13th May 2015, Wednesday

Last night we met a guy from France and talked about what he had seen and what he is planning to see.

We were pretty exhausted and decided to take our time this morning.  We made breakfast as bread and eggs are provided for us by the guesthouse.  I made scrambled eggs with toast.  During breakfast, we met a couple that just came in last night from Colorado.  They are going to some of the same places we are going to today.

We got ready and then went to Cheonmachong to see the tomb that are under those big hills that we think are hills but are tombs.   It was so interesting to see how people are buried with different relics like gold necklaces, crowns, earrings, rings, etc...  The person is buried with the relics in a coffin.  Then rocks are piled over and then the mud, and then grass!  It was very cold under the hills to see the tomb/coffin.

From there we took bus 10 to Bulguksa Temple.  We managed getting up the stairs and realized that we could get a tour in English!!!! In 10 minutes.  While we waited for the tour, we took pictures, of course, and found some pictures to take of kids and with kids.  I got pictures with the girls but it was on their phone camera :(   We weren't allowed to take pictures of most things, but zooming and discrete mode works wonders with a camera!!!!  I find a way.  There were some areas we got permission to take a picture. 

To give our body a rest, we took a bus to the next stop.  Weaving roads made Taz nauseous.  I just slept.  We got to our destination:  Seokguram Grotto.  We walked to the base of the hill.  We really wanted a tour, but waiting 30 minutes was not going to work.  So onward!  Up the hill we go, only to be let down because again no pictures were allowed.  I tried to take one but the glass structure protecting the Buddha would show reflections so the staff would know if someone was taking a picture.  :( :( And, they called us out on it (there were a few of us trying).

We decided to take the bus back to town; we were tired and wanted to rest our legs.  FYI before seeing these last two sites, we saw Gyeongju World and the Culture Expo Center from the outside.   We also bought souvenirs.

We came back thinking we may get the Korean version of Indian food but found this cute restaurant.  I had Ramen Noodles and I loved it!!!!!!  Mine was beef flavor with veggies!  I ateit with chopsticks! We walked through Sungdong Market and became a little obsessive over cute socks.  I also got a nice travel document organizer.  

We came back and just relaxed, updating photos, watching comedy shows and researching what we want to do tomorrow.

We are going to Kukkiwon and meeting up with Zoe again.  Danyang was 4 hours away, not enough time.  Folk museums would have worked but the bus/trains going there only leave at certain times, not giving us enough time to look around.  Eh, only another reason to come back to Seoul and check it out some more!

12th May 2015, Tuesday

4 AM we wake up to a "dong" sound.  It was pitch dark, pouring rain, and we had to climb up steep hills with rough paths to get to our morning chant/prayer.  After the chant we stayed at the same place for meditation-30 minutes of silence.  Peacefulness.  Quiet.  Nothing in the world could disturb me.

Since, it was raining, we did not do the meditation walk nor the community service- so we did tai chi and then got to relax for about 30 minutes.  At 6:30 we had breakfast; Taz had my tofu b/c it may have had milk and we can't waste food.  :(  

We got another break and then went to Sunmudo Training around 8:30.  Today was different it was more focused on breathing and flexibility with a yoga twist.  There were obviously things I simply could not do like they wanted- but, I tried.  At 10:10 we had tea time.  Everyone sits in a circle and mingles and chats.  It is here that we learned that South Korea has a program for at-risk teens; they are sent to this temple to learn about discipline and respect. For Sunmudo class, they came in late, and then one of them started fooling around with her mini mirror; the instructor yelled "stop" at her after which the Master from last night came out to help.  The 3 boys out of the group were not too bad, but the girls were tickling each other and tearing the yoga mats and throwing the pieces at each other.  At the end of class, the instructor makes them clean up.  The instructor looks at me and shakes his head; I say kids, he agrees.  The girls did as told but attitude is always present.  Anyways during tea time we asked how they are liking it.  The girls were indifferent and one boy said it is comfortable.  Taz couldn't stand the silence during tea time so she started to ask different questions.  Right after tea time, a girl who is studying at the school lead us in 108 bows which is literally kneeling, bowing, and standing up again 108 times.  The teenage girls gave attitude and the instructor asked the translator to tell them that to continue they have to be part of the team; one continued to refuse-translator stated not to worry about it.  Obviously, the instructor was frustrated but we continued with what we were supposed to do.  I decided I was going to challenge my knee and do the 108 bows.  She said we could do a half bow (stand and bow) if we were in pain, but I wanted to try and I did it!  Wohoooo!

