Hi from Seoul! Our first full day in the city was quite packed and fulfilling. I had breakfast at 8 in the hotel which served a mix of continental and Korean breakfast items. The group met in the lobby at 9am and after taking a loop through the city and seeing the Presidents House named the “Blue House” AKA Cheongwadae, we arrived at Gyeongbokgung Palace. The palace is quite huge and kept in great shape so it was really nice to see the throne room, king and queens chambers, the courtyard, and the banquet place. We also came just in time to see the traditional guard changing ceremony in the courtyard.

After the palace, we went for a nice lunch near Insa-dong and our hotel. They served a beef bulgogi and i had a really good bibimpap. We strolled through the Insa-dong market and then went to the Jogyessa temple. It’s interesting because a Buddha temple in the middle of the city is uncommon but the area was really festive for Buddha’s birthday. 

Then we went to Bukchon village, mostly the residential side. This area is a very antique and old area where all the houses are sitting on a hill with small winding roads. It almost had a French vibe with how dainty it is but of course the houses’ architecture was Korean style.

We then went to the Cheonggyecheon stream which runs through the heart of the city. It was a cute setup because they had the sidewalk platform to walk on assorted benches and flowers right next to the stream.

After that we got an hour and a half to roam around the Namdaemun market. It reminded me a lot of India’s street markets with the tiny overflowing stores and the crowded tiny streets. Tried some of the cinnamon pancakes and a twisted bread and a doughed shrimp skewer. It seemed a little respective because a lot of the same things were sold, but it was a lot of fun walking through.

And that was the end of the program for day 1, but some of us rested for an hour and then went out to Myeong-dung area. It was a 10 minute walk from the hotel, and we stopped for authentic bubble tea that we had to order from a smart vending machine. Myeong-dung to me was a sophisticated version of the Namdaemun street market and is a central shopping area of Seoul.