Gyeongbokgung Palace, Bukchon Hanok Maeul and Insadong

Wednesday, August 1^st

Seoul, South Korea

I am definitely slowing down these days.  As happy as I am to be in Seoul and explore the city, I am hitting a wall.  We had a leisurely breakfast while I finished the blog and then headed off to Gyeonbokgung Palace.  On our way to the Palace, we saw a protest of some kind.  It was in Korean so we didn’t know what the protest was about, but there were way more police than there were protesters so I thought that was interesting.  I also noticed a lot more police today than the previous day but I am not sure if it was just because I was more aware or if something else was going on.  The other thing I noticed about the police is that they all looked 15!  I think they might have been trainees or something, because they were also only carrying nightsticks and whistles. 

Gyeongokgung Palace was the main palace of the Joseon Dynasty. 

The palace is a sprawling complex of buildings. 

Unfortunately, the palace has been reconstructed a few times due to fires and Japanese invasion.  However, viewing the main hall of Gyeongokgung with the mountains in the background is spectacular. 

I also thoroughly enjoyed the changing of the guard.  It’s one of the more elaborate changing of the guard ceremonies I have seen.  It starts with the banging of a drum and the new core of guards march into the courtyard accompanied by a musical procession. 

Then they march towards Gwanghwamun Gate, the main gate of the palace, to relive the others.  There are several different type of guards all wearing different uniforms and weapons.  It’s very colorful.  The other cool thing about the Palace is that is right in the center of the city, with one of the city’s main thoroughfares directly in front of Gwanghwamun Gate, so it’s an interesting contrast between the history inside the Palace and modern Seoul right outside the Gate, rising above the Palace walls. 

We ate lunch at a nearby Korean restaurant and enjoyed some bibimap. 

Then we walked to the Bukchon Hanok Maeul, stopping in at a local bookstore along the way.  I bought a book, Your Republic is Calling You, written by a Korean author about a North Korean spy living in Seoul for 21 years until unexpectedly getting called back to Pyongyang.  I look forward to reading it on the plane!  Bukchon is a historic Korean village with hanoks, traditional houses.  We enjoyed our stroll through the neighborhood’s alleyways looking at the houses.  I particularly like the doors.  They all seemed very regal.  It makes sense considering the village was reserved for the aristocracy back in the old days.  There were also so many boutique art galleries, shops and restaurants to check out. 

Finally, we headed back to our neighborhood, Insadong.  We spent some time walking down the main street, which is mainly a pedestrian street and then came back to our hotel for a rest before dinner.  Tonight we ate at Sanchon, which serves Buddhist temple cuisine (vegetarian) and has a traditional Korean dance performance every night.  I had read about it in my guide book and thought it would be a good place to try considering Valerie’s a vegetarian and it had a performance as well.   Our whole table was covered with food!  It’s a set menu and they came out with at least 15 different dishes for us.  A lot of the food was very spicy, but I particularly enjoyed the porridge of the season, the tempura vegetables, and eggplant.  I tried everything and half the time, I wasn’t sure what I was eating, but at least I know it wasn’t some mystery meat! 

We have one more day in Seoul.  I can’t believe this trip is coming to a close, but I am looking forward to getting back to home to see family and friends