Gangwon-do: where all the snow goes

Finally getting down to this blog post after a gazillion years. this has got to be one of the few most fav parts of the Korean exchange.

After the trip to Icheon after the end of the stay at the PNU hostel, we went to Seoul for a nite to wait for LL before taking the bus to Gangwon-do. Because we booked pretty last min, so couldn't get any other hotels near the ski resort, so using the minimum Korean we know, and help from Mabel with her better Korean, we called this auntie from Wildfloaroma. It is one of the many rental houses, or "pensions" for tourists who want to go to the nearby places in the ski area. I was so desperate and googled so much for lodging and finally found this, out of the many. The website is very pretty. Do take a look if u are planning to go the Daegwallyeong area in Gangwon-do. The pictures in the website is exactly what the pension looks like. amazingly pretty. But the owner split the whole house into many sections so that many people can stay there at the same time.

For 5 ppl, we had this room. 2 sleep on the bed, while 3 sleep on the mattress on the floor. The floor is SUPER HEATED UP. For the first nite, I slept on the floor and wokeup in sweat, even though the outside temperature is minus 15 and more!

Lives up to the name: Wildfloaroma. Room was too pretty with all the flowery decos.

We were shocked that it was just one room and not like many rooms to ourselves. Well, pretty much due to the language barrier we didn't expected this, but it was still room enough for all of us, with kitchen area, TV, makeup table and lounge chair. Toilet was good too. Luckily.

The owner was really nice. Not only did they pick us up from the bus station when we first arrived. (FOC)

We also asked her a lot of questions on our destinations. We wanted to go to the famous Auraji Rail Bike next. So she helped us hire a taxi driver to take us out for the whole of the 2 days we were there.

First up, he drove us to lunch. Having duck meat at this restaurant. Mind u, it was really GOOD. and quite cheap too! Just a tad too spicy for me.

After lunch, we reached the Auraji Rail Bike. I had asked my buddy to help us book the tickets for this beforehand. U have to book tickets in advance. And pls have even numbers of ppl going, cos the bikes are only in 2s or 4s. If not u just have to pay the full amount for 4 ppl even though u only have 3. And thats what we did.

This was the scene that greeted us when we arrived there. The Grasshopper had a cafe inside.

Some stationary chairs and bikes for us to take photos of.

Ok. So the time came and the station master told us to get into the bikes. Me and LL started cycling!

Passing through tunnels...

AND I TELL U. IT WAS DAMN COLD. 

I felt like I was gonna get frost bite on both hands and feet. It was really really too cold

So struggling for like seemed like an hour, I went into this Fish to sit down and put some heat pack (specially for feet soles, given by my awesome buddy) onto my sole. I wanted to cry cos it was too cold and my feet was really painful. And worst thing was the mucus and all were flowing from time to time because of the cold weather.

Ok, after the ppl bought some drinks from the cafe in the Fish, we had to take a train back to the starting point.

It was on this train that I had proper time to snap more pictures of the scenery we went past.

The rivers all froze and became layers of ice. It was an amazing sight which I had never seen before.

Ever wondered why I put on the mask? Too cold lah. Feels like my nose and mouth would freeze and drop off if I didn't put on a mask. Wonder how the other ppl withstood that cold. Especially Anqi and Mabel, they like not scared of cold like that. LOL.

Ohwells. We went back the pension for the day and watched some SNSD Fright Night videos from Anqi's collection of videos. And ended the nite here.

Next morning, taxi uncle came to drive us for breakfast:

having something hot and soupy like this just makes my day. It was tofu soup with noodles if I'm not wrong.

Then he drove us to my awaited destination: Daegwallyeong Sheep Farm! Its a very famous place which me and Anqi's buddies recommended. They said it had beautiful scenery. My parents went to this place when they came Korea just weeks before, and said that the sheeps were awesomely CUTE!

Too bad it is winter so we can't see the sheeps roaming about on the grassland, but the scenery was still BREATHTAKING!

So pretty lah u!

For a small amt of entrance fee, we went in, and went right to the end where there is a shed. Had to show the person our ticket and she gave us a basket of grass for us to feed the sheeps.

They were VERY HUNGRY. Kept snatching the food. Totally unbecoming of the gentle sheep we all know.

Ain't this scene cute?

We climbed to a higher place for some photo-taking of the area and went to our next destination.

We went to this ski rental shop to rent our ski gears. At first the person gave me this grey top with pink bottoms. I found it ugly. And switched to a pink top later. LOL! ALL PINK. All pink good mah like that ppl can identify me.

We reached

At the top of Yongpyong Ski Resort, we took a cable car up to the top most of the mountain. 

IT WAS COLD.....

Had a bowl of ramen at the top. And we went out for some photo-taking. Can u see the mountains at the back of us? It was too awesome I tell u. Yongpyong Ski Resort is the biggest ski resort in Korea. Winter Sonata was filmed here too so its a very famous place.

At around evening time we changed into our gear and awaited our ski instructor.

Hehe. look at us in our handsome ski getup. Not fair lor the guys get such nice colours like orange or red.

Then our young and promising instructor, who is still studying in a local uni, came and brought us to the ski area.

Did some stretching, warm-up, and familiarising with ski gears.

Practised on level ground first.

After that instructor decided to bring the better students, me and Nic up the beginners' hill first. (I might not be athletic but I am talented in skiing ok!) It was thrilling to sit on the lift to go up the hill. Too bad couldn't take pic of that for memory. But it was definitely thrilling to do the same thing we see on TV. Ppl skiing with their skis and just sit on the lift thingy to go up the hill.

It was quite scary and intimidating at first to see the slope down and have to ski down. I was really scared! Nic went first, followed by me. And then we fell at the same place. I got up on my own!! And we continued to ski down. Then instructor brought Mabel and LL up to teach them the slope. Me and Nic followed suit! HEHE! After that instructor left us to ski on our own. I saw on the temperature scale to be minus 15 degree celcius. It was really so cold and I felt pain in my fingers but it was really too fun so we continued anw. We skiied like a lot a alot of times until about 9+ close to 10pm. And couldn't take the cold anymore. So we stopped and went back.

After changing out of our gears, we saw our instructor again and took a photo with him!

Very tired after the ski, we went back and decided to rest early. I can't rmb the time but it should be about 1+am when suddenly I saw something from the window. I was thinking: its raining? OMG don't tell me its snowing? I shouted across the room (Nic was already sleeping) and everyone saw that it was snowing! like very heavy snow! Everyone ran out in light clothes. OMG I couldn't stand the cold so I quickly put on the down jacket, scarf, boots and quickly ran out! 

My own camera couldn't capture the falling snow but Anqi's camera did!

The snow on the roads was soooo thick it was amazing.

The next morning, the snow on the roads had already been cleared. 

How efficient can the ppl be?

Took some last photos of the pension. Pretty much?

And off we set off for Seoul to celebrate our first White Christmas in another country.