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Published: August 24th 2010
Looking down at Namsan park
from Bukchon Hanok village, Jongno GuOh yeah... HOLIDAY!!! My last class finished at 21:00, so in order to catch my 23:20 flight to Beijing, I had to hurry home and grab the last things before jumping into a taxi to Baotou airport.
Flying with Air China, I arrived at terminal 3 while my China Southern flight was going to leave from terminal 2 the next morning. Shuttle buses drove throughout the night I was assured, so with facilities better at terminal 3, I decided it was better to hang out there for the night. Of course with my holiday then having officially started, I settled in with a few beers and chatted to some other guys, from Wuhan and Shijiazhuang respectively.
It was a mild evening so hung out outside the terminal for most of the evening, only disturbed by an extremely loud 'fumegator', smoking out all the insects from the bushes surrounding the entrances to the terminal.
Took the shuttle bus at around half past 5 in the morning and was woken by the driver who had to walk all the way to the back of the bus where I had fallen asleep (he he)
Checking in was quick and we were all seated ready
for take off at 08:00... Unfortunately, it didn't.
Still don't know what the problem was, there was no explanation whatsoever from the captain and the cabin crew said they didn't know what was going on either... Bad service!
We were given our breakfast with the plane still on the tarmac at the gate.
With a 'final' one hour delay we took off and were flying accross the China Sea soon after.
Just before arriving at Incheon airport, and before the coastline appeared there was sight of numerous islands, all with sandy beaches and hills inland. From there, it seemed it was all islands, all the way until we reached the coastline of the mainland.
After getting my passport stamped (my 18th country, my 10th Asian country!) and receiving my bag (last) I proceeded to the airline offices to inquire about domestic flights from Busan back to Seoul. The price wasn't bad at all, around 45 Euro's for a 50 minute flight on Korean Air, so booked it and bought a lonely planet Korea in the bookshop opposite. A little expensive, but it was the latest edition (March 2010) and well... they save you money right? At that time I
didn't yet know I wasn't going to enjoy its use for a very long time.... I made my way from the fantastic Incheon airport to the subway station, and spent the next two hours mainly underground. Wow,what an extensive subway system!
With a total number of 13 (!) lines and an average of 8 million passengers a day, it's the 3rd largest in the world concerning number of passengers and the 4th or 5th largest concerning length of route.
All signs and maps are in English (and Korean), they run often and it is cheap. Fantastic! (The only thing is, you don't see much apart from your own reflection in the window and the faces of people that wanna go home after a days work). After checking out a cheap hotel near Wansimni station that I had found on the internet before leaving and which turned out to be a home stay, I jumped back in and got off again at Namyeong station where I checked in at the most expensive place I probably ever stayed in during all my travels; The Rainbow hotel. Conveniently near the main station, Itaewon and the rest.
By the time I had finally
had a shower, and had my first bite to eat (a pork and cheese cutlet, all the side dishes and a bottle of soju in one of them fast food places you see all over town) it was getting late and so I decided the only thing to do really was head up
Namsan hill and check out the N Seoul tower, from where I could see Seoul getting dark. After initially setting out on foot, I decided against it after a kilometre or so, with my belly full of food and soju protesting. Got into the subway again and headed uphill from the exit. After a fair climb through a beautiful park I paid my 7000 Won and joined the crowds in the large elevator. The view, obviously, was amazing. The Han river, with all its bridges, the silhouettes of the mountains, and in between all that 'civilisation'. I waited until it got completely dark so I could admire the twinkling lights of Seoul at night. Actually it wasn't the night I admired that much, but the urinal with a view (!). On the lower of the two observation floors, at 370 meters above sea level are the designer
Seoul @ night
Looking towards the mountains of Bukhansan Nat. Park bathrooms, complete with touch screen information monitors inside the mirrored walls. The idea of taking a leak right on the city is one that gets the architect my respect. Loved it! Walking out I had a look at the hourly light show projected on the actual tower. I preferred the hanging 'statues'of people in various positions. Very 'arty'. Walked back and by that time my feet were so tired, I was happy to be back in my overpriced hotel for a nights' sleep.
