First, I got hopelessly lost looking for a bike rental place. I took the train to the station that was instructed and exited to the correct area, and then the directions said walk 2km but didn't specify which way. So I tried left, right, up, down and still couldn't find it. Then I was exhausted so I decided to go to the supermarket instead and prepare dinner for my hosts.
Supermarkets in South Korea are pretty much like the ones in America, except shelved with well, more Korean products. The supermarket that I went to was called Home Plus, and it's this gigantic supermarket with everything that you need. It kind of reminded me of a Target but with a produce section.
For dinner I decided to make something more "American," since those are thought of as special foods here. I quickly googled some recipes and decided on pasta with pesto and vegetables, and guacamole, because my friend had mentioned she tried to make guacamole a few weeks ago but it didn't turn out right.
The pasta and pesto were found in the "International foods" section, and everything else I pretty much found with ease except the avocados and lime. Avocados, I think are considered an exotic fruit here. After circling the produce section a million times I finally gave up and asked a supermarket employee for help, and she immediately went "Ah! Ah-vo-ca-DOS!" and brought me to this hidden corner with four of them. Avocados are quite expensive here. They were 3500 won each, so that's about $3.50 each. In the U.S, they are normally between $1-$3 each depending on the size. But I suppose that price tag comes with the expensive import tax, because I don't think avocados grow in South Korea.
The next thing that I could not find was lime. They didn't carry it at all, but I did find lime juice so at least that works. Can't make a good guacamole without lime juice! Other things that I noticed were missing in this supermarket were jalapeños and red onions, but it's not a big deal. I just prefer red onions in guacamole because they're sweeter, and Koreans are not short in supply of spicy peppers. There were PLENTY, just not jalapeños specifically.
After lugging all of this home, I decided to take pictures of them. I found the packaging quite adorable hehe. That's the other thing I noticed with South Korea, people not only like their things to be functional but good looking and orderly. I wish the U.S would take some notes on that.
Ingredients for Pesto Pasta with Vegetables:
Ingredientes for Guacamole:
The end result...tada!
Bon appetite!
If anyone would like the recipes they're here:
Pasta
http://thecocinamonologues.com/2012/08/04/easy-weeknight-dinner-pesto-pasta-with-spinach-asparagus-and-cherry-tomatoes/
Guacamole
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