Namsan Seoul Tower and Luxurious Shopping

Today is my last in Seoul before taking KTX express train to PyeongChang for the next phase of volunteer training. My agenda included an early gym workout, followed by healthy protein breakfast. Selections included Asian beef tartare with quinoa and marinated vegetable salad, vegetable and chicken udon bowl, cucumber and mint juice, and coffee - all were excellent!

Off to explore Myeong Dong and Shinsegae Duty-Free Department Store, 13 floors of luxury shopping with some of the World's most recognizable brands. Tourists enjoy duty-free shopping and package delivery as evidenced by queues upstairs. Window shopping suits me fine!

Next stop was Namsan Seoul Tower accessible via winding foot trail and thrilling cable car to the peak of Namsan Mountain. The site is part of the original beacotn mounds and protective city walls patrolled by trusted guards of the Joseon Dynasty. Today, re-enactors lit one of the beacon mounds, representing Bongsu, or alerting the walled city of approaching enemies sending smoke signals in the daytime and lighting watch fires at night. Another re-enactor displayed Samurai swordsmanship, gracefully slicing bamboo into segments. 

The plaza at Seoul Tower includes several attractions for visitors of all ages, including observation deck, snack and coffee bars, game rooms, Hanbok experience and MANY great photo ops gazing at the Han River and massive city skyline. Couples bring or purchase colorful locks which they inscribe with romantic messages and then lock on the fence or pyramidal "trees", leaving one key at the Tower. 

I enjoyed interacting with a Korean aunt and her niece, who asked permission to practice English language skills. We joked about dress and customs and our shared travel experiences. These Koreans planned to visit Itaewon, a neighborhood popular with ex-pats, so they wore "urban hip" outfits! 

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Expedia video tour of Namsan Seoul Tower

Exploring by foot, I chose to walk down historic streets from Namsan Mountain to the shopping district in Namdaemun. There is much to see as evening approaches and vendors open carts to sell grilled food, fruits and novelties. Crowds gather to try handheld delicacies, including savory or sweet pancakes, egg toast, baked or twisted and fried potatoes, lobster tail with cheese, pouches of pomegranate juice and small cinnamon donuts. I ventured upstairs through a narrow doorway for spicy octopus and vegetables grilled to order at my table - piquant and delicious! 

Become acquainted with Korea's History, Culture and People

Visitors to the National Folk Museum of Korea, adjacent to the Changdeokgung Palace grounds, will learn the history of everyday life of the Korean people from prehistoric to modern times. Walk through open galleries with different homes of early Korean people furnished with utilitarian and decorative objects, like sleeping mattresses, chairs, gowns, tea service, utensils, scrolls and looms. 

Tableaus interpret an agrarian lifestyle across four seasons with colorful displays, audio and video recordings. I especially attended to winter traditions as these relate to the present season and Olympic and Paralympic Games held in PyeongChang. Korean farming families were incredibly resilient, hanging quilted curtains as room dividers, bringing braziers to heat indoors, and relying on fruits of their prior labors (smoked and dried meats, grains, preserved fruits and vegetables) for sustenance.

During the coldest months, tools were cleaned and repaired, ice fishing brought meat, and families read, conversed and played games to pass the time. Kimchee was prepared and shared communally. 

A gallery of life passages presents life-size exhibits of important rituals, wedding, birth, education and selection for state bureaucratic service, aging and death. Ritual foods are prepared in anticipation of childbirth and then fed to the new mother after she delivers her baby. 

In one scene, a female shaman conducts a ritual to cure childhood illness. She contacts helping spirits in an effort to bring healing. 

Did you know that children held large parties for their parents' 60h birthdays, presenting "towers" of colorful foods to be shared with guests?  Elders made or selected silken burial shrouds, thus assuring their continued longevity. Upon death, the eldest son must locate a suitable tomb while his wife prepares ritual foods. The family enters an extended period of mourning, holding rites at ancestor shrines and sometimes living in straw houses adjacent to burial sites. 

The museum grounds includes a traditional Korean village and streets of modern Korea. 

Video introduction (2:13)

Seoul is for exploring NEW sights, sounds and tastes

Exceptional sights, sounds and tastes make exploring Seoul a feast for eyes, ears and mouth!  This peninsular nation strives to remember its past while embracing a fast-paced and viable future.

The DMZ, a place of reflection about peace and conflict

I joined a bus with Japanese and Korean tourists for an excursion from Seoul to the DMZ or neutral zone between North and South Korea. "The Korean peninsula is home to a single nation of people with the same language and ethnicity, divided into two countries. The Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a buffer zone, which was established on July 27, 1953 when the Armistice Agreement was signed during the Korean War. 

