One of the great things about living in Cheonan is that it's not too far from Seoul, and you can get there in as little as 30 minutes on the high speed KTX train. The bus only takes an hour too, and is more comfortable and cheaper than the train.
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| Changdeokgung |
So we went up to the capital for another day of sightseeing and checked out two palaces: Changdeokgung and Changgyeonggung. The two are side by side, not too far from the city's main palace, Gyeongbokgung.
I'm no big palace enthusiast and after 9 months in Korea I do sometimes feel like 'seen one seen em all' when it comes to palaces. It was, however, nice to visit one after the other yesterday as it was easier to compare the two.
We first went to Changdeokgung, the city's second palace. Apparently the king who built it, King Taejong, lived there for some years after murdering his own half brothers at the main palace (Gyeongbokgung) in order to ascend to the throne.
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| Changdeokgung |
From Changdeokgung you can enter Changgyeonggung. Changgyeonggung was built later than Changdeokgung, in 1483 and was built by King Sejong, for his father King Taejong. We enjoyed walking around the gardens, ponds, pagodas and green houses that sprawl out behind the palace.
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| Changgyeonggung |
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| Changgyeonggung |
One thing about visiting palaces in Korea is that they don't feel very authentic. Although Changdeokgung was originally built in 1405, it has been completely destroyed and rebuilt numerous times, thanks to the Japanese, and was most recently rebuilt and restored in the 90's. Same goes for most of the palaces we've visited.
Nonetheless it was a peaceful stroll on a sunny Saturday and we made the most of the tranquil gardens and ornate buildings.
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| Changgyeonggung |
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| Changgyeonggung |
After our palace tour we met up with Sydney and went for a walk around Bukchon, an area of Seoul designated as a traditional hanok village where traditional houses (hanoks) are maintained and have been lovingly restored to attract tourists in search of an authentic stay in Seoul.
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| Hanok houses in Bukchon |
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| Hanok houses in Bukchon |
There were some cool vintage shops there and a secondary school that would look more at home in Downton Abbey than in the middle of Korea. Add that to some beers, shopping and a rotisserie chicken off the back of a van and it all makes for a nice day out.
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| Downton Abbey?? |
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| Family photo! |
Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung and Bukchon are all within walking distance of subway station 'Anguk' (line 3) exit 3.
