Thumbs up for the Seoul subway system

This blog has been nominated by the Seoul Metropolitan Government as one of the Global Seoul Mates who aim to promote Seoul on a worldwide scale. This requires celebration in the form of praising the spider in the web of Seoul that actually grants us passage to all its sightseeing spots, namely the subway lines. So let's not give a thumbs up for rock 'n' roll like this cool kid does http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaIvk1cSyG8 but instead give a thumbs up for the Seoul subway.

Except for spanning across a huge area which reaches all the way to e.g. Incheon and Suwon, the subway is also easy to use for visitors who do not speak Korean. Every station has most of its essential instructions and directions written in English as well as Korean. Furthermore, the subway net is easy to use with only a few minor traps which might cause confusion for the passenger. Two examples are the rapid trains which pass certain stations, so one should be mindful when boarding those trains to check if it actually stops at the desired station. Furthermore, some stations such as Noryangjin requires the passenger to actually exit the station when transfering (but still doesn't charge you extra! I still do not know how this is detected on the card when charging ^^).

For the pros, we all know it is comparably cheaper compared to other metropolises and also very clean if you consider the hordes of people who actually ride. The upsides of the subway system are numerous but I think I will settle for this picture which tells it all.

  

Cuckoo Electric Rice Cooker CR-0352FR / CR-0351FG

Introduction:

Perhaps the most essential thing for someone living in Korea who wants to start cooking at home is their own rice cooker. With it you will be rid of the meticulous procedure of cooking rice in a normal kitchen pot with all the water measuring, constant tending to check if the water is evaporating and varied results every time. Cuckoo is one of the most famous brands of rice cookers in Korea and the product is also made in Korea. Thus I chose one of Cuckoo’s basic item lines which is suitable for up to three people http://english.11st.co.kr/product/SellerProductDetail.tmall?method=getSellerProductDetail&prdNo=148799762. If perfect rice every time is not enough for you, check out this link on 21 amazing things that a rice cooker can provide for you! http://www.buzzfeed.com/arielknutson/surprising-things-you-can-make-in-a-rice-cooker

About 11Street marketplace:

While looking for an online store to order the rice cooker from, my choice fell on 11Street http://english.11st.co.kr/html/en/main.html since they had one of the lowest prices for the actual item. 11Street was founded in 2008 and is one of Korea’s biggest online marketplaces. Being a part of SK Planet, 11Street placed at the top of different customer satisfaction indexes and thus is sure to leave you a happy customer which it did me. 11Street connects the buyer and seller and therefore increases the security of the transaction for both parts. The website is remarkable since it is one of the few Korean online marketplaces which have a full English version and you could easily do your whole transaction without any Korean proficiency. From personal experience, the English telephone customer service is also very good. They answered my phone call within seconds and helped to answer any questions I had.

Order and delivery:

While searching for any item of interest, the potential customer can first filter the items based on category (in this case “Small appliances” – “Rice Cooker” – “Cuckoo”) but you can sort by price, release date, popularity and items suggested by 11Street. Most of the products have customer reviews with pictures and a grading system helped me choose the right rice cooker for my needs. My choice fell on http://english.11st.co.kr/product/SellerProductDetail.tmall?method=getSellerProductDetail&prdNo=148799762 and with a satisfaction level of 99% and 1,196 customer reviews I sure had enough material to browse before deciding to place the order. Some products are available for international shipping and the delivery fee is easy to see in the product description. For every product you can also see the average delivery period within Korea which was an impressive 0.8 days, and indeed the rice cooker was delivered safe, sound and rapidly to my home. You can follow the whole delivery process and track your package ID all the way from the seller to your home which gave me a sense of security with the purchase. Should there be any issue with the delivery you can report it conveniently online.

Point and mileage system:

11Street also has a reward system where you get mileage for every purchase you make which can be used as a discount on later purchases. You may also charge points with cash or gift friends’ and relatives’ user accounts with a point gift card. Finally, 11Street often has different online events where you might get points for certain product categories or for a limited amount of time or even do a lucky draw and win loads of points!

Product review (Appearance):

The 3-person cooker comes in red or green color and for a small extra fee you can get a bigger 6 or 10-person cooker in pink, red or purple. The machine is sleek, feels sturdy with its plastic touch and stands firmly on the surface. At the top there is a vent for steam to evaporate and the metal plate just above the boiling rice easily comes off with a snap and is washable by hand. The box comes safely packed with a rice spatula, measuring cup, manual etc. Be aware that the manual is all in Korean but with the simplicity of the cooker and all the pictures included in the manual, this should pose no problem whatsoever.

Product review (Functionality):

First of all, the Cuckoo rice cooker places in the 1st (best) grade group on the energy efficiency scale and is said to consume 259Wh for one batch of rice. This simple and minimalistic cooker has four buttons which read “Keep warm/Cancel”, “Pre-set cooking/Hour”, “Cook/Idle heat” and “Menu/Minute”. There are presettings for e.g. white rice, brown rice and porridge and it is extremely easy to navigate the menus. Even when the cooker is not plugged into the electric socket, it still shows the current time. During my tests, cooking about 2 cups (measured with the included plastic cup) took about 20-30 minutes. A neat function is that after the rice is done it automatically goes to the “keep warm” mode and shows how many hours ago the rice was cooked. This is very practical since according to what I have heard you should try to consume the rice within about 24 hours.

   The included rice pot has markings for the water level corresponding to the amount of white rice put in. As you can see the amount of water is different for white rice, porridge and grain/unpolished rice. Finally, the cooker and its parts are all easy to clean and the way to do it is described in the manual.

Product review (Conclusion):

For anyone who wants a basic rice cooker with perfect results every time for a household of perhaps 1-3 people, this is the choice for you! Weighing in at a price of 56,030 won it might not be the absolutely cheapest one on the market but surely the most bang for the buck. The safe and detailed delivery tracking system at 11Street kept me calm through every step of the delivery and I am certain I will be returning to 11Street for future purchases.

B-Boy Brawl

The 5th of May was an important day for b-boyers worldwide. One of the biggest b-boy competitions in the world called R-16 Korea was held from 2pm outside the Korea Tourism Organization’s headquarters near City Hall and Jonggak station. 

The competition started with a 1st and 2nd round and then went on to semifinals and finals. The Seoul Friendship Fair was held simultaneously just a few blocks aways, but I think the pumping atmosphere and hiphop beats did a good job to attract visitors. After the competition the honorary ambassador appointment with Jay Park was held. 

Perhaps a biased thought, but you would expect the crowd to be mostly dance and hiphop-heads in their 20s. However, I believe a major part of the audience was more than a few days over 50, so it was a huge delight to see everyone come together in the name of music and dance. More unbelievable were the moves of the dancers and as you can see they make for extreme pictures J 

As a hiphop-lover I made sure not to miss the event and I digged the beats of the DJ and found myself using the Naver application to find out which song was playing. Good thing modern technology exists, huh? ^^ For more info, check out http://www.r16korea.com/xe/