and a perfect place to study or work if you're looking for a quite place but not as quite as the library. They have pretty good drinks and cakes and lots of mangas (most of them are in Korean and Japanese only). They also decorated the place with collections of vinyl toys that are spread all over the cafe. The cafe actually has 2 floors, but I didn't manage to go upstairs to check out the space. Maybe for my next visit. 

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MMCA Seoul • 국립현대미술관

My first two trips to the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Seoul—also known as MMCA Seoul—were 3 days apart and both were with a couple of friends from Instagram, a couple who I met for the first time—Nico, Robin, and Ian.  This was back in January so I'm guessing the exhibitions are probably different by now. The space is pretty cool, so I thought I share a couple of shots from our visit. 

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Bukchon at Sunset

I'm pretty sure for those of you who have visited Seoul or wanted to visit seoul or simply watch Korean dramas are familiar with this particular location, the Bukchon Hanok Village (북촌한옥마을), which is probably one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city. I've been here a couple of times during daytime, but this was my first experience spending sunset in this neighborhood. It was a cold winter day, and since the sun was setting down, there weren't that many people in the area. I guess Seoulites prefer to stay indoors on a cold weather day like today, as they should. The experience was totally different than spending time here during the daytime surrounded by groups of tourists trying to take their group shots or take as much selfies as they could. It's so serene, peaceful almost. Such a great way to end the day to just admire the view, watch the sun disappeared into the horizon and the city light started to lit up here and there. For those of you who are in the Eastern part of the globe, I bid you good night, and for the rest of you, good morning and happy weekend! :)

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The Dining Lab

The Dining Lab (더다이닝랩) is probably one of my favorite restaurants in Seoul. Located in the Donggyodong (동교동) neighborhood, I'm surprised to find this restaurant away from the more crowded area of Hongdae. The restaurant is small. They have only a couple tables and a bar area that is facing the open kitchen. If you want to see the action in the kitchen, sitting at the bar will definitely get you that. Their food is really good. I've been here a couple of times and tried different things and I love them all. I'm more of a meat person overall so I'm really picky when eating my veggies, but the way the cook their veggies here is good. Everything is cooked in the right way and seasoned really well. Although, the portion is a little small compared to the price, but I can live with that since I don't come here everyday :P. If you're looking to try something new around Hongdae area, I would definitely recommend this place.

Pictured: Salmon Gravlax & Beurre Blanc Sauce, Salmon Steak with Roast Bacon, Burger with French Fries, & Sous-vide Ribeye Steak with Roasted Vegetables.

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Ferry Plaza Farmers Market

One of my favorite things to do when I'm in the bay area is visiting Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. And so, during my last trip, I did just that with my sisters and my mom. It always fun visiting this place because there are so much things to do. This time, I can't helped to fall in love with all the colorful fresh vegetables that were on display all over the market. I think because I haven't been here for a while, I'm once again fascinated with all these bright colors. 

Of course after exploring the outdoor area, we went inside the Ferry building to sightsee some more. As soon as we entered the hall, we're greeted by the crowd of people shopping at the different stalls along the hallway. People lining up to buy their fresh groceries, vendors offering their product samples for people to try, and some people are dining at their favorite spots are common sights for a Saturday morning in this place. Hope I can visit this place again soon.

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