Seoul, Korea

Location Description

96 photos

On our first morning in Seoul, Monica and I were up...
Monica, outside a spice store on the main pedestrian...
Breakfast! Finally, around 9am we found a place serving...
Our $5 breakfast: omelet, soup with seafood, green...
Calligraphy brushes for sale in a store in Insadong, Seoul.
Our swank hotel room for the first night.
Jacuzzi bathtub with a TV!
Our toilet. I have no idea how it works.
Automatic toothpaste dispenser! This place had every...
After a brief nap to fight jet lag, Monica and I headed...
A rock that is supposed to look like a seated Buddha. ...
Another view of the N'Seoul Tower, through the tree branches.
These welded metal "backpacks" were very popular, often...
I don't know who this fellow was, but his picture was...
Another shot of hazy Seoul from the temple.
An old wall used to protect the temple from invaders. ...
View of the Buddha rock from further away.
Gate to the temple. Not really all that impressive.
Your guess is as good as mine. This was an...
Monica in front of Jongno Tower, one of the more...
Ok, this is going to need a back-story to explain. ...
The Grand Prix. A pizza. Which contains all of the...
The story needs further elaboration that the Mr. Pizza...
Oh, I forgot, it also came with pickles and a garlic...
After our pizza, we walked at least 100 feet before...
This is what 7 USD of froyo looks like. It was actually...
A close up view: red bean, kiwi, banana, green tea,...
Korean shave ice, post-mixing, ready for eating.
That's about the best we could do after 25 minutes of...
Nighttime lights in Insadong. This neighborhood...
Once again, your guess is as good as mine.
Probably not exactly what they meant.
A lot of construction in downtown Seoul. Everywhere you...
Their construction techniques look a bit more advanced...
Again, nothing seemed to be open for breakfast in the...
Wow, I would love to be invited to their after-party.
Some $500 decorative tchotchke in the Lotte Department...
A chef making hand pulled noodles in a Chinese...
Nice work, Mr. Hand-pulled Noodle Chef Guy!
A fully automated Korean walnut cake machine! I learned...
Next stop: lunch, again in Insadong at a restaurant that...
Here's our simple monk's lunch: at least 21 distinct...
Tempura mushroom. Also pictured, tempura lotus root.
Victory! This would unfortunately become a theme on this trip.
Puffed rice cake for dessert.
I have no idea what they were up to or where they were going.
In Korea, the supermarket comes to you. In Insadong, Seoul.
Dried cuttlefish and other dried fish for sale.
Apparently the last time Monica was in Korea this was...
Koreans seemed to be into this bizarre English world...
Monica in front of the Catholic cathedral in Seoul.
Statue in front of the Catholic cathedral in Seoul.
Young women hauling dismembered manekins down a street...
If only I needed some duct tape!!
Namdaemun market in Seoul. The biggest, busiest market...
Food on a stick vendor.
Woman selling spices and specialty grains on the sidewalk.
Close up of her wares.
In case you need a Davy Crockett coonskin cap.
Yep, that´s a bra on his head. The rest of the outfit...
Chickens and veggies for sale.
Motobikes in this city were outrageous. To say they...
I totally forget what this is, but it looks cool. Must...
The next day, Monica and I woke up, had dinner with her...
The KTX (Korea Train Express) employees had funny hats.
A typical view out the window while crossing the "rural"...
We are driving somewhere so Monica must be sleeping.
Approaching Seoul from the south. N'Seoul Tower (short...
On our last full day in Seoul, Monica and I debated...
Baby hedgehogs for sale.
Baby rabbits for sale.
Frogs for sale that look like plastic toys but are real,...
One of the 26 malls in the area, this one closed at the...
Apparently you can get fast food "burgers" in Korea that...
For our last night, we stayed in a neighborhood called...
On our last morning, we took the subway to Gyeongbok...
Note the awesome beards!
The procession leaving the front of the palace.
A lion or cat inside the main palace complex.
A contrast between the 14th century Palace and modern Seoul.
Another cool statue in the palace. Probably a dragon of...
Monica about to be eaten by a gargoyle or something.
Monica, posing as a 14th century Korean palace guard.
Monica, while we were wandering the enormous palace...
Moat/reflection pond surrounding one palace building.
A view of the palace grounds. Perhaps we should have...
Pretty tree changing to fall colors. This seems so...
More buildings in the sprawling temple complex. By the...
Monica posing in some gateway or another.
Cool Korean wooden roof eaves, beautifully restored. ...
Still wandering the complex. This place was really...
A beautiful fall day in Seoul at the Gyeongbok Palace complex.
Monica was born in the year of the rooster. I was born...
Out of place fashion show in the Gyeongbok temple...
Wooden poles carved in days of yore to ward off evil...
Final parting shot of Seoul. After this, we got Chinese...