Dara visits, eats at Filipino market in Seoul


Dara (aka Sandara Park) visited a Filipino market in Seoul and got to mingle and take photos with Pinoys and Koreans.

She posted her new video “Philippines Market in Korea” on DaraTV on YouTube where she and producer Shin visited the Filipino street market near the Hyehwadong Catholic Church in Hyehwa-dong in Jongno, Seoul.

Philippines Market in Korea l 한국에 있는 필리핀마켓 가봤어요 ??

Every Sunday, hundreds of Filipinos go to the marketplace where Filipino food and products are available from sinigang mix, corned beef to ready-to-eat meals.

Dara said her original plan was to shop at the Philippine market, introduce food and products “but due to endless photo shoot, it ended up as a vlog.”

Dara at the Philippine food market in Seoul (Screen capture from Dara’s video)

“Let’s see if people will recognize me. Because occasionally those who lived abroad when they were younger and didn’t have access to Philippine TV programs don’t know me. Rather their kids or moms know me,” Dara said.

She added, “When I visited LA, there was a staff member working with CL (who) was Filipino and they didn’t know who I was. So I took a picture with them and when they got home and showed their friends, they were like ‘Sandara!’”

When they arrived at the market, Dara was excited to see the familiar Filipino products. Before becoming a member of 2NE1, Dara and her family lived in the Philippines. She started her showbiz career in the country after placing second on the TV show “Star Circle Quest” in 2004. She left her showbiz career in the Philippines to become a trainee under YG Entertainment and debuted in 2NE1 in 2009.

At the market, Dara chose her Favorite Filipino products to buy. “This..we have to buy this,” Dara told Shin as she pointed to Mang Tomas sauce, saying, “I really love it.”

Her second pick was the corned beef, telling Shin, “This you can add onion and peppers and other ingredients like that.”

“Tocino is my favorite breakfast food,” said Dara as she picked her third Filipino food. As she bought the tocino, the Filipino seller said, “Akala ko si Sandara to.”

As she pulled down her face mask, people at the market recognized her and started taking photos with her. Dara and Shin ordered food and ate at the market, and people kept coming to Dara to take a photo with her.

“Apparently people in the Philippines take the most pictures compared to all other countries. And they are also the most active on social media. So that’s why to our supporters, imagine how powerful this (cell phone) is. Even my DaraTV followers are mainly from the Philippines,” Dara noted.

A Korean grandmother who took a photo with Dara told her, “You can’t even eat because you’re so popular. I saw you on TV a few years ago. It’s hard to become successful like that. You’re so kind. Thank you for being so popular.”

As they were eating, Dara told Shin, “But these days I eat so much so I now weigh 43 kilos. I gained weight.”

“Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat. Mabuhay! Mahal ko kayo,” Dara ended her blog.