One of the tourist attractions that you will find in Seoul Korea is the Seoul Tower.

A top tourist question that people will ask: Is the tower worth visiting?

Well, if are a tourist in Singapore: Should you look for the Merlion and take pictures around the vicinity?

If your answer is YES…

Then, you will put the Seoul Tower into the category of “Things that you should do”, when you are in Korea.

One of the Plus points about visiting the tower, is that you will get breathtaking views of the city.

IMHO, the city is even more beautiful in winter, as the snow capped trees and houses, are a real sight for a Singaporean like myself.

The tower stands at 236m and it is shorter than other more renowned towers like the Eiffel Tower. Tickets are not too expensive – Costing about 7000won for an adult ticket. At today’s conversion, this will be only be about Sing 8 Dollars.

A real negative point about the tower is the climb up to the base of the tower.

The buses are not allowed up to the base and it was a really steep climb up to the base of the tower. With the wind blowing into our faces, many of us were really shivering in the cold, as we made our way up the hill.  Despite the cold, we still saw joggers running up the hill in just jogging shorts!

Seoul Tower is really worth the while!

But if shopping is your cup of tea, Dongdaemun market might be much more interesting to you!

Traditionally whenever I go to Korea, Dongdaemun is a place that I will go to buy clothes.

The malls in Dongdaemun open from 10.30 a.m. to 5 a.m., so this place practically doesn’t sleep if you go shopping at night.

The best thing about the clothes there is that the designs are really modern and very Japanese. Unfortunately, I did not buy much this time round, as they were mostly selling thick winter wear.

Dongdaemun was even more exciting this time round, as I went to the Toys and Stationary wholesale market.

We took the Metro to Dongdaemun Station, and we proceeded to exit 4.

Walking down about 25m, we turned right and we were greeted by many toy stores.

This is the harvest from our day out at the market. We got all these toys from $8-$15 each.

This arsenal of toys was essential for our trip back home, as Nicole was calling everyday and asking what we got for her.

We only managed to get her to stop calling, when she found out that we bought her Princess Shoes and something from Cinderella

This is Nicole in her little outfit!!!

One of the highlights of Hong Kong for a family vacation is Stanley Market, located in a fishing village near Repulse Bay.

We were persuaded to visit this market by two of our friends—Jane & Celeste. I was quite convinced to go UNTIL I went to google it. Oh my! The description for this place!

Tourist Trap, Your English name in Chinese calligraphy, Linen tablecloth, Chinese embroidery…

It sure didn’t look like an attractive place. And it didn’t help that when I checked a few travel blogs, and NO ONE mentioned Stanley Market!

But Jane & Celeste were very convincing. They claim it is super worth it. You will leave with BAGS of shopping for the kids. One of their colleagues bought enough clothes for her daughter from birth to 5 yrs old! WAH!!! Now, how can I resist that??

So on that rainy Sunday, we took Express Bus 260 from Exchange Square. It was a 20 min ride, towards the coast. The bus ride was comfortable and pleasant. Not a problem at all even with a drowsy Nathan and hyper Nicole.

When we arrived, it was a sight to behold. Lots of little shops clustered together , and our eyes zoomed in on the first shop that sold kids clothes. We walked briskly towards it. And woah! Next to it, was a shop selling Thomas the Train bags! And Hello Kitty! And Dora!

Then further down, another shop with Guess blouses, Juicy Couture tops. And round the corner… it was an endless row of little shops selling jeans, tees, jackets, socks, shoes, hats, dresses, bags, bibs… the list goes on. We didn’t know where to start!

Tips for Parents:

This is a haven for CHEAP CHILDREN’s CLOTHING! So, if u have children, you will have to go…and really buy for your children

And everything costs S$5-S$20! What a steal! The clothes were probably a season behind, but who cares! They look great and they were cheap!

It was so good we went separate ways. Daddy with Nathan, mummy with Nicole. Then we met, and we exchanged partners. It was truly a exciting shopping experience for all of us!

This is DEFINITELY a must-go for all Parents visiting Hong Kong!

One of the highlights about going to Hong Kong is that I get to go to Disneyland.

So the trip to Disneyland was something that I was looking forward to!

If you are wondering whether Hong Kong is child friendly – let me reiterate again that it is NOT!

However, Disneyland is the most child friendly place on this island.

First of all, going to Disneyland is actually quite easy, as it is accessible via their subway (MTR).

In fact, you will know immediately that u are on the right train, as this is a special Disney Train!

Its handrails and windows are decorated Disney Style, and the whole cabin is also decorated according to the Disney theme.

If u ask me…they  start psyching you up for a magical experience, right from the start.

Arriving at the station, we were welcomed by the Disney Fountain and many Kodak moments.

I was going crazy with my camera…Unfortunately not everyone on my crew was ready to be a model at this particular moment…:)

Tickets to the Park are priced at $350 HK dollar (Approx Sing $70) for an adult and $250 HK dollar (Sing $50) for children aged 3 to 12.

It is definitely a bit pricey, but things are never cheap when u go on a holiday!

As we entered the park , we were brought into Main Street USA and the iconic Disneyland Castle.

Hong Kong Disneyland is the smallest of all of Disney’s theme parks and it has only 3 “Lands” for us to visit (A normal park has 5).

We headed off to “Adventureland” first, where we were going to travel to the Amazon Jungle, to discover the perils of living in a primitive jungle.

As we entered “Adventureland”, one of the Amazing things that we saw was a “cleaner”. In fact, we thought that he was just doing his job and clearing the rubbish.

When we took a closer look, we realized that the “Cleaner” was actually an “Artist”.

 

This is his finished work!

Wow! Isn’t that Amazing! If u give me a broom and a bucket of water, I will give u “Abstract Art”….We clapped for the ‘cleaner’ when he finished drawing…and he smiled! I think we made his day!

Next up was the “Jungle River Cruise”

Basically, the boat brought us along the Amazon jungle, and we encountered mechanical elephants, monkeys, hippos and flesh-eating piranas.

However, the children found one part of the ride really scary, and that when when the boat got “trapped”  in the river and we faced volcano fire and a man-made waterfall! In fact, the children from every part of the boat started crying!

Don’t worry…it is not that scary!

How was the ride?

It was nothing to shout about! Just something that u must do, when you go on vacation! Nicole did not like it due to the excitement of the fire and the waterfall…Don’t think she wants to go for another round!

The best part about every “land” is that they have a show. “Adventure land” was featuring “The Lion King”.

Based on the movie and the musical, we were in for a treat!

The cast that was singing and dancing were as good as the one found in the musical, and we enjoyed listening to the songs and the dance presented to us!

 

My Verdict of Adventure land

Watching the performance “The Lion King” is a MUST! It is a shortened presentation of the musical and u will thoroughly enjoy the music and the songs. It is good enough to entertain children and adults!