As all of the other teachers are off in different areas for vacation (Tokyo, Cambodia, Malaysia, Busan), Jess and I took off today to see the Gyeongbokgung Palace. Pictures were taken immediately upon arrival, and my day will be told mostly through pictures now :)
This here is a terrible picture (due to being on a moving subway) of the Han River. You can really notice the smog in this one!
I took this picture after just coming out of the subway station. I find it interesting to see the contrast between the traditional and modern so close to each other.
The Gwanghwamun Gate (left) and the Heungnyemun Gate (right) are two of four gates that allow entrance to the palace, everywhere else is surrounded by 5m high walls.
My ticket - 3,000 won to enter.
This was inside the palace walls - there were many of these buildings that we looked at and walked around. It took us probably two hours just to tour the palace on our own - then we went to two museums as well. It was a long day!
I absolutely fell in love with the colours and designs used to decorate all of the buildings. It was so intricate - especially the roof!
Me sitting by a cool green door.
You were allowed to go into many of the buildings and see replicas of what the furniture would have looked like - long as you took off your shoes. Below, again, how pretty!
Here I am in the Queen's main residence. Below is Jess and I in the terraced garden called Amisan that has chimneys which you can see from the Queen's main residence's windows. Thank you to the kind lady who offered to take our picture.
This is a shot of King Gojong's palace within a palace. The pavilion is named Hyangwonjeong. So beautiful!
We also came across these statues - here is what looks like a soldier monkey. I'm not really sure what they actually represent, but I have a feeling that they have to do with the New Year and your birth year being represented by an animal.
Here is a picture of the Palace in its glory. Only the King could walk down the centre.
We also got approached and asked to have a picture taken.
We also went to both The National Folk Museum of Korea and the National Palace Museum of Korea - both with had free admission. There are many interesting things to see in both of these museums. But, by the time we got to the second one, I was a little bit tired of Museums - probably best to only do one a day.
There are also five other palaces around the same area that I would like to check out eventually. I don't know if it was because of everything that I saw today, but I was really in the mood for some good non-Western food - that or maybe it's because I'm getting a bit more accustomed to being here. I really do want to expand my tastes and try new dishes (maybe not so much meat though). We could not find a restaurant nearby the palaces, so we headed home though. But I was still determined to have something more authentic, so after Jess and I parted ways, I decided to try Pho Bay (Vietnamese Food) that is close to my apartment. I almost didn't due to the fact that I was alone but went anyways and now can officially say I've ate in a restaurant alone - how sad! :P I am so thankful that I went out with Tom and Joel for Pho in the past, otherwise I would probably never had considered this place and it was amazing! Such a good dinner to end the day.
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Good blog entry and nice pictures! looks like a fun adventure day, would be neat to see. Is that 3 dollars for entry? Also how in the world do you actually say that palace name?
ReplyDeleteVery cool! Claudia
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