The best brunch in Seoul... SuJi's Deli in Itaweon

A quick Google search for the ultimate places to brunch in Seoul will show you a decent number of places to get your fill of a good old fashioned greasy fry up. But, as Seoul is a long way away from our little town, we wanted to make sure we weren't going to be disappointed as we often are with breakfasts here in Korea.

Suji's seemed to be ranked as one of the original brunch spots. So, armed with a bunch of very hungry South Africans we headed off to stuff our faces.

We were delighted with what awaited us...

Prices were what we had expected for a restaurant that caters for the Western market, pricey but totally justifiable. I mean, look at the size of the pancake platter.

Their menu is extensive and has something for everyone.

Everything was delicious (except the tea...who premixes frothed milk into English Breakfast?!) but the orange juice and burger made up for that.

It gets full very quickly, so make sure to get there early if you are a large group. Or just to be safe, call ahead (Tel 02.797.3698) and make a reservation.

Directions

서울특별시 용산구 이태원로 134, 2층 & 3층
2nd & 3rd Fl, 134 Itaewon-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul

Take Subway line 6 and get out at Itaewon, Exit 4.

It's all the way on the end of the main Itaewon drag, close to the McDonald's and right next door to SkinFood which is what you'll see when you reach the end of the road walking towards Noksapyung Station.

Tel 02.797.3698

Website: Sujis Diner

Opening Hours

Deli Cafe: 8am - 9pm 7 days a week

3rd Floor Restaurant: 11am - 10pm weekdays & 9am - 10pm weekends/holidays

Autumn Festivals in Korea 2014

Summer will slowly be drawing to a close here in Korea, and with that we can expect a break from the humidity and of course something that Korea is very famous for, it's Autumn/Fall foliage.

Here is a list of upcoming festivals to look forward to in September & October. The leaves won't be turning yet, that happens towards mid November, but there are enough interesting things to see before that happens.

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September 2014

25th September – 28th September Wonju Hanji Festival in Wonju (Traditional Korean Paper)

Hanji Theme Park in Wonju-si, Gangwon-do

Source

26th September - 5th October Andong Maskdance Festival

Downtown Andong, Talchum Park, Hahoe Village and surrounding areas in Andong-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do

Source

26th September - October 5th Suncheon Bay Reeds Festival

Suncheon Bay in Dongcheon, Suncheon-si, Jeollanam-do

Source

October 2014

1st October - 12th October Jinju Lantern Festival

Namgang River in Jinju-si, Gyeongsangnam-do

Source

1st October - 5th October Gimje Horizon Festival

Byeokgolje in Gimje-si, Jeollabuk-do

Source: CoKoreanAdventure

1st October - 5th October Anseong Namsadang Baudeogi Festival

Anseong Matchum Land in Anseong-si, Gyeonggi-do

Source: VisitKorea

2nd October - 11 October Busan International Film Festival

Theater District in Nampo-dong, Suyeong Bay Yachting Center, Haeundae Beach, and other locations in Busan

3rd October - 9th October Mungyeong Traditional Chasabal Festival (Traditional Tea Bowls)

Mungyeongsaejae Provincial Park in Gyeongsangbuk-do

Source: VisitKorea

October 4th - October 8th Gwangju World Kimchi Culture Festival

Jungoe Park in Buk-gu, Gwangju

Source

23rd October - 26th October Jeonju Bibimbap Festival

Jeonju Hanok Village in Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do

Source: VisitKorea

Thank you to Visit Korea for the above information. 

Self Portrait Challenge // week 2 The Mirror Selfie

This is a challenge to photograph a self portrait image {or two} every week for the rest of the year. By forcing myself in front of the camera I hope to learn a thing a two about posing my models and clients, and perhaps be creatively inspired to try a few new things that scare me. Click here to see the previous posts.

I am also included all the settings I used to take these photographs, in case are interested in recreating them or want to know more about how I take my photographs. 

Enjoy!

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The Mirror Selfie

Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 400 Aperture F/1.6 Shutter speed 1/200 sec

Post editing: basic exposure & noise correction in LightRoom

Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 400 Aperture F/1.6 Shutter speed 1/200 sec

Post editing: basic exposure & noise correction in LightRoom, black & white conversion

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Would you like to join the challenge? No fancy cameras needed. You can even use your phone. This challenge is a fun way to challenge yourself to get in front of the camera, instead of hiding behind it. I'd love for you to join me!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone.

x

Introducing TJ Stationery {and a GIVEAWAY}

Today I want to introduce you to tj stationery & gifts, an Australian based gift and stationery store that celebrates the simple pleasures in life. 

