Souvenirs you can only find in Korea

When traveling to a foreign place, it can be quite hard and time-consuming to find a unique gift to bring back home. If you fancy a change from the standard postcards, magnets, and T-shirts, we’ve got you covered with this guide on traditional souvenirs to buy in Korea.

Korean Tea

There is a wide range of different Korean tea specialties that make a great souvenir to take home. One of the most popular is daechu-cha, or jujube tea, made of small Korean dates with a juicy flavor. Very different in taste, but also extremely popular, is buckwheat tea. This ingredient is also used a lot in traditional Korean dishes, such as noodles or bread. If you enjoy sweet and sour citrus flavors, yuja-cha is for you. With the consistency of marmalade or jelly, this tea is simply stirred into hot water and enjoyed during cold weather. You can buy a good selection of tea from any food market or supermarket around Seoul.

Dojang Stamp

Most artists and calligraphers, as well as officials like to use the traditional dojang seal stamps in Korea. The seals are traditionally made of wood, gold or even jade. Today, you can find various artists around Seoul who specialize in the making of personalized dojang seal stamps. If you appreciate this ancient Asian tradition, you can get your own seal engraved with your Korean or Chinese name around Myeongdong, Insadong, and Bukchon in Seoul.

Hanbok Dress

One of the more extravagant souvenirs you could get while in Korea are traditional dresses, also referred to as Hanbok in Korean. A woman’s hanbok consists of a blouse, jeogori, and a wrapped skirt, chima. The male version also features a jeogori as well as baji, loose-fitting pants. This traditional clothing dates back to the Joseon Dynasty. However, many Koreans wear hanbok for special occasions such as weddings and holidays still today. In Seoul, you can easily spot local and foreign tourists wearing hanbok while sightseeing. A popular place to purchase your own hanbok is Dongdaemun Shopping Complex. If you don’t want to buy your own, you can also rent a hanbok for a day.

Ginseng

Famous around the world, Korean ginseng has extremely powerful health benefits. While it’s certainly on the more expensive side, it is the perfect gift for those looking to boost their immune system. People from all over the world come to Korea to purchase local ginseng. Today it is also consumed as energy drinks, liquor or tea. Visit the Seoul Herbal Medicine Market to purchase ginseng.

Dried Seaweed

Koreans are obsessed with seaweed. They don’t only consume it in soups, but also munch on it in a dried form as a snack. In fact, dried seaweed contains a lot of helpful antioxidants to boost health. In Korea, you also have the choice between a wide range of different flavored seaweed snack, from olive oil and onion to wasabi and spicy chipotle.

Soju

Traditional Korean drink, Soju should be high up on your souvenir list. Traditionally made from rice, wheat, or barley, it is usually consumed neat. In recent years, soju producers have come out with a variety of flavored options, such as grape, grapefruit, citrus and peach. Koreans follow a strict drinking etiquette that includes holding the glass with both hands when receiving a glass from an elder as well as bowing the head.

See more: Non-touristy activities to do in South Korea

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Enjoy your wonderful weekend in Bangkok

The capital city of Thailand and maybe the traffic jam capital of the planet, Bangkok is a fascinating, exciting and incredible city to visit. Like many other capital cities Bangkok never goes to sleep, there is always a hive of activity as people work around the clock in their various professions.

You have got a free weekend in the beautiful and bustling city of Bangkok, how should you spend it? One thing is for sure you will not have any shortage of things to do.

Dinner cruise on the Chao Phraya River

If you are looking for something to do on a weekend in Bangkok then a dinner cruise on the Chao Phraya River makes for a relaxing yet entertaining end to the day. The food is delicious and you will get to see a Thai show as entertainment. Prices for dinner cruises vary but you should certainly be able to secure one which includes transport to and from your hotel for around 1,000 baht.

If you want to see the Chao Phraya River, but you do not want to do the dinner cruise, you can catch regular boats up and down the river all day, and enjoy the views of some of Bangkok’s best known temples. The fare for travelling on the public boat is 15 baht, and on the tourist boat it is 40 baht.

Chinatown heritage center and the Golden Buddha

Located at Wat Traimit, 661 Thanon Charoen Krung, the Chinatown Heritage Center is a must see on a weekend in Bangkok. It is easy to find from Hualumphong MRT and while the heritage centre and temple are free to enter, you will need to pay 200 baht to see the Golden Buddha which is the largest in the world. The 200 baht also gets you entrance to the exhibition which shows you the history of the Buddha. One thing to remember if you are visiting is that ladies must have their shoulders covered. The centre is open from 9am to 5pm each day.