The templestay was almost done!  We went hiking back up the hill one last time :) to see a Sunmudo Demonstration.  We barely made it back in time for lunch.  The rice wasn't even out because lunch was about the end.  The cooks filled our bowls so much rice that Taz and I had to force eat the rice as again, -no waste!  After lunch, we checked out!  We walked towards the road and got a bus right away- I fell asleep on the bus back to Gyeongju.  We were looking for our place to stay (the guesthouse) and this lady comes by and looks at the picture on my ipad. She was soooo excited to help us.  She was laughing, jumping up and down, running, just excited.  She got us to our guesthouse.

We had to wait till 1500 for our rooms.  So we waited (1.5-2 hours).  We decided to have tea.  Taz sat down and had tea while I had hot water with sugar.  I didn’t like the taste rice based tea.  We met another person staying here from France.  He told us what he has seen.  I got to practice my French.  After he left, we planned out our trip.  After we got our rooms we took cold showers and began to tour.

 We saw Cheonmachong Tomb and Deneungwon Royal Tomb from the outside.  We then went to world heritage site, Cheomseongdae Conservatory.  We proceeded towards Wolseong Fotress-en route we saw the Seokbinggo Ice Storehouse, Gyerim Forest, and Wolseong Park.  We later watched the Silla Palace Movies.  We walked toward Donggun and Wojji Park, not knowing that it was Anapji Pond; they were all one in the same.  We wanted to see this at night.  We went to ask if we could get a re-entry stamp; nope the ticket is only good for one time entry.  We left. Maybe we will return.

We spent almost 20 minutes trying to find a place to eat dinner.  We stopped in front of one guy's store; he made sushi, Korean style in front of us- Gimbap.  We shared 1 vegetarian sushi cut into 10 pieces. We kept walking and went into a store for the famous bread, and they could give us ingredients in English!  I can eat them!  We were so hungry that we had two right there.  We found a Chinese restaurant, yes, in Korea.  I ordered cold noodle Beef :D   We ate the sushi while waiting for our food.  Our food was not too yummy, but we ate a little bit and left.  Now I am back at the guesthouse, updating the blog and about to crash.  Thank goodness for protein bars!!!  I was still hungry so ate one.

9th May 2015, Saturday

So, we slept in this AM.  This place had cereal and chips downstairs; I grabbed a small amount for Taz and I for breakfast and we had the juice that was provided-orange!  Later, I had a protein bar and the rest of the fried chicken from yesterday.  The veggies were some sort of radish and it was delicious!  The girl that Taz had met on her initial flight, Zoe came around 11. We are going to tour together!  We checked out of our hotel, but left the bags there as always.  We checked R Hotel, which was 80,000 won for the night and if we wanted a themed room, it was 100,000 won.  We said we may come back.

We proceeded to Namdaemun Market to find a Dobak and Taz's shirt.  Taz was able to find a cute pair of socks for a dollar.  I found a store that I thought may make Dobaks, but he said "no" and wrote some name in Korean for me and pointed in the direction of the entrance; as in go that way and you will find it.  We continued forward.  My feet were still killing me and I wanted arch supports and thankfully found some in this market.... I non-verbally showed the lady with my hands what I needed and she understood.  She had a variety!  I picked one and it works wonders... wohooo!!! It is the little things for me.  

Instead of lunch we had a snack, fish ball/cake with kimchi inside.  

We followed Zoe's phone GPS to the Shrine.  Zoe also put in the name of the place the guy gave me in her GPS and nothing came up....so we continued to the shrine.  We got to the shrine just in time for the show to start.  It was beautiful and I got to rest my feet.  Taz and I got hats and modeled with them and then she gave hers to a Belgian kid who was also touring the country.  We did origami for an hour.  It was of the Kings and Queens attire.  They gave us instruction for the queens, to do on our own.  We did the kings together.  For the first 30 minutes we had an English Speaker.  For the last 30 minutes, we had a Korean only speaker but he showed us what he meant.  