"Meet Jenny, a simple girl with an appreciation for all the little things in life. She lives in a humble Sydney apartment with her partner and bunny. One day, out of desire to do something that truly made her happy, she decided to start her own online store - combining her love for drawing and obsession with stationery. tj stationery & gifts is her creative outlet, a place where she can express her ideals of happiness, in the hope of spreading happiness to others".

You can find tj stationery & gifts on Instagram and Facebook, as well as in their Etsy store where they stock all kinds of pretty things to brighten up your day.

{Giveaway}

Jenny is giving away this lovely set of 6 letterpress cards for you to spread a little love to those around you. Perhaps someone you know needs a little cheering up, or maybe you want to say a little thank you to the lady next door who sporadically gives you fresh veggies. Whatever it is, use them to celebrate the simple pleasures in life.

This giveaway is open worldwide!

Just use the entry form thingy below (all you have to do is find us both (@CityGirlSearching & @tjstationerygifts) on Facebook and tweet about the giveaway...it's super easy!)

Winners will be announced on Thursday 4th September.

Good luck everyone!

Life After The Dress {Episode 15} Hannah Keppler

In this series I interview married women of all ages and from all walks of life and ask them real questions about their lives now, after all the glitter and sparkle of their wedding day is over. If you'd like to read more about the series and meet the other ladies I have interviewed, click here.

Today's interview is with Hannah, owner of The Ruby Orchard in Howick:

I used to stop by The Ruby Orchard whenever I was in Howick and longed for the day that I had a home to fill with all of the delightful goodies in store. It's been so wonderful getting to know Hannah (although it has all been over email) and I look forward to meeting her for 'real' soon.

Go grab yourself a cup of tea and get ready to be inspired.

x

Q1: Please introduce yourself (age, of both yourself and your husband, where do you live, what do you do & how long have you been married for?)

Hello! I am Hannah a 33 year old British Mum on a South African adventure! I am married to Greg a 38 year old South African and we live in Howick, KZN. We have been married for almost 6 years... and then we were 3! Our 3 year old Jonah arrived 3 years into our marriage – possibly the cutest boy on the planet!

We lived in the sleepy Devonshire Countryside in UK, and were both career monkeys who barely saw each other. Since moving to SA in 2012, Greg has joined the family business and I have opened The Ruby Orchard a décor furniture and gift shop in the Midlands. From Director of Sport to buying pretty things and designing furniture – Such a change, but so worth it. Greg and I now see each at least 4 times a day and I blog about our shop, decor ideas and products at TheRubyOrchard.

Q2: Which Disney character do you feel sums you up to a ‘T’?

Sally from cars. She grew tired of her high powered job and made a new start in a small town. She is straight forward, hardworking, and witty! 

Q3: How did you and your hubby meet?

Cringe... The Walkabout bar in Exeter, Devon. Jugs of snake bite, dancing, kebabs... the usual shenanigans of a 22 year old singleton. 

Q4: Was your wedding everything you hoped it would be? Would you go back and change anything? Do you have any advice for brides-to-be?

Our wedding was 100% everything I had hoped for and more. So many wonderful friend and family have said since that it was the most relaxed wedding they had ever been to. No strict timings for the day (apart from the ceremony) made it flow effortlessly. 

What I would change...? Maybe the music. In hindsight I wish we had had a live band rather than a DJ. Mainly because my mother in law kept hijacking the decks with Celine Dion... ah man...! 

My advice for brides-to-be: You don’t have to spend a fortune, have a fancy venue and hundreds of guests to have a beautiful wedding. We got married on my parents farm, arranged the flowers on the tables ourselves, I did my own makeup, friends played the music in the church, we hired the students I was teaching to run the bar and waitress and we borrowed our wedding cars from friends and famous Cricketers! 

Q5: Has ‘life after the dress’ been as you imagined it would be?

I have loved every minute of building our lives together. Our 6 years of marriage have been pretty hectic (careers, finding forever home, a baby boy, packing up our lives, goodbye forever home, immigrating, starting a business, drawing plans for forever SA home). Doing these things with a husband who supports and cares, is honest and gentlemanly has made life after marriage exactly what I hoped it would be. 

Q6: What do you think makes marriage work?

Acceptance, appreciation and lots of giggling. Accept each other for whom and what you are, you should not have to change to make a marriage work. Appreciate each other every single day and always giggle... especially at the little things that only the two of you understand! 

Q7: What have you learnt about yourself since being married?

I have leant I don’t need hobbies or sport or things anymore... A Sunday with Greg and Jonah washing the car, mowing the lawn, doing washing and baking in our little cocoon family world is pure bliss. 

Q8: If you could describe your marriage in 3 words, what would they be?

