Thursday 26 October 2023
Seoul
It's currently Thursday evening in Seoul and I spent another busy day today. Now I'm ready to settle down and get some blogging done.
Monday 23 October
This morning I am off by subway to visit Bukchon Village, a community of traditional Korean houses that sits like an island amidst the hustle and bustle of the city. Bukchon is conveniently located between Seoul's two major palaces (which I will visit on Tuesday). Part commercial tourist trap and part traditional crafts center, Bukchon is also home to wealthy citizens who can afford to renovate and live here. The primary street rises up a steep hill and is lined with more coffee shops, pastry shops, and consumer goods than anyone could possibly visit.
One reward for walking up the hill is the ability to turn off onto many short side-alleys in which traditional homes can be seen up-close. Another reward is that the rest of the exploration of the area is mostly downhill. Some of the houses are open as museums, others are guest houses, but they all exhibit similar architectural features, including tiled roofs, small courtyards and protected windows.
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| Bukchon's Main Commercial Street |
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| A Sea of Tiled Roofs |
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| A Gaggle of Tourists Watch a Cat on a Hot Tin Roof |
From the (near) highest point in Bokchon, even through the perpetually hazy sky, I have some glimpses of the mountains close to the city and the start of fall colors on the trees.
I have done a lot of up- and down-hill walking this morning, but on my way back to the subway I pass the entrance to the National Folk Museum of Korea and decide to make a short visit to this mostly outdoor facility.
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| The Reconstructed Pagoda Is Not Open to the Public |
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| Stone Carvings of Community Elders |
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| Statues of Boys Often Guarded the Tombs of Nobles |
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| Statues of Grumpy Grandpas Protected Villages |
And so ends Tuesday.
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