Six days in Seoul April 15, 2017 A non-stop six days in Seoul. Not enough time to see it all; better come again soon! View fullsize We're here and ready to go! Where's that Asiana plane? View fullsize Settling in for the long train ride into Seoul. View fullsize View from our beautiful Westin hotel - thank you, SPG. View fullsize Heading out into the world, now that we're all coffee'd up. View fullsize First stop is Seoul City Hall - which was reborn into the funky modern building in 2012. View fullsize Luscious green wall inside. View fullsize An impressive balloon sculpture. (Shh! They're really plastic.) View fullsize And funky "duct work" spiraling everywhere. View fullsize City Hall from the side. View fullsize The Spring Sculpture marks the start of the Cheonggyecheon canal. View fullsize The start of the 10.9-km-long newly renovated canal. View fullsize The guardians of the water. View fullsize Lunch and sun at the edge of the canal. View fullsize Excited by the stepping stones! View fullsize Ladies lunching on the shore. View fullsize Lovely spring day on the canal! View fullsize All the men, looking at the fish! View fullsize Their love is still alive. View fullsize Depicted on tiles: the ceremonial parade-of-women-in-lampshades. View fullsize A dense lunch spot! View fullsize Donut in the sky! Also the Samsung Jongno Tower. View fullsize First of many many many Korean meals! View fullsize Aww - cute socks. View fullsize Brushes outside a calligraphy neighborhood. View fullsize Shop owners enjoy their lunch on the side of the road in Insadong. View fullsize Insadong hopping on a Monday afternoon. View fullsize Getting some navigational help from his local friends. View fullsize I, too, can pose for Instagram. View fullsize The blossoms are out! A hint of what's to come. View fullsize A paper lantern festival - not sure what for, but really colorful! View fullsize Colorful eye candy! View fullsize Spot the tree thru the lanterns? View fullsize We made it to dinner after a much-needed rest. Now, where are we? View fullsize Another tasty Korean dinner! View fullsize Mum's new pink friend. They speak the same language: style. View fullsize The fourth and final birthday cake of the season, courtesy of Westin Chosun. View fullsize Enjoying the beautiful Westin Chosun breakfast buffet. View fullsize Major intersection; major buildings. View fullsize Making new acquaintances in every city he visits. View fullsize These firemen must've been in a hurry to pee! View fullsize Taking the "elevator" up the base of the Namsan mountain. View fullsize Namsan mountain, here we come! View fullsize A very emotive tree trunk! View fullsize The blossoms were in full bloom all around the perimeter of Namsan Mountain. View fullsize Some small flower beds were also in bloom. View fullsize Pretty blossoms and blue sky! View fullsize We could be in Japan! View fullsize The cinematographer, hard at work. View fullsize That's our destination! N-Seoul Tower! View fullsize The view from mid-hill. Already picturesque! View fullsize By the way we're dressed, you'd think it's still winter. View fullsize Many colors - not just whites and pinks. View fullsize Uh oh... View fullsize More beautiful views. Too bad it doesn't look like this year-round. We came at exactly the right time! View fullsize Did you know? The Koreans take archery very seriously! And find it acceptable to practice right in the middle of the public park. View fullsize The first signs of the Seoul City Wall. View fullsize We made it up the tower! The views aren't too shabby. View fullsize That's where we walked. Can you spot the roads? View fullsize The city literally fades off into the mountains. View fullsize The shorter Itaewon area - which we'll visit on Saturday. View fullsize More blossom-lined roads. View fullsize Group shot in heaven. View fullsize Even the bathrooms have world-class views. View fullsize The perils of sitting on a crooked bench. View fullsize Heading back down the mountain - a little faster than we came! View fullsize Stopping for some more scenic shots. View fullsize Like this north-westerly view. View fullsize More Seoul City Wall - built and re-built over several dynasties. View fullsize What a happy car park. View fullsize A Buddhist temple. View fullsize Namdaemun Market! Much more bustling than when we were here in mid-December. View fullsize Freshly made sugar donuts! Can't be beat! View fullsize We found one of the food alleys. View fullsize Serve your own kimchi. View fullsize Delicious bibimbap! View fullsize And this is spicy fish soup alley. View fullsize I can only guess that that's the spicy fish soup! View fullsize Finishing off our visit to Namdeun with a stop at Sungnyemun, the south gate of the Seoul City Wall. Just in time for the changing of the guards! View fullsize Here are the colorful guards! View fullsize Said South Gate - one of the Eight Gates in the Fortress Wall of Seoul. View fullsize Ornate, but somewhat cartooney, dragons in the interior ceiling of the