 Trusting – Devoted - Understood 

Q9: Do you have any pearls of wisdom you would like to share with my readers about being married? Perhaps something some wise person once told you, or something you've learnt the hard way?

Never go to bed with an issue that hasn't been resolved, if you are cross, upset or unsure... it needs to be ironed out over a cuppa and chocolate before bedtime! 

• Blog
• Website
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• Email: therubyorchard@hotmail.com

I hope you have been enjoying this series as much as I have enjoyed putting it together.

If you would like to be featured here on the blog, you can drop me an email using the contact form above or leave me a comment below. I look forward to hearing from you!

Weekly Wishes {8}

Hello and welcome to my Weekly Wishes series where I talk about my goals and wishes for the week ahead. Popping them here on the blog will hopefully help me to stay on track with the things I want to do or get done. These posts are part of a link up by The Nectar Collective where Melissa has a wonderful community of women who link up their weekly wishes and are there to support and encourage one another. It's also a great way to make new friends and find new blogs to follow, why don't you join me?

THIS WEEKS WISHES

1. Get back into my early morning exercise routine. That includes a 30 - 40 minute Blogilates session (using the app workout calendar which I have downloaded onto my phone. Simply download the app, buy the calendar for 99c and then go through each video posted for that day). Then a 30 minute yoga session (I have really been enjoying the website DoYogaWithMe which has loads of different videos to choose from, from 15 minute quick pick me up sessions, to 90 minute strength classes, all free to stream online).

2. Start planning for the upcoming festivals that will be happening here in Korea. I need to choose which festivals I want to see, and then start marking them down in my diary before the weekends all fill up with other activities.

3. Post my new giveaway with TJ Stationery.

4. Get organising the latest #DIYDaysInKorea meet-up which will be next month! Click here to find out more or join our Facebook group to be part of the next one.

That's all I have for this week.Do you have anything you really need to get done this week? Drop me a comment below, I'd love to hear from you.

Have a wonderful week everyone <3

Self Portrait Challenge // week 1 double exposure

Today I was inspired to start a weekly self portrait challenge. This is by no means a way to showcase my face all over this blog, but rather a way to practice portrait photography and try out new techniques and poses (without having to track down a friend and force them to pose awkwardly for me). I love shooting portraits, and am always trying to find new and creative ways to showcase my subjects beauty, so I hope that I can apply the new things I've learnt online so I can share them with you.

I will also be posting what settings I used and whether I did any editing to the photographs so you can try them at home.

Thank you to the lovely Colette & Kristien who inspired me to start this challenge today.

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Experimenting with Double & Multiple Exposure

Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 2200, Aperture F/16, Shutter speed 1/200

No post editing

Camera: Nikon d700

Lens: 50mm 1.4D

Settings: ISO 1250, Aperture F/3.5, Shutter speed 1/1600

No post editing

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I learnt so much about double (and multiple) exposure today (thank you to another of my favourite South African bloggers, Emma Jane Nation for further inspiration on this subject).

I created the layering of images in camera, instead of the alternative way of producing these images in Photoshop and was surprised at just how simple it was to do.

If you'd like me to do a tutorial on double exposure, let me know in the comments below. 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!

x

Vintage Fashion Shoot in Buan, South Korea

A few weeks ago I posted the first batch of photographs from a blueberry styled photo shoot  I did with the lovely Helen, pictured below. Here are a few more, these ones with more of a focus on Helen's collection of vintage items from her travels. I contacted Helen asking her is we would like to be my model (click here to see more of the styled photo shoots I have done with my stylist and friend Storm). Helen was happy to join us, and we also turned the shoot into a bit of a fashion shoot too, so she could get some shots for the vintage clothing store she is planning on resurrecting when she gets back home to the States.

If you're in South Korea and are in need to a photographer, please don't hesitate to contact me.

x

Weekly Wishes {7}

Hello and welcome to my Weekly Wishes series where I talk about my goals and wishes for the week ahead. Popping them here on the blog will hopefully help me to stay on track with the things I want to do or get done. These posts are part of a link up by The Nectar Collective where Melissa has a wonderful community of women who link up their weekly wishes and are there to support and encourage one another. It's also a great way to make new friends and find new blogs to follow, why don't you join me?

THIS WEEKS WISHES

Today marks the first official day of the second semester at my school (I teach English at an all girls middle school here in South Korea).

Farmboy and I just got back from a wonderful trip to Bali for our summer holiday and now it's time to get back into some sort of routine again. So here are my goals for the week ahead:

1. Get back into the habit of drinking more water (at least 2 litres a day)

2. Put my Fitbit back on and commit to walking 10 000 steps a day for the next 5 days (you would be surprised just how difficult it actually is to walk 10 000 a steps a day. I thought I was a pretty active person, but 10 000 steps is a lot further than you'd think. Full review of my Fitbit to come soon).

