Travelinds enjoyed a festive evening out at the ballet on Boxing Day. The Nutcracker Suite is an old favourite and the Universal Arts Centre in Seoul did not disappoint. There are shows here all year round so book your tickets next time you’re coming to Seoul.
Chuseok weekend is usually a great time of the year for outdoor activities and we headed off the Bukhansan National Park to hike. Cooler weather, clear skies, changing colours and a slight breeze made the hike all that much sweeter.
The mountain borders Seoul to the north and was used as a natural defence in ancient Korean dynasties. It is a large mountain area (visible from almost anywhere in Seoul if you look north) with a few main peaks, multiple entrances and varied levels of hiking difficulty. It was amazing to go straight from the bustling city to the shady paths of the silent mountain. Once we were on the mountain, in the stillness and sounds of nature, we completely forgot about the city behind us until the magnificent view points reminded us how close we really were.
As amateurs just hiking for the views, we didn’t really look at the difficulty levels, times or correct entrances and just headed to one on this directions list from Visit Korea. (Our choice was Bukhansan National Park – Gireum Station (Line 4), Exit 3. Take Bus 110B or 143, and get off at the last bus stop).
With these instructions, we took the subway to Gireum Station, then the 10-minute bus and ended up at the Bukhansan Jeongneung Information Centre (start of Recommended course #4 on the Dulle-gil trail). This is where we started hiking. Being on the unfit side, we decided to head to Daeseongmun gate (on the board it was described as a medium-to-advanced hike, 3.4km, 2 hours 45 minutes). From there we would see how we were feeling before deciding the next leg of the hike. As it turns out, Daeseongmun gate was quite enough challenge for one day (we did it in less than 2 hours) and, since we had already found some beautiful views on the way up, we headed from there across to Daennammun gate and then down towards Bukhansan Gugi Ticket Office.
A rather beautiful adventure and a memorable day.
The National Folk Museum of Korea houses quite a few interesting exhibits about life and culture in South Korea. The museum is next to the Gyeongbok Palace in central Seoul and admission is free (remember, it is closed on Tuesdays).
It is quite an eye-catching building with the traditional Korean architecture towering above the pretty park (which, when we went, was also covered in a thick layer of white snow).
We chose to do a guided English tour (at 14.30) with a Korean guide and to watch a (free) traditional music performance that was being hosted at the museum auditorium. It is definitely worth a visit, especially with its convenient proximity to the Gyeongbok palace and Insadong for touristy sightseers.
Our guide at the museum was wonderful and we thoroughly enjoyed her quirky take on the Korean life and culture! Her English name was Hillary and she chatted away to us about the museum where she has been a volunteer English guide since she was a university student. She loves the gig so much that she still continues her volunteering every Saturday, because she now works during the week. Her hope is that this guide work will help her to improve her English even more and also allow her to meet foreigners (waegooks) from all countries of the world.
Outside the museum are the twelve Chinese Zodiac animals with birth years engraved so you can find your own. Not that we are superstitious at all, but it was fun to see the details. I’m a Tiger (ferocious and stubborn) and he’s a Rat (highly intelligent and sneaky) – sounds about right!
Be sure to check out the little street of restaurants across the road from the museum, we found such a cute one in a little alleyway. The lunch cafe is situated inside an old Korean house converted into a little eating spot called ‘Rice’ (밥).
This cute little restaurant called ‘밥’ (said ‘bap’, it means rice) was hidden in one of the alleyways opposite the National Folk Museum of Korea in Seoul. It is an old Korean house, with traditional low ceilings, sliding doors and floor seating, which was turned into a little eatery.
You leave your shoes at the door, duck through the entrance and sit down on the floor in front of the low tables. The menu is simple and consists of Kimchi Jikae (spicy kimchi soup), fish kimchi jikae (with small fish in the soup) and other very traditional Korean dishes (considered as ‘light lunches’). If you can’t read Korean, the menu on the wall might be difficult to decipher without any pictures available. As in any traditional Korean restaurant, a bowl of steamed rice and a range of side dishes (Banchan) are usually included.
We walked across the road from the museum, up the street where there are restaurants, coffee shops and the modern art museum. The ‘Bap’ restaurant is down one of the little alleyways opposite a Greek art gallery.
Machika jusaeyo “맛있게주세요” – bon appetit!
This weekend, we went to Seoul Forest (서울 숲 pronounced “soh-ool soop”) for a picnic with some Korean friends. It is a large green area set along the northern side of the Han River (한강) and surprisingly, right in the center of the bustling metropolis of Seoul; although surrounded by trees and twittering birds, it certainly doesn’t feel like you are in the middle of this massive city.
Seoul Forest was opened in 2005 by Korea’s controversial tenth president, Lee Myung-bak, while he was still the Mayor of Seoul. The Seoul Forest consists of five “themed” parks (sculpture, ecological etc) and it covers over approximately 1.16 million square metres. Lee Myung-bak also created the beautiful Cheonggyecheon stream (one of my favourite places in Seoul!) and he is also accredited with having introduced the rapid transit buses to the city’s transportation system.
It was truly amazing to find this little piece of heaven in the middle of the craziness that is Seoul and we thoroughly enjoyed exploring the park and forest during the peaceful afternoon.
We managed to get to the sculpture park, a couple of open grassy patches, an educational greenhouse, a butterfly farm, a deer enclosure, waterfalls and quiet benches; as well as plenty of place to picnic, ride bikes, walk and enjoy the sunshine. There is is also a bridge near the deer enclosure, which leads over the wide Han River to the other side. The south side of the Han River is mainly sports parks, walking areas and bicycle tracks.
