Nine roads dinner at Gangnam

Hello guys !

Our Friend is visiting Korea for few weeks to take a Topik exam and we cleared one evening of our schedules to meet up and have dinner together last Thursday. We headed to Gangnam and walked around a bit before going to a pizza / American style restaurant called "Nine road pizzeria". It was refreshing to just walk around in Gangnam between all the skyscrapers and watch well-dressed people and listen to the music blasting from the shops.

It was a super foggy day and I thought it's gonna start pouring any minute but when I got home I read from the news that it was toxic pollution that arrives to Seoul every now and then from China. It doesn't really pop out in the pictures but the whole sky was grey and some of the tallest buildings just disappeared into the fog. The weather was like that on Friday too but yesterday it cleared up a bit again and the sky was blue. 

We also ran into these cute mascots right outside the station. They were playing with each other and had a whole small show going on and people were watching them amused, until this one girl just came out of nowhere and started yelling and kicking the cat mascot. It's nice to notice how immediately something like that happens there's 5 men helping and getting involved in the situation instead of people just watching and gasping. I once saw a video on facebook where a Korean guy got stuck between a car and a wall and everyone walking past the site went to help and in the end there were almost 30 people helping and pulling the car away. It was amazing to witness a similar situation and see how quick Koreans are to help out each other. 

As a side note, I bought that Skinfood's black sugar serum as a present for my mom & grandmom when I visited home during summer and they both love it, so there's a good gift idea for you all if you have trouble getting something for the ladies in your family. The store lady suggested that product when I told her I was looking for little something for my grandmother. 

If you ever end up in Gangnam this place is something you absolutely have to check out. The food was heavenly, music amazing (edm and all the hottest dance floor hits), atmosphere chill but not cheap-ish and let's be honest the waiters were not bad to look at, either. They also had a whole lot of nice looking drinks, like those with a whole bottle upside down in your glass, but unfortunately we had to pass on those cause it was only Thursday. All in all though that restaurant is something I will definitely visit again and drag my friends with me when I end up in Gangnam again. The best part? It was crazy cheap. Our burgers and pastas were only 10 bucks !  

After eating and chatting for almost 2 hours we headed to a bookstore and then back home.  It was a good evening. 10/10 Would do again, hahah. 

xx,
Julia

F like Fall & Frustration

Hey ! 

I'm having my first proper day off this month and where else would I be spending it than in a Starbucks cafe with my laptop, newest issue of the Céci magazine, and a huge cup of iced chai latte (that I ran out of already like an hour ago). I've had a poll going on on my blog for the last few weeks now and most of you guys would like to hear more about my daily life here in Korea. My days pretty much follow the same pattern day after day excluding some events or outings with my friends during the weekends, but from now on I will try to carry my camera around more and capture more of just daily moments of my life. 

Continuing with the daily life topic to be honest I've been going through a quite an emotional roller coaster for the last couple of weeks, topped with midterm exam - stress and trying to wait and hope someone wants to rent our apartment so we get to move away this month. 

When I left to Japan for a year our exchange student organization kept telling us how we need to prepare ourselves for a culture shock. Well I did, and it never came. This time around I definitely did not prepare myself for one and it did come. 9 months too late. I've been in Korea for almost a year now and it has slowly changed into an actual home instead of the oh god Korea is so cool this is my home - home. If that makes any sense. The more I learn the language the more I start to actually understand this culture, community and also its problems and down sides. It's not just cool clubs, fun days with friends and sitting in cafes enjoying life and wondering how lucky I am to be here. Even though I'm a pretty down-to-earth type of a person, I've been floating just a bit above the ground in a way, seeing mostly just the good things in this country. 