The next morning I made my way underground again and left the 'tunnels of Seoul' at Anguk station. My plan was to have a look at the (so the guide book described) old Seoul;
The bukchon Hanok village.
Bukchon, meaning 'northern village' thanks to the old Seoul having been bisected by the Cheonggyecheon stream, and Hanok, being a traditional Korean house, this area now seemed (to me anyway) the living estate of the rich of Seoul. Upon a hill, looking over the city entirely towards Namsan, it breathes an air of luxury, money and exclusivity. (The BMW's and other convertibles might have influenced that).
The area was quite nice I have to say. Although a small
museum was built inside the premises of one particularly well restored Hanok, little shops and people milling about doing their daily stuff made it feel like any other neighbourhood. (Except from the 30 mm lens-camera touting tourists, just don't mind them)
A nice little map showed the ideal photo-taking spots, hence every tourist was walking bravely in one line down the same street doing the same thing. (At least the locals weren't disrupted too much.)
Seriously, if ever I will be back in Seoul, I will definitely spend at least one night in one of the guest houses. The beautiful woodwork, the little art shops everywhere and the price of sleeping on a mattress on the floor as well, make it definitely worthwhile the experience. (ps: prices start at 35.000 W for a single). One other thing I'd like to mention: The toilet at the museum / information centre is one of those Japanese ones with a water beam and blow dryer for your private parts. If you, like me at the time, have never been on one of those, and have been desperately waiting to get the chance; it's there!
Two subway stations west on the same line,
number 3 to be precise, at Dongnimmun station, it's the Shamanist shrine, fortress wall (well, part of it anyway) and the views of the city that made me climb the short, but strenuous nevertheless, climb up
Inwangsan. A few temples, one being used to pray for kids if you don't have any yet, basically asking for fertility, are scattered around the area with behind it a part of the old fortress wall. Up on the rocks, the visibility was maximum and the view therefore, stunning!
A couple of ladies were showing off all the food offerings on a large red blanket, as Shamanists believe the gods are still hungry and need to be fed. (In this case it was a large variety of dishes, I saw some raw beef, half a cabbage, a bottle of soju (!) and the unmissable Kimchi.
The largest temple, Bongwonsa (next to the big, bronze bell), was more of the same that I've seen in so many places around Asia, so I soon made my way back down to the 'underground world of Seoul'.
Changing lines at Jongno 3-ga, the subway made its way up from its underground cavities and crossed the Hangang bridge
Fantastic wood work
Bukchon Hanok village in broad day light to dive back down again for its first stop south of the Han river; Norangjin. Named almost after the
Noryangjin fish market, its stairs lead to a pedestrian bridge across the tracks onto the roof of the building. Walking down to the second level, you have a great view of the size and hustle and bustle of it all. This is also the level where the small restaurants are, who supposedly will cook the fish for you that you bought downstairs in the actual thing. After rolling up my trousers to prevent any fishy water and its smells being soaked up by them, I walked down the stairs and entered the huge market, avoiding puddles of bloody water, fish guts and even live fish that had somehow made their way out their holding tanks.
The variety of fish and crustaceans was just enormous, ranging from the tiniest little worm to big, fat and even colourful ocean fish. I have to say, most of it would never enter my mouth (or any other body cavity for that matter) for its colour, shape, ugliness, unfamiliarity and general weirdness was way above my level of what is accepted to
be eaten. Rays (as in manta rays) lying belly up with those funny laughing expressions on their faces stared at me amongst large squid perfectly displayed in made-to-fit coffins.
Cuttlefish, sea cucumbers, oysters, clams, tiger prawns, huge crabs, lobsters and even something remarkably resembling a Caucasian penis (owned by a 12-year old) all happily showed off their ugliest of appearances and fighting for a new owner, only to be taken home by them and thrown in boiling water or a spicy sauce to be fried (accompanied by Kimchi of course). Whilst walking around, tanker trucks drove in from behind the building, offloading even more creatures from the deep seas to be sold to the hungry stomachs of the 'Seoulians'.
