I got off and viewed Gyeonbokgung Palace. The history of this palace is as follows stolen straight from my Lonely Planet (which is, by the way, a big no-no in my travel writing guide, but I'm not published, yet)
Originally built by King Taejo, this palace served as the principal palace until 1592 when it was burnt down during the Japanese invasions. The grandest palace in Seoul, it laid in ruins for almost 300 years until Heungseon Daewongun, regent and father of King Gojong moved in during 1868. Nearly 30 years later, the Japanese invaded the palace...
....During Japanese colonial rule, nearly all 330 buildings in the palace were either destroyed or moved. The palace is currently being restored to some of its former glory.
I don't know if it was the time of the year – but I couldn't enter the grounds. Therefore, I only got to see the outlaying area of the palace; which was beautiful nonetheless. I walked around the area for about 40 minutes – taking pictures. I practiced my Japanese, asking a Japanese couple to take my picture in front of the palace. You should have seen their faces, shocked! That a white person was speaking Japanese to them in another country!
After exploring, I hopped back onto the trains to meet Corey for dinner in Itaewon. Itaewon was a new country in itself; this is where the US Army base is located; thus, it was a train ride back to America for me. I walked off the train, up the exit number to where I would meet Corey. I walked into the daylight and see more diversity than I have in the past 5 months abroad. I saw more signs in English than Korean, hear more English than Korean, and for once, don't feel like I stand out amongst the crowd. Corey said this is a very popular tourist spot to come to – it truly felt like a little America to me and I suddenly felt unsafe (kidding, kidding).
I ordered some Dunkin Donuts coffee while waiting for Corey to arrive. We had dinner together, catching up on our day and deciding on our evening. After dinner, we walked around Itaewon so I could get more of a feel before starting a long hike to Namsan & Seoul Tower.
Seoul Tower is located on the top of a small hill named Namsan. There were a few ways to get there but we decided to walk. You can see the picture of how far we were about to walk. We walked through the streets of Itaewon, and ascended higher and higher on a very steep, uphill walk through narrow, curvy roads. We finally reached the foot of the hill that Seoul Tower lives on.
Corey wasn't exactly sure on how to get to the top from where we were. It was about 30 minutes of failed ascents. First, we headed towards the right – leading us up to a “false summit.” What we discovered was a small park area with no more advances towards the tower.
Heading back the same way we came, there were a few other false leads until we finally came upon a lot of stairs. It only seemed that this many stairs would lead us up to the tower. There were no signs indicating that it led anywhere, but I guess the exercise couldn't hurt us. We started ascending, discussing between heavy breathes that if we are climbing this much, Namsan better be at the top. It wasn't until we passed a few people on their way back down that it seemed safe to assume these were the right stairs. Another promising sign was that it appeared that the tower was getting closer to us and not further away. The stairway to heaven ended and we reached a curvy road still uphill, which required more strenuous work to reach the the lit up tower. It took us at least an hour, maybe almost two (it's been a while) and we finally reached our goal. Looming before us was – Seoul Tower.
The reward for such an arduous task was an impressive night view on the lights of Seoul.
Corey pointed out a few things and I took in the view.
After climbing so much, we decided to take the cable car back down – and because we were running low on time to meet his friends. The line for the cable car was short – we were the 4th people standing there. However, the operator must have decided to go on a cigarette, dinner and beer break since we had to wait ten minutes or more to board. I hate heights. Have you seen the new Willy Wonka & the Chocolate factory? Do you remember at the end, when Wonka, Charlie & co. go into the glass elevator and go crashing into Charlie's house? That is kind of what I thought might happen in this cable car; except we'd go crashing into earth.
The cable car was basically like a glass elevator – all the riders were crammed in – too many bodies for the space it provided. I was lucky in that being the 4th person in line – it gave me a top notch window view. The entire way down – I was able to indulge my eyes on the other side of Seoul that I could not see from the tower. For the most part, I was able to push thoughts of the cable car becoming a falling car while I was inside of it.
After making it out alive (yes, I'm being quite over dramatic) – we literally ran through Seoul to catch up with Corey's friends. Again, another night out on the city. This night – they taught me the Korean culture of “3 stops”. According to them, most Korean people go to three different spots per night – calling it “first stop, second stop and third stop.” After having enough drinks – we headed back home for the night.
This brings me to my last day in Korea. I woke up early to make sure I went to the War Memorial Museum. I did not want to leave Korea without going – almost as a tribute to my Grandpa who fought in the Korean war over 50 years ago.
I am usually against war – but at the same time very fascinated by the history of wars.
The outside of the museum was profound with heart rending statues, memorials, and explanations – commemorating those who lost their lives in battle.
I made my way inside where I walked around the floor that has the most history with the United States and Japan. I think the best part of traveling solo is when visiting museums. There is so much information that can be like the most exciting sports game to one person; but it can seem like watching paint dry to another.Feeding your brain and soul with information that a museum provides, I think is best done solo.
When finished with the museum, I walked my way back to the train station so I could meet Corey for one last lunch. No problem, except I fell asleep on the train. Thankfully, I woke up just as we were pulling away from where I needed to depart – so I was only one train stop away from where I needed to be. Taking the next train back – I ran to meet Corey. One last lunch – which was a delicious veggie sub and he took me back to Coex mall to catch the bus back to the airport. Along the way, I took videos of driving through Seoul. I will try to post them as soon as I can.
In reflection; well over a month later – I really enjoyed Seoul. I enjoyed Korea so much that I am seriously considering making it my next location to teach at. I was relieved to arrive back to Japan, whereby, I don't struggle with getting around. The sounds, smells, and customs are all familiar to me and people are less pushy. However, Korea provided me with an experience that reminded me a lot of college; which I miss more than words can express. The excitement of traveling and being with people all the time – are two of my favorite ways of being.
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