"Home" in Korea: 2 mountains, a palace, and a birthday

As much as we enjoyed our trip to China (great sites, great to see old friends and meet new friends, great food and good hotel pools....Lili made me add the last point), it was sure great to come"home" to Korea. Vacations are like that. No matter how much fun they are it is always nice to get home to your own bed, sleep in and have a day off. It was also nice that the temperature in Seoul was ten degrees cooler than in Shanghai. Another plus for us was, even with our limited knowledge of Korean, we can communicate at least a little. In China it would have been very hard without friends, tour guides and translators. A very helpful ground transportation staffer at Gimpo Airport (the old Seoul airport) made sure we were on the right bus home. We were soon home tucked away in our beds.

We arrived home on Tuesday the 21st, so the girls had 3 more days of school till their school summer vacation. This was good, so Deb and I had time to shop for groceries and generally regroup. Here is a shot of Jin and Lili relaxing in their bedroom and one of Deb "regrouping" the next day at Starbucks (spelled in Korean letters) in Insadong.



On our first weekend back we decided to go for a hike up Namsan (or south mountain). This mountain, located between our place and downtown is a large natural park with lots of walking trails and is capped by Seoul Tower. It was kind of hazy so we didn't bother to go up the tower, but had lots of great views at lookouts along the trails. The prize (or carrot) at the end of the trail was a playground on the other side of the park.




There was an interesting artistic installation at the top of the mountain: wire mesh figures suspended by wires. This one looks like Spiderman sailing off the tower.

There is a traditional pavilion at the top of the mountain. Segments of the old city walls are preserved in the park. There is a plan to rebuild the wall through the park.

A signal tower at the top provides a great view of the downtown.

A cable car brings people up the north side. This side is much steeper than the south side we walked up.

Here are the girls "in the frame" and beside a really big stone.

Finally we made it to the playground. Yeah!

The next week (last week) was summer vacation for the girls' kindergarten, so we had some time to play and explore. After our hike up Namsan we thought lets tackle another mountain, so decided to hike up Namhansan (mountain south of the Han River) to see the fortress Namhansanseong. These are located in the city of Seongnam, immediately southeast of Seoul. We took the subway to the Namhansansoeng station and a bus up to the park entrance.

Before entering the park we had to spray our shoes, presumably so we wouldn't track in any foreign seeds or pests. There were lots of families picnicing and playing in the stream along the first part of the hike. Along the way there were many piles of stones. Then the trail up the valley to the ridge and fortress becomes steeper. It is mostly paved, with stairs in the steepest places. We took a wrong turn and ended up on a road where, conveniently, a bus came by and took us to the southgate where we started our hike around the walls of the fortress. The trails around Namhansanseong Fortress vary from paved to rough paths. There are large gates at the main compass points and at least one secret gate. Views from the many vantage points along the wall were great, even on this very hazy day. We could see the southeast end of Seoul below us and planes circling around as they approached an airport in the southeast (presumably a military airport).

Deb studying the maps and Jin trying to see through the haze.

In the center of the fortress walls is Jongro village, a quaint country town that looks to be geared towards tourist hikers. Lots of restaurants, inns and shops. It was late in the day so we couldn't linger here. As we caught a bus back down into Seongnam to catch the subway home, we made a mental note take the bus UP the hill and walk down next time we come here.

Down in the city again, we walked along the main street and stopped in at a little restaurant for a couple plates of steamed dumplings (that's the metal steamers outside).

It was a good day, but a long one. So for the next day we thought we should treat ourselves to something more relaxing. The girls love bicycle riding, so we went over to Oksu (one subway stop), had a delicious lunch of "twigim" (deep fried things like squid or vegetable pancakes) from a street vendor there and then went to our usual free bike rental place in the Hangang riverside park and went for a spin. Fun day - a nice lazy holiday.

The next day we celebrated Jin's Lunar Birthday! Seeing as how we were travelling in China for Jin's birthday and weren't sure we could get her a cake or have a proper party (as it turned out she got a couple cakes!) we promised her a party when we retunned to Korea. As it turned out her birthday on the Lunar calendar turned out to be during the week she was off school. We askd her what she wanted to do and she said "Go swimming!". So off we went across the river again to the big outdoor pools at Jamwon. This time we knew the way there and packed some food and beverages. It was the perfect thing to do on such a hot (still only 30) and sunny day. We came home to her requested dinner, homemade gimbap (sushi) and the thing she wanted the most, ICE CREAM cake. We picked it up at the neighbourhood Baskin Robbins. We all loved it. What a great day.

On the way to the pool Jin, the bug-girl, found a dead cicada on the sidewalk. These bugs have been buzzing for most of the summer here and in China. Quite a racket!

There was a giant inflatable slide that the girls tried a couple times. And they are eating some "sambap" (triangular gimpab) that we bought at a convenience store on the way to the pool.

When we got home it was ice cream cake and opening presents time. Jin and Lili both got re-chargable flashlights (another excuse to stay up late....) and Jin got a music box that plays "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and a special memory ring to commemorate our trip here.

With just a weekend left before we all returned to school, we wanted to do something special. We were thinking of travelling out of the city for a day or overnight trip, but some plans fell through and besides we were pretty tired from our week of hiking,bicycle riding and swimming. So instead we settled on a leisurely stroll through one of the royal palaces here in Seoul. We decided to check out Gyeongbokgung, the main palace for the five hundred year long Joseon Dynasty. The palace has been largely reconstructed after the damages sustained from various occupations and wars. The buildings and grounds are magnificent.

Our tour begins by passing through a special gate in the subway station which is supposed to keep you young. We watched the changing of the guard ceremony at the main gate. And the girls got to pose with the stone-faced guards.

Here are a few photos of the various gates, pavilions, halls and other buildings that make up Gyeongbokgung.

View of the Queen's Garden. Princess Jin in the gateway to her "mom's" garden.

Here Deb and the girls sit on a well which supplies the pond.

The main gate into Gyeongbokgung, located at the southern end of the complex, is called Gwangwhamun (also the name of a nearby square and subway station). The gate is currently being renovated under a large shelter with a large mural on the front. Just north of Gyeongbokgung is Cheongwadae or the Blue House, the official residence of the President.

So that's the end our our "summer vacation". Now back to the routine. We are planning on doing more travelling around the country on weekends in August, so stay tuned....

Bye for now,

Derek, Deb, Jin and Lili