Korea is an incredibly shallow country. Looks are everything here. People will tell you how they think about you right at your face. People will judge you by how you look. People will choose friends by appearance. Now this does not apply on everyone, but this happens. A lot. After living here for a while I am not against plastic surgery anymore, I root for it, goddamn it. If girls here listen to this criticism about their looks for 18 years I do not question the least bit their decision to go fix their nose or eyes as a graduation present. You go girls. Be pretty, be proud. It must've been so hard growing up here your whole life, if after 9 months of studying in this country even I find myself standing in front of the mirror thinking of all the things I could fix about myself and how to save money for a plastic surgery. (Yes, this has happened several times.) This country will, excuse the expression, fuck you up. In the end it's just something you need to learn to cope with. I'm still learning, and it will probably take me a while, too. 
Another thing I've come to understand during the last few weeks is that no matter how hard I try, no matter how fluent I become in Korean, I will always be "that foreigner" to people here. Feels tough to think that in few years even when I feel completely comfortable here, it will never completely show outside. It's impossible to blend in.

In the end feeling like you belong depends a lot on the people you surround yourself with, I realized, so that's what I've decided to do. Surround myself with friends who accept me as I am and make me feel like I'm part of the group no matter what color my eyes are. Friends who aren't my friends because I can teach them English, or because they think I am just an easy foreigner who can be used and then thrown away like garbage. This might sound really harsh, but it's nothing more than a sad fact that probably everyone who has lived here has noticed. Living in another country really makes you realize the importance of friends.  I already have a lot of friends like that, and I am thankful for them everyday.

Our apartment lease ends next January and Sara is planning to move somewhere in Sinchon or Idae, and I want to get an apartment from around Kondae or Gangnam. We've been trying to rent our apartment forward to new people for about a month now, but nothing's happening. I quit dancing for this month in case we have to move, but looks like I have to skip the lessons next month too. I'm leaving to Finland for a winter vacation & Christmas for 2 months on the 1st of December. Before that, no matter if the apartment will get rented by new people or not, I have to pack all my stuff in boxes and leave them at my friend's house and sell or throw away most of my furniture. Which is gonna be a big project I am not particularly looking forward to. But I am looking forward to getting a whole new small apartment next year that's close to school and Gangnam and the dance studio. I was a complete Hongdae person when I came to Korea but I've been slowly getting addicted with Gangnam so I can't wait to get to spend more time in that beautiful area. 

My midterms went well, I think. We're getting the results back next week. This is my last language school level and next year I am starting my university studies. Yet another thing that's constantly in the back of my head making me worried on some level. I've been trying to learn extra much words lately, reading books, magazines and watching a lot of Korean drama trying to improve my listening skills. I'm not gonna study the last level, level 6, so instead I'm planning to buy the book and go through it by myself during my Finland vacation. There's still so much to learn. I don't remember if I've mentioned this here on my blog but I got the -50% scholarship, and unless I keep my grades up it will be taken away from me, which is why I need to study extra hard. Also I've always been a good student and liked studying so unless things go smoothly next year I will probably lose my mind, hahah. 

All in all though, despite some hardships I've been going through lately I'm still enjoying my life here in Korea more than anything. The more I am here the easier and comfortable everything gets, so I'm feeling positive! I'm already looking forward next year and I have so much blogging plans! Hopefully I will get a new camera this Christmas (because until now I've been using Sara's camera and when we move apart I will end up with no camera at all) so I can also start video blogging and widen my territory to Youtube, too. That's been something I've wanted to try for a long time already. 

So that's pretty much how my life has been for the last few weeks. Living alone for the first time and doing it on the other side of the world has definitely not been easy, and there's a lot of stuff in addition that I don't write here, small daily things, that just really make life here tough at times, but if you ask me it's all worth it. I get a lot of questions on tumblr if life here is cool, if studying here is easy, if I'd recommend moving here. No. I do not recommend it. I'd recommend you to come here as an exchange student first, then think again if you want to come live here as a regular student. Sure airplanes go back and forth all continents every day and you can give up whenever but moving here is a big thing. So instead of asking me if you're ready for it, think about if yourself really, really hard before making big decisions like that. It's not impossible and yes this is amazing but it requires a lot, a whole lot of determination and energy and work to deal with everything. The first year is gonna be hard but I believe it gets a lot easier after that. 

Now I'm gonna go get some lunch and then start writing another blog post. I hope you all have a beautiful Saturday and hopefully my post didn't completely kill your mood, hahah! 