Armed with our silver picnic mat and gimbap (as the Koreans do), we found a shady spot near the grassy patch that was also hosting a children’s festival that day called “Treasure Island”; near the convenience store and coffee shop, which are also, obviously, available in the middle of the forest (because, it would be unacceptable to escape to a forest if there wasn’t a convenience store and a coffee shop available). Only in Korea I tell you!
As with anywhere is Seoul, you can get easily get to the park in several different ways.
Car: We drove here using the GPS and paid about 8,000won for (outside) parking for the afternoon.
Bus: Front entrance (2014, 2412, 2413 or 2224, and get off at Seoul Forest), or Back entrance (141, 145, 148 or 410, and get off at the back gate of Seoul Forest).
Subway: Seoul Forest Station (Subway Bundang Line), Exit 3. or
Ttukseom Station (Seoul Subway Line 2), Exit 8.
It was certainly worth the trip and we hope to visit here again soon. What a lovely retreat for Seoulites who need to escape the madness of the city for while!
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I won free tickets to Everland resort through Korea Tourism Organization on Twitter last week! Obviously, we used our first opportunity to take advantage of the free entry to this theme park about an hour south of Seoul.
We headed out on Saturday morning full of anticipation and unsure of what to expect. We got there before opening time, found out our tickets were “comprehensive” and so completely covered our entrance fees and all the facilities, rides and fun! Whoopee — a great start to the day!
South Korea’s Everland turned out to be a huge resort of sorts, including an impressive theme park, plenty of entertainment, a zoo, global themed ‘villages’, sky rides, gardens and lots more to experience. It was a struggle to decide what to do so we tried to do everything! And just about succeeded.
Pro Tip: Wear comfortable shoes when you’re going to this massive entertainment location. Everything is a long walk away.
Our highlights at Everland were the rides, animals, sky lifts and candy floss. We also enjoyed the bird show and the African exhibit hall, even thought it had its own lonely meerkat.
The zoo was impressive – Korea’s largest zoo – but being South African, our hearts are always happiest when animals are free. There’s something unbeatable about seeing a creature in its natural environment and being treated with the awe and respect that all wild creatures deserve!
That said, the monkey enclosures were interesting. My favorites to watch were the tiny marmosets. During the bird show we saw everything from a Golden Eagle to an owl and guinea fowls. The birds looked in great condition, which made the show seem more acceptable somehow.
On the theme park side of things, we splashed through the flume ride, bumped each other’s Dodge ‘Ems, and spun around while swinging on the “Hurricane.” Then, we finally braved the HUGE wooden T-Express — a rollercoaster. It was H’s first time on one, and whew! It was a proud day for wimpy me!
Grateful for our free tickets, we made the most of the time at Everland. We arrived at opening time and left almost at closing time. Exhausted, we then realised that we’d likely need a couple more days to cover every inch of this “resort.” We definitely gave it our best effort, though.
The best of our Everland memories will always be the rides. There was also plenty of queues, constant walking to and from places, water spray fans to cool off and friendly Everland employees. The happy children everywhere also reminded us that there was loads of fun to be had in all directions here.
Thanks Korea Tourism Organization for the awesome day!
Rushing to Seoul after a rugby tournament at the Osan US Airbase, we hoped to reach our destination on time. Umoja, the South African musical, was showing at Chungmu Art Hall in Jung-gu. It’s right in the centre of Seoul.
Having left a little later than planned, the 60km took more than two hours thanks to the heavily congested expressway (as usual). Still, we saw a few weird and wonderful sights along the way. One was a motorcycle with a dragon tail and merry-go-round horse head. The man riding it was selling rice cakes on the expressway to all the traffic jam victims.
We saw a Porsche or two, as well. Maybe it wouldn’t have helped to have a faster car than our hand-me-down.
Despite the traffic, we made it to the show with twenty minutes to spare. That meant a deodorant bath, a splash of lipstick and getting there just a few minutes before the curtains rose to find our seats.
It was worth it. That night, we really enjoyed the vibrant taste of our homeland, South Africa. With all that dancing, singing and relatable humorous moments from home, leaving with happy souls and exhausted bodies felt amazing.
Since we’d rushed in, there had been no time to eat or look for a place to sleep, so we made our way out into the big city that never seems to sleep. At 10.30pm, we managed to find a bed and some food. Thankfully, you never have to look very far for these things in Seoul.
Plus Motel was the first one we happened upon, right next to Chungmu Art Hall. For a reasonable price and fairly clean room, why not!
We tend to pick ‘love’ motels as a last resort. It’s often the most reasonable option for a private room (for two). We try not to think about the ‘main idea’ behind these establishments that offer rooms by the hour.
Having secured a bed for the night, we ventured out into Jung-gu to feed the hungry tummies. Again, not far from our motel we found a handful of coffee shops, Korean restaurants, fast food joints and, happily, an open market.
It’s wonderful being able to amble through the market on the lookout for delicious things. We settled on some kimchi mandu (Korean dumplings with kimchi inside them), a salad roll, some bananas and a little snickers bar for pudding. We passed on the pig trotters, live octopus and unidentifiable marinated meat.
Tired bodies were in bed by midnight, and a good nine hours later we emerged from our blue and red neon-lit room to find some brunch. Tom ‘n Toms is one of H’s favourites because it has a delicious cream cheese pretzel and coffee combo. We headed to find one in nearby Dongdaemun, a vast shopping district.
We are always amazed at the hustle and bustle of this famous fashion and fabric shopping paradise. We sat sipping coffee and watching Seoul tour busses bring in load after load of tourists to Dongdaemun. Vendors lay out their wares, shoppers filled their bags and emptied their wallets, all with six lanes of traffic whizzing by.
Seoul is truly fascinating sometimes!
