SeoulNicole 서울니콜

K-Pop Workout Playlist: Truth. We're 11 days into the New Year. If you're like me, you're still telling yourself you've committed to a healthier lifestyle, and vowing this is the year  you'll stop eating Nutella with chopsticks at 2 am. I need to make working out as fun as possible otherwise iHate it. Listening to the right music is crucial. I narrowed down my Kpop workout playlist to these 13 songs that reflect the 4 phases of any workout: warming up, the workout, when you want to die, and cooling down. WARMING UP: Songs that put you in a good mood, and raise your energy level. "It's Me" by Kahi This is always my first song. I think I've primed my body to associate this song with exercising. In this song, Kahi exudes a subtle sensuality that I find believable and appealing. Gain and Sunmi are two others, that to me, can carry a sexy concept without it seeming forced or cheap. "Itaewon Freedom" with JYP ...

At Cheonjiyeon Falls (천지연폭포) I've been fortunate enough to visit Jeju Island twice, once in July of 2012 and again in December of 2013.  Jeju Island  is known as "The Hawaii of Korea" and is a popular vacation destination for Chinese & Japanese tourists, Koreans, and English teachers ^^.  A few articles on Jeju  here , here , and here . In short, Jeju is BEAUTIFUL and can be extremely affordable if you know where to go. View from the room at Hotel Good Inn. Coconut not included ^^. Jeongbang Falls Winter in Jeju, Seongsan Ilchulbong (Sunrise Peak) in the distance. Beautiful view from the roof of Hotel Good Inn, Seogwipo Jeju On my first trip to Jeju in 2012, I was traveling alone in late July, one of the hottest weeks of the summer. On the 1 hour plane ride from Incheon to Jeju, the atmosphere on the plane was bubbly and lighthearted. On average, Koreans take the fewest amount of vacation days of all countries in the Asia-Pacific reg...

Since being home (New Jersey) I've taken a bit of a break from K-Pop. I still religiously read Asian Junkie  for my daily Kpop LOLz, but overall I've been more attuned to Western music these past few months. By Western music, I pretty much mean one artist: Hozier. That time Zach Braff told me about Hozier In the summer, my friend and I went to a Q&A session in Union Square with Zach Braff the day his movie ( Wish I Was Here ) came out. The soundtrack features Hozier's Cherry Wine, and he described the way the song was recorded live - not in the traditional sense in that it was recorded at a concert - but recorded outdoors, with sounds of birds chiming in on the track. I also learned that not only was he a Hozier fan, but he loves Game of Thrones. He gave away multiple GOT action figures during the event. Hodor! Hodor? Hodor. Hey bae <3 After weeks of impromptu Hozier dance parties and listening to every performance of his I could find on YouTube, I bi...

Snail mucus, Placenta and Collagen - Oh my! These are some of the ingredients found in Korean face mask sheets. I've never had the patience or knowledge of beauty products to have a very extensive makeup routine. (Yet I'm sure that my appearance could benefit greatly from some expertise in this area). I don't wear makeup on a daily basis. I've been told repeatedly by my Korean co-workers that I look tired, have dark circles under my eyes, etc . etc. etc.  I woke up like thisssss (my apologies).  Meh. After having coffee at my desk, I'll generally doodle some eyeliner on before first period. In Korea, stores dedicated to skincare, makeup, and beauty dominate the streets such as Olive Young (my absolute favorite) The Face Shop, Nature Republic, Tony Moly, Etude House, Innisfree, and Aritaum. Spending time in these stores and familiarizing myself with their products made me feel overwhelmed and intrigued by the multitude of cosmetics available. Let's ...

Surgical Masks: What are they good for? (Absolutely nothing?) Depends on who you ask... Many Westerners are unfamiliar with the habit of wearing surgical masks, and may even be internally alarmed at the sight of people wearing them in public. (Admit it!) On a recent flight home from Korea, I wore a surgical mask along with (borderline obnoxious) sunglasses during the long flight from Seoul to Vancouver. No one commented on my appearance. Once I boarded my next flight from Vancouver to Newark, I was met with apprehensive stares by other passengers. Honestly I was also surprised to see them: With the brief exception of a 2 week stint home between my teaching contracts, this was the largest group of white people I had seen in 2 years. As I made my way to my seat like a zombie, a woman in front of me asked (loudly):"I hope we don't have to worry about that?" There was a long pause as I realized when she said "that", she was talking about me and my mask. ...

When I landed in Tokyo I was totally burned-out. I had just finished my teaching contract in Korea less than 48 hours prior and was also trying to pack up for my trip back to America. I'd love to return to Japan and explore other cities: Osaka and Kyoto particularly. I'd also love to visit Taiji, (the tiny town made infamous for their  dolphin slaughter ) to document the annual dolphin drive. Alas, in April 2014, I had only 5 days in Tokyo, at the Sakura Fleur Aoyama which I discussed in the previous entry. So, what do you do when you're exhausted and alone in Tokyo? Highlights of 5 Days in Tokyo, in pictures: Harajuku : a crowded tweeny cotton-candy wonderland. This storefront was the site of that heinous Avril Lavigne video ::puke:: Why do I even know that? Harajuku Takeshita-dori street lolz nice name. Wandered into this side-street containing tiny, run-down bars near Shibuya.  (* This is not the famous Golden Gai , but a similar area ta...

Sakura Fleur Aoyama Photo  Here Address: 2-14-15 Shibuya, Tokyo 150-0002, Japan I booked my trip through Japanican and everything went smoothly. I only booked a few weeks in advance, as this trip was pretty last minute on my part. I would use Japanican again. This trip, (which I took back in April of this year) marked my first time in Japan and I was also traveling alone. I'm happy to report that I felt super safe in Tokyo and in the hotel. ^^ Why Shibuya? Truthfully, I am not very knowledgable about Japan. The memory of a particular scene from "Lost in Translation" was one of my only data points for deciding where to book in Tokyo....which I'm only slightly embarrassed to admit. SCENE:  [ Scarlett Johansson....silence....blank stare.....white umbrella...raindrops....digital brontosaurus.....] #MostEmotionalPedestrianCrosswalk #whereisbillmurray #somanyfeels As I learned from the director commentary on the Lost in Translation DVD (yeah I love th...