Trip to Seoul, Korea

Due to visa conflicts I had to leave the country, so I decided to go to S. Korea last weekend! Buying the tickets was actually a lot of fun.  A friend and I stalked prices on the different websites until we found a cheap ticket.  Since I had to leave the country in less than a week and round trip prices were not getting any cheaper than $450 USD we bought one way tickets for the next day.  Very spur of the moment, but we did get a cheap ticket.  When we were in Korea we looked for return ticket prices everyday, it got to the point where we pushed back our return until we missed too many classes.  We eventually bought return tickets that was about the same amount of a round-trip ticket.

Before going to Korea I did not have any expectations like I did before I went to China.  I went into Korea with a clear mind with my only worry on the language barrier.  Before going to China I was capable of saying a few words here and there but I really didn't know how to say anything in Korean.  I actually got around just fine with the limited Korean that my friend taught me (hello/goodbye, here, thank you). That is also because many people in Seoul speak English.  The hardest part about not being able to read Hangul is that everything looked and sounded the same to me.  When in the subway station I had to spend so much time looking at the maps to make sure I got on the right subway. 

A BIG mistake that I made was not completely realizing the difference in the currency rate between the RMB and Won.  I spent 7 weeks in China before going to Seoul so I got accustomed to cheaper prices, spending so-and-so amount on a so-and-so item without much thought.  Unfortunately I also used that mentality in Korea which had similar prices to the US.  Needless to say, I ran out of money FAST.  But to make myself feel better I will say that the lesson that I learned is worth the prices I paid.

Anyways, during my short stay in Korea, I did learn a some things. For example, when I received anything it would be given to me with both hands and occasionally it would be accompanied by a nod of the head.  Without my knowing I began to emulate the gestures too!  I wish they would do that in Shanghai. I also learned that you can always find items for significantly cheaper in different stores.  This is probably the same for everywhere else, but it never really hit me until Korea.  The first day we spent shopping I saw a particular item and bought it, but throughout the 5 days I spent in Korea I saw the same item for at least 10,000 won less in 4 different stores.

One of the things that I loved most about Korea were the locals.  The locals were so nice and friendly to everybody it was such a drastic change.  For example, the first night we arrived (at 11 pm) we got lost looking for our hostel.  A couple overheard us asking the convenience store cashier for directions and they instead told us where to go.  We walked in the direction they pointed but I assume that it was obvious we did not know where we were going because we didn't walk for 10 minutes before the same couple drove right next to us to take us to the hostel. It may have been a dumb decision but at the time we were so tired we didn't even think about it.

Anyways we mainly walked around various areas of Seoul.  We also went to some palaces, the North Seoul tower, Olympic Stadium, Museums, a baseball game, and an Aquarium that looked like a slightly larger Petsmart. 

View from the North Seoul Tower: The North Seoul Tower to Seoul is pretty much the equivalent to the Pearl Tower to Shanghai.  N Seoul Tower is the highest point in Seoul so you can see almost all of Seoul.

  The tower also had a lot of cool stuff on it, like restaurants, gift shop, Teddy Bear Museum, and numerous "Locks of Love" (shown in image).

North Seoul Tower

Field of Jamsil Stadium

The stadium was a lot more crowded than I thought it would be. Baseball games in Korea are pretty different from in the US. The fans get soo into the game, the thunder-sticks and cheerleaders definitely made this experience much different from a Nationals game. Korean fans really take their baseball seriously.  Their chants could be heard a few blocks away from the field even in the metro station.

Changing of the guards ceremony outside of Deoksugung Palace

Junghwajeon: Main hall of the palace. Served as the main throne and was also used for various ceremonies.

Outside of Gyeongbokgung Palace

Inside the main throne hall, Geunjeongjeon.

Gyeonghoeru Pavilion: where the king held banquets.  My favorite area of the palace.

Some place in Seoul. A lot of streets in Seoul looked like this.  Looks even better a night.

Despite my going to all these great places a big highlight of my trip was visiting my friend, Hyelim, in Korea.  I really only got to know her during the last month of the school year (she was a Korean exchange student) but it felt like I had known her for years.  We only met for able 2 hours but she helped me understand a bit more about Korea, introduced me to all sorts of Korean foods (my favorite was the Green Tea Bingsu!), and even suggested different areas in Shanghai that I should visit. I wish I could have spent more time with her but hopefully I will see her again in the near future.

Everything about Korea was wonderful, especially the food and the attractions.  But what I will probably remember the most is the locals.  Even though I only stayed in Seoul for 5 days I have encountered numerous people, strangers really, who actually went out of their way to help me.  I never planned to go to Korea but I'm so glad I did.