44. South Korea

This post, from May 2016, features: Seoul, Yongin, Songnisan National Park, Daegu, Gyeongiu, Bulguksa, Seokguram, Guryongpo, Homigot, Unmunsa, Busan, Gayasan National Park, Cheong Pung, Danyang, Goseong, Sokcho National Park, several temples and some motorway service stations…

An Emirates A380 arriving at Heathrow’s Terminal 3. The turnaround is less than 2 hours for the return flight to Dubai. From Dubai I get on another A380 to Seoul…

Emirates fly A380’s to Dubai from Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, Stansted and Gatwick as well as Heathrow. These regional flights suck business away from Heathrow and BA…

Seoul

The timing of the flights was good – arriving at Incheon around 17.00 meant that by the time I cleared the chaos of Incheon Airport and got to the hotel, it was beer time. Inexplicably Incheon is ranked 2^nd in the 2015 + 2016 Skytrax World Airports awards.

Having checked-in to my hotel, I walked around the area for a bit before returning to the hotel and waking next morning feeling fine & subsequently wasn’t affected by jet-lag despite the 8-hour time difference.

My first beer in Seoul. Landed in Incheon at 17.04 having filled in 3 landing forms: one for health: for customs & one for general admission. Away from Incheon at 18.20 (not exactly speedy) and a long drive into Seoul. So: Geon bae!

Note on ATMs: most have instructions in English even if they don’t all actually accept your card. I found that ATMs at banks were fine, rather than ones in convenience stores, and there are plenty around. The process can be quite lengthy going from screen to screen – especially the bit where you are asked how many 50,000 won notes you want. It would make life easier if they simply re-valued the won – an exchange rate of about 1,650 to the £GBP is frankly silly – but you can see why they want you to take the big notes. For example, if you withdraw: 150,000 won (approx. £90 or €104) you might choose a 50,000 and ten 10,000 notes. Having eventually mastered the process, and achieved what in most countries would be a pretty simple task, you come away feeling you’ve just taken part in some devilish I.Q, test and feel mightily relieved that the South Koreans deem you intelligent enough to have some of their precious currency. Of course, if you practice Zen Buddhism it would be a breeze…

The hotel I stayed at was the Aventree Jongno – an ordinary city hotel. It had an on-site convenience store – which seems to be a handy feature of South Korean hotels – and a restaurant in the basement. However, the restaurant – quaintly named 65^th Avenue (there isn’t even a 5^th Avenue in Seoul let alone a 65^th) – is pretty average & the breakfasts weren’t great. On the positive side the hotel location isn’t bad as the Gyeonbokgung Palace is nearby as is the intriguing Cheonggecheon Stream and there are a couple of metro stops fairly close – but can’t help feeling that a hotel in Itaewon would have been better (with the benefit of hindsight)…

The first proper day in Seoul was taken up with a city tour; the National Museum visit was a bit rushed and we were there with 3,000 Korean students which made it a bit lively; then the N-Tower – the weather was grey & wet with low cloud so didn’t get the best out the tower views – still impressive, though. The Changdeok Palace & Secret Garden were good. It made for a nice, easy introduction to Seoul.

The National Museum of Korea is big and fancy – although with 3,000 Korean school kids it can get a bit noisy

The Seoul Tower is a great place to look out over the city – when it isn’t raining, obviously

The UNESCO World Heritage site: Changdeokgung Palace and the Secret Garden. The Secret Garden is open to the public – so not very secret at all

Changdeokgung Palace and the Secret Garden

Cheonggyecheon (the stream) has been turned into a nice footpath

Yongin

Next day we left Seoul and the first stop was at a Korean Folk Village – the 3,000 Korean school kids were there – actually they might have been a different bunch – which again made it quite lively. The folk village is quite nicely done & well laid out & for South Koreans living in big city tower blocks would make a grand day out. The Beopjusa Temple in the Songnisan National Park was lovely.