3. Get prepared for the fundraisers a group of us here in my province are putting together to raise money for outreach projects that help those who have been affected by human trafficking. To find out more about what you can do to help, have a look at this wonderful organisation The Exodus Road, a nonprofit coalition that empowers freedom from sex slavery through covert investigation and rescue.

That's all I have for this week.Do you have anything you really need to get done this week? Drop me a comment below, I'd love to hear from you.

Have a wonderful week everyone <3

Highlights of Beautiful Bali

Farmboy and I have just got back from our summer holiday in Bali. One of the major perks of living in Korea is the opportunity to travel South East Asia, as places like Indonesia are easily accessible.

We were in Bali for 12 days and tried to see as much as could in the time we had. I will be posting a full travel guide soon, like I did with Vietnam (click here) but for now I'll leave with a visual feast of colour.

I traded in my trusty Nikon D300s a few months ago, for a Nikon D700, which I used to take these photographs. As I now shoot full frame, I have to invest in full frame lenses (and these do not come cheap!) Currently I have only a 50mm prime lens and this is what I used for the entire trip. No fancy zooms (I had to make do with my feet) and no wide angle shots. It can be a stressful process trying to find the 'perfect' lenses to take with you on holiday, and you often feel you need to have ALL the things to take perfect photographs. But, what I soon came to realise is that all you really need is a little patience and practice to train your eye to capture your subjects in new and interesting ways.

We loved our time in Bali, spending 4 days in Ubud, 5 days on the Gili Islands (3 days on Gili Meno & 2 days on Gili Trawangan) and then 3 final days in Ubud. We stayed in a variety of accomodation, from fancy villas overlooking rice paddies, to bamboo huts on the beach. What our time so memorable was the people we met throughout our stay. We had a wonderful host and tour guide for our first few days who taught us so much about the people and their way of life in Bali.

But more on that to come in another post.

For now, the photographs.

Enjoy!

DIY Painted Vase and How to Arrange your own Flowers #DIYDaysInKorea

Welcome to the next instalment in my #DIYDaysInKorea series. These #DIYDaysInKorea posts are about making beautiful things for your home (whether that home is in South Korea or South Africa, or any where else in the world).

If you are based here in Korea and would like to join one of my DIY days (we had our first official meet up a few weeks ago and it was such fun...click here to see what went on) you can pop on over to the Facebook group for more information. 

I hope you enjoy this series and that you leave feeling inspired.

x

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DIY Painted Vase & Flower Arrangement

Myself and my very talented friend Storm, who moonlights as a stylist & florist, had some time on our hands and found this pretty cheap glass vase at our local Daiso here in Korea. Storm straight away had an idea to repurpose it with a lick of paint, and off we went on a scavenger hunt for flowers around our neighbourhood. 

Today Storm is going to show you how to arrange your own flowers in such a way that they look beautiful, artsy and, expensive.

What You Need

glass vase or something you can turn into a vase such as a glass, bowl etc (does not need to be expensive or fancy) 

spray paint

flowers, bought or foraged from the garden or sidewalk

Directions

Easy peasy lay some newspaper down and spray the outside of the vase (I would omit spraying the inside as it was in fact unnecessary) wait to dry and get creative. 

Place sticky tape in a grid formation to help give the flowers shape and volume. It also gives the foliage more structure and keeps the flowers in place. 

Get creative with your flowers and make an arrangement from the heart. You can't go wrong with flowers, start with your foliage (the green leaves and other bits of non blooming elements) then your focal flowers (the big ones) at the base and go from there.

And there you have it, your own beautiful floral creation, without the price tag of a fancy florist.

If you create your own arrangement, please tag me in your photograph (twitter: @roxyhutton Instagram: @roxyhutton Facebook @CityGirlSearching) I'd love to see what you create.

Happy DIYing and flower arranging!

Gradient Nail Art Tutorial

My Korean friend Heejoung (who was my model for the spring flower crown photoshoot Storm and I did a few months ago, click here to see the beautiful photographs) came over for tea yesterday and ended up helping me with my first ever gradient manicure. 

This is a super easy to do manicure. It can be adapted in so many ways but works best with 3 colours in varying shades. You need a dark colour, a medium shade and a light shade (but these are not rules set in stone, try mixing it up with any colour combination for a fun alternative to the original gradient nail).

You need 

3 nail polish colours

base coat

top coat

sponge (I first tried with a regular makeup sponge, wich failed miserably. So make sure to use the 'spongey spongey' kind of sponge, if that makes sense. I ended up having to cut my kitchen scourer sponge up to use the end with more 'holes').

