On Saturday I participated in a press tour organized by the municipality of Seoul in collaboration with the Korean Food Foundation. Seoul Bloggers and Photographers went for a meet, greet, walking tour of the old city, and lunch. I’m so incredibly honoured to have been invited. We had a wonderful day with a great tour guide and I managed to cross off even more places I had been hoping to visit. Having lived in Korea for a year, I’d like to present Round II of my Bucket List, this edition being all Seoul. As I’ve already managed to visit many of the places on my initial list, I’ll give a little information and/or an opinion on each, and then list the remainder at the end. One thing’s for sure – it’s never a dull time living in Seoul!
Category: Korea Blog
Jogyesa Temple – Lotus Lantern Weekend Part ii
Korean couples love to get dressed up and wander around the old, traditional towns, as well as the Palaces and the Temples. All this was amplified by the hoopla of Buddha’s Birthday Weekend which has been celebrated as a festival since the Unified Silla era over 1,300 years ago. Yep – he gets the whole weekend, the festival, the parade, and all the beautiful lantern displays at nearly every temple the month leading up to his birthday and for for many, the weeks beyond (at Jogyesa they’ll be around until May 22nd). I guess it’s like leaving your Christmas lights up on your front porch all year long, just a lot less honky-tonk and a lot more beautiful!
Lotus Lantern Weekend – Part I
After a very relaxing day meandering around Sincheon, we ventured up to the subway and along the green line to Dongdaemun History & Culture Park. This area is one of my favourites already, even though I’ve only explored it for the Indian food (well, Nepalese), and for Seoul Fashion Week. The area is particularly modern because of the architecture surrounding the big Dongdaemun Design Plaza by Dame Zaha Hadid.
Sincheon Sweetness: A Day Off
Whenever I let people know I live in Sincheon, I usually say Jamsil instead. Sincheon is located in between Sports Complex (where the LG Twins and Doosan Bears play, where tons of music festivals and concerts are held, and where what I believe is the second tier soccer team calls home) and Jamsil. In Seoul there is “Sinchon” and “Sincheon”, so it’s easiest just to say Jamsil. The reaction is usually “Whoa! You live so far away!”.
Itaewon: For Cocktail Lovers?
We could see a number of spots we had never explored, one of which was Fountain. The stone staircase looked like it could be a really cool spot, but we were meeting at Ramie’s so we didn’t immediately stop in.
How to get to Seokbulsa Temple
I’ve heard about a number of people getting lost en route to Seokbulsa, a temple in Busan, South Korea. Here are directions and some footage on getting there from Mandeok Station. I think this is the most straightforward route (as you can also hike from Hwamyeong or Oncheonjang). [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ti5oGJ-yxZU&w=640&h=360] Most directions to this temple…
How I got my first job in Korea
When was the last time you did something for the first time? If it’s been so long that you can’t remember, I would consider that an issue. In August of 2014 I found that I was asking myself that same question over and over again. I took every possible opportunity to go try something new. I…
That Liebster Love
Remember that time I was like: “What’s a Liebster Award? Why haven’t I been nominated? Why haven’t I WON!”? Well, for starters, the Liebster Award is kind of like the best kind of chain letter. This award is only passed on to bloggers who are valued within your niche or community, and coming up on…