Thursday, September 19th
Our second day in Seoul dawned and
found us preparing for another day of sight-seeing. The first item on
our agenda was Gyeongbokgung Palace. This palace is famous as one of
the largest and grandest, and although it was destroyed during the
Japanese invasion it has been fully restored.
That morning we set out once more
through the subway system, and just about missed our first train. We
came so close to missing it, in fact, that the doors started to shut
on me while I was trying to get on. That was a first! Though
thankfully, even if we had not made it we would not have had to wait
too long before the next one.
A couple transfers later we arrived at
the palace site. Because of the holiday entrance was free, which also
meant huge crowds. It was a stiflingly hot day with not a cloud in
the pale blue sky. I was reminded of my home in Texas, though I can't
say that the heat made me homesick.
At first I thought it would only take a
short amount of time to see everything, but I soon realized that the
palace grounds were much larger than I expected. Down every path
there was a new building to see which led to another new building and
so forth. As always, I loved the intricacy of the architecture.
In addition to the sights of the
palace, they were also holding demonstrations of traditional Korean
dancing and singing. There were booths set up for children to do
various crafts and activities, and they were passing out some tteok
(pronounced like “dukk”) which is a kind of rice cake especially
common around the time of Chuseok.
We spent a couple hours wandering
around Gyeongbokgung, but after a few hours of walking under the
blazing sun on an empty stomach, we decided that it was time to move
on. It took awhile to reform our group, but we reconvened and made a
plan for the next step. It was on to Insadong next.
This is what Insadong is:
“Insa-dong Street is one of the most
memorable attractions in Seoul and represents the focal point of
Korean traditional culture and crafts. Stores in Insa-dong specialize
in a wide variety of goods that can only be purchased or appreciated
in Korea: hanbok (traditional clothing), hanji (traditional paper),
traditional teas, pottery, and folk crafts.”
(http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/SH_EN_7_2_2_1.jsp)
Lunch time had already come and gone,
but we needed a place to eat before we walked through Insadong. It
was incredibly crowded which made it difficult to find a restaurant
with room for us. The growling in our stomachs spurred us onward, and
we ended up finding a very nice little place down a side street. It
was a small place with all the usual Korean dishes, and decorated in
a very pleasant and old fashioned manner. I ordered Bulgogi in a
stone pot. I have to say, it was incredibly delicious.
Refreshed by the food, we braved the
crowded street once more. We mostly stuck to window shopping which
was fine with me. We also got to see a lot of street food, including
this very unique way of eating ice cream:
They break off those long cones and
fill them with ice cream, so you it's like you have a tube of ice
cream. The cone is corn based, and really very good. The people
selling them must have made a killing, because it seemed like
everyone was enjoying one.
In addition to shopping, there were
also street musicians. I admit to having a deep fondness for street
musicians. There was a violinist who was particularly good. I was
very sad when he put up his instrument and left.
Before leaving Insadong, I found myself
a cozy coffee shop and ordered a chocolate espresso. Small, but a
very tasty and refreshing drink. It was also good to sit down in a
quiet place for a bit.
While waiting for the entire group to
make it back to the appointed meeting place, we got to watch more
street musicians and a man making giant bubbles for the delight of
the children gathered.
We decided to head to Han river next,
and as the sun set we hopped onto another subway. It was night when
we arrived at the riverside, and all of the lights were aglow amid
the rippling water. The park beside the water was really lovely.
There were fountains, benches, grass, and families all enjoying the
cool night breeze together or watching street magicians. It was
really a peaceful place, with the moon high above us and the lapping
of the water beside us. A snack of squid only added to the
atmosphere.
I was a little sorry to leave the
riverside, but also so exhausted that I was grateful to return to our
home base. Once more I found myself eating a late dinner from a
convenience store and then sleeping deeply.
It was a long, hot day but once more
productive. My favorite parts were the street musicians and the
river. I find places like Gyeongbokgung and Insadong very interesting
and enjoyable because of the way they are steeped in culture (both
old and new), but at the end of the day I like nothing better than to
sit in some grass and enjoy a peaceful scene.
Thanks for reading! More to come. Sorry if the posts are slow--I am still a college student, even here in Korea, with homework to keep up on. Thanks!
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