Seoul Korea Trip Day 4- Gyeongbokgung Palace
When in Korea, one of the âmust doâ things is to visit a Palace. Gyeongbokgung Palace is disputably one of the most beautiful and remains the grandest Palaces in the world as it offers a big chunk of Korean history.
We know for a fact that this day was dedicated to intensify some more ache to our feet for we will walk for hours learning Koreaâs history and its origins. But of course, we come prepared as we decided to have lunch at a Korean authentic tonkatsu restaurant where they serve ginormous pork cutlet that is as big as humanâs face. Hereâs a photo for your reference:
I ordered cheese-filled tonkatsu with sidings of exaggeratedly small bap (rice), macaroni salad and shredded cabbage. (6000 won- Php 250.00/ per order)
Verdict: It was tasty but the generous amount of stuffed mozzarella cheese is just too overwhelming and HEAVY! I did not even finish half of it. I feel so stuffed so no room for dessert and straight on to major walking!
Moving on, Here's how to get there: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Gyeongbokgung Palace Station (Line 3, Exit 5)
Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5, Exit 2)
I like how every Seoul MRT station exits stick to its theme on where you're heading.Â
Gyeongbokgung Palace is the main palace in Seoul, Korea that has been built for almost 500 years. Although destroyed during the Japanese invasion of 1592, the palace was rebuilt again in 1867.
Entrance Ticket : (3000 Won= Php 120.00 )
I am mesmerized by the details and prints for all the structures inside the palace. Just imagine how they hand painted it one by one.
Â
When we went there, weâre just in time for the Changing of the Guards ceremony. Witnessing the ceremony made me feel like I was enraptured back in Joseon Era. All of them were wearing Hanbok costumes with designated colors depending on their portrayed position. I am relished in taking part of this reenactment of such a historical event.
Back then, the royal guards of Joseon Dynasty performed a task of guarding the Gwanghwamun Gate. The ceremony of changing guards first took place in 1469 and continued until the end of the dynasty. The present day ceremony is only a re-enactment of the original one and the re-enactment was started only in 1996.
The Gwanghwamun or the main gate is composed of 3 entrances â the central one exclusively reserved for the kingâs use.
Unfortunately, I didn't get to wear a Hanbok because we ran out of time since we decided to tour the Palace first.
TIP: Before entering the palace, go straight first at the Hanbok area near the ticketing booth because it closes at around 5PM.Â
As you enter the palace, you will see right away the Geunjeongjeon. It is said the main throne hall and was used for the kingâs state coronation ceremony, meetings and gathering with foreign representatives.Â
Here's what it looks like inside the Geunjeongjeon throne hall.
I like how they preserved the structure of the Palace on their best way possible and make it look as good as the original state. Korean Tourism really spent a whole lot of funds to keep these protruding and very much alive.
Mandatory photo-op with the beautiful pillars.Â
As we moved on, we saw the Jiphyeonjeon where the Korean alphabet, Hangul, was invented under King Sejong.
This is Gyeonghoeru Pavilion where it is positioned in the middle of a pond; this structure functioned as the area where the king held his feast with foreign representatives.Â
Here's a Korean traditional earthenware jars from various regions that are displayed at the Palace.
These jars were used for fermenting the famous Korean soybean paste and kimchi.Â
This is Hyangwonjeong, which is situated also in the middle of a pond. This structure is such a picturesque with its intricate designs and craftsmanship. It was built when King Gojong built Geoncheonggung at the back of the pond in 1873 to have political independence from his father. This building complex included living quarters for the king and the queen. Unfortunately, it was also here where Queen Myeongseong was killed in 1895 during the Japanese invasion.
At the end of the palace you will see a circular resting area with all of the signs of the zodiac.
Year of the Sheep since I was born in year 1991! ( yes I am a 90's b**ch)Â
And that was it! I was in awe during my tour of the place that I did not notice the time passing by. It felt like I was discovering something new in every turn. More so, all the areas of the palace is bursting with historical significance.Â
Trivia: Gyeongbokgung Palace's popularity rise steeply due to a traditional Korean drama "Jewel in the Palace" which showcased so much about their culture.Â
After touring Gyeongbokgung Palace, We still went on to walk around Bukchon Hanok Village. This place is quite hilly. Better prepare some stamina before going since you will brave the steep climbs in most of the areas of the village.
While strolling, we saw a cafe that caters Philippine Mangoes... Koreans love our homegrown mangoes and it's hell of expensive in Korea. When visiting a friend in Korea, buy them Dried Mangoes, they will love it so much!Â
We took our time meandering around this traditional village to enjoy the tranquil environment. We walked towards the inside of the village where the residential houses are. There are families who actually live there so tourists are advised to keep quiet and not make so much noise. The houses are really nicely maintained in this area. It makes you feel how Seoul must have looked like a few hundred years ago.
In my case, I didn't make it up to the very end of the traditional village since Iâm already suffering from major back pain and couldnât bear to walk more.Â
Half of us still went to Insadong to do some serious shopping but some decided to go home (including me) to rest. On our way home, I bought a menthol patch for my severe backache. Feeling old, lol!Â
After having a good rest, we walked around Hongdae for dinner and had some authentic Samgyeupsal.Â
Samgyeupsal is a popular Korean dish that is commonly served as an evening meal. It consists of thick, fatty slices of pork belly meat. It is usually marinated or seasoned and is cooked on the diners' table-tob griller.
I enjoyed pairing my grilled samgyeopsal alternately with rice dipping it with gireumjang (salt and black pepper in sesame oil) or wrapping it in a lettuce with kimchi.Â
It's definitely one of my favorite Korean dish! good thing there are a lot of authentic Korean restaurants here in the Philippines and I can have it anytime I want.
And to cap off the night, Lo and behold: Korean Tower Ice cream!Â
Korean ice cream is just really really REALLY damn good! I love that they serve these in a small cone but piled about a foot high! Trust me, it's not messy to eat as you think it would!Â
That's it for Day 4! I sure learned a lot about Korean history and I'm glad I can share it here in my blog! AGAIN, it took me so long to post this... Please wait for my 5th-11th day in Korea blog post! see you around! ;)