gate. View fullsize The guards - just starting their shift. View fullsize Well, at least one person knows how to smile for the camera. View fullsize Interesting sign on the sidewalk! View fullsize The official countdown until the PyeongChong Olympic Games! View fullsize An old photo of Seoul Plaza filled with football fans - pre-new-City Hall. View fullsize Lending a helping hand to take a photo inside the public library. View fullsize The guard at the entrance to Deoksugung Palace - another guy thrilled with his job. View fullsize The Cucumber Club - select snacks only. View fullsize Just in time for another changing of the guard ceremony! View fullsize The costumes are very colorful indeed! View fullsize What's in the box? View fullsize Baring his teeth for all the world to see. View fullsize Old meets new in downtown Seoul. View fullsize Ornate wooden detailing on the ceiling of the main palace building. View fullsize The famous moon and sun imagery. View fullsize Taking a rest on some slightly more modern stairs. View fullsize Why does *he* always get asked to take the photos? View fullsize No shortage of color! View fullsize Group shot. We got our $1 entry fee worth! View fullsize Japanese maples and blossoms side-by-each. View fullsize Dinner at the bustling Gwangjang Market. View fullsize Famous for its mung bean pancakes and tempura. View fullsize These two tried the fried chicken instead. View fullsize Seafood and kimchi! View fullsize Speaking of kimchi - making her own! View fullsize Chewy rice noodles! View fullsize Looks a little dodgy? Eating under a bridge at night. View fullsize Cheongyecheon canal at night - nicely lit. View fullsize And the famous Dongdaemun Design Plaza - lit nicely at night. View fullsize All ready for our morning at Changdeokgung Palace. View fullsize Many well-restored gates and buildings. View fullsize One of our favorite locks. View fullsize Beautiful roofs and ceilings. View fullsize Paper doors and wooden floors. View fullsize A courtyard and a nice old tree. View fullsize Very graphic warning sign. View fullsize Group shot in front of the main palace building. View fullsize No shortage of school kids on day trips! View fullsize Just resting our feet for a while. View fullsize Another ornate interior - with iconic mountain image. View fullsize Apparently, the only blue palace roof. View fullsize Just browsing. View fullsize Just two goofballs posing together. View fullsize They left some parts of the palace complex unpainted to create a visual differentiation between "work" and "home". View fullsize Gardens visible only during the Secret Garden tour. View fullsize Walking around during the guided tour - apparently this area is significant in Korean scholastic history. View fullsize The happy couple. View fullsize Standing in the doorway that represents longevity. View fullsize More (secret) garden in bloom. View fullsize Resting some legs at the end of the lengthy walking tour. View fullsize My new handbag? Or a really big lock? View fullsize A skyline of traditional rooftops. View fullsize More old meets new. View fullsize "Hello? Anyone home?" View fullsize Another cool lock! View fullsize Spot the tourists! View fullsize Twins! View fullsize Trendy, hilly Seoul. View fullsize Heading down the slopes. View fullsize Hey, I've got some "happy pills" - wanna buy them? View fullsize Traditional dress - ready for a photo shoot! View fullsize Peeking into Gyeongbokgung Palace - which we visited when we were here in 2013. View fullsize The historians at work. View fullsize Walking around Tongin - a very local neighborhood to the west of Gyeongbokgung Palace. View fullsize A staircase of onions - yum. View fullsize Want to have your hair done here? View fullsize That's a little creepy. View fullsize The streets were beautifully lined with blossoms. View fullsize A famous little book store. View fullsize And a very local coffee roaster. View fullsize Another local market. View fullsize Fresh lentils for you? View fullsize Fresh strawberries! We had to try 'em! View fullsize A really cute - and clever - kids top. View fullsize Trying said strawberries! View fullsize Banpo Bridge - would you believe, it's the world's longest bridge fountain in the Guinness Book of World Records! View fullsize The music-light-water show is novel for the first 1 minute. View fullsize After a rather unbelievable adventure, we land up at a Mexican restaurant for dinner in Seorae Village - a "tiny bit of France in Seoul". View fullsize Next morning: day trip to Heyri village, an artist's village perilously close to North Korea. View fullsize It also has lots of modern buildings. View fullsize Like this one. View fullsize Heyri surely also has the highest cafe:resident ratio. 