We then walked towards N. Seoul Tower.  But first we had to get linner (lunch and dinner) and we finally found it!  I had Spicy chicken and it was really SPICY!!!! YUM!!!!!!!!  To get here we had to pass jewelry and hardware/car stores....no dobaks.  I thought this was creative-ladies enjoy jewelry and then men don't get bored because their shops are down the street.

I was so happy after eating.  I was not going to go anywhere until food was in my tummy.  We decided to hike to the cable cars for the N.Seoul Tower.  That took us about 40 minutes.  The wait was 70 minutes so I sat down and studied until the line moved.  Even though they said 70 minutes, I think it went faster.

The view from the top was beautiful.  People buy locks or leave their phone covers to show that they have been there.  Yet again Taz and I lost each other.  I retraced steps- no Taz nor Zoe.  I just went back to the locks.  Finally, we found each other.  We decided to not go up the tower-too expensive.  But we got gorgeous night views of the city and saw the light show.  Upon leaving I realized I had lost my round ticket.  The lady at the ticket booth stated to just go in and explain it to the guy up there at the gate.  The guy up there took some time to understand that we were all together and he finally let me through.  We were again the last ones to get on.

We were all fairly tired after this and parted ways.  We decided to stay at Oscar tonight.  They had comfy beds, a Jacuzzi and just a nice overall atmosphere.  Taz got our luggage- I took pictures and relaxed.  We rested a bit and then walked the market that Oscar was in.  Taz had the free ice cream that our hotel gave.  It was for free!  It was just out there and we could help ourselves to it whenever we wanted.  We found a place that served Bulgogi.  Taz had Soju (Korean alcohol) and most of the veggies.  I had Bulgogi and all it came with and Kimchi.  I couldn't finish it, but it was heaven.  We toured around and returned to our hotel.    I enjoyed my Jacuzzi but I cut myself with the shaver.  I am a clutz!   aaarrgggg, time for bed.

10th of May, Sunday!

Happy Mommy Day!!!!!  We woke up at 10!!!  That is what happens when you sleep in absolute darkness and are tired.  We lazied around a bit.  I had a protein bar.  The front desk called us, so we had to hurry it up as check-out.  We had to get to Danyang but couldn't figure out the directions b/c they showed up in Korean!!!!!!!  We missed our subway to the bus station.  The next bus would take 5 hours to Danyang versus the earlier ones which would have taken 3. 

As always, being flexible is important!  We decided to go to Gyeongju.  We were going in the wrong direction on the subway... so we changed to go toward Seoul Station. We tried to both jump on the elevator, but there were too many people.  I told Taz I would take the next one.  When I got off the elevator, she was nowhere to be found; I re-traced my steps, nada!  I went to the terminal, and there were tons of people.  A subway came and went as did the crowd and then I found Taz!  We took the next subway.

 Unfortunately, the subway stopped somewhere and everyone had to get off.  We got out of the station and asked information about where to get tickets as there was a KTX station here.  They told us to go to Seoul and buy them there and that we would have to detour... so of we went.  Instead of getting a destination ticket we got a basic one, which gave us problems, so we found someone to help us.  On this 2nd subway we talked with a lady who had just lived in Colorado for 3 years.  She spoke little English, she said, and I said I speak little Korean.  We laughed. She helped us with our vocabulary.  We got so into it that we almost missed our station!!!!!  Taz put her backpack through the doors before they closed and they closed on her backpack; an Indian guy tried to help her open the doors; nada, but they eventually automatically opened and we were able to get out at our station.  We went to KTX.  They gave us our tickets but we were not sure as to whether it was our destination.  We re-confirmed our destination with information.  We had no time to sit and eat so we bought boiled eggs and tomatoes (tiny sweet ones). We got our seats and I was ready to take pictures.  The girl in front of us kept putting down the shade and I put it back up slightly so that I could take pictures.  We watched 22 Jumpstreet on Taz's IPAD.  We bought Chestnuts, not to yummy.  I studied at the same time!

This was direct to Gyeongju.  Wohoo no detour!  Again we went to the visitor’s center and got a wonderful map.  We waited for our bus.  We put in money for two and the driver kept asking for something and we tried to explain that we had already put in for two.  We wrote it down and he said no and said something again.  I was able to figure out that maybe he just wanted to know where we were going.  So, we pointed to the destination on the window of his bus.  He laughed and nodded his head.  We get to our spot and find the visitor station again.  We ask the directions for Guesthouse that we are staying Tuesday and Wednesday figuring that it would probably be okay to stay there one night.  As we go towards the guesthome, I saw a pink building that said Romance Hotel-yup we stayed there.  The bath was iffy so neither of us used it.  

