When we initially landed, we didn’t get any chance to explore Seoul on our way down to Gwanju from Incheon Airport. Luckily, my first week of teaching was a 4 day week, followed by a 3 day week which gave us a 5 day weekend (unheard of back home). Having that much time off I decided it was probably best spend taking the KTX train up to Seoul (which gets you from the south in Suncheon, to the Seoul in close to 2 and a half hours). Arriving in Seoul I decided to walk from the Station at Yongsan, where the KTX dropped off, to where I had booked a hostel for the night in the Hongdae region on town.
After spending one night in Hongdae (and finding the best Hamburger I’ve ever had in my life) I met up with some friends in Itaewon, i.e. Foreigner central. It was neat for meeting people from all over (from Hong Kong to Switzerland). I was also introduced to the game of “Teacher or Soldier” for when noticing other westerners go by. It was a really neat part of town, with a lot of great food, and normally I’ll do my best to try a countries food, but after 3 weeks of rice and soup for most meals, It was nice to get a little taste of the finer things from back home.
After breakfast it was off to Gyeongbokgung Palace to see the changing of the guard. I won’t write much about it here, it’s more something to be witnessed and visited, but if you ever make it to Seoul, it is definitely a must-see. I’ve posted some picture’s here, but the rest can be found on my Flickr.
