The last eight nights of a top adventure and I was to base myself in Seoul. In truth I was just too tired to bother about moving on from place to place. Even with all that time I didn't get around all the sights, if it had been earlier in the trip when I wasn't 'templed out' I'd have got twice as much sightseeing done in half the nights.
One thing I definitely wanted to chalk off was a trip to the DMZ (the 4km strip of land controlled by the United Nations that separates North from South Korea). It is not possible to do this day trip as an independent traveller so I had to go in an organised tour. Given the fact I was lazing my way through the last week, this was no bad thing.
The tour started early doors, in dull and wet conditions which in my opinion only added to the moody feel.
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| On guard at the DMZ |
The guide was new to the job and I felt she guessed at answers to questions which only increased the confusion of the tour. I gave up on my questioning and reverted to the tried and trusted technique of reading information boards at each of the numerous stops.
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| Looking moody with North Korea in the background |
The tour overall was great. The numbers were about perfect, I think there were 8 of us, big enough to be able to avoid anyone you didn't like, yet small enough to get to know all you did. In accordance of the dress code I had to zip on my zip off legs to my shorts, and had to wear a collar. I had a little chuckle when one girl from the Philippines was picked up from her hotel wearing a army jacket. She clearly hadn't read the dress code which stated in block capitals NO ARMY WEAR.
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| Monument at the DMZ |
All the stops in and around the DMZ were interesting, however if anything we could have done with an extra 20 minutes at each one.
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| Mobbing up! |
We got inside a now not so secret tunnel that the Northerners had built so troops had easy access into the South. The tunnel was blocked half way, which along with the serious mood of the soldiers on duty showed the real threat of the area.
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| The DMZ now a tourist attraction |
The tour I booked wasn't the full tour which was fully booked long in advance. The only stop I missed out on was the JSA (Joint Security Area) which is renowned as the best bit in the Lonely Planet. Here this area is patrolled by soldiers from both North and South who 'stand off' and 'eyeball' each other all day in Taekwondo type poses.
Speaking with another traveller in Busan who had done the JSA area, he told me the poses were for the tourists camera's benefit only, but I don't know if that was another ill informed tour guides guess.
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| A 'clear' view into North Korea |
From the Dora Observatory you could see well into North Korea including the huge flag which squared up against the not quite so huge flag of the South. It was a shame it was a dull and cloudy day but with the help of the binoculars you could see quite enough, although not enough to even be tempted to add it to my list of 'been there' countries.
I wanted to catch some football on this trip having missed out in the Philippines due to rain, so a quick Google found FC Seoul were playing at home twice during my stay, I went to both games.
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| World Cup Stadium, Seoul |
The games were at the World Cup stadium which was a classic. Interestingly you could buy beer from the kiosks and so long as you poured it into a cardboard beaker you could take it to the terraces. A beer and a Hot Dog was under £3, probably a third of the price of the Premier League in England.
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| Beer and a Hot Dog at the football |
The first game was the last 16 of the ACL (Asian Champions League) and they were playing against a club side from Japan. A decent game which the home side were winning 1-0 (I'd missed the goal as I was at the bar) with seconds to go they missed an open goal. I couldn't understand why the crowd were going so crazy until I found out this was the 2nd leg and the aggregate score was 1-1. So extra time it was.
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| FC Seoul Ultras |
FC Seoul scored early in extra time (I missed this also, this time I was at the toilet). Two goals from the away team seemed to seal the result in their favour. The lads around me said FC Seoul needed to score 2 more goals in the last 5 minutes as they were behind on the away goals rules, they left, I stayed, and FC Seoul scored a screamer (I saw this one).
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| Into extra time, the pouring of beer into the designated cup rule is flouted |
Away goals didn't count and a cracking penalty shoot out resulted. It took ten penalties each to decide the winner, FC Seoul coming up trumps and I was celebrating with the locals like it was Darlington at wembley.
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| The crowd go wild at the end of the game |
The second game was in the league, it was a drab game, playing bottom of the table the hosts rested all the star players, complacency never wins any game and it was a 1-1 draw, the highlight been it was Expat Day Package which I got a match ticket, Beer and Hot Dog for £6.
