Days 1 and 2 - Traveling to Seoul, South Korea (March 30 - April 1, 2019)

Spring Break has begun!  I am so excited for this adventure with Shelley to go see our parents!  We took a late flight out on Saturday evening headed to Seoul, South Korea!

We flew through San Francisco. I’m not sure who designed the San Francisco airport, but when you are flying from the domestic terminal to the international terminal, you have to exit the airport, take a shuttle, to through security, and find your new gate. It was a little stressful, as we hustled and heard our names being paged, though they just needed to verify our passports. 

This was the first time I have flown Korean Air. It was a pretty decent airline to fly internationally. The individual monitor was large and it had a cool tracking system for where we were. They also had monitors so you could see what the pilot was seeing. (Most of the time, it was just black as it was a night flight). 

We landed at the Incheon airport at 4 a.m.  We found out they have bidets in some of the bathroom stalls!  So, freshening up was really efficient.  😁

Let’s talk for a minute about the Incheon airport. There’s a reason why they’ve won loads of awards for it. We should take note. They have transfer lounges for anyone who needs to make a connecting flight and doesn’t want to sit at the gate. Free showers, lounge chairs where you can hang out and charge your phone, snack area, nap room, spa, and even a digital gym, to name a few things. Brilliant. 

The airport itself is stunning. It’s a pleasant way to appreciate its beauty and pass the time. 

We decided to take our chances on signing up for the free tours that the airport runs for those with long transfers. The desks don’t open until 6 am, so we waited in the lounge until we could book the free tour.  Here’s the sunrise from the transfer lounge. It is a calm place where the unspoken rule is to let everyone relax.

 We booked the tour for 10:00 am. We were told to be at the desk at 8:30 am. Since we showed up at 8:20, we knew we would have to wait for a few minutes. There was a worker who met us and told us we were waiting on someone. So, we took a seat to wait. At 8:29, he said the person was late, and we left. I guess I think of time like a South Korean. 

He gave us instructions on how to reach their main desk, by giving us instructions to go to gate three, but don’t go outside. He then left us at immigration. I was excited to get my first stamp in my new passport!  Except, this is what I got instead:  

Not exactly the same thing, but I’ll take it anyway. 

After following the worker’s instructions to not go out of the airport, we asked a few workers how to find where we needed to be. They all instructed us to go outside. 🤨. What he meant was don’t leave the airport completely, but pass through customs and immigration. 

We walked past where we were supposed to check in a few times, but eventually found the ‘Free Korea Transit Tour’ main desk. The same worker who helped us this morning turned out to be our tour guide!  We left our backpacks with them, and had 40 minutes before we needed to meet the group.  So, we found a store with all sorts of interesting things you could buy!

I figured I like to try new things. However, I learned that I do NOT like corn milk. It tastes just like how it sounds.  

We finally loaded up on the bus for the tour. We signed up for the ‘Traditional’ tour, which includes going to Gyeongbokgung Palace and Insadong. 

The first Palace was completed in 1395!  It was so impressive!  I don’t think I ever anticipated visiting South Korea, but Gyeongbokgung Palace helped me get a taste of Korea’s history. It was incredible. Especially because there are loads of people dressed in traditional Korean wear, and it was beautiful!

The architecture and paintings on the buildings were gorgeous. I learned that the colors they used in the palace are only for important buildings. They’re gorgeous. 

After (speed) walking with the tour director, we had about 15 minutes to explore on our own. We went everywhere we could and just soaked it all in. It really felt like a magical palace, especially with so many people dressed up in period costumes. Here are some of the amazing views we were able to see:

I think we could’ve spent several hours exploring the palace and grounds. Shelley kindly offered her arm for me to walk quickly and not trip, as there were several areas where I could’ve easily done so. All that aside, it was pretty spectacular. 

We were supposed to meet at noon so we could go eat before shopping on the streets of Insadong. One of the people on the tour never showed up, so we left him. 😳. However, all of the rest of us were prompt for the remainder of the day. (He also managed to eventually find us after shopping). 

The bus drove us to the area where we were going to eat, and we walked a few minutes after it was parked.  So many cool things to see and experience in the world!

For lunch, which was included in the $10 cost for palace entry and lunch, we had a choice between vegetarian and bulgogi beef stew. Shelley and I ate as quickly as we could, so we would have a few minutes to peruse the stores afterwards. Mine was really good! 

There were loads of cute things, but not much that I really wanted to haul around. So, mostly it was just getting a feel of the stores and appreciating the sunshine. 

Also, all of the taxis were the same pretty orange/coral color:

On our way out of town, I loved looking st the forsythia bushes and the start of blossoms on the cherry and magnolia trees. We also saw those really interesting trees that looked like hands reaching out of the ground towards the sky. 

I think Korean looks like it’s a sturdy language. It’s well balanced, like a strong wind wouldn’t knock over the characters. Shelley thinks it’s more round than other Asian languages, which I agree with her. I guess I always think language is fascinating. 

They have bus lanes, that are designated with blue lines. It seemed like the bus drivers would weave in and out of the bus lanes like they were on motorcycles. But it really was interesting to see some of the city on our tour. 

I really was surprised by how much I liked my experience in Seoul. Thank you Seoul for giving me a reason to want to come back! 💕