A trip around Chatuchak Market

If you like shopping you need to check this place out. If you hate shopping you need to give this place a wide berth. With over 8000 stalls covering 27 acres of space this is one of the largest markets in the world. Open every Saturday and Sunday it attracts nearly 200,000 visitors a day, you will find everything you could ever imagine for sale here and mostly at local prices rather than tourist prices, it is certainly worth picking up a map before you go to avoid you being lost in the market for hours.

Read more: The most beautiful spots for photographers in Bangkok

Have a Thai massage

Whatever country you come from you almost certainly would have heard of Thai massages and maybe even have seen a Thai massage parlour in your local village. But nowhere can you experience a traditional Thai massage done as well as you would in the country where it originated. The experience of a Thai massage will give you a new lease of life whilst making you feel invigorated as well as balanced. There are parlous absolutely everywhere so it is worth doing your research to find a good one near your hotel.

Tawandang German brewhouse

If you are out with a group of people on a weekend in Bangkok then this is the place to go. Located at Rama III, Bangkok 10110 this brewhouse has a great, fun atmosphere and some excellent craft beers at a reasonable price. The venue is open from 5pm to 1am each day, but you really want to be there for the shows which take place each night from Monday to Saturday, from 7pm to 1am. The shows are really something else, imagine Godzilla meets Ladyboys and Elvis and you probably still will not be close. If you want a fun night out in Bangkok then step into Tawandang German Brewhouse.

Ride the sky train

There is only one way to get around Bangkok at any speed whilst keeping cool and that is to jump aboard one of the sky trains. With air conditioned carriages there is no better way to get around. In most instances, you are high above the traffic below giving you a view of the city but also the train takes the most direct route. With nearly every part of Bangkok you would want to visit having a train station, travel could not be simpler.

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Visit Malacca, the pretty old town in Malaysia

Malacca (Melaka) is a famous tourist destination with a rich cultural heritage, subsequent to the colonial rule of Portuguese, Dutch and British. It becomes one of the hottest tourist destinations in Malaysia because of its centuries-old architecture that gives you a glimpse of Malacca's glorious past.

Dutch Square

Dutch Square Malacca is the most picturesque along Jalan Kota. It's also a colorful trishaw pickup point, it is distinguished by a group of bright, terracotta-red colonial Dutch buildings, built between 1660 and 1700, with louvered windows and chunky doors with wrought iron hinges.

Jonker Street

This street is the center of Chinatown of Malacca. It began in Dutch Colonial times as the home to many of the servants of Dutch nobility. However, after the Dutch left, it became the home of the nobles themselves. Many seventeenth-century manors remain here, along with a large number of shops, restaurants and other amenities. When the large Chinese presence moved in, decorative accents like a large Chinese-style archway were added. The street is blocked off every Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening to become a pedestrian-only night market.

Maritime Museum

With monthly visitors around 20,000 people, Maritime Museum is the most visited museum in Malacca. The museum main exhibits the replica of Flor de la Mar. The museum also houses exhibits, artifacts and documents from the golden era of Malacca and shows how political control of Malacca was essential to the establishment of maritime dominance in the region. It also displays the trading link of Malacca from the early time through the colonial era until independence.

St. Paul's Church

Originally built by a Portuguese captain in 1521 as a simple chapel, St. Paul’s Church offers views over Malacca from the summit of Bukit St Paul. St. Francis Xavier, one of the founders of the Jesuit order, used the church as his base for his missionary journeys to China and Japan. In one of those journeys, Xavier fell sick and eventually died in China in 1552. His body was temporarily interred here for nine months before being transferred to Goa, where it remains today. Visitors can look into his ancient tomb inside the church, and a marble statue of the saint gazing over the city.

Stadthuys

The Stadthuys (an old Dutch spelling, meaning city hall) is a historical structure situated in the heart of Malacca City, the administrative capital of the state of Malacca, Malaysia in a place known as the Red Square. The Stadhuys is known for its red exterior and nearby red clocktower. It was built by the Dutch in 1650 as the office of the Dutch Governor and Deputy Governor.

See more: Visit the best 7 old towns in Asia

Sultanate Palace

Malacca Sultanate Palace is a wooden replica of Sultan Mansur Shah’s 15th-century palace. Set at the base of St. Paul’s Hill it was painstakingly constructed in 1985 using traditional construction techniques and materials, based on accounts in the 16th century, Sejarah Melayu (Malay Annals) text. According to the annals, Sultan Mansur Shah’s seven-tiered palace was built entirely without nails and supported with carved, wooden pillars and featured a copper and zinc roof. The most elaborate royal palace ever constructed in the world in 1459. According to the annals it was destroyed the year after the sultan ascended the throne when it was struck by lightning.

Source Internet