Directions

Start with a coat or two of your favourite base coat. This protects your nails from the chemicals inside all nail polish, and prevents your nails from discolouration.  I would suggest painting one coat of a white polish after your base coat as it would make a better 'base' for this kind of manicure.  But it's up to you, I didn't and wish that I had done so as it would have made my colours pop a bit more, especially my lightest shade which ended up looking a little bland.

Then paint your nail polish onto the tip of your sponge. Work quickly so as not to let the polish dry too quickly on the sponge itself. 

Place the sponge on your nail, first applying pressure to the top of your nail closest to your cuticle and then move the pressure to the middle and finally to the end of your nail keeping the sponge in contact with your nail the entire time. You are making a kind of backwards 'C' motion with the sponge. You can also use a side to side motion for the first coat (as pictured above). Once you have you first coat, dab the nail with the sponge to apply more colour. The more you dab, the more natural the gradient look will be. Repeat on all your nails, finishing off with a couple of coats of your top coat to seal in the polish and protect your nails from chipping

Your sponge will make the manicure look textured and not as smooth as a regular manicure. But this can be changed by using a smoother sponge. 

Next you've got a bit of cleaning up to do:

Use an earbud dipped in nail polish remover to clean up your cuticles. You can also apply a lotion or vaseline to your cuticles before painting as this makes the clean up process very easy. I forgot to do this and had quite a job removing all the edges. This is a very messy manicure and does require quite a bit of work to make it look perfect. But the hard work is definitely worth it, don't you think?

Next I'm going to try a pastel combination, what colours do you think would work best?

If you try this yourself, share your work on my Facebook page (@citygirlsearching) or on Instagram (@roxyhutton) I'd love to see what combination you choose.

Backpacking in Bali & What to Pack

On Monday, Farmboy and I are off on our summer holiday to Bali. It's been a long semester of teaching and boy oh boy do we need this holiday. As I've been packing, I thought it would be fun to show you what I pack in terms of toiletries for a backpacking trip. I say backpack, because that is what we travel with, and even though we do treat ourselves along the way with nice hotels, we spend a lot of our time in backpacker type accommodation.

Here is what I pack for each of the trips we've done (you can see more about our last trip to Malaysia by clicking here and Vietnam by clicking here). 

There are one or two items that I haven't packed yet (toothbrush, deodorant and mosquito spray) but this is what I will be taking for our trip to Bali:

Toiletries:

I found the handy travel sized bottles at Dischem back in South Africa and top them up with whatever products I am using to the time.

-My shampoo and conditioner were half full with Loreal Elvive from back home in South Africa and I just topped them up with the little I had left of their full sizes.

-A spray bottle with IQ DermaQuench Rose Blossom Toner (also from back home).

-Body wash bottle filled with whatever wash we have in the bathroom here (a fresh citrus smelling wash from Happy Bath here in Korea)

-Face Wash from the youth range of skincare from Dermalogica (also bought back home).

-Hera 50+ Sun Mate Leports waterproof sunscreen

-My favourite sunscreen for face, Oil Cut SPF 40 from The Face Shop Korea.

-Olay Total Effects Eye Transforming Cream

-Travel sized Black Sugar Perfect First Serum Gold from SkinFood

-A sample sized Argan hair treatment oil from Confume (review to come soon, this stuff is amazing!!)

-My favourite Chia Seed Water toner and lotion from The Face Shop in  their cute travel sized containers. And lastly, the most useful skincare product, Green Tea facewipes from Étude House

Makeup:

-Mac StudioFit pressed powder

-Innisfree Pink Beam Mineral Pact highlighter which I use for a blush, highlighter and eye shadow

-Essence Stay All Day Concealer as you always end up getting at least one pimple while being away on holiday. This concealer is light and stays put all day.

-Lipgloss from TheFaceShop

-Tweezers

-Eyebrow comb and pencil from The Face Shop. I have only recently delved into eyebrow care and I can't believe just how much of a difference it makes to your face. The pencil can also be used as an eye liner.

-DCT lip balm (the ultimate lip care product!). it is so expensive back home in South Africa, but I have found it on Iherb for just over $2...it's nearly $9 back home!

-Oh! M' Eye Lash Curling  mascara I just picked up from Etude House. It's not waterproof as I just don't want to deal withe hassle of taking off waterproof mascara on holiday. Most people would advise you packing waterproof mascara especially when going on holiday to a topical island, but the mascara I have that is waterproof takes nearly 4 products to remove, and although my lashes look amazing all day, while taking it off I nearly always loose a few lashes. So I'm trying this one out, and just hoping for the best!

