Sunday's focus was meeting Manu off her flight at Incheon International Airport, evening arrival. After the first few hectic days I'd decided that a round of screen golf with an EK colleague would be a good way to spend the morning. This is a round of golf with real clubs and balls played like a giant computer game. You have the holes and surrounding nature projected onto a wall sized screen and sensors capture your swing and the direction the ball travels in. Different pieces of matting represent fairway, rough and sand. It was a fun experience, even if the results were nothing to be excited about. From there we went to a traditional street food market where the dumplings (만두) and clear noodles (잡채) were good but the chicken foot (닭발) and the famous sundae (순대), a blood sausage, that I tried, were too rubbery and strange for my taste.
Incheon Arrival and first day with Manu
Airport bus from Changbokgung Palace to Incheon to pick up Manu. After I went to the wrong terminal, which I only realised when I simply did not recognise the arrivals hall from my own arrival, then finding the inter terminal bus transfer and then the 10 minute transfer, I arrived just as Manu was fitting her new SIM card. So no photos of the arrival! The reverse route back to the Hanok I was more familiar with, and that went smoothly. Beer and chicken really do seem to be the dominant late night restaurants of choice, but we found a tasty Japanese restaurant for a light supper.
A monster first day
This proved to be a full on day with many kilometres covered by foot. It began with a quick recce of Bukchon village to locate 'the' most photographed street. Then down past Gwanghwamun Gate and Square, on down to City Hall, then an underground mall to Myeongdong, then up and over Namsan Tower (which had a promotional event under the tower) then through a botanical garden and then finally to Itaewon to grab a couple of location pictures and a bite to eat (Korean/Mexican), before subway back to the start and preparations for DMZ tour the following day, which we had been told would necessitate a 0640 start (originally booked for 1030) from a pick up point to be notified later!
Bukchon Street 1st visit and Gwanghwamun Gate and Square
I'd vaguely thought where to go to find the street I was after, sensing I was on the right lines by the crowds; we certainly arrived at peak walking tour time. From there a brisk walk to Gwanghwamun gate, the main entrance to Gyeongbokgung Palace, and then a stroll down through the square to inspect the statues of King Sejong and Admiral Yi Sun-Sin. This are full on tourist picture spots. King Sejong, the fourth king of the Joseon dynasty, was the creator of the hangul language; whilst Admiral was a 16th century war hero whose notoriety came about through the development and use of armoured 'Turtle' ships against a Japanese invader.
City Hall
Spectacular architecture - the pictures don't do overall justice to the garden vaults inside, which act as air conditioning and filtering, as well as being splendid to see.
Namsan Tower
This was my second ascent in just a few days, this time by day. Our route took us past one of the many sculptures erected across the country and abroad as memorials to the Korean comfort women of WW2. The ascent was a combination of steps and paths, to a plaza at the foot of the tower, which was hosting a large promotional event. Hundreds of enthusiastic Koreans and tourists were queuing for Instagram posts and follows in return for multiple brand goodies.
Botanicals
I mentioned the botanical garden, but one thing that has impressed throughout our time has been the meticulous attending to plants and trees in the many public and historical places. This next montage captures just some of those we passed this day.
Itaewon Class
Our route took us through to Itaewon district, with impressive looking embassy buildings and private residences having replace the high rise blocks. A helpful wine shop owner directed us to a couple of landmarks, which my drama drive necessitated a photo stop. The streets here were very different to the others so far experienced, but we only scratched the surface of this well known area, and the potential photo drama spots.
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