Really amazing it all was, I have to say, and I knew at the time I was going to do it again at the largest of the Korean fish markets, Jagalchi in Busan, just for the perverseness of it all.
Made my way up line 1 for two stops only, back to Namyeong, where I 'refreshed' at the hotel and back out again for a late lunch / early dinner. Somehow I felt obliged to eat fish, so I ordered
Fertility temple
Inwangsan mountain a seafood noodle at a 'fast food' place. It was OK, nothing to write home about, not if you don't like chewy squid tentacles or gooey invertebrates. The mini prawns were OK, so was the icy-cold Max beer.
After a quick look through my guidebook and at the time, I felt some physical exercise to get the digestion going was the next best thing to do.
Yeouinaru station, on line 5 just south of the river, is in walking distance of the
Yeouido park. Here I left my passport behind to rent a bike. Cycling back across the river over the Mapo bridge, with some good music in my mp3 and the majestic river far below, I felt absolutely great. That moment I just LOVED Seoul!
Just everything about the city, its accessibility, modernness, infrastructure and great transport, location and diversity, just great! The
Hangang cycleway being a good example of the thought and work that has been put in the liveability and overall quality of life of / in this city.
I joined the crowds back on the north side of the river and headed west, passing a number of bridges and crossing the river again via the
Yanghwa bridge. I had meant to get off and look around Seonyudo island in mid-river, but the bike lady had forgotten to give me a lock, and my bike was not allowed in. At the south side of the bridge, the Hangang cycleway showed off its coolness in the shape of a cycler's elevator.
Going up and down diagonally, it fits two people and their cycles and brings them safely down (or up). Pretty neat. Had a few beers at the 7-11 on the riverside. I was pretty beat after this so checked back into the comfort of cable TV and clean crispy sheets (and a bit of air-con).
The morning of my last day in Seoul I got up early and took line 1 all the way to Dobongsan station to the north of the city. My plan for the day was going hiking in
Bukhansan National Park. Leaving the subway station, first you need to walk a 15 minutes or so to get to the actual start of the hike. That part is full with restaurants and mountaineering stores catering to all the hikers. I bought some water and my lunch;
Gimbap. Also called Korean sushi due
to its looks (rice rolled in seaweed and then sliced), it is different in its ingredients. Gimbap contains no fish and is often vegetarian, although meat like large luncheon strips are used as well. The hike started fairly easy, and with all the middle aged or even retired fellow hikers around me, I wasn't worried about the rest of the hike either. The full hike to
Dobongsan peak, 740 m and back down at Mangwolsa is around 5 hours, so the signs said. For most of the hike, it was all lovely green forest and granite rock, in some places huge boulders were strewn around the park and lovely little streams meandered their way down. In every imaginable place were hikers having lunch breaks, sitting on blankets while eating their food (and their kimchi..). I noticed how out of place I was compared to all the Korean hikers. Nearly all of them were dressed in fashionable and cut for the occasion hiking gear, including boots and hiking sticks. Another something I noticed were the wafts of perfume and cologne that kept drifting past me. Korean hikers go up the mountain smelling great!
After eating my Gimbap and a rest
Squid in its coffin...
Noryangjin fish market 3 quarters of the way up, at a section called 'the big rock', I pushed on for the final stretch. And what a stretch it was! This part had to be done with assistance from the many ropes that have been 'installed'. Pulling my way up over steep sections of flat rock face, through crevasses and dodging hikers coming down the same way, I was covered in sweat when I finally reached the top.
A small platform was full of hikers, so I had to wait a bit to get the full view and a chance to take pictures.
Great view, naturally. The city with all its development in mostly white or metal coloured shades, nestled ever so nicely amongst the green hills. Some lovely white flowers right there at the top gave me a nice photo shot. Squatting down and getting in a position that would allow me to get the flowers, hills, green and the city far below all in one shot, I dropped my camera case which rolled down a good 25 meters before disappearing in the green. Aiya! I went back down a bit to find it, but no such luck...
Via another ridge the path
Scary looking crab...