P.s pictures on this post were taken yesterday in Yangpyeong during our field trip. Gonna write about it to you guys later this weekend or next week! 

xx,
Julia

Tonymoly makeup haul

Hey guys !

Continuing with the beauty theme this month! School makes sure I don't have a social life nor have time to go to places so materialism is all I have! Hahah and maybe it's good every once in a while. I've been taking better care of myself lately, practically living with carrots, eggs and soup. I spent the whole summer ruining my diet and eating whatever so eating a bit healthier for the next few months. And while doing so I decided to reward myself by going to a manicure for the first time in my life and get gel nails. 

So apparently my theme for this month is pampering and taking care of myself better, hahah. So inspired by that I did some makeup shopping while taking a long walk yesterday around our neighborhood. Tonymoly is quickly rising to be one of my favorite makeup brands there is. Their products are simple and the quality is good. So this is what I brought home with me yesterday. 

1. Tonymoly finish loose powder face mix 23. Natural beige
This product is meant to be used on top of your foundation or BB-Cream to create a finished, matte look. I've been using just regular powder but decided to try loose powder instead. I tried it on my hand on top of the new foundation I bought and it really created a flawless finished look and went well with the color so I decided to give it a try. (available here)

2. Tonymoly pro mascara - volume
I've been using Etude House's 4 dollar mascara that has worked like a dream but since I ran out of it few days ago and was in a Tonymoly store I bought one of their products just to see how it works. It has a thicker brush than the Etude house one so let's see if it really gives more volume. I've been using fake eyelashes like everyday lately and it damages my own lashes a lot so I'm trying to cut down using them and just use a good mascara instead, hence the volume mascara. 

3. Tonymoly easy touch cake eyebrow 01 natural brown
This is something I've been wanting to try for a loong time but I've had another brow palette that's been working just fine so I never bought it. Now its life has come to an end so it was time to get a fresh one. These colors are exactly the ones I use on my brows so I'm sure this one will not be a disappointment. (available here)

4. Tonymoly timeless carat cover foundation 23. Natural beige
The purchase I'm the most excited about. I've been using BCDation by Tonymoly for the last months and while it has been working really well I've also noticed the same effect BB creams seem to have - it doesn't stick well on my skin. Which makes sense because in the end it is a mixture of BB-cream and foundation. It also feels really sticky at times and I need a lot of powder to get rid of the shining effect many BB-creams and foundations here have. I actually tried this new one on my hand with my current foundation and while it's a bit darker shade (closer to my own skin tone, actually) it also doesn't feel sticky at all when compared to the BCDation. Plus topped with the same natural beige colored loose powder it looks very matte yet natural! (available here)

5. Tonymoly easy touch auto eyebrow pencil 03 dark brown
Just something I picked up to make shaping brows a bit easier. The color goes well with the eyebrow color palette and it has a brush on the other end! Also by buying 2 eyebrow products I got a free gift, a  foam cleanser, so that might have affected my decision to get this hahah! (available here)


After my Thursday afternoon shopping I went into the nearest starbucks, ordered a venti-sized latte and studied for my midterm exams until 9pm. Today I've been just wandering around our apartment and then turned Sara's room into a photo shoot studio and started blogging. I have plans with my girl friends tonight, we're going to Gangnam for a proper girls' night with cocktails, wine and a lot of talking.

P.s If you want me to review any of these products or if you have any blogpost ideas leave me a comment below! I know you guys want me to write more about my daily life but honestly, my daily life is always the same, with school and home and stuff, so if you have anything you want me to write about concerning my daily life here, let me know ! 


xx,
Julia

Saturday night DIY home spa - daiso version

Hey guys!

First of all! There's a poll on the side bar. Please go answer it so I know what kind of posts you would like to read more in the future.

I've had the most amazing, relaxing Saturday evening. I've binge watched some Korean dramas, ordered chicken, spent like an hour on our rooftop watching fireworks and then had a diy home spa session. Lately I've been so busy with school and dancing and running around the city meeting up with friends that I really don't get days like these often. So when I do, I really appreciate them. 

