Is cultural day today as we happened to be there at month end - Do note that it is free entrance to the Palace on every last Wednesday of the month. But you still have to pay for the entrance to the Secret Garden.
Alright, there was no plan to where's for breakfast today and we decided to head towards Changdeokgung Palace area for a look. Luck was on us and we managed to find this porridge place - Bonjuk - Nice warm porridge to start off the day.
Do try out the porridge at this shop, the porridge was really great and thy are generous in their servings. 2 bowls of porridge and the 3 of us weren't able to finish, not that it was bad but it was too much!
 |
| Porridge at Bonjuk |
After the breakfast, it was time for some walk. We joined a free English guided tour at 10.30 am at Changdeokgung Palace. It was great with the guide around. We learnt more about the history of the Palace and of course, the country itself. The pace of the tour was just nice, taking an hour to bring us through the main events of the Palace. It was not the first time I've visited this Palace, but it was the first time I heard more about the place.
 |
| Changdeokgung Palace |
 |
| More of Changdeokgung Palace |
After the guided tour at the main Palace, the timing was just right for the Secret Garden Guided Tour. This was not free and it costed 5,000 won per person. This secret garden was pretty well-preserved and the weather at end-March was pretty awesome for the walk.
Directions to Changdeokgung Palace:
Anguk Station (Subway Line 3), Exit 3. Go straight for 5min.
For Bonjuk Porridge, it will be at one of the road intersection, turn to the left and walk straight. You will see it on the left side.
 |
| Secret Garden |
Alright, time for lunch. As usual, we tried to do some research on the great food at the area and the best place we had was at Tosokchon Ginseng Chicken.
Priced at 15,000 won, the Ginseng Chicken is truly worth the price -
The ginseng taste is especially strong and the chicken soup is really thick and rich. The chicken meat is tender and moist and you do not need much effort to eat as it will fall off easily when you used your chopsticks.
We tried both the black chicken and the ginseng chicken. Both were equally good. Oh, the kimchi banchan was great too. This place was real crowded and though you do not speak Korean, the ordering was easy and smooth.
Direction:
Gyeongbokgung Station (Seoul Subway Line 3), Exit 2.
Go straight about 170m and turn left onto Jahamun-ro 5-gil Road, the shop is on the left.
 |
| Tosokchon Ginseng Chicken |
Next up, we went to Bukchon Hanok Village. Pretty much a well-preserved place where there are people currently living at the Village. So do not talk loudly and make a nuisance out of yourself so as not to disturb the locals living there.
Oh, by the way, the house which Lee Min Ho starred in Personal Taste was actually a real unit in Bukcon Hanok Village. Want to know where is the exact location, look out for the free information guide stationed at the Village, they will let you know the direction.
One thing I love about Seoul is that they have guides all over the place. They are more than happy to provide the information we need and if they do not know, they tried their best to find out for us. It really made the travel experience at Seoul a pleasant one.
Anguk Station (Line 3), Exit 2.
 |
| Bukchon Hanok Village |
Next up was Insa-dong. It was a pretty nice walk along the streets, exploring the different shops at the place. When tired, just find a cafe to sit in and relax. Enjoy a tea-break before we embarked on our walks.
 |
| Insa-dong |
Insa-dong is pretty much a relaxing place to be in and well, we noted that some of the shops are not in their usual form. That is, the shop names were written in Korean instead of the usual alphabets. Pretty cool.
 |
| Shop Names in Korean @ Insa-dong |
When the sky got darker, we decided to try out the dine-in street stall for dinner. Pretty much a new experience to eat in the tentage with the locals. I would not say that the food was fantastic but at least, the eating atmosphere was not too bad and it's an experience indeed.
 |
| Street stall food |
No comments:
Post a Comment