Peace and tranquillity at the Korean Folk Village Museum, Yongin – except for the happy chatter of 3,000 Korean school kids…

Songnisan National Park

Beopjusa Temple in the Songnisan National Park

Future Buddha – the tallest Buddha in Korea – gold-plated in 2002. In Korea: 25% of the people are Buddhist and 27% Christian – the main philosophy is Confucianism

Motorway Service Stations: we stopped at various service stations for lunch or coffee during our tour of South Korea and whereas most people would not regard stops at Watford Gap; Woolley Edge; Hilton Park and Gordano as anything remotely approaching a holiday highlight – the South Korean stops have a distinct edge over their British counterparts. The restaurants are great with big open kitchens & food freshly prepared (you never have to wait long) and the prices are reasonable – lunch was usually around 7,000 won (around £4) for traditional Korean food – great, eh?

On this 5-star, deluxe tour of South Korea we stopped at this motorway service station in Cheonan for lunch. Being Korea, however, the food was very good, freshly cooked and reasonably priced…

Daegu

Overnight in the Daegu Grand Hotel – which was not just grand but in a great location, too, with lots of bars & restaurants around – I came across a sweet little bistro playing good music, too – including tracks by Love X Stereo, a band from Seoul, who I’d not heard of before…

Beer tasting in Daegu: Cass and Hite are the two main Korean beer brands. The major claim for Cass is that it is fizzy and for Hite it is that it is bottom-fermented. Well of course it is bottom-fermented – all lagers are. Both are exceptionally dull and flavourless – which seems to be what they are aiming for. Kloud is a relative newcomer to the market and brewed by a division of Lotte – it claims to be 100% malt. Better than the other two…

Daegu is the third largest city in South Korea

Our guide didn’t know who these tower block images were of. I don’t suppose anyone had asked him before…

Gyeongiu

After Daegu we went to the Chomsongdae Astronomical Observatory – a bit of a non-event but the Tumuli Park and Bulguksa Temple were great. We stayed 2 nights at The Commodore on Lake Bomun, Gyeongju – which was handy as it gave me time to get some laundry done. The hotel is in a nice setting – with restaurants nearby – and on the lake side itself which is also nice to walk around. The bedrooms themselves are tired and long overdue a refit. Some people on the tour chose to stay in the nearby Hilton instead. Well, who wouldn’t want to stay in a bland, international hotel that could be anywhere in the world rather than a hotel from the country that you’ve flown half-way round the world to visit?

The Gyeongju National Museum has a 7-11 convenience store

A model of the old city – the city was badly damaged during 13th century Mongol invasions and again in the 16th century during Japanese occupation

Bhaisajyaguru Buddha dating from the late 8th century

The mounds are burial chambers for the royal family

Replica of the 9-storey pagoda from the ancient capital

Bulguksa Buddhist Temple

At the Bulguksa Buddhist Temple where lanterns have been put up in celebration of Buddha’s birthday in 2 days time

Lake Bomun, Gyeongju

Car registration plates of the world: South Korea. The green number plate is the old style, while the white ones with black alpha-numerics are the new ones. The changeover was in 2006 (you can rest easy now)…

The number 4 is considered unlucky in Korean as the pronunciation is similar to “death” – so hotels don’t have fourth floors. I’m guessing “May the 4th be with you” is not considered amusing here (is it anywhere?)…

The Commodore Hotel looks very grand from the outside and is set in nice grounds but the bedrooms are circa 1970 and haven’t been updated…

Looking across the Bomun Lake, Gyeongju towards the Hyundai Hotel at night

Seokguram Temple

The white lanterns symbolise death, so it seems a bit odd to be displaying them while celebrating Buddha’s birthday…

In the forest nothing stirred and no sound could be heard – except for the happy chatter of 3,000 Korean school kids

Guryongpo

Next day we went to see the Gwaenung Royal Tomb – which was sweet but there isn’t very much to see – then on to the coast and the Seogguram Grotto – a lump of rock in the sea that allegedly contains a royal tomb. Note that to the Koreans this is the East Sea and not the Sea of Japan – a little sensitivity is required here. After that we went to the port city of Guryongpo – which has an interesting history and (oddly) a small preserved Japanese quarter.

