Seoul (Full) Day 1

Yesterday's slate was a loose, play-by-ear sort. Started off in the morning riding the green bus #3 just across from Hamilton Hotel in Itaewon district. Woot, off I went to the Seoul Tower and Namsan Park! It cost 1,200 Won for a single ride and I got there in no time.

The view of Seoul from Seoul Tower

Last time in Korea I didn't get a chance to visit Seoul Tower & Namsan Park. I guess we were a little more focused on Jeju Island in the South, Gyeongju (the old capital), and Seokcho (where Seorak mountain is, which is the Northeast part of South Korea). By the time hubby & I got back in Seoul, after making the stop in Seokcho, we were pretty exhausted so we really just wanted to chill and stroll around in Seoul.

Seoul Tower was packed with visitors. They're mostly locals, Asian tourists, and a little bit of everything else. An adult ticket to the observatory deck costs 10,000 Won. Admission packages were also offered at the ticket booth, with some including beer + buffet dining at a restaurant up on the deck.

Namsan Park/down below Seoul Tower

Done with Seoul Tower, instead of catching that bus #5 from bus stop area, I hiked down through Namsan Park, which turned out to be a mistake. I couldn't get on the bus #5 to Myeongdong from down there! *sniffle*

I got lucked out that I saw a male office worker (he had a suit on, which made me even sure he would speak some English). Asked the guy of how to catch #5 to Myeongdong. I ended up riding a bus to Seoul Tower (yep, where I was just a little while before this all happened), and transferred to #5 from there. Felt like I totally wasted my time doing the hike down! But the trail and view along the way down was pretty so I guess it wasn't so bad after all.

Satiated my craving for some Korean fried chicken in Myeongdong. Found this KFC-like place called Mom's Touch. Most chicken items on the menu were to be enjoyed by two people. This wasn't really explicit, but the cashier asked me if I was going to eat it by myself and told me it would be too much food for one. He then recommended the spicy chicken item, a smaller portion. I got served 7 medium chicken pieces, varied from drum sticks to parts of thighs. It was a very good deal for 55,000 Won.

Hit Namdaemun for prescription glasses next. Ended up getting a new pair, and new lenses for my old frame I bought in Jeju-Do back in 2014. All for 75,000 won -not bad at all! The optician spoke very little English, and I, as some of you know, also speak very little Korean. It was kind of fun navigating this language barrier challenge, though. It felt rather accomplished when things got figured out in the end ;)

After spending the rest of the afternoon strolling Namdaemun, I figured out my way back to Itaeweon -thanks to the easy-to-navigate Seoul subway system!

And guess what? I stopped by Gong Cha in Itaewon for some pearl mill tea before heading back to Yacht Guesthouse. So predictable Ha!

Oyasumi nasai..