Cribs: Seoul Edition

Waddup yo?  This is your boy, King Sejong.  You know how I do.  Welcome to my country: "Kingdom of Great Joseon".  And I've got a real treat for you today.  You didn't think I'd only have one palace did you?  Or two?  What am I?  Japanese?

Do you have your own statue in front of your house?  I didn't think so.

I've got 5 Grand Palaces.  That's right.  Count 'em.  FIVE.  I ain't clownin around.  Granted, some of 'em were built after I died, but I'll still be taking you on the tour.  They don't call me King Sejong the Great for nothin.  Oh, and we'll be swinging by my boy's place over at Unhyeongung during the tour too.  See how he's kickin' it.

So you've already been stupefied by my main palace, Gyeongbokgung, but sometimes a man has got to clear his head.  So let me take you on a tour of the places I go to sit back, relax, and sip a little soju in the sun.

Let's start things off at Changgyeonggung ( 창경궁 ), or as we call it in the hood, "The Palace of Flourishing Gladness".  I built this one for my pops (King Taejong) in 1418.  Now personally, I call this place Suganggung, but King Seongjong decided to to be a hater and change the name to Changgyeonggung. But the real haters in this story are the Japanese.  They got no respect.  So back in 1592, a hundred years after Columbus sailed the ocean blue, I was forced to bid my beloved palace adieu.  A certain somebody from Japan, and ya I'm lookin at you Hideyoshi, felt the need to invade my country and destroy my palaces.  There's a little bad blood between us to say the least.  But not to worry!  Built this place right back up in 1616.  And you wouldn't believe what the Japanese did next.  They invaded my country. Again!  I really don't like the Japanese.  In 1911 these guys added a zoo to my palace.  Yes, a zoo.  Then they had the balls to downgrade it from a palace to a park.  Have I mentioned that I hate the Japanese?  We finally got rid of the monstrosity that was that zoo in 1983 and since then my fellow Koreans have been restoring this place to its former beauty.  So let's take a step through Honghwamun and I'll show you around.

Checkin out Honghwamun

Walkin straight through my main gate brings us to Myeongjeongjeon. I like to throw some pretty crazy banquets up in this place.  You know, you know. 

Party room!

On the left up here we got Munjeongjeon.  This is the place I go to actually get a little work done.

Check out those 5 peaks.  You know I got that royal authority.

There are some other cool places to chill here, but let's head out back.  I've got a pretty ballin backyard.

View of Myeongjeongjeon

Taesil of my great-grandson, King Seongjong.  Don't even ask what it is.  Let's just say my family's weird.

The Japanese built the Great Greenhouse.  Don't tell anyone, but I kinda like it.

Alright yo, let's head out the back gate and we'll swing on over to Changdeokgung ( 창덕궁 ).  I like to call this place the "Palace of Prospering Virtue".  My old man started building this palace in 1405. Of course those #@!%*& from Japan burnt this beauty down in 1592.  Please pardon my French.  Or should I say Korean.  Or, I'm actually speaking in English.  I don't know, but those Japanese really bring out the worst in me.  Anyway, this became the official royal residence when we rebuilt her in 1610 and the King and Queen chilled here till Gyeongbokgung was finally redone in 1872.  The Japanese messed up the place again when they occupied Korea.  They apparently partied a little too hard and destroyed seventy percent of my buildings.  Not very courteous guests if you ask me.  So let's wind our way through the grounds till we get to Daejojeon, otherwise known as "no man's land".  This part of the palace belongs to my queen.

My lady's place.  Don't worry, my house is bigger.

Next we'll swing by my house, which is known as Huijeongdang.

Like that paint job?

The throne hall to the left, Seonjeongjeon in front of ya, and my place on the right.

And now on to the crown jewel of this palace.  Injeongjeon is my pride and joy.  My throne hall. 

A little intimidated heading down this path?  I hope so.

Heading out of Donhwamun to mingle with the commoners.

Okay.  Let's check in on my boy, King Gojong AKA the Gwangmu Emperor AKA Jaehwang AKA Myeongbok AKA Myeongbu AKA ...  Basically, this man's gotta lot of names.  Cause he's a ballaaaa.  He lives down the street in Unhyeongung ( 운현궁 ).  It ain't considered one of the Grand Palaces, but he's doing alright for himself.  This is the youngest palace in Seoul and didn't get that title until 1864 when King Gojong took that throne.  He actually grew up here and became King when he was 12 years old.  12 years old!  I guess he was kinda like the Justin Bieber of Korea. His Dad ruled in his place for a couple years until he was ready to lay down the law.  Unfortunately, my man died at the hands of ... drum roll please ... the Japanese.  Who else?  Well I shouldn't say that as a matter of fact.  It ain't proven they killed him.  But he just so happened to die after he was put into confinement by the Japanese.  Coincidence?  I don't think so.  Well let's check out his crib.  I'll be honest wit ya.  This place ain't nothin compared to what I got.

Let's see if my man's home.

Well, hello sir.

Here we are at King Gojong's house, which he calls Irodang.

