When we were close to Seoul we stopped at a little traditional BBQ restaurant for lunch before heading to the Everland amusement park.
It is an interesting place. Kind of like a South Korean version of Disneyland. We had 5 hours to explore, go on any rides we wanted and find something for supper. I have to admit that I didn't go on many rides but just kind of wandered around with a small group from the program and looked at the place and scoped out the souvenir shops. After a week of Korean food we thought we would have some western food for supper and stopped at a burger place. It was definitely not the best burger I have ever had and in my opinion we should have stuck with some Korean food.
Following our time at Everland, we headed into Seoul where we were staying at the Seoul International Youth Hostel. The guys in the group had rooms that housed 6 people each and the girls had rooms that housed 10 people each (taking the Korean students out of the group there are only 9 males plus 3 student staff and the coordinator that made the trip along with 37 non-Korean females). I had a great room-full of people that helped make the trip quite entertaining.
After settling into our rooms, there was a group of about 20 of us that went out to have a drink to celebrate our first night in Seoul. Sean Park, the program coordinator, used to live in Seoul so he took us to an area that was about a 15 minute walk from the hostel. The walk ended up taking over an hour because we were waiting a long time at the hostel for people to be ready and then had to stop part-way to our destination to wait for some people who started out after us but were not sure of which way to go. Once we got to the area, it was much like the little shopping districts in Ulsan with the 4 story buildings full of lights creating caverns for us to walk down and explore. The main street we were at was fairly wide and was closed to traffic (for the most part) and had a row of carts full of items for sale. We ended up at the Wabar, which is the same as a place near the dorms in Ulsan, and to order a drink you push a little doorbell type thing on the table and your waitress/waiter is there inside 5 seconds. It is a really good system as you never get interrupted while in conversation or mid-drink but the service is still really good.
On Tuesday morning, we headed for the National Museum of Korea. It is a large (biggest museum in Asia) new museum that has a great deal of wonderful artifacts, of course mainly concentrated on Korea. Afterwards, we were hosted for lunch be the Asan Medical Center. This is the biggest medical centre in Korea and is the home of the University of Ulsan's medical school. The medical center was funded by Chung Ju-yung (the founder of Hyundai) and there was a small museum on his life. He was a very interesting person and I encourage anyone who is interested to read about this man who started out as a rice delivery boy living in poverty to building the biggest industrial empire in Korea. Our lunch was on the top floor of one of the buildings and it had great views of the river and Seoul. In the afternoon we were brought to a shopping area and given 2+ hours to shop. I am definitely not a big shopper but I wandered around for a bit. The walkway that went under the street was packed with stalls of people selling everything you could imagine. After emerging on the other side of the street where the large shopping malls were, the sidewalks were filled with more vendors in their little stalls selling their wares. The first mall I went into was a normal department store type of place but the second was absolutely packed with stuff. There was barely enough room to walk around and there were stall type areas set up and packed full of clothes. It was quite insane! After wandering around for a bit, I found a coffee shop on a patio on the second floor of the first store and grabbed am iced cap and sat with a couple of the people from the program and just watched the mayhem on the sidewalk below.
We were then dropped off near a theatre where we were destined to watch a show in the evening. We had a couple of hours free to look through the little shops and find some supper. I went with Jess, one of the girls from U of R, and we found a little curry rice restaurant and muddled our way through ordering off of a menu that did not have and pictures and wait staff who knew no English. This was our first attempt at ordering without any help from our Korean friends and with some help courtesy of Jess' knowledge of Chinese we made out pretty good. It was a nice change to muddle through things on our own for a change, after all that is what traveling is really about is challenging yourself.
The show was an off Broadway show called "Ballerina Who Loves B-boy." It featured a mixture of ballet and street dancing and I must admit that the dancing was very impressive even though the theatre was not (wooden bench seating.) I have never heard of b-boys before but many of the girls had and were very excited to have their pictures taken with them afterwards.
After the show some people stayed in the area because it had alot of dance clubs and bars while the rest of us headed back to the hostel. I plugged a few coins into the computers and caught up on my email before turning in for the night.
Wednesday was sunny and very hot. of course this was the day that we were scheduled to be outside the entire day. In the morning we went to Cheongwadae or the Blue House. This is the grounds and official office of the President of the Republic of Korea. We had to bring our passports and go through airport style security before entering the grounds. They were also very strict on where we could and could not take pictures. It was a very beautiful place with perfectly manicured gardens and well maintained buildings.
For lunch, we were brought to an area that has numerous art galleries. I walked around with another person from the group and had the opportunity to view 3 galleries including one that was featuring the work of Youngdon Choi, who is a photographer that spent some time living in Canada. His work was definitely my favorite of what I had the opportunity to view on this day. We also found a small cafe where several other classmates were having lunch. One thing we learned was that eating in this area is very expensive. I was able to find a cheap item on the menu (pizza) for only 12,000 won ($12), that I was able to share with another person. But had I decided to order a Coke, that would have set me back 7,500 won! Water it was.