10:1 perhaps? View fullsize Grizzly husky guarding his home. View fullsize My favorite building there - and also a really nice gallery. View fullsize Very neat handmade paper art. View fullsize In a very bright gallery space. View fullsize Blending in with the birch trees. View fullsize More modern buildings. View fullsize Three gentlemen - all surprised by what they see! View fullsize I also particularly liked this building. View fullsize A really nice Italian lunch before leaving Heyri. View fullsize Ever seen an inflatable toilet seat before? Now you have. View fullsize Trying out a truly high chair. View fullsize Ceramic roses. View fullsize A round-about footbridge. View fullsize And a very twisted hot dog! View fullsize Next stop: Yeouido island! View fullsize We stumbled upon a very entertaining street performer. View fullsize He was featuring a kid from the audience. View fullsize Very good with those diablo sticks. View fullsize I Seoul U - seems to be the city's slogan? Not sure which grammatical rules they follow. View fullsize Interesting take on topiary sculptures! Giant gekkos? View fullsize I have to say, the skyline is... underwhelming. View fullsize All rivers have river cruises. View fullsize Nothing like an afternoon picnic in the park. View fullsize Socializing? Or social media-ing? View fullsize Trying my hand at a funky playground apparatus. View fullsize Tandem bikes abound! View fullsize Lots of blossoms at this park, too. View fullsize Group shot! View fullsize A Korean blue bird. View fullsize What are these swans queuing up for, anyway? View fullsize Another long queue. View fullsize More blossoms. Would have been a nice park to bike around! (In fact, one can bike around the whole island.) View fullsize Many bridges, more skyline - and the park in the foreground... pretty! View fullsize A clever playground for kids. View fullsize And nighttime in Hongdae - the hip young hangout around Hongik University. View fullsize No shortage of shopping here. View fullsize Cotton candy and a fluffy dog. What's the link? View fullsize I think this is a dog cafe! View fullsize After many nights of quiet neighborhoods, we finally found the crowds. View fullsize That's a funky dinner place. View fullsize Ashamed to be seen with the fashion icon. View fullsize On Friday, we were privileged enough to have our own personal guide - Prof. Kun Mo Lee. View fullsize This is the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. View fullsize And a famous statue of King Sejong, who made the Korean written language accessible to all. View fullsize That's the alphabet there, ladies and gents. View fullsize We stop with the guards at Gyeongbokgung Palace... View fullsize ... who were getting ready to change guard ... View fullsize ... on our way to our first stop: The National Palace Museum of Korea. View fullsize Next stop after that: the National Folk Museum of Korea. (Aren't these names a bit redundant?) View fullsize A true representation of the Korean ways: giant daikon in the front yard. View fullsize A delicious lunch at a traditional Korean restaurant. View fullsize Apparently the fish was delish! View fullsize And afternoon tea at a traditional tea house. View fullsize I forget exactly what kind of herbal tea I tried. View fullsize And for the final evening of the trip: Myeongdong! View fullsize A hotbed of activity for the cinematographer. View fullsize No shortage of street food options here. View fullsize Fresh fruit smoothies - even signature strawberry. View fullsize Cheese on a stick! View fullsize And a tornado potato! View fullsize Dinner was at a famous noodle restaurant. I've never had anything quite like this! View fullsize Tasty! View fullsize This must be where all of Seoul comes on a Friday night. View fullsize Giant dumplings! View fullsize Ran into my colleague, Grace, also from Bangkok! View fullsize Our final day in Seoul: visiting the Itaewon neighborhood. View fullsize Itaweon is full of all things foreign: foreign restaurants, people, clothing - you name it! View fullsize And some cute street art. View fullsize The Canucks finally found their home in Seoul! View fullsize Clothing for fat foreigners! View fullsize This should be a fun place to come at night. View fullsize We found the long-lost cattle of Seoul. View fullsize How about dripping cheese for a store-front awning? View fullsize Small alleys - how can those trucks even fit? View fullsize More small alleys. View fullsize Sign says it all. View fullsize This Turkish ice cream vendor was really having fun with this customer! View fullsize The Samsung Museum of Art - a worthwhile stop. View fullsize The property and building are quite fascinating as well. View fullsize Looking up the central atrium. It was stunning from the top. View fullsize Peak-a-boo, says the stealth but larger-than-life dog. View fullsize One of our last subway rides! View fullsize Back out to Mangwon - another fun local neighborhood. View fullsize We finally figured out where Seoul locals buy their fresh fruits and vegetables. View fullsize Too bad we were already in our final hours. Otherwise, would've gotten some. View fullsize Our destination: Zero per Zero, artists and map makers. View fullsize And back on Asiana, bound for Bangkok. So long, Seoul - it's been fun!