Now I'm gonna take ya for a ride in my dragon chariot.  Ya, those are 28 inch spinners.  You know how I do.  We gonna head downtown to Deoksugung.  You can check out Gyeongbokgung on your right during the drive.

My own, personal body guards at Gyeongbokgung

Pretty cool how City Hall is right across the street from this next palace.  Deoksugung ( 덕수궁 ) went up in 1454, but it wasn't until King Seonjo moved here during the Imjin War (those Japanese) that it became an official palace.  I love the name.  You know, "Palace of Virtuous Longevity".  This is one place that the Japanese actually didn't destroy during the war.  But it wasn't quite as lucky when the Japanese decided to invade again in the 20th century.  Only one third of my buildings are still around.  So here it is!  Check out my front gate and then we'll head inside.

Pretty grand entrance at Daehanmun, don't ya think?

Let's make a right and we'll head on over to Seojeodang.  My boy, King Seongjo kicked it here for a while after the Imjin War.

Nice place, eh?

Here we got Jeonggwanheon.  King Gojong, or should I say Emperor Gojong, put this one up in 1900.

Doesn't quite go with the rest of my place, but Gojong seemed to think it was a good fit.

 We'll round out this tour by headin over to Junghwajeon and Gwangmyeongmun.

We in Seoul! 

Gwangmyeongmun.  Check out my ballin water clock on the right.

Peeking at Junghwajeon through Junghwamun

These guys keep me safe at night.

We gonna finish this tour off right.  Let's roll on over to Gyeonghuigung ( 경희궁 ), otherwise known as the "Palace of Serene Harmony".  This is the baby of the Grand Palaces.  This one was built in 1620, which means one thing.  The Japanese couldn't destroy it when they invaded in 1592!  But don't worry, they got around to it when they came back the next time.  And then they built a Japanese school on the site.  Talk about a slap in the face.  This place only has a third of her former glory, but she'll have to do. 

Come on in!  Just head right through Heunghwamun.

Wish you had a throne?

Or at least a crazy ceiling?

Hope ya had fun on the tour.  How could you not?  These are palaces we talkin about here.  Not 50 Cent's mansion.  Although that place is pretty amazing to be honest.  But anyway, it's been real yo.  This is your boy K to the G King Sejong sayin I'm out.


Original completion dates of Seoul Palaces
1392 - General Yi (later to be known as King Taejo) dethrones King Gongyang and assumes control
1393 - King Taejo renames the country the "Kingdom of Great Joseon" and begins the Joseon Dynasty
1394 - The capital is moved to Hanseong, which is modern-day Seoul
1395 - Completion of Gyeongbokgung (Constructed from 1394 - 1395)
1412 - Completion of Changdeokgung (Constructed from 1405 - 1412)
1418 - Completion of Suganggung (Later to be named Changgyeonggung)
1454 - Completion of Deoksugung
1483 - Suganggung is expanded and its name is changed to Changgyeonggung
1620 - Completion of Gyeonghuigung
1864 - Completion of Unhyeongung (not one of the Grand Palaces)

Is there a better way to start off the new year?

So I decided to start the new year off the right way.  In Seoul!  The second largest city on earth (depending on which ranking you look at) has everything you could hope to find in a huge metropolis.  Seeing as how this was my first trip to the capital, I spent most of time exploring the big tourist areas and wandering around to really get a feel for the city.  Presented in this post is my basic itinerary for the first four days of 2011.

Day 1 - January 1
Morning
6:30 - Wake up, shower and make sure I have everything ready to go.

7:15 - Leave for the train station.  

7:30 - Find out that the 7:45 train is already booked.  Looks like I'm gonna have to wait another hour. 

Afternoon
12:15 - Arrive in Seoul.  Wander about aimlessly for awhile until I stumble upon Namdaemun Market.  This market is larger than Seomun Market in Daegu, but a lot of the shops are closed and there really isn't anything that's worth a picture.

1:45 - Finally get to the first thing I was planning to see, which is Deoksugung.  Deoksugung is situated right next to City Hall, which is a pretty cool building in its own right, and is one of the five main palaces in Seoul.  This palace is a pretty great way to start out my weekend in Seoul.  I get some great shots before moving on to Namankol Folk Village.

3:15 - Get to Namankol Folk Village.  I am greeted with the sight of some pretty gigantic ice sculptures before I get into the actual village.  The village itself is interesting, but not something I would necessarily recommend as a must-see on a trip to Seoul.

4:00 - Begin my hike up to N Seoul Tower.  It's a bit of a trek, but nothing compared to hiking to Gatbawi.  Get to stop at a pretty nice vantage point overlooking the city for some pictures.

4:45 - Arrive at N Seoul Tower.  Take some more pictures before I get my ticket and wait in line to actually go up to the top.

Evening
5:30 - Finally get to the top of N Seoul Tower.  I am still supposed to be waiting in line, but I sneaked in with a tour group.  I'm not really sure how they missed me considering I stick out like a sore thumb here.

6:00 - Finish taking pictures and prepare for the descent from N Seoul Tower.

Night
7:15 - Arrive at City Hall for the festival of lights.

