South Korea Tourism Visiting Seoul
Visiting Seoul
| Article Index |
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| Visiting Seoul |
| Namdaemun Market and Sungnyemun |
| Deoksugung |
| Gyeonghuigung |
| Gyeongbokgung |
| Changdeokgung |
| All Pages |
After yesterday's rain, today sun is shining: it's good reason to tour the city and see something interesting. The day is really favourable, there are no cluds but the wind is very strong and freezing. The temperature is also quite low despite the sun, the maximum is about 3-4°C. My visit was centered on classical historic spots, monuments and palaces: I was very lucky because in more than one chance I could live these places almost alone, seeing that the time is not very turistic now.
Palaces are located in the neighbourhood, it's no more than 2km each: let's say it was a good chance to make a walk!
My tour starts with a visit to Namdaemun Market (남 대문 시장), very touristic point for finding to buy something. It's possible to find almost everything about clothes, but there are also many restaurant and other shop where you can buy presents. Not very interesting, but it's well-attended by koreans, and you can find only few foreigners.
Close to the market, near my hostel, there's the Sungnyemun Gate (숭 례문), which was the entrance to the city from South: unfortunally a fire in 2008 burnt almost everything, and now it's under repair.
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Going to North I arrived at the City Hall square, and on the left there's the Deoksugung Palace (덕수궁). It became the king's home in 1592 when other palaces where destroyed by the japanese invasion. After the repair of those palaces, it has been only a secondary residence for 300 years. It came primary home with King Gojong at the end of 1800. Inside there's a royal museum and the first resaissance-style building now. Outside the entrance, you'll find a royal guards changing ceremony to attract the attention and to show tipical dresses. Entrance is 1000 WON.
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Going further in North-West direction you find the restored Gyeonghuigung Palace (경 희궁), literally palace of serene harmony. Originally the palace accomodated more than 100 buildings, and it was used both as a primary and secondary king's residence. It was reopened to the public in 2006 and the entrance is free.
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After talking in english with a korean policeman that walked with me during my walk, I reached Gyeongbokgung Palace (경복궁) passing through the main street, Sejongno. I found here at the entrance a ceremony with traditional dresses. After take the 3000 WON ticket, I luckyly took part to a free english tour that was just started. The palace, built in 1295 as the residence for the founder of the dynasty, it's the most representative example of Joseon dynasty architecture. It has many troubles from japanese invasion in 1595 and also during 1911, and it's still under restoration.
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Continuing to the Est, I reached Changdeokgung Palace (창 덕궁), widely known for his secret gardens. Winter season is the worst to visit it: in Spring, Summer and Autumn the landscape is certainly more rich and impressive. It's the best preserved palace and has been designated as a world heritage site by UNESCO. To protect the cultural properties, only guided tours are permitted, and with my great surprise one was starting at my arrival. Built in 1412, destroyed in 1595, it was rebuilt in 1612 by King Seonjo. It was the official residence of the last King Sunjong until his death in 1926.
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Last Updated (Saturday, 24 October 2009 15:19)