At the end of the game a gave myself a private tour of the ground. Plenty of stewards still about but it was if I had an access all areas pass around my neck. I 'found' a match programme in the press box along with another Hot Dog voucher. It was only when I tried to get into the dressing room area that access was denied. I had managed to have a look around the trophy cabinet.
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| Inside the trophy room |
What to do on a rainy day in Seoul? Go out for a long lunch washed down with a bottle of Soju. I got one of the specialist dishes I missed out on in Jeon-Ju. Bibimbap is a sizzling bowl of rice, meat, vegetables and spices topped off with a raw egg and served with all the trimmings. Absolutely delicious.
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| Bibimbap and Soju - kept me busy for an hour or so |
Another day, another sporting event. It was a Friday night there was baseball on and it was a local derby. On the way to the game I wanted to get some sightseeing done.
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| Changing of the guard |
One of royal palaces had a changing of the guard ceremony every day at 2pm. This was free. I decided against getting a ticket and having a look inside. I was following a rule a bloke told me about in Siquijor, Philippines, he said the best way to save money when travelling is only do the things you really want to do. I wasn't that fussed so saved myself the tiny entrance fee of £2 and never went inside, maybe I regret that now.
Instead, there was a the national museum nearby which was free and well worth the one hour I spent in there.
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| Seoul National Palace |
I hopped back on the very efficient and impressive metro to the Jamsil district which is near the Olympic Village and the Baseball Stadium.
The main reason for me going into Jamsil itself was to take in the Lotte Tower which when fully complete and open will be elevated into the top 5 in the world. The key point in that last sentence was 'when fully complete'. I wasn't aware it wasn't finished and expected to go up it for my Seoul Tower fix.
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| Lotte Tower in Jamsil, Seoul |
The Baseball ground is located by the Olympic Stadium, so off I set off on the decent walk to the Olympic Village. The walk by the main road was full of bronze statues of various sportsmen and women. Turning off the main road found me in a sleazy part of town, Businessmen clubs, Massage Parlours, rooms by the hour and love motels were everywhere.
On getting to the Olympic Village I discovered the Olympic Stadium (and therefore the Baseball Stadium) was in completely the other direction and was 2 metro trains away. I quick walk around the Village and the Museum and it was off to the Basey.
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| Seoul Olympic Park |
The game was the Doosan Bears v the LG Twins. I'd never been to or watched baseball, but it didn't take long for me to realise Doosan Bears were considerably better than the LG Twins.
I really enjoyed it. It was a full house, the crowd were orchestrated well by sets of cheerleaders creating a good, but false atmosphere.
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| The scoreboard clearly shows it is 7pm, I don't understand anything else |
Beers were available to buy and even cheaper than at the football. The scoreboard catered for 12 innings but the game stopped at 9 just after I'd bought a litre of beer. I don't know how long the games usually last but that wasn't ideal. I 'had to' down this beer and then suffer the 1 hour metro back to the area of my hotel in desperate need of the toilet. Many times on the journey I felt like getting off early finding and toilet and then continuing my journey. What a relief when I finally arrived back.
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| Baseball and a litre of Cass |
Fancying a day in the countryside I headed out to a place called Chuncheon. It was described in my book as a nice ride through the hills, with a nice lake and good food. It had the added attraction this weekend of the annual Mime and Water Festival. I'm not much into mime but at least it would remove the language barrier.
The train ride was nice but did take almost 2.5 hours to get there by slow (but cheap) metro, high speed trains do it from the centre in around half the time.
The guy at the tourist information 'helpfully' gave me a map in Korean and pointed me in the wrong direction for the lake, so I went downtown.
I never found the Mime element of the festival but well and truly found the water festival. One street was packed with locals dancing to seriously loud music from a live band. Fireman sized hosepipes filled the air with water, all the kids had water pistols and paint powder. It was a decent experience and atmosphere.
