After a long jet-lagged sleep we finally woke, showered and ventured to the kitchen for breakfast. Our host showed us how to assemble a Bibimbap from the dishes in the fridge. After spooning in various ingredients we ate a hearty breakfast washed done with coffee and tea.
We woke to find a camera crew had set up a host of videos cameras, Big Brother style around the courtyard, a little disconcerting to say the least. Over breakfast sat outside our room we chatted with one of the guys, all the while being videoed.
From previous experience we knew that we would have an abundance of energy so we set off to walk to our first adventure, Gyeongbokgung, one of the Kings palaces.
It was a fair walk from the guesthouse but it was a lovely morning and it gave us an opportunity to get our bearings whilst enjoying some of the the city.
As we got closer we noticed more and more people dressed up in traditional costume – entire multi-generational families all proudly dressed up. We later discovered that wearing it enabled free admission and there were hire shops dotted along the outer walls.
Arriving in the inner courtyard we were fortunate to witness the changing of the guard. It was very theatrical and a wonderful start to our time in Korea. We then witnessed the changeover again from outside the main entrance at the end of our visit.
The palace and grounds were huge so although it was busy, felt very peaceful. It was a self-guided tour so we were able to take our time and really explore.
The guidebook recommended walking round the outside wall to Bukchon Hanok Village and although it was very pretty it felt no less commercialised than the hanok around our hotel. As we were getting tired we wandered back to the hotel for a break. Noticing an interesting street we decided to take a different route back passed through a street of restaurants and gift shops that we discovered was Insadong!
After our siesta we headed back out and found a river walk, Cheonggyecheon Ggyecheon, this was peaceful and quite busy, ending up at an indoor market, Gwangjang, where there were loads of stalls selling many types of food. Feeling travel weary we made a note to return and try something.
Returning back to the main road we decided to stop for a quick coffee at what turned out to be a rather posh coffee shop, Josh Willow.
On leaving the coffee shop we spotted lots of men across the road in a small park, we wandered up to discover that most of them were sat around the flower beds playing Go or gathered just chatting in little groups. Something retired men do in South Korea we guessed.
As has become commonplace on our travels we darted into a local Uniqlo and re-emerged with a bargain shirt.
It is definitely not a holiday unless we spend the first evening checking out local food options. Our wander through Insadong earlier in the day confirmed it was the best place to explore and after checking out the numerous shops we found a great little restaurant upstairs (Sinpo Woori Mandoo) selling Udon noodles, tofu and also a delicious vegetable dumpling. The food was fresh and service was quick.
Finishing off the evening we headed back to the guesthouse via a coffee shop, Ediya Coffee, for a cappuccino and a lemon & sweet plum tea as a nightcap.
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