So as you know Korea is filled with different kinds of cosmetic stores and taking care of yourself  is a huge thing here. They have face masks and creams and lotions and serums everywhere with different kinds of promises of even brighter complex and whatnot. I would love to run around from store to store and buy all those things (and I do, at times) but the fact is that instead of being a tourist I am a broke-ass student most of the time. 

And everyone who is, or has even been a student here in Korea knows that Daiso is a magical place. It's a Japanese store chain that is known for its incredibly low prices. Like a 1 dollar shop, besides that they do have stuff that costs more than just few dollars. So I decided to go low-budget and headed to Daiso instead of like Oliveyoung, Tonymoly or Skinfood type of Korean makeup stores. I wanted to show you guys how easy it is to get good stuff for a remarkably smaller price. 

► Apple, kiwi & blueberry masks - 1$ / a piece

► Fruit & vinegar Foot peeling pack - 2$

► Cucumber cleansing foam 2 $

► NIVEA face, body, hands - soft moisturizing cream 3 $

► Mint scented blackhead removal patches 1 $

►  Green tea oil control paper 1 $

So my little Saturday night spa session Daiso haul costed me 10 bucks all in all. I feel good and happy and refreshed and ready to continue my drama marathon for few more episodes before going to bed. Especially the foot peeling pack was a completely new, amazing thing I didn't even know existed. I've been planning for a giveaway for a while (probably on tumblr, but also might include blogger and other sites) and this 2 dollar miracle that makes your feet feel like a baby's cheeks is definitely gonna be included in the prize. 

Daiso's blackhead removal patches are something I discovered quite a while ago and have been using since. Super cheap, not super effective to be honest but does what it's supposed to and does it well enough. NIVEA soft is one of my favorite hand creams ever. Their products here can be pretty pricey so finding this cream from Daiso for only few bucks was a pretty nice find. Honestly the green tea oil control papers aren't something I used tonight but I decided to include the package here because those are something I and everyone else in Japan carried around all the time during the summer, and I have been looking them ever since I came to Korea. Well it took me 9 months to find some. It's basically a very thin paper that you use to get rid of oil on your face without ruining your makeup. Also had the blueberry mask on few moments ago and it also did its job really well. So here you go. Saturday night pampering for ten bucks. Cheaper doesn't always mean it can't be better. 

Good night everyone & enjoy your weekend! 

xx,
Julia

Review: Enprani premiercell - renewing massage cream

Hello ! 

Happy chilly autumn Friday evening from Seoul. My speech at school went better than I expected and I am feeling good and listening to good music while chilling at home alone so I decided to finally finish the post that's been on my to-do list for like good 3 months now. I was determined to do this because this product is something I've grown to worship during the last months. 

ENPRANI Premiercell

Renewing massage cream

INFO

► Gets rid of skin impurities and dead skin while moisturizing and giving nutrition. 
► Brightens overall skin complexion and provides elasticity to your skin.
► Major ingredients include chamomile & mineral oils. 
► 200 ml / price ranges from 25 to 30 dollars
► For all ages & skin types. 

The story behind this product is that I was wandering around my neighborhood one day and decided to visit Holika Holika store for the first time ever in my life. This one Chinese lady totally started pushing me all of their products while I tried to desperately explain that I just came to look around and I am already late for my meeting. She kept insisting to show me this cream they have on sale and started rubbing it on my skin and told me it's amazing, and I need this product in my life while I was practically rolling my eyes at the whole situation. After she was done I experienced, for the first time in my life, the "oh my god this actually works like a dream" - feeling. 

HOW TO USE

► Apply a proper amount on your skin 

► Massage around your face in slow circular motions 

► Continue massaging until the product turns into a water-like substance and you can feel the dead skin scrubbing off. This is gonna take about 2-3 minutes depending on how much product you use. 
► Finish by gently rinsing off with water.

RATING: ★★★★★
I honestly have nothing bad to say about this product. The jar is huge so it's totally worth the price and it does exactly what is promises to, leaving my skin noticeably smoother and brighter. It smells good, not too strong, and feels really refreshing when applied.  I would totally recommend this to anyone, because it's suitable for anyone no matter what age or skin type you are. You can buy it from the Holika Holika stores or order online e.g from here !

xx,

Julia