Today, the DMZ vividly captures the scars and wounds of the Korean War as well as the wishes and hopes for the future. South and North Koreas drew a truce line across the Korean Peninsula, from the mouth of the Imjingang River in the east, to the town of Goseong in the west. 

On either side of the truce line is a 2km-wide stretch of land where military activity is forbidden. The zone has been protected from human disturbance for about 6 decades and has unintentionally become a haven for wildlife...

Discovered in 1978, the Third Infiltration Tunnel was dug by the Northern army to spy on their Southern counterparts. The tunnel is 1,635 meters long, with a height and width of 2 meters. It is a prime example of the South-North confrontation and has become an all inclusive tourist attraction, with a DMZ video hall and representative sculptures... 

Dorasan Station is one of the northernmost railway stations on the Gyeongui Line, connecting Seoul to Sinuiju. The station was visited by previous Korean President Kim Daejung and former American President George H.W. Bush in 2002. From the station, visitors can view Dorasan Mountain and the barbed wire fences of the Southern Limit Line. However, the station is located in the zone that strictly restricts general civilian access, so visitors must register in advance at Imjingang Station. Bring your passport!

From http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/

March 01, a Notable Day in South Korea!

March 01 is known as Independence Movement Day or Samil Jeol in South Korea, marking the first large public demonstration against Japanese occupation in 1919. Koreans were forcibly occupied beginning in 1910, losing many rights and freedoms. On the third month, first day, some 2 million people marched in demonstration against colonisation, leading to arrests, violence with injuries and deaths to thousands.

The proclamation read aloud on March 01, 1919, read:

“We herewith proclaim the independence of Korea and the liberty of the Korean people. We tell it to the world in witness of the equality of all nations and we pass it on to our posterity as their inherent right.Wemake this proclamation, having 5,000 years of history, and 20,000,000 united loyal people. We take this step to insure to our children for all time to come, personal liberty in accord with the awakening consciousness of this new era. This is the clear leading of God, the moving principle of the present age, the whole human race’s just claim. It is something that cannot be stamped out, stifled, gagged, or suppressed by any means.” 

(Source: thekoreanway.wordpress.com)

Today, Koreans marched peacefully, waving the National flag, American flag and military flags proudly representing veterans who served during the Korean War. Large groups marched through downtown Seoul protected by police and safety officers. Crowds happily gathered at key buildings and monuments, including Seoul City Hall. Marchers gave thanks for their freedom, recognized the fallen and thanked their allies, including the USA.

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Insa-dong Market, much for shoppers!

Insa-dong Market in central Seoul presents a juxtaposition of the old and new. One may purchase handmade mulberry paper and goat hair brushes to create scrolls or landscapes. Find next door a gallery with contemporary art reinterpreting historic Korean objects. Fair trade items guarantee living wages. 

Polished brass fixtures enhance dark wood chests, reproductions of vintage Korean furniture. Enjoy a delicious lunch or dinner by selecting a bustling cafe in one of the narrow alleys. We did! 

View tour of Insa-dong, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvee8GoDZOg

Dongdaemun History and Culture Park, a unique experience in the heart of Seoul!

Dongdaemun History & Culture Park is a unique delight for visitors to Korea's largest city. On this site are excavations revealing the foundation of Igansumun Water Gate and Chiseong of Seoul Fortress, the earliest defenses of the city and numerous buildings from the Joseon Dynasty, including a military training ground. Inside the Dongaemun History Museum are displays with relics arranged to tell the park's chronology.

Rising above the historic ruins is an ultra-modern event hall and design gallery and landscaped gardens, which replaced Dongdaemun Baseball Stadium. Artists produce original pieces for sale and local crafts delight visitors. While enjoying sweet Americano coffee blend, we watched young women try new fashions, artfully posing for photos. 

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Experiencing traditional healing at Solgaheon

My friendly guide Park Jay and I visited a traditional healing cafe operated by Jinsan Korean Herbal Pharmacy nearby busy Tongin Market. Our aim was to relax with medicinal herbal tea on a cool winter's day. I selected Ganggeun tea for muscular skeletal strength, knees or lower back problems. Hot tea was quietly served wth complementary healthy snacks of pumpkin seeds, dried jujube and light sweet grain cookies.

The pinewood scent and phytoncides of the building are attributed to promote healing, an antidote to the busy modern lifestyle. We quickly shed our coats inside the well-lit cafe made warm by forced heat beneath tile flooring, a modern take to the approach used by Joseon kings hundreds of years ago!

Some come to Solgaheon to rest in special red clay healing rooms or improve blood circulation in herbal foot baths. Others seek herbal treatments for disorders of digestion, circulation, muscular aches and low energy. It was time to leave all too soon!