Shopping in Seoul seems to be the main occupation of most of the residents. I spent today wandering through three very distinct shopping scenes. I started the morning at Namdaemun Market – the oldest and largest market in Seoul. It was another area packed with thousands of shops and street stalls. This one was a little bit easier to navigate as the streets were wider and the various entrances were well marked. When I got to the end of a street I could easily figure out which way to go next. I only got lost once when I went into an actual multi-floor shop and came out a different door than I went in – but I figured it out.
After the market I headed to Namsan Park – home of the Seoul Tower. My directions weren’t exactly clear so I ended up hiking up quite a steep hill to get to the cable car that would take me up to the tower. Once I reached the top of the hill I realized that if I had come out a different exit of the subway I could have taken a quick escalator up. I enjoyed seeing the little neighborhood on the hill so it was worth it.
I boarded the “Cable Car” – more of a gondola than what we think of cable cars – and rode the five minutes up the hill to the Seoul Tower. I took a nice long break and read my book in the shade with a view of downtown Seoul. Then I headed up to the top of the Seoul Tower. I typically skip activities like this but it was pretty cheap and I figured this would probably be my only chance to see all of Seoul in one place. The ride up the tower was quick and the views were spectacular. It was pretty hazy today so the views aren’t very clear. I could feel the tower swaying in the wind slightly so I didn’t stay long. I returned to the base of the mountain on the gondola – and took the escalator down to street level this time.
Then I headed to the Myeongdong area of Seoul. This area is the center of all things shopping in Seoul. There were thousands of shops on small streets laid out in a rough grid pattern. All the big brands were there as well as tons of restaurants and coffee shops. It was fun to wander – especially when I finally found tourist information and got a map of the area. I was kind of going in circles before that – many of the Korean brand stores had multiple locations so it was confusing. I didn’t really find anything to buy – things are really expensive here, and it was mostly high end cosmetics and clothing.
After Meyengdong I grabbed a Taxi and had the driver take me to the Jogyesa Temple. Taxis are actually pretty reasonable in Seoul and there were no subway lines going directly where I needed to go. Sometimes five minutes in a taxi trumps an hour of subway changes. The temple is one of Korea’s most famous Buddhist temples. Prayers were happening when I got there so I couldn’t take any photos of the three giant golden Buddhas. I did get some photos outside – the crew was setting up for the annual lantern festival so there were piles of lanterns everywhere. We will be gone before the festival or I would definitely come back to see it.
The last area I wandered through today was Insadong. This street is considered the “traditional handicraft” area. There were some really neat stores with traditional Korean items. I found some really neat souvenirs in this neighborhood.
Charlie had all day meetings and a business dinner to attend so I headed back to the hotel and ate in one of the department store restaurants. I bought myself a bottle of wine and spent the evening reading my book and resting my tired legs and feet.