I’ve got Seoul but I’m not a Soldier…
We arrived in South Korea after what had the making of either a great flight or a terrible one. At the gate in SFO we were pleasantly surprised to learn we had been upgraded to First. Great way to start the trip we thought. That is until we were nearly airborne and Grace realized her seat wouldn’t recline. First class seats on United are okay, nothing great, but sitting upright for 12 hours straight is not appealing. The purser was shocked and they attempted several times in vain to fix it. By the time everyone determined that it was an impossible cause, our original business class seats had been given away and the last remaining first class seat was taken. Not good. Long story short, it was never really resolved despite multiple surgical attempts.
We arrived in Seoul around 8pm, albeit a little stiff, and proceeded by way of bus to the W (www.wseoul.com). In an area known as Walkerhill, it’s on the river, slightly removed from the city. It was late on Friday night so we called it an early night in order to get an early start the next morning.
For those that know us well, you’re likely still laughing. Us, early? Well, we were up at 8 and out of the hotel by 10. Not bad. We spent the day taking in sights and learning the Seoul Metro system. We soon learned it’s as good, if not better than Tokyo. Every line has English maps and the price is unreal – never more than $1 to go anywhere. (www.smrt.co.kr)
Our first stop of the day was Gyeongbokgung – The Palace of Shining Happiness. Originally built by King Taejo, the founder of the Joseon dynasty, this is grandest of all Seoul palaces and served as the principal residence until 1592 when it was burned down during the Japanese invasions. It was rebuilt in 1865 and in 1895, Queen Myeong-seong was killed in her bedroom by Japanese assassins. During Japanese colonial rule, most of the palace was destroyed yet again. Work began in 1996 to restore in again and is expected to continue for decades. It’s a pretty impressive site. Huge and sprawling, it took us a couple of hours to cover it all. It’s also attached to a really nice, new museum of Korean Folk Art & History which we used to take reprieve from the bitter cold temperature and wind. Although we were wishing we had gloves, we were both glad to have jackets and Grace her scarf. The temp was 35F but when the wind blew, it felt much colder. At least there was no rain or snow.
From the palace it was on to lunch in an area called Insadong. The restaurant was called Sanchon, famous for it’s authentic Buddhist temple food which if you don’t know, means all vegetarian. Everything is grow in a sustainable manner and no artificial seasonings or ingredients are used. It was an incredible meal of 20 dishes and hot tea. With their heated floors and full bellies, it was hard to get up and venture back into the cold.
We walked along the shopping street in Insadong from there and paid a visit to Jogyesa, the biggest Buddhist temple in Seoul. We lit an incense stick and walked around the seven-tiered pagoda to make a wish. I’m hoping the million dollars in small bills will waiting for me when I get back to LA.
After wishing for money, we were back on the subway to Dongdaemun market to try to spend some of it. Dongdaemun, according to our guide book, is a huge market selling everything from socks to electronics. We seemed to only find the socks and cheaply copied North Face gear. We did stumble upon a flea market though and it was filled with all kinds of crap that is funny to look at but impossible to imagine anyone buying. If you ever need an old reel-to-reel player or a slightly used vacuum from the 1950s, you now know where to find it.
The sun was setting and our dogs were barking so it was time to get back on the subway and head to the hotel for some R&R before dinner. Our cell phones weren’t working (Korea uses CDMA, not GSM) so it was a relaxing day without the annoyances of phone calls. The plan was to get a little rest then head back out for some bulgogi (Korean BBQ) and catch some jazz. As it turns out, when you wake up at 2am, going out to dinner isn’t really top of the priority list.
So it’s Sunday morning now and since we managed to sleep for nearly 10 hours the night before, we were up even earlier today. We packed our things, left them downstairs and headed back to the subway in hopes of catching the 9am mass at the Myeong-Dong Cathedral. Finished in 1898, it was a sanctuary for student and trade-union protestors during the period of military rule after the Korean War. It was nice to see how different countries prepare for Christmas and it was even funnier to see probably 50% of the non-Korean population in 1 place at 1 time.
From church we head out to Crown Bakery for some coffee and breakfast treats. Grace had something with a hot dog in the middle and I had some tiny ham rolls. Not bad and the coffee was really good.
It was back on the subway from there and over to Daehangno to see the local Filipino Sunday market. It was funny to see a group of pinoys gathered on one street, selling grocery goods from the Philippines and cooking breakfast in tin pots along a major road. It must be a popular meeting place as we saw more Filipinos than we could shake a stick at.
It’s much colder today, probably below freezing and we notice it. A stop at Starbucks was necessary before heading on to lunch at Bongchu Jjimdak. Think large platter of chicken pieces with potatoes, carrots and onions all on top of noodles and a spicy sauce. Delicious! And what a great deal. $15 for the both of us. Value is certainly a consistent theme in Korea. You can eat, stay and travel around for very reasonable prices.
After lunch we had a few hours to kill before heading off to the airport and our Filipino market friends told us to check out Namdaemun Market – another huge night and day market selling everything under the sun. This one is crowded with Japanese tourists and food stalls so tightly packed God help them if there is a fire. Again, mostly things we didn’t want to buy but Grace managed to find a nice eye-glasses store and for 1/3 the price of glasses here, got herself a stylish new pair of prescription lenses. She almost bought ones that made her look like Sarah Palin but after I nearly choked to death, she picked the ones that make her look Korean. Haha.
It was all too soon but from there it was back to the hotel then on to the airport. For reference, be sure to give yourself plenty of time to achieve this task should you ever visit. Traffic is gnarly here and we almost missed our flight. The result instead was 2 middle seats. You can imagine my feelings about this.
Add comment December 15th, 2008
