Weekend in Seoul - Part I.
Walking toward the National Folk Museum of Korea
The National Folk Museum of Korea
Warriors from the Joseon Dynasty
Royal garments
Figures from the Chinese zodiac...what animal are you?Last weekend we went to Seoul (on Saturday morning) to continue Paul's birthday celebration. We ended up having a good time, but it was a challenge. For one thing, we always forget that finding things in Seoul can be difficult! For example, Paul's chief interest in going to Seoul was to find an Argentinian/Brazilian grill restaurant ("Grill Gaucho") to have dinner at (like Fogo de Chao in Chicago). He found the number and address in the Seoul Eating Guide online, but after 2 hours of walking around Apgujeong, we never found it. All the people we asked around the area had never heard of it--so we were a bit frustrated. And after more walking, we finally ended up at an Italian joint in Itaewon (where all the foreigners go...) for some high-class pizza :)
Another snaffoo was our motel--we stayed in Insadong, but had trouble finding a hotel that wasn't completely booked. We finally found one (another love motel), but it had a bed that was as hard as rock. Literally. And the pillows felt like they were full of beans. But what can you do? Normally this sort of thing is a minor inconvenience, but since we paid a bit more this time than last time we were annoyed.
The final frustration was a simple miscommunication. I thought that Paul had planned where he wanted to go in Seoul (what to see and do besides the restaurant), when really what he wanted was to chill in bookstores, have a meaty birthday dinner, and buy cheese. We both figured out that we really hadn't planned the weekend well enough in advance, and we hadn't communicated our expectations.
But don't get me wrong--we had a great time. On Saturday afternoon we hit the National Folk Museum of Korea, which is on the grounds of the Gyeongbok Palace. We spent 3 hours there learning about how Korean commoners and nobles lived in traditional times (I especially dug the exhibits on farming tools, kimchi-making, and handicrafts). It was rainy and gray that day, so we checked out the outdoor exhibits (stone mounds, wooden spirit posts, freakin' cool Chinese zodiac, etc.) and walked around watching the people with their umbrellas. On the way back to the metro we hit a neat side street filled with shops offering Korean celadon pottery, calligraphy supplies, and other artsy fartsy stuff.
We also made it to Myeong-dong Cathedral for our first English-speaking mass in 5 months! Myeong-dong is the first brick church in Korea built in the Gothic style, the Cathedral Church for the Archdiocese of Seoul, and where the first (Christian) faith community gathered in 1784. After a late breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts (Yay! Real coffee!) we split up to pursue our individual interests--Paul to Itaewon for book hunting, chilling, and cheese gathering--Aubrey to check out Deoksugung Palace, the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Namdaemun Market, and Sungnyemun Gate (and back to Itaewon for a fabulous arabic lamb kebab!)
The ride back to Sokcho was green and peaceful, and I enjoyed watching the rice farmers working their flooded fields.
Another snaffoo was our motel--we stayed in Insadong, but had trouble finding a hotel that wasn't completely booked. We finally found one (another love motel), but it had a bed that was as hard as rock. Literally. And the pillows felt like they were full of beans. But what can you do? Normally this sort of thing is a minor inconvenience, but since we paid a bit more this time than last time we were annoyed.
The final frustration was a simple miscommunication. I thought that Paul had planned where he wanted to go in Seoul (what to see and do besides the restaurant), when really what he wanted was to chill in bookstores, have a meaty birthday dinner, and buy cheese. We both figured out that we really hadn't planned the weekend well enough in advance, and we hadn't communicated our expectations.
But don't get me wrong--we had a great time. On Saturday afternoon we hit the National Folk Museum of Korea, which is on the grounds of the Gyeongbok Palace. We spent 3 hours there learning about how Korean commoners and nobles lived in traditional times (I especially dug the exhibits on farming tools, kimchi-making, and handicrafts). It was rainy and gray that day, so we checked out the outdoor exhibits (stone mounds, wooden spirit posts, freakin' cool Chinese zodiac, etc.) and walked around watching the people with their umbrellas. On the way back to the metro we hit a neat side street filled with shops offering Korean celadon pottery, calligraphy supplies, and other artsy fartsy stuff.
We also made it to Myeong-dong Cathedral for our first English-speaking mass in 5 months! Myeong-dong is the first brick church in Korea built in the Gothic style, the Cathedral Church for the Archdiocese of Seoul, and where the first (Christian) faith community gathered in 1784. After a late breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts (Yay! Real coffee!) we split up to pursue our individual interests--Paul to Itaewon for book hunting, chilling, and cheese gathering--Aubrey to check out Deoksugung Palace, the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Namdaemun Market, and Sungnyemun Gate (and back to Itaewon for a fabulous arabic lamb kebab!)
The ride back to Sokcho was green and peaceful, and I enjoyed watching the rice farmers working their flooded fields.
posted by streetwise at 5:16 AM
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