After Guryongpo we went to Homigot – which isn’t on the itinerary so was a surprise extra – this is where lots of South Koreans come to see-in the new year as it is the eastern-most tip of the country – like Lowestoft. It has some attractions including various statues and the New Millennium Hall – all of this was created in time for the millennium celebrations and has remained an attraction since – curiously I can find no mention of it in my Lonely Planet guide…

We came here to visit the underwater tomb of King Munmu the Great, one of the great kings of Silla – but these rocks are all you can actually see

What we would call the Sea of Japan, the Koreans call the East Sea

The fishing port of Guryongpo – which means nine dragons

The specialities here are spider crab, squid and octopus

We were cautioned that the “coffee shops” here are not what they might seem – it’s a euphemism…

The Japanese developed Guryongpo – but were forced out in 1945 at the end of WW2

This street has been preserved as a memorial to the Japanese who lived here…

Homigot

This photo was taken in 1960 – when there was just a lighthouse here

The little lad is pointing in the direction of the sunrise…

This is a figure of Medicine Buddha – the medicine ball in his hand cures sickness and ignorance…

Sweet little four-sided statue of Buddha – recently defaced, sadly, with a Buddha’s head removed. Unusual to see vandalism in South Korea. It is a bit unloved as you can see by how few lanterns there are…

Gyeongju has a nice sprawling indoor market

Bunmun Lake was turned into a reservoir in 1985. It’s a beautiful area…

Unmunsa Temple

Saturday 14^th was Buddha’s birthday and we celebrated by visiting the Unmunsa Buddhist Temple – one of four nun’s temples in the country and the main teaching centre for Buddhist nuns. The temple is in a stunning setting with beautiful, well-tended gardens and unbelievably colourful – a little gem of a place. The temple was teeming with people and the atmosphere was almost carnival – really happy – the weather was also glorious.

Several members of the tour were from the “seen one temple seen them all” brigade – which makes you despair as you wonder if they bothered to read their itinerary and if they did had it not occurred to them when it states “visit temple” it means exactly that. But then you realise that some people just aren’t happy unless they’ve got something to complain about: “went to a Buddhist country & all we saw were Buddhist temples – what’s that all about?” – not sure who or what is to blame for this syndrome…

To celebrate Buddha’s birthday we visited Unmunsa Temple – dating from 560AD it is now the leading nun’s temple in Korea – beautiful setting and lovely gardens..

This is a Drooping Red Pine and estimated to be around 500 years old – its longevity is put down to the makgeolli (milky rice wine) it is given in lieu of fertiliser

Lanterns galore – the temple will have raised much needed revenue from this – each lantern requires a set donation

Lunch at another motorway service station – Kimchi stew for lunch – the kitchen is open so you can see the food being prepared and served – pretty efficient…

Busan

Anyway – from the spiritual delights and rural splendour of Unmunsa we went to Busan – South Korea’s second city. What a contrast. It is the 5th busiest container port in the world. We visited the enormous fish market and the Busan Tower – great views from the top. We stayed at the Tower Hill Hotel – which was nice & tucked away in a quarter of the city with narrow streets & lots of restaurants…

The indoor fish market is impressive – though you do wonder if there are any little fishes left in the sea…

Busan Tower giving amazing views over Korea’s second biggest city and biggest port

The Tower Hill Hotel in Busan ignores superstition – either that or they reserve the 4th floor for “oekuk-saram” (foreigners)

Genuine San Miguel – brewed in the Philippines. Geon bae!

Kimchi: kimchi isn’t just a food – it is a religion – hot or cold, spicy and served either as a complement to a meal or the basis of the meal as in a kimchi stew – note that South Koreans seem to like their food boiling hot, too…

Dinner at ETC – a little kimchi restaurant in Busan – note absence of other customers – however the owner was eating her dinner but got up to prepare mine…

Haeinsa Temple

From Busan to Gayasan National Park and the Haeinsa Temple with its Tripikata Koreana – another fabulous temple complex in yet another gorgeous setting and then on to Andong and the Hahoe village. Hahoe is interesting in that it is still inhabited and so is a bit like a National Trust village with the traditional buildings and architecture preserved and maintained.