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| Water fight at Chuncheon |
Now to find the food element of the town. The local speciality is Dakgalbi and even had a street dedicated to it. I did read that most of the restaurants don't let single diners come in. As I walked up the street an old dear was in a frenzy to get me inside. I was trying to explain I was only one and didn't want a load of food.
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| Dakgalbi Street, Chuncheon |
With the help of some of the locals I managed to get a half portion which was still massive. It was chicken, pasta, potatoes, veg, herbs and spices. Delicious and good value for £6.
It was cooked at my table and I had a good laugh with the local youngsters. The girls back right in the picture found it particularly amusing when I shouted "smile" at at the old lady just before snapping her cooking my dinner.
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| Dakgalbi been cooked at my table |
I stayed in a few different areas in Seoul, the last of which Itewan is said to have great nightlife. I stayed in an excellent hostel and got invited to one of the staffs leaving party and instantly made lots of friends.
At the end of the party only 4 lads were left standing and we went out and hit the town. It was my first experience of a party night out on my travels, but not one I enjoyed. The lads (Dutch, Japanese, Korean and myself) were sound and good fun, but the location was an expat and army base area. One street was completely full of bars and restaurants catering for westerners and tourists. It was also littered with Korean girls desperate to hook up with a foreigner and hookers.
As decent as the lads were, I was a little bored and not enjoying paying for the overpriced beers. Give me a night out in Korean only locations, the beers are cheaper and the girls are much more genuine. I left shortly after witnessing a street brawl, once the round was complete.
Having been denied the tower experience at Lotte Tower I went over to Seoul Tower. It isn't the biggest in the world by any means, but it is seriously high up from the top as it's base is on top of a huge hill in the city.
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| Seoul Tower, with love locks in the foreground |
It is easy to enough to walk up to the tower base, but I had quite a bit of currency left so I took the cable car late in the day. The plan was to see it in daylight, watch the sunset and see Seoul from above at night. This is a tactic I use many times when visiting towers.
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| At the base of Seoul Tower |
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| The sun sets over Seoul on the last night of my trip |
Once the sun had set and I'd seen enough I headed to the mall under the tower where LG were showing off their talents with a LCD tunnel and a 3D screen both of which were very impressive (and free).
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| LG LCD Tunnel |
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| Seoul Tower lit up at night |
What to do on my last night of a near 100 day trip? I gave the lads I'd met the previous night the swerve and headed out on my own for a Korean meal and an early night.
Getting cheap Korean food in Itewan wasn't as easy at it should have been. Plenty of international fare, Turkish, Moroccan, Japanese, American, Irish, Indian etc. But not much local, and when I did find a Korean restaurant it was fine dining with not so fine prices.
I ended up in a cafe just around the corner from my hostel, a cafe I'd ruled out a couple of times as not been nice enough to host my last evening meal. The food I chose was Ginseng Chicken Soup (as recommended to me by a Korean lady earlier in the week). It was decent, nothing too special but once again it was a huge feed. The staff tried to get me on the beer or soju, but I wasn't feeling like it. It was the end of a mini era (8 months) in my life.
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| My last nights evening meal - Ginseng Chicken Soup |
My mini era had taken me to some fabulous places in Asia, met up with loads of friends old and new, eaten some great local foods (plus a few not so great), found a life away from possessions and status, and most of all I learned the importance of a smile.
My final day was last minute souvenir shopping followed by a soak and a relax in a Korean Jjimjilbang (spa).
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| Souvenir shopping, the bear I bought was quite a bit smaller |
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| Jjimjilbang at Dragon Hill Spa in Seoul |
Boarding the late night flight home, I considered my next move in life, my next chapter. My batteries are now fully recharged and I'm eager to start work again. I will ramp up my efforts to find a job in the 13 days I'm home.
Should I call my 2 week trip to Czech Republic and Hungary the 3rd installment of my career break? This I'm not sure, perhaps I'm looking on it as part of my reintegration back into 'normal' life, a holiday the type I've taken each year for nearly 20 years.
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| Flying home |
Do I regret quitting my job and travelling? No, not one bit......so long as I can complete the reboot of my career and find a new job soon, it was the best decision of my life.
