Insa-dong

SEOUL Diary 2014: Day 2 - Insa-dong Street

Monday, November 10, 2014

October 31, 2014 


What a beautiful accident it is to find ourselves Insa-dong.

Insa-dong Street is a street of Korean traditional culture with antique art and book shops, traditional teahouses and craft shops. It is one of Seoul's leading gallery streets and has been the location of many art galleries since the olden times. (Taken from the Seoul Metropolitan Government Tourist Guide Book)

I really hate it when something happens, and the itinerary I worked hard on(with matching color codes and tables, as well as maps) gets slightly ruined in a way. But maybe getting lost, and letting go of the itinerary is worth the risk after all.

I must thank Wifi Korea for being located in this area, for if not for them, I won't be able to walk the alleys of Insa-dong during our trip. (Also, if you're going to Korea, get their services. Awesome people, and awesome Wifi, you'll never be sorry.)

 With a pathway of frog fountain benches, and line of trees. Insa-dong felt so authentic, vintage and in character. I felt lost in its feel. It's like I could walk around its path all day and I'll never get bored.


We randomly decided to enter this alley where we spot old looking houses, which turned out to be an alley of teahouses and galleries. Plants were abundant everywhere. There's like tea by your left, ceramics to your right. It felt as if my fantasy teahouse Pinterest board came to life. I was above the clouds.

What I hated so much about myself, not only during when we were in Insa-dong, but also during the whole duration of our Seoul trip, was the fact that I tend to be shy whenever I take photos of things I like to keep in memory. But maybe I'll discuss that in another entry.


If given another chance to fly back to Korea, I'll definitely put Insa-dong on my list.

Eleanor & Park

Eleanor, Park, and Bash

Monday, October 20, 2014



Because one is not enough... and nine is not even close to being satisfactory. 

I was in pain because of a heartache when my beloved ferns decided that my room is not humid enough for their liking. I thought of just having them in my parent's plant box by our roof top. I hope they're having the time of their life now that they migrated.

And with moving on, I decided to get me some new friends to get along with.

Eleanor and Park



Inspired by that Rainbow Rowell book that everyone talked about. I bought these two pretty beings together one Monday night. And I realized whilst writing this entry that I didn't even name them beforehand. With the lame attempt of naming them something witty, I caught the book's title in front of me. So voila, our plant love team. Good job Laline, indeed. 

Bash 


I must admit, it was hard for me naming this badass. You could ask Ate Anne, I flooded her with photos of my ideal succulent garden. I was that into it. My Pinterest garden board could also be an evident representation that I was so desperate to take care of one(or more, we'll never know.). I named her Bash in short for Bashful. There is something about that adjective that I find adorable, I had to name my plant after it.

Life

Plant Lady in the Making?

Thursday, October 02, 2014


"A crazy plant lady in the making."

That(emphasis... THAT.) is what a friend told me whilst I was coming up with the concept for my blog. It's not that I needed a concept or anything, I'm not some artist or whatever.

It's just that recently, I caught myself with the plant bug. I can't help it. They're pretty. They purify the air in my room. And I repeat, they're pretty... and adorable, and irresistible. 
.
It all started with three indoor plants... I swear. 

It might sound a little bit crazy, but I gave them names (yes, I like giving names to things that are special to me, so don't judge. Everyone does that... right?). 



David(named after the AMAZING David Tennant.)  is the tall, skinny, succulent that I always forget to take note of what species he's from. I like him very much. He doesn't need that much care. And look! He's got a new offspring with him... So that's a good sign that he might like me too.
Matt who was named after my favorite Doctor(of Doctor Who) to date, Matt Smith. Which unlike the actor he's named after, he's quite a plain and quiet fellow. He never really strikes me as needy or anything like that for a plant. He is just what he is. I find him so similar to Ferb of Disney's Phineas & Ferb. But naming him Ferb will just ruin the Doctor Who theme I have for my trio, right?
Lastly we have Karen, a nerve plant that I so adore. She has a mixture of red and green on her leaves which fascinates me. Which lead me to naming her Karen. I really adored Karen Gillan as Amy Pond and as a person in general. And I do feel Karen just suits this cutiepatootie. 

Then came weeks later, I found myself in the herbs corner of the supermarket and instantly fell for the cutest fern you will ever see in the history of supermarket bought plants ever(I repeat, EVER.). Its leaves felt so luscious to touch, I cant help myself. I just had to have it!

We had some difficulties along the way, this mistress is such a sucker for steamy humidity, I was this frustratingly close to buying a humidifier! She was that precious for me. I named her Sera the Selginella when she first came to my life. But I felt the need to split her into two because I need to put it in small glass containers to make it seem terrarium like, and most importantly provide moist air. 

Behold Sera and Ginella... the two Selaginella plants, who are surprisingly still alive today, phew! (I hope I don't jinx that)





With a growing family, I have always thought of buying a flower bearing plant to add color to the mix. I was hopeless to spot one in the supermarket since they sell more herbs, which saddens me. But that didn't stop me.

 Penny the Pentas plant... who looks gorgeous, by the way. I really wanted something with color for my little green corner. So I find her fitting. I hope she blooms more flowers as the time goes by, because I find her really, really lovely. *crosses fingers* 

Lastly we have Arden, the Adenium. I'm so excited for this bad ass to grow and bloom soon! I saw what she would look like eventually, and it is pretty amazing. But for now, she's my little adorable green tree. 



I still am puzzled as to why I am so into taking care of plants nowadays. I must admit, I don't have the so called green thumb. So there is a high possibility this venture of mine might end into a heartbreak, a sad SAD one. Refelcting on it... I guess, that sensation of seeing the little ones you take care of grow and bloom into beautiful beings fascinates me. The amount of patience and attention one gives to plants are no joke. Well maybe you can just leave them be, let them rot and die, however... that's sounds a little tragic right? 

To my dearest green darlings, let's grow old gracefully and happy together. Okay?

HAVE A HAPPY THURSDAY EVERYONE!

P.S.

I want to show you this adorable tea press pot I kind of stole from our kitchen. It's the one I use to water my adorable indoor plants. I am in search of a glass watering pot. So far, the tea press pot is doing a good job. Haha!