Namsan

Moving to Seoul

During my lazy morning in the room, I realised that the heated floor was on, on a day which is expected to peak at 30 degC! Even though it was only in key patches of the room (eg. where one hops out of bed, where one’s feet are at the desk or stands at the basin) power must be cheap in this country!

I checked out of my Suwon hotel around 1130 and had a leisurely lunch nearby.  I then hopped on the train around 1300 for Seoul.  No transfers were required to get to my next accommodation Life in Euljiro.

Arriving over an hour later, the area around my hotel was dead!  It’s just so no Seoul, then I realised it was Sunday afternoon.  Maybe it’s something I’ve never encountered in my previous visits to Seoul?

Namsan

After a rest, I headed out around 1530 with the idea of heading up to Namsan and its tower, then one or two of the night sights, namely Deoksugung Palace (the only palace illuminated at night) and Banpo Bridge (with its fountain from the edge).

Along the way to catch the bus, I was distracted by Namsangol Hanok Village but it didn’t look like anything I had never seen.  The bus up to Namsan was handy, so I didn’t bother getting to the cable car for a possibly more scenic ride.

Up on Namsan around 1600, the view was pretty good.  This is the highest point in Seoul city, excluding the bordering hills/mountains.  I was able to walk around to get perhaps a 270 degree view.

While there was no queue to go up to the tower on this clear day, I didn’t think it was necessary to pay about NZD20 for view that was marginally better.

I explored the park and complex below the tower.  Both the indoor and outdoor areas were a bit of a maze with lots of stairs.  The flow seemed quite poor.

With a bit of effort, I managed to kill enough time till my stomach called out for dinner.  Eating up on Namsan in a nice-ish diner was only a bit more than back down below.

Once fed, it was nearly time for sunset.  I had stayed up on Namsan to see Seoul light up in the night.  It had been a long stay of over 3h30.

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Sightseeing fails

It was an easy bus ride down to Deoksugung Palace but reaching there by 2045, the barriers were up, suggesting they were closed to new entries while people exited.  I had read that it closes at 2100 but I felt obliged to stay up on Namsan till darkness had fallen.

Having not done much today, I was determined for the day to not go to waste.  I continued to Banpo Bridge Moonlight Rainbow.  Walking the considerable distance from the bus stop around 2120, I saw a ginormous crowd leaving the area.  As it turned out, the light and music had just finished up.

I took a walk around the riverside area before backtracking uphill to the bus stop to take me back.  Damn!  What a waste of time and effort walking and waiting. And what waste of a day too, doing only one thing.  It happens sometimes.