8:30 - Finally get to my hostel called Banana Backpackers.  Not the liveliest place in the world, but there were some people hanging around and drinking.

1:00 - Call it a night.  I'm exhausted from walking around for 8 hours and I would like to get up at a somewhat reasonable time tomorrow.


Day 2 - January 2
Morning
9:00 - Wake up

9:30 - Arrive at Unhyeongung, which is only about a five minute walk from the hostel.  Unhyeongung is another palace in Seoul, but really just looks more like a glorified residence.  It provides some nice pictures, but calling this a palace is a bit of a stretch.

10:30 - Stumble upon Jongno Tower and Bosingak, which is an old bell tower.  Jongno Tower is definitely one of the coolest buildings I have ever seen.

10:45 - Head on over to Gyeonghuigung, which is yet another palace.  This is definitely an improvement over Unhyeongung, but not quite as cool as Deoksugung.

11:30 - Begin my ascent of Inwangsan.  This mountain is situated in Seoul.  One thing I really love about Korea so far is the fact that all of their cities are either built around or built into mountains.

Afternoon
12:15 - Reach the summit of Inwangsan.  Take a picture before being told by South Korea's secret service that I'm not allowed to take photos in the direction of the President's house, which is situated at the foot of the mountain.

1:15 - Get back to the bottom of the mountain and begin my search for Seodaemun Prison History Museum.

4:15 - Arrive at Seodaemun Prison History Museum.  I mayyyyyy have gotten a little lost along the way.  This museum features some interesting history on the Japanese occupation of Korea from 1910 to 1945.

Evening
5:30 - Get off the subway at Seoul World Cup Stadium.  I was hoping the stadium would be lit up (everything in this city is), but I am disappointed.  I might head back during a different trip to Seoul.

7:00 - Find Backpacker Friends, which is my hostel for the night.  This isn't exactly a hostel.  It's pretty much an apartment that's been converted into a place that can fit 10 people.  But it will do for the night.  I'm not exactly picky.

Night
10:00 - Head out on the town.

3:00 - Bedtime

Day 3 - January 3 
Morning
9:30 - Wake up

11:00 - Arrive in downtown Seoul after taking the subway.

11:15 - Get to Gyeongbokgung.  Now this is a palace!  It is gigantic and I am really glad I went to the other three palaces first because I would have been sorely disappointed in those if I had started out here.  They even have a changing of the guard ceremony outside of the front gate.

  
Afternoon
1:15 - Finally leave Gyeongbokgung.  It is an awesome palace and is definitely worth an hour or two of your time if you ever go to Seoul.

1:45 - Walk around Tapgol Park.  It's a nice place, but I don't think anything is going to compare with Gyeongbokgung.

2:15 - Start my walk along Cheonggyecheon River.  The river goes right through downtown Seoul.

2:45 - Arrive in Dongdaemun.  Dongdaemun is a huge shopping district in Seoul and has some really cool buildings.

Evening
5:15 - Arrive at Bong House, which is my hostel for the night.  And if you're wondering, the owner's last name is Bong.  So get any other thoughts out of your head.


Night
9:45 - Time to head out.

3:15 - Good Night.

Day 4 - January 4
Morning
9:30 - Wake up

10:30 - Take a short walk from my hostel to Ihwajang, which is a former president's house.  Not worth the time of heading over here.  It's not really anything more than a nice house.

10:45 - Find my way to Changgyeonggung.  This palace is pretty tiny, but it has a really large garden and pond.  I think I might come back here in the spring to see what it looks like.

Afternoon
12:00 -Enter Changdeokgung, which is right next to Changgyeonggung.  This is probably the second best palace in Seoul after Gyeongbokgung.

12:45 - Leave Changdeokgung and find my way to Jongmyo.

1:15 - Arrive at Jongmyo and find out that it's closed.  I knew there was a reason I was planning to see that on Monday.

1:30 - Take the subway to Seoul Station and book a train at 2:15.

2:15 - Depart Seoul.  It's been fun!


Evening
5:45 - Train arrives in Waegwan Station.

6:00 - Home sweet home.

All in all, I would say it was a pretty successful trip.  Jongmyo ended up being the only sight I was unable to visit.  If I end up going back to Changyeonggung in the spring I'll be sure to tack on Jongmyo to my trip.  So what would I recommend as sights to check out from my first trip to Seoul?

1. Gyeongbokgung - You probably could have guessed that this was my favorite place from reading the blog. Even if you aren't into history or architecture, this is still a pretty awesome palace to visit.

2. Dongdaemun at night - Lights, lights, and more lights.  A shopper's paradise. And even if you aren't looking to buy anything I would recommend a visit just to see all of the light displays on the buildings.

3. N Seoul Tower - Hike to the top or take the cable car for a couple bucks.  It was pretty crowded, which was a pain, but you can view the entire city from the tower.

4. Inwangsan (or another mountain in Seoul) - I really enjoy hiking.  If it's not your thing then ignore this suggestion, but there are so many mountains in or around Seoul that I think it's definitely worth it to commit a couple hours to the great outdoors.

5. Changdeokgung - Second best palace in Seoul.