Gyongbok palace
Hyehwa to Gyongbokgung station

Seoul may be a modern city. But would you know that in this city lies a big network of caves? Surprise, surprise! Line 3 (orange line) certainly is full of surprises. It’s one of the new subway train station and its theme is nothing but modern. We were awed at the “cave” that surrounded this subway. Of course, the train is modern and there’s no need to fear for a possible cave man attack.

In the pictures, it’s very sunny. Don’t be deceived, it’s extremely cold that morning. Our first stop is to check the most famous among Seoul’s palaces, Gyeongbokgung. Since they all look similar, we didn’t bother to check the others.We alight at Gyongbokgung station and off we went to check it out. It was very cold outside that being sunny was a welcome relief. Now I understood why Koreans love the sun so much.

Inside Gyongbokgung is the National museum of Korea, and another museum that I forgot the name. Since I’ve been to the Forbidden City in Beijing already, I’m not that impressed. It was small compared to the Forbidden City, probably 1/20th of its size, and the palaces were obviously restored.

What we did in Gyongbokgung? Jump shots of course! These are one of those moments where you jump in an ala-Karate Kid setting.  There here weren’t too many people yet when Japanesecake did hers. Followed by Xty, Lyka  and  Jeff who got the shots in a few attempts. Catna03 however..needs more practice! haha.

BTW, did I mention that the characters inscribed in the main gate  is Chinese and not Korean? It’s normally called Gyongbokgong, where gong in Mandarin means palace.  Also, the changing-of-the-guards ceremony still takes place. It’s worth checking it out.

One thing I noticed that that the roofs of the palaces in Korea was bluish-green, while in China it was yellowish-brown. The yellow roof in China symbolizes Earth. I’m not sure what the green roof in Korea signifies.It might just be part of the restoration process.

For those who haven’t seen the Forbidden City, touring the palace is an excellent way of checking out old Korea. But I’m not sure if it’s recommended during summer. I suppose it’s very hot during summer (just like in Forbidden City) and I can’t see any covered areas aside from the palaces itself.

The best scenic view of this palace is Gyonghoeru which is a pavilion surrounded by a pond.

Blue House
Blue House is walking distance from the Gyongbukgung palace. It is found at the southern end exit. It is the Malacanang palace of South Korea as the president resides here. It’s off-limits so we just took pictures outside.

More pictures of South Korea on our album