Finally, I can write down all my experiences in South Korea.. Now, it's the time to give some review about my journey, especially if you travel during winter:
First
DON'T need to bring or buy a lot of winter wear from Indonesia. You can easily buy them somewhere in South Korea, such as underground shopping center or night market. For example, boots. I bought them in Mangga Dua Mall - Jakarta for RP 400.000 - RP 500.000, but in Underground Shopping Center Busan you can find all varieties of boots for 10.000 KRW (or RP 100.000). Another example is long-john. I bought it online for RP 100.000, but I found the same one for 5.000 KRW (or RP 50.000). So do the hot packs, my friends bought it from the same store in Mangga Dua Mall for RP 20.000, but in Daiso or other mini mart you can buy it for 1.000 KRW (or RP 10.000). Oia, another example is Vaseline Petroleum Jelly. In Korea the price is around 2.000 KRW (or RP 20.000) and Indonesia is RP 50.000. You don't need to be worried that you'll be cold til death, because you can find winter wear easily in Korea and it wasn't too expensive.
Second
USE T-Money or Cash Bee Card to travel around the city. You can buy the card in any mini marts (such as Seven Eleven) for 2.500 KRW and top up the card. However, you have to ensure that it can be used in any city in South Korea. I used T-Money because I borrowed from my friend. It can't be used in Sokcho. But, it's different with Cash Bee Card, it can be used in Sokcho. The nice thing about T-Money or Cash Bee Card is if you still have won left in it, you can buy anything in the mini mart that accept T Money / Cash Bee Card. That's what I did. I bought instant ramyun and nori sheet for my family.
DON'T BE AFRAID to ask somebody if you lost or need direction. Korean people's willingness to help is high. Even though they can't speak English, they will try hard to help you. That's what I experienced when I lost here and there while I was in Korea. So it's important if you write down your hotel / hostel / motel / guesthouse and your place to visit both in English and Korea. So, if we find it's hard to communicate, we can just show them what we ask.
Fourth
BARGAIN. If you buy something from the street stores or underground shopping center, do not afraid to bargain. Andy - my tour guide in Jeju - said that it's easily to bargain with ahjumma rather than ahjussi. My brother experienced this. Somewhere around Insadong, he bought boots for his girlfriend, after bargaining he got 15.000 KRW as the price. But when he crossed the street, another seller asked him to buy the same boot with price 10.000 KRW. The same thing had happened when I bought Jeju Orange Chocolate, after so much persuasion, we got good price and a lot of samples ^^ Even when you took taxi, you need to bargain with the driver. So, what I did was I asked information center about how much from the airport to my hostel / hotel / guesthouse, so when I faced the driver, I know about the price.
Fifth
Don't forget to ask TAX FREE REFUND if you bought something with some amount from the stores. Such as cosmetics or clothes. You need to ask, because the stores won't give it to you if you don't ask. After you receive the Tax Free Refund, when you're in the airport, you have to go to the counter, get the stamp on your tax free refund and after you check in, get the money. The amount of money is enough to buy something to eat or drink while you're waiting your flight ^^ My travel-mate didn't ask for tax free refund stamp from the store and the store didn't have initiative to give it to customers, so she lost some KRWs ^^
That's all.. If I remember some more tips and tricks, I will write it down again.
That's all.. If I remember some more tips and tricks, I will write it down again.
