The Past Meets the Present

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Since my new-found independence has started to grow, I have decided that while here and have a lot of free time, I might as well go be a little bit of a tourist here and there. Going by myself all the time isn't always fun, but I figure I'd rather see it by myself than not at all. What is the point of flying over 5,000 miles somewhere and not really seeing anything?

Since my last blog I have forced myself to get out and walk. Most of the time I don't have a destination in mind, but I do make myself actually walk around and see something new. While this walk is a leisurely stroll, it is still a great way for me to get myself moving and not just sit around watching TV shows online all day.

Last Saturday I was introduced to a girl my age and she wanted to take me to Namsang Park. I started to see a pattern here with Koreans and their parks. So far all the ones I have been to you have to climb over 300 steps JUST to get to the park itself. Then we walked another hour or so each way. There were people up there who were blind, people who were a few decades older than me, and I felt like the weak one because I was dying once I got to the top and they seemed like it was like strolling down the street. By the end of my time here, I expect to be in pretty decent shape after all this stair climbing. 😊

Tuesday I started going on the walks I wrote about before. I had no destination, but found myself wandering past Deoksu Palace which is near city hall. I looked at the entrance fee and found it was only 1,000 won or a little less than a dollar. So I thought why not? I had missed one of the guided tours, but they have pamphlets that show you where to go for free, so I wandered for the next 2 hours or so around the buildings and the palace grounds. The architecture and colors of these buildings are beautiful. Then, I decided to read on a bench in a peaceful park-like area on a bench for an hour. As I was leaving the palace, the changing of the guard ceremony was just starting and I enjoyed catching that before I headed back to where I'm staying. It was a nice relaxing day, but I got some fresh air into the mix.

Thursday I found myself starting out with a destination in mind. Gyeongbokgung Palace. It is the main palace in the heart of Seoul, and a 5 minute walk from my place. The entrance fee is only 3,000 Won and I was just in time to catch the English guided tour of the grounds (free) before wandering to the Korean Folk Museum and the rest of the grounds on my own. I'd planned to explore other places outside of the palace, but after finishing my exploration satisfied I'd seen everything worth seeing, four hours had passed, so I walked home.

What struck me so many times during these palace visits was how many years of history there is here. While fires and wars have destroyed many of the original buildings of these places built during the 1400's, the fact is they were there that long ago and have been rebuilt. These buildings and this history is so old, yet even from inside the walls that take you back hundreds of years you can see the skyscrapers in the distance that bring you back to the present. It's all pretty amazing to me.

There's still so much to see and I'm hoping next week will bring more adventures and pictures to this blog. I'm already making a list of things I want to do including a fireworks festival on Saturday, the zoo, and possibly even day trips to other cities since I found a free shuttle bus for foreigners from the tourist information center to some of these places.

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