THEROSEBREAKER.COM

The idea of having your own little website intrigued me a lot when I was 13 years old. I proceeded to hit the "create a blog" button without much hesitation, and I have been blogging since. Switching from blogspot to xanga to live journal to tumblr and back to blogspot for the last couple of years, and started out blogging as a digital diary to spill the daily happenings in Secondary school and occasional outburst of emotions, has turned into an avenue of sharing lifestyle content that I am passionate about.

So after years on blogspot and months of contemplation to move on to a different platform, I am pleased to share the launch of my little pet project therosebreaker with its own .com and a facelift. Click here to be directed.

I am not sure how therosebreaker will turn out to be in the next 10 years, but it has been and will always be close to my heart; one that I am willing to spend time and effort in out of my busy work schedule just to edit photographs, plan content and write. Thank you to those who have been quietly reading my blog all these years, it means a million to me! 

So see you on the other side, and I hope you will enjoy!

http://therosebreaker.com

BUSAN

Amidst our short trip to Seoul, we managed to squeeze in a day for Busan, the second largest city in South Korea. The train to Busan (no coincidence intended!) via KTX is highly recommended and convenient from Seoul. Well, it is somewhat similar to what you would see in the recent film Train to Busan, of course, minus all the apocalyptic zombies. The KTX train is well equipped with wifi and comfortable seats, where my friends slept through most of the 2.5 hours journey on an early morning. Perhaps they would not sleep in if they were to watch the film before this trip.

Gamcheon Cultural Village — "The East of Santorini". When we first had sight of these colourful lego-like buildings, as tourist as we can get, we could not stop snapping photos away even when it began to rain. The rain stopped and we proceed to spend half a day following a trail based on the village map, where we got an overview of Gamcheon in different angles. There's a thing about these quaint villages and small towns that I really like, I'm not sure what or why exactly, but I guess it is the slow life in such environment that attracts me.

Jalgachi Fish Market — Busan is located by the sea and is eventually known for its fresh seafood. At Jalgachi, you can select your seafood from its array of fresh catch and select get a restaurant to cook it for you or vice versa, choose a restaurant first then your seafood. We did the latter. I'm not so much of a seafood lover, so I wasn't that keen on paying too much for it especially when the prices here are on the higher side even after much bargaining. But trying to be a good sport with my friends, I caved in. Though a tad pricey, what you get are fresh, sweet and juicy seafoods

If time were on our side, we would spend at least 2 days in Busan instead of a day trip which was not sufficient us for us to cover more places. Albeit a short day trip, it was still truly memorable...like how we actually did miss our train back to Seoul by being late for 5 minutes.

SEOUL

Back in Seoul this June! Despite my recent visit to this bustling city just last November (read my post here), I have always wanted to return again, but I was not expecting this revisit to happen this soon. So with my leaves approved, flights and accommodation booked in just less than a month before scooting off, I did the itinerary planning quickly and am very thankful that the trip did come to fruition smoothly albeit many clashes in our schedules.

Seoul is really a one stop for:

Fashion and Beauty shopping. If you haven't already know, this city is filled with beauty and cosmetic stores in every corner. I am amazed at how there are more than 3 of the same exact beauty store in just within myeongdong shopping district.

Food food food. Seriously, as long as you are not broke, you never go hungry. Their cafes are beautifully designed and there are just so much food options everywhere, you will have a hard time deciding what to eat. So like us, we were eating everywhere we went.

Visits to heritage sites and sightseeing. While Seoul is a modern city, you will still find heritage sites like the famous Gyeongbokgung Palace or the Namsan Seoul tower in the heart of the city.

Travelling always go by so quickly, and sometimes in a blur within a short period of time, don't they? In this trip, I got to explore a lot more places than before, mingle with the locals (and so glad to have met them in some ways) in attempt to communicate with bits and pieces of Korean, spot countless advertorial posters and standees of Song Joong Ki, had a finger lickin' good time with Korean fried chicken till late and enjoyed a wonderful time of fellowship with my church friends whom I grew up with since preschool.

I said this before but I will say again, Seoul will always have my heart with its diverse culture, amicable Koreans, beautiful shops, amazing food and shopping. Thank you for being seoul beautiful and heartwarming. I am missing this city already, but till next time again!

MALACCA

A 3-hour drive across the border is equally sunny and sweltering Malacca; where Jonker walk, chendol and Peranakan cuisine (and kueh kuehs) are its highlight. This revisit felt like new yet nostalgic as it brought back some faint recollection from my last trip here a decade ago with my family. Shall allow the above snaps from the trip to speak for itself.