Spectacularly Scenic Seoul

Saturday 31^st October 2015

Photos:
Yeouido Park Ride
Hangang River Ride
Itaewon Market
Bukchon Hanok Village
National Folk Museum
Gyeongookgun Palace
Yulgok-ro 3-gil
Dongdaemon Market
Cheonggyecheon Stream

Videos:
Training Exercises
Yeouido Park Ride
Jazz at Yulgok-ro 3-gil

There were so many highlights today that I don’t know where to begin, so I decided just to give a brief summary in chronological order and let the pictures and videos tell the story.

Morning Ride
Waking up at daybreak I decided to go for an early morning ride on the great bike paths around the nearby Yeouido Park and Hangang River (see my Garmin Connect route). As you can see from the photos and the Yeouido Park video, the autumn trees are incredible at this time of year. The temperature got down to 2 degrees last night and wouldn’t have been much warmer than that when I set off, so I really regretted leaving my gloves at the hotel. Down by the Hangang River there was a group of men performing some training exercises. At first I thought they were doing aerobics, but then I realised it was actually some kind of military drill, so I high tailed it the other way.

Itaewon Market
Visit Korea rightly describes Itaewon shopping street as one of the most exotic places in Seoul to spend a day of shopping, dining and hanging out.

Bukchon Hanok Village
This village is home to hundreds of traditional houses called ‘hanok’ that date back to the Joseon Dynasty.  Bukchon is home to around 900 hanok, Seoul’s largest concentration of these traditional Korean homes.  Although an increasingly touristy area, it was a pleasure to get lost in the streets here admiring the buildings’ patterned walls and tiled roofs contrasting with the modern city in the distance. This is definitely a place not to be missed if you are ever visiting Seoul, in fact you could do worse than stay in one of the hanoks if you can afford it. There is just so much to see and do around Bukchon.

National Folk Museum
Located inside Gyeongbokgung Palace, just past the Bukchon Hanok Village, the National Folk Museum of Korea contains over 4,000 historical artifacts that were used in the daily lives of ordinary Korean people. Here is a great place to learn about Korea’s lifestyles and cultural beliefs.

Gyeongookgun Palace
Wow!!! This has been by far the highlight of my stay in Seoul. As you will agree when you view the photographs, the palace and surrounding gardens are absolutely stunning in autumn.

Yulgok-ro 3-gil
On the way back from the palace to Anguk station I followed the crowd along this very interesting side street. It was here I took the videos of the jazz band busking in the street.

Dongdaemon Market
This is Korea’s largest wholesale and retail shopping district, featuring 26 shopping malls, 30,000 speciality shops, and 50,000 manufacturers. All kinds of goods can be found here including silks and fabric, clothes, shoes and accessories, electronics, leather goods, sporting goods, office supplies, pet products and toys.

Cheonggyecheon Stream
Until 2005 when it was restored Cheonggyecheon Stream was just a neglected waterway. Now it has been transformed into a delightful haven of natural beauty amidst the bustle of city life. The water is so crystal-clear I saw lots of fish swimming there.

After cramming so much into one day I was exhausted when I arrived back at the Kobos Hotel, so for dinner I went to a cheap local restaurant around the corner that serves authentic Korean cuisine. The spicy beef noodle soup was served with about six large side dishes, including two types of Kimchi, pickled radish, sweet potato, seaweed and rice … all for under A$10. I am still trying to acquire a taste for Kimchi, but I forced myself to swallow a few mouthfuls so as not to offend the Koreans. When the waiter saw that my bowl was nearly empty she came and filled it up again!