South Korea Archives | Page 6 of 10

Seoul Day 3: Trick Eye Museum and Ice Museum in Hongdae

August 5, 2014

Trick Eye Museum is located in the conundrum of independent clothing stores and themed cafes in the student district of Seoul: Hongdae. Though it’s underground, it’s not easy to miss because it has a pretty striking signage outside. Also, there’s always a trickle of visitors going in and out.

It’s a relatively new establishment but from the looks of it, it’s now one of the most frequented tourist attractions in Seoul. It’s clear why, because kids, teens, adults and oldies can enjoy this attraction. It certainly doesn’t matter how old you are because as long as you have a good sense of fun and silliness, you’ll have a grand time posing next to the 3D paintings. We sure did enjoy it!

The place was packed when we visited on a Saturday, but we didn’t really have to wait too long for our turn. I definitely enjoyed it, and one of its most popular paintings is the one above! Gianna looked like a giant while I ended up looking like a tiny bean. It’s all optical illusion but it’s still pretty amusing, right? I seriously can’t choose a favorite because I loved most of it!

The museum basically worked on the premise of taking the shot in a right angle to achieve the maximum effect of optical illusion. There are tons of attractions like this in South Korea. There’s the Alive Museum at N Seoul Tower and there are even 3D paintings in Lotte World. So you may ask, why did we choose to go to Trick Eye Museum in Hongdae. Well, I believe the resulting pictures below are enough reasons why. [Read more…]

Seoul Day 3: Changdok Palace

July 31, 2014

Changdokgung is one of the palaces found in Seoul. It’s one of the most beautiful palaces and definitely well-preserved. It’s the one with the Secret Garden, which you can enter for another price. On my first visit, we didn’t know that this one’s a UNESCO Heritage Site so we opted to visit Changgyeonggung and Gyeongbokgung and skipped out Changdokgung. But we did have a photo taken outside since it’s one of the shooting locations of Rooftop Prince. Heh.

Before the trip, my cousins were so eager to visit the palaces in Korea. Whenever I asked them what they wanted to do in Seoul, all they answered was to visit the palaces. But I knew that kids aren’t so keen on sites where they don’t really get to do anything, so I only included Changdokgung and not the other palaces in our itinerary. My hunches were right. One palace was enough for them. After 15 minutes in it, they wanted to leave.

Anyway, remember to either say Changdokgung or Changdok Palace. I once had the mistake of saying Changdokgung Palace and that’s redundant! The Gung/Goong (궁) in Changdokgung already means palace. [Read more…]

Seoul Day 2: Lotte World in Seoul, South Korea

July 18, 2014

Lotte World was supposed to be on the third day, but our host insisted that it’s best to visit on a weekday. He was right! Unlike my last visit to the amusement park, in which we barely got to try anything, this time we actually got to ride everything we wanted to try.

It was a friday so there weren’t that many people. Of course there’s still a crowd but manageable. We only had to line up for a couple of minutes till we get our turn in the Lotte World rides. We arrived after lunch since we took the time to eat lunch at the food court in Lotte Mall. I still think we managed to utilize our time! It’s the only destination in our itinerary so we had the entire day to spend in the park.

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Seoul Day 1: Spring Sunset at N Seoul Tower, Namsan Park

July 4, 2014

N Seoul Tower is one of the most popular attractions in Seoul, South Korea. You can see it perched on top of a mountain miles away, and if you watch enough Korean dramas you definitely know it’s the perfect place for a first date.

It’s my second time to visit N Seoul Tower, and I really didn’t mind. I enjoyed the first time I visited the tower and this visit, too. However, I was sad to learn that there’s no more Teddy Bear Museum! I was pretty sure my cousins would enjoy it, but the only Teddy Bear Museum I could find is in Jeju Island. So no chance we’ll be visiting that one. It’s still not a waste because we had a pretty great time and saw some amazing views.

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Seoul Day 1: Free Hanbok Fitting at Korea Tourism Office

June 20, 2014

Despite being jetlagged (hehe) after a four-hour flight from Manila to Incheon, we didn’t waste time lounging around when we arrived at the hostel. We only had four days to spend in Seoul, we’re not going to waste a minute of it. Okay, that’s an exaggeration because we actually spend a lot of time getting ready in the morning. Anyway.

Since it’s just our first day, I decided that we should probably take it slow and go to spots that’s easily accessible. No shopping, no amusement parks, just simple sight-seeing for my family to get a feel of the city. It was actually challenging to plan the entire itinerary because I had to consider which travel spots will be enjoyable for kids and adults.

For our first stop, we drop by the main headquarters of Korea Tourism Center in Seoul. But we actually got a bit lost and only ended up accidentally finding it. It’s not that easy to find because it’s underground, and I got confusing instructions on how to get there. Apparently, I only had to look for the Tourist Information Center near Cheonggyecheon and I’ll find myself in KTO. (More on the instruction later.)

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