On the road again after our 15 month ‘break’ in Sydney, our first stop was Seoul – the colourful, coffee-obsessed, capital of South Korea. The whole population of Australia fits into the metropolitan area of the city of Seoul, and the land mass of the country is approx. half of the state of Victoria. That’s a lot of people and a jungle of high rise buildings in a small space.
We really enjoyed Seoul – there is a great energy in the city, the people are friendly and despite so many of them living in close proximity, it was clean too. In many ways it felt like any other city around the globe – modern architecture, good roads and metro (ok, unlike Australian cities in that regard), cafes and restaurants in every direction, shiny shopping malls and growers markets.
We spent our days walking the streets in between stops for coffee, mandu (dumplings!) and pancakes, and I can’t even estimate how much kimchi we consumed! The palaces in the centre of the city and their surrounding gardens provided a tranquil space to escape the bustle of the city outside the high walls, as did the area of Ihwa-dong, an artist haven of tiny laneways filled with galleries, art installations, coffee stops and street murals. Gangnam district was super fun and modern – definitely where the cool kids are hanging out, and it would have been worth spending a few nights in the area if we had more time.
The popular area of Insa-dong was worth a visit for its collection of bars, restaurants, shops and teahouses, and although it was on the “touristy” side, it was also the home of a small restaurant that served Michelin rated mandu so was high on our radar. As luck would have it, we got to share this meal with our friend Karen who just happened to be on a work study tour at the same time, which called for a few cocktails as we celebrated the randomness of the universe bringing us all together for one night.
Strangely the most popular ‘attraction’ in Seoul is to visit the DMZ – the demilitarised zone that runs the length of the border between capitalist South Korea and communist North Korea. Somewhat sceptical, we boarded a bus bound for the border to find that it was worth the visit. Not knowing a whole lot about the Korean war of the 1950’s or how the country came to be split in two, it was a sad and thought provoking history lesson played out in real life before us. Just 3 days after our border visit, the historical unification talks and Kim Jong Un’s first visit to South Korea played out on national TV and it felt quite surreal to be in the country watching and listening to the reactions of the South Korean people. Hopefully peace and humanitarianism will prevail, and allow displaced families to reunite after 65 years of cruel division.
Four days in Seoul was barely enough to scratch the surface, but on we went toward the second largest city of Busan on the south coast, making a stop in Gyeongu – the historical capital of the country and home to beautiful temples, a palace and tombs of kings that led dynasties over a thousand years ago. It was nice to get out of the big city and enjoy the hospitality of much smaller Gyeongu, and Busan too offered a different feel to Seoul being a beachside city complete with a fish market and iconic bridge, kinda felt like home.
Our final stop was a short flight to the island of Jeju, a little island of natural wonders, bountiful seafood and an interesting sculpture park called Love Land – apparently an educational destination for the many Korean honeymooners on the island, it was….interesting! Graphic statues aside, the island is a UNESCO wonderland of volcanic craters, underground lava tubes and black sand beaches. I can’t say it was a ‘must-see’ if you make it to South Korea, but it provided a nice contrast to the cities on the mainland and was slow enough for us to dare to rent a car and drive around. Also the fried chicken was epic.
If you are on the hunt for a new Asian country to add to your travel adventures have a look at South Korea. The people are lovely, food is delicious and there is just enough English around to make travelling independently very possible. A great adventure.
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