After lunch we went to Gyeong Bok Gung (Palace Greatly Blessed by Heaven) which is a palace in Seoul. Most of it is actually a recently built replica but it was still a very impressive and interesting place. After a 2 hour guided tour in the heat of the afternoon, it is safe to say that the majority of our group was totally worn out.
Our next stop was actually only a couple blocks away to a tourist shopping district where we were given another 3 hours to look around and shop and find some supper. We also had the choice to walk the 45 minutes back to the hostel if we wanted (or take a cab). I decided that I would attempt to find my way back to the hostel and hopefully beat the rest of the group back so I could do some laundry, have a nice long shower and surf on the Internet. I made my way down the street looking in the souvenir shops and enjoying the action. When I got to the end of the street I made my way to the next shopping district where I was pretty sure we had been the first night and was able to find the WaBar that we had gone to for drinks. Knowing that I could make my way back to the hostel on my own I wandered around until I found a restaurant that looked good and went in to attempt to order on my own for the first time. I ordered some spicy bulgogi and a beer and sat down to enjoy the cold beer on the hot day and the spiciest meal I have had since arriving in Korea (it was excellent.) Eating out in Korea is a very interesting experience, you are always served many side dishes including kimchi, pickled beans, sprouts, etc.
I made the remainder of the walk back to the hostel and found that one of my roommates was already back and another 3 came back within ten minutes. Luckily they all had plans so after putting some laundry in the washer, I was able to have my shower and relax on the computer before the rest of the group came back. I was going to stay in but since it was my last night in Seoul, after spending some time on the rooftop garden (beautiful views of Seoul) I went to another WaBar with a couple of my classmates and we enjoyed a couple of beer before walking back in a light rain.
By morning the light rain had turned into a downpour. The only good thing about it was that it did not happen the day before when we were outside the entire day. Luckily, my first purchase when I got to Korea was an umbrella (since it rains nearly every day). We packed up our stuff and loaded it on the bus and then got on a different tour bus and headed for the DMZ (demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.) The North Korean border is less that an hour drive from Seoul. None of the Koreans in our group could come with us so they all stayed in Seoul to shop for the day. To get to the DMZ we had to pass 2 security checkpoints where the soldiers would come on the bus. At the first checkpoint they made sure that our clothing was appropriate. No tank tops, no sports wear (tight fitting type of clothes), and pants that covered the knee. The most unnerving part of the dress code was that you had to wear shoes that had at least a strap across the heel (no flip flops or shower shoes, etc.) This was in case something happened while we were there, then we would be able to run! We then had to sign a waiver that started "the visit to the Joint Security Area at Panmuhjon will entail entry into a hostile area and possibility of injury or death as a direct result of enemy action." It essentially stated that if something happened we could not hold the UN or Korea responsible.
Unfortunately, because of the heavy rain, we were informed that because there were only limited troops outside we would not be allowed to exit the bus (for our safety.) the drive through the Joint Security Area was still very interesting and you pass through and area that is only a few meters from North Korea. Unfortunately I do not ha
ve any pictures at the moment but I will post some on my facebook account once I do. After the tour we had time to stop at the gift shop (everyplace in this country has a gift shop) and pick up some souvenirs.
ve any pictures at the moment but I will post some on my facebook account once I do. After the tour we had time to stop at the gift shop (everyplace in this country has a gift shop) and pick up some souvenirs. Afterwards we visited the Dorasan train station, which is the northernmost station in the country and sits right on the southern boundary of the DMZ. They hope that some day the two countries will be reunited and call the station not the last station in South Korea, but the first Station to North Korea.
We then stopped at the Freedom Bridge (called this because it is the bridge the 13,000 U.N. POW's crossed over to return to South Korea after the Korean war. By this time, the rain had intensified so most people did not even get off the bus and most of us who did were fairly wet by the time we got back on. One more stop at a Korean BBQ restaurant (I have to admit I am a little tired of sitting on the floor to eat) and back to Seoul. This trip back was quick until we were back in Seoul and stuck in traffic for almost an hour and I can say I am glad I don't have to drive one of those big buses around in the traffic in this country (or any vehicle actually.) We then transferred back to our original bus and headed back for the 5 hour trip to Ulsan. The bus we had been riding in was very "pimped out" and on the trip home we found out why. It is a total party bus. When we were close to Ulsan the driver turned on some REALLY loud music and turned on a light show that included flashing lights down the center of the bus and a little laser system that shot light towards the back of the bus. Most of the girls got up and started dancing and it was quite entertaining. It was getting late by the time
we were back in Ulsan and as we walked back to the dorm in some light rain we discovered they had erected a fence where we normally walk. It took awhile to finally make our way back to the dorms (bags in tow) and was well after midnight by the time we got to bed. Friday morning we had class and then off to our home stay in the evening. All I could think was I want a day or two to just relax and do nothing.
Dion
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