Korean food and BBQ

 One of my favourite things about a trip to Seoul is that they take their food very seriously and this is particularly the case with regards to their meat. Last night we had a fabulous meal of grilled pork that was cooked on a small BBQ set into the table top. 

It was not a particularly swish restaurant - there was a very raucous table next to us where the diners were clearly having the time of their lives serenading each other with ever more elaborate toasts - however the meat was excellent - three different types of pig ranging from the sweet and succulent to the rich and aromatic.

At lunchtime today we had time to grab a quick meal in a cafe in the basement of one of the Malls:

Essentially this was a Korean style all you can eat buffet where the food was set out in steaming tureens (lined up beneath the counter in the picture). The chefs were just relaxing at the end of the lunch shift while we were there. There was rice, a beef dish, noodles, a fried fish dish, various condiments and kimchi with water and some kind of seaweed as accompaniments. Excellent value at the equivalent of US$9. 

This evening we then went to a more up market beef restaurant - again cooked on a BBQ in the middle of the table and again absolutely delicious. I am definitely going on a diet when I am back home!

View from a room

 My hotel in Seoul is very quirky and fairly rustic which is very unusual for this part of the World as most of the building work was done post war. It certainly has a lot more character than most hotels.  I am however debating whether the characterfullness compensates for a lack of a restaurant and gym and some of the other facilities that one usually finds in business hotels. The jury is still out but certainly the view out of my bedroom window is rather different from the usual fayre of car parks and dust bins!

 

On my travels

 Have just arrived in Seoul. I usually try to arrive in the early Autumn - temperature is very pleasant and the trees are a golden brown. However, due to other commitments, my trip was a little later than planned.

I noticed when I was packing last night that the temperature was -2 degrees and - despite the sunshine=ne when I touched down - I could definitely see my breath so I am hoping that my (rather thin) sweater is going to be up to the tanks over the next few days!

I want to ride my Mountain Bike

 As foreshadowed in an earlier post, I am a great fan of the MTB trails around Mushrif National Park which is around a 20 minute drive from where we live. 

I have previously mentioned that Dubai must be one of the easiest places in the World to enjoy bike riding whether it be a road bike - there are over 150km of tracks in the desert around Al Qudra alone (also around 20 minutes from our villa) - or Mountain biking. V. has been Mountain Biking in the Hatta mountains which are around an hour from here and whilst I have  heard good things about the trails around that area, I have not managed to get up there myself. I have however made full use of the Mushrif trails which is a mixture of green/blue/red (much like the skiing system with green being the easiest).

As also previously mentioned, the only disadvantage is that every now and then you will be sharing the peace and tranquility with the roar of an A380 as it comes into land at DXB due to sit proximity with the flight path

Nevertheless, this does not seem to discourage the wild life and there are plenty of warning signs for snakes, spiders and scorpions (none of which I have seen fortunately) as well as plenty of birds.

There are also plenty of squirrels although I really struggle yesterday to get a photo of them (they are quite elusive although you can here them chirruping away as they bounce around in the trees but blend in very well with the foliage).

He is in there somewhere (I think).

It even has some hills and valleys which are pretty rare for this part of Dubai.

Let’s party

 One of the great things about living in Dubai (and indeed when we were in Hong Kong) is that it is a melting pot for many different cultures. Tonight was a great example as we were invited by our next door neighbours to their “Cologne Carnival” party.

Sadly we had not been informed that this required fancy dress but nevertheless we had a lovely time mixing with the various Minions, barmaids, and disco queens around the swimming pool. The range of nationalities present was a real microcosm of Dubai - ME, India, Sri Lankan, European including UK and Irish and the temperature was absolutely perfect. 

It is also Diwali, so our community is lit up like Blackpool illuminations - with Halloween only recently finished - there is a definite party feeling when I am driving home from work.

Flora and Fauna

 I hope to be heading out tomorrow to Mirdiff National Park which has a mountain bike track which essentially comprises a number of trails around the park and the woodland. Despite the fact that we are in middle of the desert, this is a really terrific facility as it is a combination of wooded areas, hills and country paths. 

Although it is located around 20km outside of central Dubai, I suspect that it remains relatively undeveloped as it is directly under the flight path leading into DXB so my rides are usually accompanied by the roar of the A380s as they swoop low overhead before they come into land.

Apart from the aircraft noise, it is a tranquil spot and as a result there are a number of animals that can be spotted including squirrels (I must admit when I first saw them I was quite surprised as one does not really associate them with the desert environment although they are smaller than their UK cousins) and plenty of bird life. There are also numerous warning signs for snakes but fortunately I have not yet encountered any of these residents and the graphic warnings have not encouraged me to change this state of affairs!

Seat with some space

 Just returned from my sojourn in Qatar which involved a flight with one of the myriad “budget” airlines that have sprung up around the World and here in the Middle East (although to be honest there was not much sign of a budget in the cost of the ticket today…). 

We almost invariably fly Emirates when travelling to Europe and UK and with that comes a steep price (particularly since Covid) but also a good service, frequent flights and crucially when you are over 6ft, decent seat pitches. 

Having spent the Summer with my knees around my ears while trying to cram myself into a Ryanair seat it was interesting to compare the Ryanair budget price offering with Fly Dubai (my carrier today). There really was no comparison. My flight was expensive (but quite last minute as I wanted to get an earlier flight) but I did not have to pay more to have a bag in the hold and I was not charged to put my carry on bag in the overhead locker. I was also able to sit down without my knees pressed hard against the back of the seat in front of me so altogether a more pleasant experience. 

This then leads me to wonder whether Tony O’Leary (or whoever runs Ryanair these days) is indeed a genius as he seems to have managed to persuade travellers (including me) to pay substantially  more than budget prices (based on my experience for the last two Summers) for what is a really unpleasant experience particularly when compared to its equivalent out here.