We went to the grocery store later and had a hard time figuring out what to get.  We looked at the pictures as a form of ingredient reading.  We asked a gentleman who said he knew very little English, but his kid said I know English and was so happy that he did.  However, he was shy to translate so his dad told us there was no milk, but we stilled played it safe and got fries that looked like chips.  We ate our dehydrated food, but it was extremely salty.  At our hotel, I accidently pressed a wrong button on the remote and we ended up looking like we were about to order something.  So, I just turned it off and wrote in my journal till 3 AM.  Tomorrow is another fun day!

11th May 2015 Monday

Today we woke up around 6:30.  Don't know why.    I wished mom at an appropriate time.  I tried calling her last night but it was too early in the morning for her.  Breakfast was a Protein Bar and orange juice.  We decided to be out by 8:30 so I updated my blog.  We saw tombs today.  The first was of General Kim Yusin.  A big hill behind the coffin.

I yet again lost Taz, how I don't know, but I retraced my steps and still could not find her.  I went up a pathway and called out her name.  I followed the path and found a guy who I was stretching and asked me if I am from Nepal; I said India.  He tried to guide me, but I decided to go back to the ticket booth.  Found her!  Plus, the area was a do not walk here zone. 

We walked to the King Taejong Muyel but went through a village instead because we saw kids and a tour bus go in there.  We came out because we couldn’t find our tomb there; we found the Tomb of King Taejong Muyel and Tumli in Seoak-r down the road. We waited patiently for a bus to come to take us back to town!  One came, hip hip hooray!  Finally!  We were worried that we may have to hitch a ride, but luck was on our side.

We went to find lunch and had Gynsing Chicken.  It came in boiling vegetable soup water (in addition to all the other vegetables that we normally receive).  The chicken had rice and more veggies inside.  Ohhhhh yea.... yummy, it was so goood.  We had to cut the chicken, take parts of the chicken, boiling water, and a little rice and put it into the second bowl we had and that is what we ate from.

We then went to the park where there was Tumuli-in Noseo-ri and Tumuli-in Nodong-ri.  

We then went to the visitor’s center to ask them how to write Golgulsa in Korean so our bus driver knew where to go.  Bus number options are 100 and 150.  We got on 100.  There was a sweet old lady who sat next to me; she was watching me write in my journal.  I had no idea what she was trying to say, but she was so sweet and even said bye to me upon leaving.

We got to Golgulsa and they gave us our uniforms for the duration of our stay.  We had some free time so we toured the area and saw the Carved Tathagata Amiabha Buddha.  It was so peaceful and the view was spectacular.  We also had food.  During meal time there is no talking-they believe in mindful eating.  Also, you can't leave anything on your plate.  No eating with your eyes.  We had veggies and rice.  I also learned that monks shave their hair because insects used to get stuck in their hair and when they washed their hair the insects would die.  To prevent this, the shaved their hair.

Well anyways it is time for bed as I must wake up at 4 AM in the morning as required by the templestay folks here for prayer time.

8th May 2015, Friday

We got up today around 10ish.  We decided that we would find another hotel.  Which one tonight, R,L,I,F,E?  We started with R since we had heard great things about it... It was 100 plus won.  We went to the rest... about the same.  We went to E who said it is dependent on what time you check-in.  After 1800 it is cheaper!!! WOHOOOOOO!  65,000 won.  We reserved one room at E Hotel.  We left our bags in the corner and off we went.

Today, our plan was to finish seeing all the Palaces :O  But, because we were famished and I don't do well without food, we went searching for lunch.   We had this thick rice/pasta thingy with hot sauce.   YUUMMMMMMMMM! We saw parts of the Bukchon Hanok Village but did not have time to do the whole thing; that map was huge and we already bought tickets for palace entrance fees!  So we just did the cultural center.  