-a selection of hair accessories (hair ties, clips and most importantly, bobby pins)

First Aid Kit

Without fail, one of us ends up getting sick in same way while on holiday. We always pack a little bag  of medicine just in case. We usually use a clear zip lock bag which helps when trying to find it in your backpack, as well as making things easier for yourself when going through check in at the airport:

-Medlemon sachets for colds and flu

-Nurofen for pain and fever

-Disprin for headaches and fever

-Genpain, a generic form of myprodol for really bad headaches or body pain

-Strepsils for sore throats

-Buscopan for stomach cramps

-Valoid for neasuea

-a local pill for diarrhoea (I have been warned about Bali Belly, so best be prepared I think!)

-plasters, mosquito bite cream, mosquito repellant and ear buds

Is there anything else you would suggest travelers pack for their backpacking trip? Or anything you can see I have forgotten, please drop me a comment below! I have today to still rush out and make sure I'm all ready...

Hiking the Jagged Peaks Trail & Camping on Saryang Island

At the change of the season, Farmboy and I, along with a bunch of friends decided to head to Saryang Island to hike the Jagged Peaks trail. We didn't know much about the hike, but we did know that summer was approaching and soon we would be unable to walk a few metres without being out of breath from the humidity. So we decided to make hay while the sun was shining and packed our camping gear for the long weekend in April. 

Saryang-do ("do" means Island in Korean) is a small island just off the coast from Tongyeong. Farmboy and I were testing out Cherry (our beat up but-still-going-strong red car that we had recently bought) and drove from Buan to Tongyeong in about 4 hours. Saryang-do is the red dot on the map below:

From Tongyeong, you have to catch a small ferry to Saryang-do (be warned, there are 3 ferry terminals in Tongyeong) and the first ferry for the island was at 7am. We stayed at a jimjilbang (possibly the worst idea we could have had) but it was cheap and did mean we were relatively close to the ferry terminal. The quickest ferry leaves from Saryangdo Passenger Boat Terminal (사량도여객선터미널)  at Gauchi Harbour 가우치항, 15km north west of Tongyeong city centre so budget your time accordingly! We missed the first ferry but were able to make second one.

The ferry from Gauchi Harbour leaves at 7am, 9am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm and 5pm and takes 45mins to an hour. Tickets were W5 500 per person and around W11 000 for our small car each way. 

Thanks to KoreanTrails.org here is some information on the bus route to get to Gauchi Harbour from Tongyeong city centre:

"Bus 607 runs from Lotte Mart in Tongyeong out to Gauchi Harbour.
Buses leave Lotte Mart at 6am, 8:05, 10:05, 12:05, 14:00, 16:00 and take 45-50mins. 
Bus 607 starts its route at Seoho Market 20mins earlier, with the exception of the 6am bus, which starts at Lotte" KoreanTrails.

The hike itself wasn't particularly challenging, but there were some very steep parts where we all had to scramble on our bums, or hang on for dear life while descending stair cases. You are making your way across actual jagged cliff peaks so even though the distance doens't seem that much (about 7km from east to west) it is pretty slow going for most of the way. It was a good 4 -5 hour hike but the views from the top were incredible. 

We were also very lucky with the weather, and had clear blue skies the entire way. 

The hike itself is designed to end at the ferry terminal, so you have a few options. Either catch a shuttle bus (which may or may not be running at the time) to the main start of the hike,  grab a taxi bus (we ended up doing this and it cost us W20 000 which we split between the 5 of us) or you can walk to the start which is a fairly long distance. You can also choose to do the hike backwards but I think the last thing you will want to be doing one you finish the hike will be walking along the main road to the terminal. 

The shuttle bus leaves the harbour 7 times a day running around the island. In the morning it runs clockwise at 6:50am, 7:45, 9:45 and 11:45. In the afternoon it goes counter-clockwise at 1:45, 3:45 and 5:35. The afternoon buses leave Donji at the far west of the island, bound for the harbour at 2:10, 4:10 and 6:10. 

We had packed camping gear and made our way to a quiet beach area. The Korean families were all jam-packed in the car park, as they tend do do (Korean style camping is VERY different from South African style camping). We managed to scramble up a small hill behind the main campsite onto a patch of land (it seemed to be private but the owner didn't bother us and we made sure to clean up everything after our stay) and had the most amazing views from the doors of our tents.

It was one of the best hikes I've done in Korea so far!

Weekly Wishes {6}

Hello and welcome to my Weekly Wishes series where I talk about my goals and wishes for the week ahead. Popping them here on the blog will hopefully help me to stay on track with the things I want to do or get done. These posts are part of a link up by The Nectar Collective where Melissa has a wonderful community of women who link up their weekly wishes and are there to support and encourage one another. It's also a great way to make new friends and find new blogs to follow, why don't you join me?

