Changdeokgung Palace

Changdeokgung Palace was built as a secondary palace in 1405, under King Taejong's reign; it served as a residence for many kings then later served as the main palace. In 1592, the Japanese invaded Korea and both palaces were destroyed. Although it was originally secondary, only Changdeokgung was restored because Gyeongbokgung (the first palace) was no longer considered favorable. Thus, in 1610 Changdeokgung was restored and served as the main palace for the next 258 years until Gyeongbokgung was finally rebuilt in 1868.

What is unique about Changdeokgung is it's location. It is believed the buildings are laid out in harmony with the area's topography; the palace has an asymmetric beauty that is unique to Korea. The layout is welcoming and comfortable to the royal family. This palace spreads over approx. 104 acres of land and has a secret garden. Artificial landscaping has been kept to a minimum. We were only able to access part of the secret garden and we plan on revisiting the palace in autumn or spring to view the vegetation in splendid colors. Click on the picture in the slide show below to view them bigger; it will redirect you to another page where you can view the entire album.

Cheonggyecheon Stream

There are a few streams running through Seoul; however, they are usually underneath freeway bypasses. This stream too had a freeway above it, making the walking path un-accessible. In a drastic reform to bring back life to the downtown the freeway was removed and the pathway has been redone. Along this stream walkway you can see the largest ceramic wall painting depicting the life of King Jeongjo (the 22nd kind of the Joseon Dynasty). There is also a historic laundry site where Korean women once washed clothing in stremlets; it has been recreated in the current stream. We only walked about half way down to reach the largest market eatery in Seoul in the Gwangjang Market.

The Gwangjang market is famous for its meokjagolmok (food alley) lined with 200 stands selling various foods. We had read there were two alleys, one with various grilled fish that then lead to the dakhanmari or boiled whole chicken alley. I'm not sure if this is the exact area that we found but we were overwhelmed by our food choices; we may have only seen the 200 stands rather than the specific alleys. There were seafood stands with what looked to be octopus, some sort of pig sausage with a very unappealing roasted whole pig face looking at you while you ate, fried tempera like pancakes, fish and veggies. Below is video of just a few of the stands we saw. (I realize my finger snuck in the view a bit)



We stuck with something we knew and decided to eat bori bibimbap. Bibimbap consists of barley rice, chili paste, mong beans, dried seaweed, lettuces pickled with chili paste and other various wild vegetables. You mix it all up and eat it; the lady told me I didn't mix it well enough and took my spoon from me to do it herself. I was also approached by a Korean lady who seemed very surprised that Americans were eating Bibimbap; she giggled as she tapped me and said, "you like?" as I shook my head yes; then she said "it is so delicious, the best you ever tasted?" I personally was a bit shocked that I was even asked that and I guess it just shows you how few non-Koreans venture out into the Gwangjang Market.

Itaewon

Today we visited Itaewon; many things were closed for the New Year holiday today but Itaewon street is a tourist zone so we still found many open shops. It is lined with about 2,000 shops as well as jazz bars, night clubs and various ethnic restaurants from Thai, Mexican, Swiss, German, Indian, Italian, Pakistan, etc. Since this area of shopping is specifically for foriegners there were many recognizable names. The various American eateries included: McDonald's, Burger King, Hard Rock Cafe, Starbucks, the Coffee Bean, Quiznos, Outback Steakhouse, Subway, Cold Stone and a KFC. Looks like if Greg and I are craving some American food we will in deed be able to find it. They had three different Nike stores, Adidas, Puma, Columbia Sportsware, the North Face and more. As we walked up and down the streets it seemed very similar to San Fransisco but cleaner. From what I hear this is not the biggest shopping area; I may go visit that area (the wholesale market) on Thursday while Greg is at work.

Happy Seollal!

Happy Seollal everyone! Seollal is a traditional Korean holiday commemorating the start of the New Year according to the lunar calendar; just like Chinese New Year. Many people go back to their hometowns to celebrate with family. Traditionally, Koreans prepare for Seollal the night before by cleaning the house and taking a bath. This year Seollal falls on Valentine's Day. They get up early and dress in traditional Korean costumes like those shown in the picture.

Along with games and traditional customary events, Seollal is filled with many traditional dishes. They day is said to not be complete without eating ttuk-guk, a soup made with round white rice cakes. Braised short ribs are also a common traditional dish for this holiday. Unfortunately, there is not a parade like there is for Chinese New Year and in order to enjoy a traditional Seollal meal we needed to make reservations well in advance. Maybe next year we will be able to partake in Seollal.

Cultural Exchange- Valentine's Day

As you all know Valentines Day is on Sunday; however, in Korea it has a twist. On February 14th it's not the guys who are pressured to come up with the perfect gift but the girls. February 14th is the day set for Korean girls to express their feelings to one very special guy in their life. It is believed this holiday started because society is so male-dominated that this holiday allows girls to be the dominating ones. But guys get their chance too; exactly one month after Valentine's Day is "White Day". White day, held on March 14th, is the day a guy expresses his love for a special girl. We also heard yesterday that there is a singles day although I'm not sure what it's called or when it is. Basically, singles give each other slim cookies (apparently to resemble 1); a girls day, a guys day and a singles day, now that seems like a compromise!

Our Apartment

Here is video of our place. It has heated flooring which has been very nice. It's been very cold here and we've had snow the last couple of days. They say it is very uncommon to have snow this time of year but as we see with Washington DC everywhere is having unseasonably weather.