We started at Changdeogung Palace.  Our tour for The Secret Garden (shhhhh), was free!  Yea, actually it was included in what we had previously paid.  Well this palace was quick to tour.  I waited for Taz near the Secret Garden Tour entrance.  She found some other areas that were hidden and took pictures of it.  Since we had 30 minutes to spare before our garden tour, we decided to go to the next Palace, Changgyeonggung Palace.  Sadly, this palace has not been taken care of.  The paint was peeling off and the floors were coming apart.  I was saddened by this.  We took a small break and then went back to the Secret Garden Tour.

The Secret Garden tour was not what I expected.  Nothing like the movie- I thought there would be lots of flowers.  It was buildings upon buildings placed in beautiful natural, scenic grounds where kings/queens, etc could cleanse their mind and soul.  Our tour guide had a great sense of humor.  He made the tour fun and a great learning experience.

The tour ended, and Taz and I were famished.  So, we tried to find a place to eat.  We stopped at a cute tea place.  I got Ginger Tea, and our hostess spoke English and told me the rice cakes had no milk!!!!!!  So I got a Strawberry and a Pumpkin flavored one with Ginger Tea.  She had no idea as to where I could get a Dobak :(

So, we left tea world, and went to the Shrine.  Oddly, a lot of doors were closed.  I accidentally walked on the pathway for the spirits because I thought it had ended back a ways, ahahahaha, I was wrong.  Oops!  Sorry dear spirits.

We learned that there was a festival tomorrow.... so we had a decision DMZ Tour or festival.  We left the shrine and went to another coffee shop to get Wi-Fi, Tea and make plans for tomorrow.  Yes, we both love Tea.  Taz got me hooked.

I yet again, had my ginger tea but with honey this time.  The DMZ Tour guide did not get our confirmation of attendance.  So bizarre, but on facebook and via email we kept getting cancellation notices because there were not enough people.   Decision is made for us.  We sleep in tomorrow and go to the festival and markets and N.Seoul Tower for the light show at night! Hey that rhymes :)  I asked our hostess where we could get a dobak.  She called around and gave us information in Korean.  We should have kept that sheet but she took it back and gave us one in English (store name was in Korean and English). She said it would be a 20 minute walk.  Hey what is 20 minutes- we have been walking all over Seoul the last two days!  Off we went towards Dongdaeman Stadium Metro Stop, exit 3.  No one knew where we were going or they couldn't give us directions.  Of course.  But we went through this space ship mall and found a map and found our way, as always, to the store.  Only to be let down by our 20+ minute walk as they didn't have the dobak :(  They gave us something else in Korean and told us they would be open on Monday.  We started walking towards the Korean version of Time Square.  Then we saw a TKD Store and they were willing to custom make it for 65,000 won and 50,000 won for shipping.  I asked my instructor, too expensive.  Luckily, I told them to put it on hold and that I would call.  I emailed him asking for a discount.  We did some site seeing of the mall.  It was interesting because the stores had mini stores inside like cubes that were run by individuals but the corridors were very narrow.  I had some spicy chicken on a stick.  We then proceeded to get on the subway back to our hotel.   I thought we had to get off at exit 8, there was no exit 8.... we had a choice between numbers 1-3.  We went out of 1 and got lost.  We kept asking for directions and then finally two ladies, one of which knew English, escorted us there.  They were wondering why those hotels, well we told them they were supposed to be the good ones as that is what our guide book says.  They respond, OK.  I relaxed once we got in.  Taz went out later and brought back chicken that we shared.  We weren't sure about the veggie dish so left it.  Time for bed and another adventure tomorrow.

7th May, Thursday

I woke up this morning not knowing the Taz had already woken up.  She went and took her shower with all the other ladies.  I just woke up and got ready.  Sadly, my phone did not get charged.  Nor does it work here; no service.  So of we went. 

 We first stored our bags at the subway and then started on our adventure.  First stop- breakfast.  It was interesting trying to order food and try to explain that I could not have milk.  I got the teriyaki chicken wrap with juice.  The juice here is like a smoothie.  I had to ask them to not put milk in it.  Luckily, I lived.  We went onwards and saw a cute museum and decided eh, let’s check it out: The rice museum.  No English subtitles nor English options!!!  I did lose Taz here- she just disappeared.  I even checked upstairs, nada!  I finally found her.  And despite no English, we still enjoyed.  The Agriculture Museum of Korea was not on our tour but we took pictures from the outside.  We proceeded to Gyeonghuigung Palace.   Taz got a cut while we went through the garden. We got to the palace and while the people at the gate did not understand nor speak English, we could still communicate.  It was quite clear that they thought she was extremely hurt-not really.  The nice thing about this palace was that everything was quiet; we had the place to ourselves.  I thought this was the tkd place, but I was wrong; that is actually near Kukkiwon.  


