[TRIP from May 6-7, 2011] Choy and I actually had an odd trip schedule. We were scheduled to leave Incheon by 08:00 (MNL time) of May 7. But we had to leave Jeonju by bus by 19:30 of May 6. Ok, so why so early? Well, the last trip from Jeonju going to Incheon airport is at 19:30. The next ride is around 02:00 or 03:00 the next day. Should we have taken the earliest trip, we would have probably missed our flight. And as I've mentioned in my first entry of Jeonju, the bus trip from Incheon to Jeonju took us about 4-5 hours, without traffic.
When departing an international destination, it's always advisable to be at the airport for check-in 2-3 hours before the actual flight. So instead of risking to miss our flight, Choy and I sacrificed by leaving Jeonju early. We already told ourselves that we were in for a very long and tiring stay at the airport. Just imagine sleeping on those cold and metal chairs! But of course, that were better than nothing.
Anyhow, before our anticipated trip back to Incheon, we used the rest of the morning to do a little more souvenir shopping. I also dropped by Jeonju's one and only Starbucks store to buy mugs for me and my friends. We also ate at the Lotteria (can be comparable to McDonald's or Jollibee of the Philippines) before heading back to CORE Hotel. It was also Third World Happy's last screening, but we already skipped that so we could spend more time together. But before heading back to the hotel, we stopped by the SAVE ZONE Mall, which was literally situated beside the CORE hotel, to check-out suit coats that Kuya can wear to the awards later that night. Of course, we were bummed about missing the awards since we had to leave early.
[TRIP from May 5, 2011] We started our day with our usual buffet breakfast at CORE Hotel, plus our morning walk towards the KB JIFF Cinema Square. Lucky for us, there was a photobooth that was being promoted for free to JIFF guests. So we grabbed the opportunity to get a free snapshot. Here's a photo of our freebie (not hi-res though since I only captured the printed photo using my iPod).
[May 4, 2011]
This is basically what went down on our third day in Jeonju:
To start our day, we had our buffet breakfast again at Core Hotel's Skylounge Resto :) And of course, I got me some sausages and Yakult bottles again! *Yeah!*
[TRIP last May 3, 2011] As I've mentioned from my previous entry, the JIFF team definitely made our stay in Jeonju a relaxing one. Every morning, there will be print-outs of reminders and event invitations for Kuya that were slipped into our hotel door. They were always very organized and cheery. Apart from that, the JIFF team also ensured that we always had our very own JIFF Ziggy (representative) to show us around the festival.
Anyway, we started our first official morning in Jeonju by availing of our complimentary buffet breakfast at Core Hotel's Restaurant (I forgot the name though) -- while topped with a nice view of the city. It was a few floors up from our 7th floor room, so we were able to get there in time. The buffet typically ends around 8am, so we made sure to arrive before then.
[May 2, 2011]
Choy and I left the Philippines around 1 in the morning, while Kuya had his scheduled around lunch time. We had a different flight itinerary with kuya but it was still on the same day (May 2). We also arrived in Incheon before 7 am (Korea time), and then left almost immediately for Jeonju.
Jeonju is a city in South Korea, and the capital of Jeollabuk-do, or North Jeolla Province. It is an important tourist center famous for Korean food, historic buildings, sports activities and innovative festivals.
The Jeonju province is about 4-5 hours by road from the ICN airport. Sometimes it takes longer when there's traffic along the way. Anyway, we rode the limousine bus right after leaving the airport. Now to be honest, I actually didn't expect the trip to take that long. But I was so thankful that my bus chair could be reclined into a comfortable sleeping position. So when you're bound for Jeonju, you'll also have to expect at least 2-4 stop-overs before reaching the province. If I may recall, there was a stop-over at the Gumbo airport. Then the last stop was at our hotel, CORE HOTEL.
Jeonju was actually tourist-friendly. The bus even had a prompter that translated the instructions in several different languages for every stop-over made (there was English and Japanese). And since I was travelling with Choy (who was a first-timer), I was made to be more alert and more attentive to instructions. But on our last stop, a JIFF Ziggy approached us upon exiting the bus. He took our luggages and escorted us into the hotel. Upon entering the hotel, a few more JIFF volunteers greeted us with a smile, and an 'ANNYEONGHASEYO' greeting resonated in the hall. =) I actually asked Justin back at the airport to teach me a few basic korean phrases, and he taught me how to say hello, thank you and goodbye.
Hello = Annyeonghaseyo
Thank You = Gamsahabnida
Goodbye = Jagbyeol Insa
After the Ziggys' handed our press kits, ID's, and room key, Choy and I immediately went up to our 7th floor room. We decided to fix our things and immediately left for the festival. But before leaving, I made a quick email to my niece Rachel, for a possible meet-up that night. She's actually an English teacher in Jeonju. So getting a chance to see her there after 16 or so years was also a nice coincidence. Good thing the WiFi on our floor had a strong signal as I was able to send my message right away.
We were also very hungry by then, so we made sure to ask the volunteers if there were any affordable food places at the festival. There were actually plenty, and they readily gave us maps to the cinema street vicinity. Good thing JIFF also offered free shuttle rides from the hotel to the festival, as I no longer had to ask how to get there by foot. Much to my surprise, a walk from CORE Hotel to the Jiff venue would only take more or less 10 minutes. The weather was super cold but was actually good for walking.
Choy and I also took a few photos before heading to the festival. And after checking some of the restaurants along the cinema street, we finally decided to try this Chicken and Pizza place. Everything was mostly written in korean, and we found a familiar comfort in this particular food place. The place was called Dasarang Chicken and Pizza.
My trip to Jeonju, South Korea wasn't that smooth sailing during it's pre-planning stages. It probably took the JIFF coordinator more or less a month before my brother and I could have the 'go' signal to apply for a visa. If I may recall, Choy and I only only got scheduled to go to the Korean Embassy at Mckinley Road, weeks prior to leaving the Philippines. We went there with all our paperwork on April 15 2011, and were asked to submit our Passport and supporting documents. I was also given a claiming stub/slip for our passports after a brief interview, should we get approved of a visa. We were then scheduled to pick-up ours two weeks later.
Choy (my brother) and I submitted our company's SEC Business registration permit (For Brass Knuckles Inc.), Brass' Company ITR, Mayor's Permit, our Bank Certificates, and the Visa Application Form, along with our 2x2 photo/s. These requirements were actually required for Business entities. Anyway, other than being Filipino citizens, we also didn't pay for any application fees since we were only getting a single entry visa. The foreigners on the other hand and those who will be applying for multiple entires will get charged for different amounts.