This pavilion contains the Triitaka Koreana – around 80,000 carved woodblocks representing the 3 divisions of Buddhism: Sutra (scriptures); Vinaya (laws) and Abhidharma (treatises) – the original set was destroyed by the Mongols in 1232 – this set was completed in 1251

The idea is to walk the path between the lanterns, praying whilst you do so…

Living the life of Riley – another motorway service station for lunch

Hahoe Folk Village

This Zelkova tree is estimated to be around 600 years old and is known as the tree of 3 gods – shamanism still plays a part in rural Korean life

Cheong Pung

We then stayed overnight at the Cheonpoong Lake Hotel – which is a big resort-style hotel – there were only a few people staying and so only one restaurant was open & even then service was a bit haphazard & the menu limited

Next morning we took a boat ride on Lake Cheonpoong (also known as Chungju Lake – there’s a bit of local rivalry). The boat trip was great and further enhanced by a group of happy Korean ladies selfie-taking and merrily photographing each other with all the innocent joy and glee of a group of schoolgirls.

After the boat ride we went to the Chamsori Gramophone & Edison museum – endearingly eccentric but good fun – the museum guide spoke his own version of English & played the audience like a game show host just to make the whole experience even more surreal…

The view over the Chungju Lake from my balcony at Cheong Pung Resort. It is the largest lake in the country, created in 1985 when the valleys around Chungju were flooded after the construction of the Chungju Dam.

The view over the Chungju Lake from my balcony at Cheong Pung Resort

Lots of happy Korean ladies who spent most of the trip taking photos of each other…

In the bizarre Charmsori Gramophone and Thomas Edison Museum

Danyang

I’m guessing this is supposed to be a before and after shot but she looks a bit happier in curlers

A motorway service station stop at Chiaksan

Woljeongsa Temple

Then we went to the Woljeongsa Temple in the Odaesan mountain & forest for an over-night temple “experience”…

Oh dear – talking of people not reading their itinerary properly, I read afterwards that I could have opted to stay in the nearby Kensington Flora Hotel….

The Woljeongsa Temple is beautiful and in a gorgeous setting surrounded by forest but – the accommodation is in single-sex dormitories and you sleep on a thin mat on the floor with a blanket & small pillow. In fairness the huts are warm but sleeping on a floor is uncomfortable & unnecessary. The facilities were primitive rather than basic – shocking, really. The food was plain & simple both at dinner & breakfast. Still you live & learn (here’s hoping)…

The Woljeongsa Temple – another beautiful setting – stayed the night here to get a “temple experience” – unfortunately the facilities were primitive, which spoiled things

My new book: “Korean Motorway Services and Me” will be published next month – this was an emergency coffee-stop after a disastrous night at Woljeongsa Temple. At Gangneung Highway Stop & Go

Goseong

We then visited the Border Unification Observatory – one of the biggest non-events I’ve ever witnessed: look! – over there! – see those hills? – that’s North Korea…

A 20-minute stop dragged into an hour-long stop – really? Is staring at some hills that fascinating?

On the other hand the DMZ Museum was terrific – well laid-out; lots of informative displays and, while a lot of it is inevitably grim, I learned a lot about the Korean War…

All of this meant we got to Mount Seorak National Park late – we were just in time to go up in the cable car & caught the last one back down – spectacular but rushed. We then went to the nearby Shinheungsa temple for a brief look as light was fading & then on to the Kensington Stars Hotel – which is just fantastic – albeit eccentric in its attempt to mimic an Edwardian English country house. They have two Routemaster London buses, too…

At the Unification Observatory at Goseong. The hills in the background are in North Korea – about 4km away

The DMZ Museum – which is actually rather good and very well laid out…

Sokcho National Park

Staying at the Kensington Stars Hotel – which is very nice and in a lovely setting but is oddly styled in an Edwardian English theme…

Buddha at the Shinheingsa Temple that dates from 1770…

Yes: that is a Routemaster bus. They have two of them here…

The view from my hotel room – 719 – not really the 7th floor as there is no (designated) 4th floor here..

Breakfast dilemma: Soft Americano or Thick Americano?

Kimchi starter kit for those with a burning desire to set their day off right with fresh as a daisy Kimchi

And so back to Seoul via the sweet Garden of Morning Calm. Although my itinerary suggested I’d be staying at the Hamilton Hotel, in Itaewon, I ended up back at the Aventree Jongno.

I then had a free day in Seoul during which I went to Gangnam; the huge Coex development & went to the brilliant aquarium and generally wandered around. The metro is easy to use.

In summary the trip was fantastic: well judged – some days we spent longer in the coach just driving from one place to another but overall it was well organised and I’ve come away with a better feel for, and understanding, of South Korea.