Everyone who doesn't understand English or wants to say "No" just made an X with their hands.  We continued after this museum to take pictures at the Seoul Museum of History- yet again from the outside.

Gwanghawamun Square/Plaza was so cool.    Underneath the statue was a museum on King Sejong the Great.  Normally, the 1st child of the king continues the reign, but the King chose King Sejong (the 3rd child) because he thought him to be wise and fair.  This man believed that his people were heaven and earth and that all he does must be because of them.  He learned that the people were illiterate so he created a scientific language to help his people be able to better communicate their thoughts and feelings- the Korean language.  The language, before the Korean language was Chinese.  Chinese and was only taught to the elite.


He also had a sundial created and military machinery.  People loved him because they knew that they were the focus.  He went blind and continued to create the language.  We then saw his palace among others.  It was so cool because there were people who re-enacted what it would be like to have guards marching, etc.  It was a never ending maze of Palaces and their rooms, dining rooms, halls, etc...  We went in this order for the palaces, and each one took us further from the noise of the city to the peacefulness of gardens and mountains.

  Gwanghwamun Gate,Geunjeongjeon Gyeongbokgung Palace, Cheong wa dae Sarangchae

We then detoured to the National Folk Museum of Korea.  We didn't go in, but they had an area to show kids, and of course Taz and I are the biggest kids, so onward to fun times and pictures.  It was neat.

We went to Insa-dong for lunch at 1430.  Breakfast was at 10.  This area is an antique like area.  Similar to Old Town, Alexandria.  We went into boutiques but didn't buy anything. We found a tea place but she wouldn't let us share our pot of tea....so we left.  We finally found a place that was open and serving lunch at a decent price.  Taz couldn't figure out the way to get into the restaurant and we were about to leave, but I saw two people in there.  So, I went back and analyzed the door which had what looked like a button. (I love taking things apart and analyzing-I’m too inquisitive).   I pushed the button, and voila, entry!  The guy was nice and spoke English.  I had a yummy dish, minus the 5 flavored tea.... not good, never ever ever again.  When the guy left, man, language barrier again.  But, we managed to get our cold water and pay.

We proceeded to Changdeokgung Palace but it was closed for the day.  We found another entrance, and tried to make our way in, but we were stopped.  So we walked around aimlessly, and found Mahabodhi a Buddhist Temple.  We also chilled at Tapgol Park, where some martial artists were just finishing class.  We stopped at a cafe and did some research for tomorrow.  We decided to get our bags, go to our hotel, and then meet the boys from yesterday.  We were all good and dandy, we get of the subway and go in the direction of the hotel as we saw it from the subway...but we were wrong.   We continued because it would have been pointless to turn around.  We went to the boy's hotel and hung out and exchanged our adventures.  I asked Anthony ( a receptionist) for help with finding a dobak.  He will let Andrew know, who will email us.  I still researched on my own, and found some places.  We are adding Kukiwon tomorrow hopefully.  Anthony got his 1st dan in the military.  Very nice guy; working at the hotel for 6 months now!

Andrew wanted a late night snack, but sadly nothing was open.  So, we parted ways.   As, I had thought the subway was closed.  So we hailed down a taxi, and Taz tried to show him our picture of the map, but he didn't get it, but finally we showed him something he understood.... he still took us to the wrong hotel, but given that it was 1:30 AM, we let it go and are staying at the Chocolate Hotel which has a wooden bath that you can fill up like a bubble bath.  And, it has a computer!!  We can't wear our shoes in the bedroom, so we were given slippers.  Everything in the fridge is free!!!!!  I was hungry, no dinner, so I ate my protein bar, updated this lovely thing, finally charged my camera and phone and such!  And now, I'm going to hit the bed.

Till tomorrow!!!
 

Beautiful

Yup later on in the day; palace 2 or 3.

Museum

Fun picture

This purple rice was yummy!

Awww made me smile

Time to relax those muscles!  Bubble bath!