Noryangjin fish market led me down again, leading to Mangwolsa temple. First I passed a few more drop offs of which one was particularly cool. A large round granite rock hung over a massive cliff face.
Ideal (and dangerous) photo opportunity, I had positioned my camera as such that it would take a shot of me sitting right on that rock while looking out over the valley deep down below. In order to do so, I had put it on a 10 seconds delay, hopefully giving me enough time to crawl face down and my belly on the rock onto that very same overhang. Well, I succeeded, but it did cost me the front of my pants. Ripped all around the zipper, it showed my boxer shorts under them all the way back by subway to the city (a 50 minute trip). I might have imagined it, but I think I saw a few judging looks and head shakes while riding back (mostly from middle aged women though).
Mangwolsa temple was beautifully located between all that green, and it had a fresh water spring which I was very happy about, coz I had long since run out of drinking water. Being one of
many temples in South Korea that provides temple stay, the monks all greet you friendly and don't mind you walking past.
At the very end of the track, the stream became wider and formed a number of waterfalls. I found a lovely little spot to take off my shoes and cool off my feet in the refreshing water. A leaf of particular interest due to its medicinal qualities caught my eye, floating on the water. Maybe that's why the monks were so friendly?? Just before getting back at the road, the last stretch of the stream had been tamed, the sides had been made into walls of concrete, bridges had been built and a number of little restaurants had been constructed all around it. It looked really cozy actually.
Back in the city I got off at Jongno 5-ga station for the
Gwangjang market. Here I strolled around a bit more, admiring the traditional Korean costumes on display, savouring the smells from the fried food stalls, pulling up my nose for boiled pig heads and watching all sorts of kimchi being made. I also watched a woman making gift baskets from some kind of edible stuff of various colours
On yer bike!
Mapo bridge, start of the Hangang cycleway and shapes. Each basket depicted some other food product, like fish, fruits or vegetables. I still don't know what it was though, but many of these creations were being sold at a variety of stalls. Dinner was in a small restaurant, eating some of those fried foods. Walking back out along the Cheongyecheon stream with its green banks, I bought myself some pairs of much needed socks and headed back to Namyeong.
The next morning my bullet train to Daegu was set to depart at 8, and in order to save a bit of money I had decided to sleep in one of the many
Jjimjilbangs. Also known as bath houses, they cost a mere 7000 - 10.000 Won for the whole night (or longer still if you wish). I got my bag from stored luggage in the rainbow hotel and took the subway to Itaewon for the Hamilton hotel. Not knowing what to expect, and afraid the lockers were not going to be big enough for my backpack, the women at the counter didn't seem surprised at me showing up. I duly paid the fee, and went in. Fortunately my pack fitted (just) so I proceeded to get
naked and join the crowds in the steam-shower room and pools of various temperatures. I was looking forward to the sauna actually, but Korean saunas apparently are of an unbearable high temperature. Opening the door of this one, heated to 78 degrees was enough to shut it immediately and not try again. Tjeez... it's impossible to sit in there!
After all the hiking and walking around those few days in Seoul it was fantastic soaking my body. Great relaxation! I had hoped for beds, but walking up to the second floor, where I had to walk slumped over because of the height of the ceiling (or the lack of it to be precise) I found that the rubber mattresses and high temperature combined with the sound of pumping water rushing through pipes was going to make it very difficult for me to sleep. And indeed, I did not. At all...... It was 5 in the morning when I took a final dip in the pool before leaving. The first subway started at 05:20, so I was at Seoul station not much after that. Looking at the departure board, a number of trains to Daegu were leaving before my scheduled departure,
Bicycle elevator
This thing goes diagonally down, saving you from dragging your bike up and down the stairs, fantastic! so I changed my ticket cost-free for an earlier one.
That was Seoul.... And it is now officially my favourite city in Asia, beating long time favourite Kuala Lumpur from the first place. A great place, vibrant, exciting, young and hip and above all; Green, clean and modern.
I LOVE SEOUL!
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eric
non-member comment
3 thumbs up!
your blog rocks man! I enjoyed reading it very much, informal, fun and exciting too.