THIS WEEKS WISHES

I have only one for this week. I wish my Grandpa would get better soon. He had a stroke recently and isn't doing very well. It's so hard being on the other side of the world when family members are sick. Gramps, take it easy and don't eat too many rusks, actually, you can have as many rusks as you like, I'll tell Gran.

Gaeamsa Temple, Buan South Korea

One rainy Sunday afternoon, Farmboy and I took a drive out of town to visit one of the temples close by. I had heard that Gaeamsa temple was particularly beautiful during the Spring when the cherry blossoms are flowering. I have been told it is one of the quieter places to go to enjoy the pretty blossoms, without all the crowds that usually flock to places like Gwangyang and Jinhae.

It was a grey and gloomy day but Gaeamsa temple was still an interesting place to wonder around and take photographs. It's the middle of summer now so everything is beautiful and lush, with green colours all around. Inside the main temple, we were surprised to see the original architecture still in place, very old and worn down, but beautiful none the less. Most of the other temples we have visited have all been remodelled and look very new and have lost the authentic charm of their original structures. This temple still had that charm, and it was fascinating to see.

After strolling around we took a drive to Gochang (now that we have our little red car we are able to go wherever we like...it's been a game changer for us!) for lunch and found a delightful retro inspired coffee shop for a well deserved slice of cake.

"Gaeamsa Temple (개암사) is a small, quiet temple built in 634 AD during the Baekje Dynasty. Historical records tell about three-year restoration campaign undertaken by the people of Baekje after the fall of the dynasty. Daeungjeon, the temple's main sanctuary, has been designated as Treasure No. 292. The building itself expresses both refined beauty and majesty as it stands in harmony against Ulgeum Rock, seemingly taking the role as its steadfast protector" Visit Korea

Address:

248, Gaeam-ro, Sangseo-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeollabuk-do 
전라북도 부안군 상서면 개암로 248 (상서면)

Blueberry Picking Styled Photoshoot

This is the fourth styled shoot that my friend Storm and I have worked together on. We both have had such much fun organising and brainstorming ideas before each shoot, as well as scouting out locations. We started styling shoots earlier this year as a way of growing our creativity, and being productive here in South Korea. I take the photographs, hair and makeup and Storm handles the clothing and general styling of the model and our location. 

So far we have done a flower crown shoot, a late afternoon picnic beach shoot, and a Korean temple.

We hope you enjoy these photographs from a trip to a blueberry farm near the small town of Jeongeup, South Korea. A huge thank you to our beautiful model Helen, a Southern Gal from the US who was such a delight to work with. 

x

Blueberry Chocolate Banana Bread {recipe}

After the success of my last cranberry chocolate chip banana bread recipe (and the fact that I had 5 bananas that were so black and nasty, they were about the walk themselves outside) I adapted the recipe to include some blueberries. It's blueberry season here in Korea, and boy oh boy did those blueberries not jus make this my best banana bread yet! 

I love that this recipe is so versatile. You can change up the flour (I substituted some buck wheat flour in this mixture to reduce the carb count...hubby is still not sure about me trying to make sweet treats healthy so I am going about it slowly so hopefully he doesn't notice). You can also use any other fruit you would prefer instead of the blueberries. Cranberries have worked well, apple would be good too. And you can add in any extras that yo fancy too, like almonds, walnuts or cinnamon.

PREP: 5 MINS COOKING TIME: 30MINS - 1 HOUR 

-it again took a VERY long time for my bread to cook, but that is because I have a little oven that gets hot very quickly and tends to burn things on the top without cooking through. I would put the timer on for 20 minutes and then check your bread every 5 minutes after that. You will be able to see whats going on in your oven, and you also know if you have a decent 'will-cook-through-without-burning' oven. You want the bread to be moist, but cooked. Dry banana bread is horrid. So keep testing with a sharp knife. If it pulls away clean, your bread is ready. If it comes away with even a little gooey dough on the knife, leave it in for a few more minutes.

INGREDIENTS

-3/4 ripe bananas, smashed (my banana were black black black, had been frozen and then thawed and worked absolutely perfectly! No need to freeze yours, mine were just sitting in the freezer until I could find a use for them).

-1/3 cup coconut oil (you can use butter if you don't have coconut oil)

-1/2 cup brown sugar sugar 

-1 egg, beaten

-1 teaspoon vanilla

-1 teaspoon baking soda

-pinch of salt

-1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (I used 1 cup of regular cake flour and half a cup of buckwheat flour to make it a tiny bit less full of carbs)

-handful of blueberries

-handful (and a half!) of chocolate chips/any chocolate

METHOD

No need for a mixer, a bowl and wooden spoon are more than adequate. 

