Bukhansan National Park

Bukhansan became a national park in 1983 and lies at the edge of Seoul.  Bukhansan Mountain is covered in trees and granite outcroppings.  Surrounded by cities, the park is an oasis to five million visitors each year.  You can get the park by subway, bus, and car so it is a popular place for those in Seoul and the surrounding area.

We hiked to the top of Sapae Mountain on the Northern side of the park.  It was a great escape from city life, and for a moment we were away from it all.  Too bad the morning was hazy.  We had a great view at the top.

Olympic Park

Olympic Park is from the 1988 Summer Olympics held in Seoul.  The grounds, which include two arenas, a few historical locations, a sculpture garden, and the gallery of flags is now a public park.  There is also an Olympic museum, which we did not visit on this trip.  It was a great place to explore.

The Peace Gate, the main entrance to Olympic park.  The center of the gate holds the Olympic flame, which is the flame of peace.

The underside of the Peace Gate.

The gallery of flags.

The boys down by the pond.

Part of the park contains an old earthen wall of Mongchon Fortress, which was originally surrounded by a wooden fortress.  This sculpture depicts the wooden fortress wall.

Looking down at Peace Gate from the top of the fortress wall.

The tomb of Kim Gu (1649-1704) and his wife, Lady Yi.  It is located outside the fortress wall within the Olympic Park.

A bit of the scenery in the park.

Amsa-Dong

This prehistoric village is pretty neat.  It was originally discovered after the Han River flooded in the 1925. Large quanities of Neolithic earthenware with diagonal-line patterns were exposed.  Since its finding the site has been excavated several times.  It is a small exhibit, but just right for the boys.  We explored the straw huts and the small museum located on the site.  We talked to a group of Korean kids who were on a school field trip.  It appeared as if they had a "living history" exhibit where you could explore a real live village they had set up on the grounds, but it wasn't running the day we were there.

Osan Airshow

The boys and I spent a day at the Osan air show.  It was an hour and a half subway ride, followed by a 20 minute walk to get to the base.  It was a great show.  We got there early and avoided most of the crowds when touring the aircraft.  We stayed until the Black Eagles (the Korean version of the Blue Angels) flew.  They put on an amazing performance.

The Black Eagles

Itaewon Global Village Festival

There are tons of festivals here in Korea: Apple festival, Soybean festival, Fireworks festival, Ginseng festival.  We visited the Itaewon Global Village Festival.  It was two days of international food, dancing, entertainment, and music.  We spent the morning enjoying the sights and sounds.  Will be on the list of things to do again next year.

Learning to play the Korean drums.

Seoul Land

One of several amusement parks in the Seoul area is Seoul Land.  It is located right next to the zoo in Seoul Grand Park. The park is getting old and a little out dated, but it was another stop on our Korean adventure.  The boys had a blast.

A ride on Santa's Sleigh.

Lost in translation - this was in the wild west portion of the park...

Fun musical merry-go-round.

Still going strong at the end of the day.

Seoul Zoo

A giant Cactus.  Joshua thought it was pretty cool.

The view from the zoo.

Having lunch.  We sat on a bench.  The Koreans sat on the ground with these handy foldable mats.

Some of the exhibits are new...

Most of the exhibits are out dated.

International Fireworks Festival

Each fall Seoul hosts the International Fireworks Festival.  This year there were four countries participating: Korea, USA, Japan, and Italy.  Each country did a 20 minute display followed by a 10 minute break for the smoke to clear.  It was amazing. 

We had a great view along the Han River, although we were not close to all the activities. We walked about 30 minutes along the river walking path with a huge group of our neighbors.  We set up "camp" for a picnic dinner while we waited for the festivities to begin.

Next year we have all agreed to brave the crowds and head to the heart of the festival.  (Our friend said it took them an hour to walk the mile from the river back to their house!  It was wall to wall people.)

Gyeongbokgung Palace (경복궁)

Built in 1395, Gyeongbokgung Palace is also commonly referred to as the “Northern Palace” because it is the furthest north when compared to the neighboring palaces of Changdeokgung (Eastern Palace) and Gyeongheegung (Western Palace). Gyeongbokgung Palace is arguably the most beautiful and remains the grandest of all five palaces.

The premises were destroyed by fire during the Imjinwaeran War (Japanese Invasion, 1592-1598). However, all of the palace's 7,700 rooms were later restored under the leadership of Heungseondaewongun during the reign of King Gojong (1852-1919) .

This was our second temple visit, so we decided not to take the tour.  We took the guide book and headed off to see some wonderful Joseon architecture.

Gwanghwamum - the main gate to Gyeongbok.

Heungnaemun - the inside gate.

Geongjeongjeon - throne hall

The throne.

Gaurdians of the Palace.

Chimneys at the back of buildings used for floor heating system.

Geounghoeru Pavillon - used for meetings and foreign envoys.

Haechi

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Bukchon Hanok Village (북촌한옥마을)

In the heart of Downtown Seoul is Bukchon Hanok Village.  Surrounded by Gyeongbokgung Palace, Changdeokgung Palace and Jongmyo Shrine, Bukchon Hanok Village is home to hundreds of traditional houses called 'hanok' that date back to the Joseon Dynasty.   In Feung Swei the location of ;the village is the optimal place to live being surrounded by the palaces and the shrine.

We took a walk through the now urban/historical area.  Many of the hanoks have been restored into tea houses, boarding houses, and restaurants.

This was a hanok museum, which gave a close up view of the traditional housing.  Some points of interest: the housing had heated floors and were originally used for noble families and government officials,

Changyeonggung Palace

Haechi became the symbol of Seoul in 2008. Haechi is a guardian of justice.  It is a mythical lion/dragon beast that can discern good and evil. It has been found as far back as the Silla era (57BC―AD935)  During the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), statues of the Haechi were placed before palaces and homes to protect them from misfortune, such as fires, and disasters.  Here is what he looks like today.

We found this one at Changyeonggung 창경궁.  The statues were located on the stairs leading up to the main palace building, the office to the King.  During the Japanese occupation the palace was converted into a zoo and botanical garden, but has since been restored.

Here we are in front of the King's office.

This is the pavilion for entertainment for the Royal family.

Chundangji. Half of the pond was originally a rice field that the King took care of. But during the Japanese Occupation the rice field was changed to a pond with little ships floating on it.  The Japanese planted hundreds of Cherry Blossom trees, but they were removed during the restoration.