Out 'n' about

Last week, my parents were visiting Seoul and we ended up going to Gyeongbokgung palace. Can you believe that I've been living in Seoul for 5+ years and this was my first time going there? Wow.... it's quite shameful. What can i say, sometimes it's the things in your own back yard that get overlooked.


Guards posing by the main gate.



If you'll recall, it was super cold last week so we couldn't stay out too long, but we pretty much walked around the whole palace grounds, which is much larger than I thought! The land was pretty stark and bare, but I imagine it's really beautiful in spring and autumn. :)


Snow covering the frozen pond.


That same day, I had to go to the Yungdeungpo-gu office, and out front there was a small farmer's market going on, so we took a look and ate some yummy samples.


fresh ddeok that was soooo light, chewy, and nutty.



Dried sweet potatoes!


Puffed rice snacks



Fresh, peeled chestnuts. I didn't know that you could eat raw chestnuts, but they were really good~ Surprisingly sweet and crispy, like apples.


Bags of sliced ddeok for New Year's ddeokguk.


yes.... :)

And now for some things I've eaten so far in 2012:

Kicking the new year off on a healthy note, here's my bowl of chia & banana oatmeal for breakfast.


toppings: banana slices, blackstrap molasses, pecan nuts, cinnamon. Ah, some how, starting the year off with heart-healthy oatmeal feels so right.


A ginormous salad composed of lettuce, cabbage, tofu, tempeh, dotori muk, green bell peppers, sea vegetables, onions, and dressing.


And here's the first thing I baked in 2012: coffee chocolate chip cookies.


yum.


Actually, this bibimbab was from last year, but I'll post it anyway because it was delicious.




Chillin at Hapjeong & Hongdae~




Here are more photos of Bunny donning her Christmas sweater. I accidentally spilled some pellets on the floor, so Bunny vacuumed it all up with her mouth. :)


gawd, her cuteness kills me sometimes.