Preheat your oven to 180C. 

With a wooden spoon, mix your coconut oil into the mashed banana. Add the sugar, egg and vanilla. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in. Add the flour last, and sprinkle in the chocolate chips and cranberries (and anything else you feel like adding...flaked almonds & cinnamon are good extras). 

Pour the mixture into a buttered (I used coconut oil again) loaf pan.

Bake for 1 hour, placing on a rack to cool.

Let me know if you try this at home, you can tag me on Instagram (@roxypearce) or on Facebook :)

Life After the Dress {Episode 14} Christine Bernard

In this series I interview married women of all ages and from all walks of life and ask them real questions about their lives now, after all the glitter and sparkle of their wedding day is over. If you'd like to read more about the series and meet the other ladies I have interviewed, click here.

I 'met' Christine through her awesome monthly magazine, Flat White. I submitted a travel post on my a road trip from the Eastern to the Western Cape of South Africa (you can see it here) and we have been in touch via social media ever since. Christine is such a happy bunny, full of energy and enthusiasm and I loved reading her answers to the questions below.

So grab yourself a flat white and get ready to be inspired.

Q1: Please introduce yourself (age, of both yourself and your husband, where do you live, what do you do & how long have you been married for?)

Hello. I’m Christine, 32 and my husband is Warren, 34. I run a Graphic Design business called Flat White Concepts and host a monthly online lifestyle magazine, Flat White Magazine and a blog; The Flat White Blog. Warren is a photographic retoucher and photographer at Flat White Images. We live in the beautiful Rondebosch in Cape Town and we have been married for just over 8 years!

Q2: Which Disney character do you feel sums you up to a ‘T’?

Lilo from Lilo & Stitch. I look a bit like her, my mom is Mauritian so I feel like I have a bit of ‘islander’ in me. She is a very spirited character and I’m very attracted to her sense of ‘weirdness’. Feeling like she doesn’t always quite fit in but embracing who she is no matter what. Her affectionate feeling towards Stitch reminds me of my own love of animals!

Q3: How did you and your hubby meet?

We through friends at a club in Durban. The first thing I said to him is ‘I like your shirt’. We didn’t go out straight away but stayed friends for a while, however my mom told me one day that she knew who I was going to marry and that she would write the name down in an envelope and open it when I got married. The name was ‘Warren’. She said it was obvious we would eventually fall in love because I couldn’t stop talking about him.

Q4: Was your wedding everything you hoped it would be? Would you go back and change anything? Do you have any advice for brides-to-be?

My wedding was amazing. At the time we were living in London so we came back to get married at Lythwood Lodge in the Natal Midlands. Our colours were white and forest green and I wanted everything to look as natural as possible. Apparently a cow walked past the chapel when we were getting married, heh heh. I only got into the design world a few years after marriage so if I could go back I would probably add a lot more creative touches to the wedding. Other than that I wouldn’t change a thing. My advice for brides-to-be is to not take the day too seriously, to be as relaxed as possible and enjoy every second because after months of planning the actual day goes by in a flash.

Q5: Has ‘life after the dress’ been as you imagined it would be?

I don’t think I had any expectations which I think is quite important. For me, I was just marrying my best friend and it seemed like the most natural thing in the world.

Q6: What do you think makes marriage work?

Communication and a hell of a lot of laughter. Warren taught me not only how to laugh at the world but also at myself. Having the same values and the same sense humour helps a lot.

Q7: What have you learnt about yourself since being married?

I learnt how to take things a little less seriously and to laugh when things go wrong. I have learnt that I am the type of person that needs to talk things out and that a big hug, a cup of coffee and a packet of chocolate raisins always cheers me up.

Q8: If you could describe your marriage in 3 words, what would they be?

Laughter, Trusting, Adventurous

Q9: Do you have any pearls of wisdom you would like to share with my readers about being married? Perhaps something some wise person once told you, or something you’ve learnt the hard way?

Laugh as often as you can. Be yourself (the good, bad, ugly and just plain weird). Don’t take life too seriously. Go out and have fun. Stay in and have cuddles.

• Blog: TheFlatWhiteBlog
• Website: FlatWhiteConcepts
• Twitter: @FW_Concepts
• Facebook: FlatWhiteConcepts
• Warrens Website: FlatWhiteImages

I hope you have been enjoying this series as much as I have enjoyed putting it together.

If you would like to be featured here on the blog, you can drop me an email using the contact form above or leave me a comment below. I look forward to hearing from you!