Since we had pretty much struck out at Gyeongbokgung Palace (wrong day of the week....damn you jetlag) and Bukchon Hanok Village (crawling with tourists), we went for "Plan C", Changdeokgung Palace. Walking over, the place looked quite busy, but once inside it was rather sedate.
Completed in 1412, this was considered the "second palace", after Gyeongbokgung. You enter through the Donhwamun Gate into a large courtyard that fronts the Injeongjeon, the throne hall.
The markers you see indicate where the court stood....basically in terms of rank. So of course the Missus stood next to rank 1 for Her photo and took one of me in front of the last rank! Not really knowing much about the history of Korea, the Missus was fascinated to see that Chinese was used as the written language.
From this throne the king received envoys and oversaw ceremonies.
We walked along Daejojeon Hall, the official residence of the queen.
This was all very nice, but there was one area I'd read about and really wanted to visit; "Biwon" (비원 The Secret Garden). This area can only be visited via a guided tour and you need to purchase tickets. Also known as Huwon (후원 Rear Garden), this series of pavilions and ponds were originally created for the royal family.
We had a hint of things while walking around other parts of the palace.
There are times when travelling when everything just seems right, your timing is perfect. In spite of the other 50 or so folks on the tour, this was the highlight of our time in Seoul. Our guide was so very knowledgeable, She explained the use of Chinese writing and the transition to Hangul to the Missus later on during the walk.....she was oh so very patient, keeping a group like this together was like herding cats. And listening to the three Filipino girls was a hoot; "pleeease, no more hills", "what, more steps?", "ok, enough leaves already...."
The colors were stunning as was the backdrop.
The photo above show the area named Juhamnu; this is where the Royal libraries were located. The pond in front of it is called Buyongji Pond.
One of the most stunning sites was the next stop; the "Love of Lotus" pond and pavilion (Aeryeonji).
We don't have an intense changing of the seasons here in San Diego, so just the colors had us mesmerized.
For a kid from Hawaii like me....this was like being on a different planet.....
This is the Jondeokjeong Pavillion, known for the double roof.
This is the Soyoam Rock. Notice the carving in the rock. Along with the name of the area carved by King Injo, there's a poem carved into the rock by King Sukjong.
At the end is a Chinese Juniper Tree that is supposed to be over 750 years old.
It was nothing short of spectacular to us......the timing was just perfect; the next few days were quite windy and somewhat rainy which I'm sure changed things. Sometimes you just get lucky!
We were getting hungry, so we headed down to the bustling streets of Insadong, full of shops, little restaurants....tourists and locals.
In the basement of the very popular Ssamziegil Mall is a restaurant named Gogung, famous for their Bibimbap.
The restaurant specializes in Jeonju Bibimbap, supposedly a specialty of Jeonju which was declared one of the Creative Cities for Gastronomy by UNESCO. Jeonju Bibimbap is supposed to be serious stuff; sometimes with up to 30 ingredients used for a single bowl!
The Missus really enjoyed Her meal here and considers it Her favorite meal in Seoul.
There were two items that arrived with the panchan that caught our attention. The first was Deulkkaetang a perilla seed and mushroom based soup. The flavor was quite interesting, like basil, mildly sweet with an anise finish combined with the earthy flavor of the mushrooms. This was nice, but I found the fragrance kind of odd, mildy fishy-earthy, not sure if my olfactory was working well on this day.
The second being some fermented thick cabbage stems which smelled almost exactly like the suan cai we make at home. Funky fermented flavor. So of course the Missus just loved this.
We noticed that folks on the other tables pretty much stayed away from this....the Missus was tempted to grab them........but She displayed great restraint.
The Missus went with the Jeonju Dolsot Bibimbap; which might have been one of the best dolsot bibimbap I've ever had. Amazing textures, especially the bean sprouts which tasted oh so good.
As the rice crust formed things got even better; adding a layer of nuttiness and even more contrasting textures to the dish.
The Missus though, really enjoyed what I ordered; the Yukhoe Bibimbap. The amazingly clean tasting raw beef had perhaps a bit too much minced Asian Pear in it, making it a tad to sweet for me; but the Missus really loved the flavor and texture of this.
She polished this off in no time.
The traditional Sujeonggwa was served as dessert/digestif.
We both enjoyed it as this was not as sweet as most versions back in the States, making it quite refreshing. The prices weren't too bad at all; the Dolsot Bibimbap at ₩ 11,000, about $8.75 and the Yukhoe Bibimbap at ₩ 15,000, about $12.
Gogung Insadong
44 Insadong-gil
Jongno-gu, Seoul
After lunch we wandered around Ssamziegil Mall, through all the little shops; but mostly people watching.......
Kids are the same everywhere, aren't they?
Soon enough, our afternoon nap came calling and we headed back to our apartment amongst the highrises of Jongno-gu........
We'd already put in a good amount of mileage, but little did I know we'd put in another big chunk this evening.
Thanks for reading!
beautiful, that secret garden!
Posted by: kat | Tuesday, 01 March 2016 at 11:01 PM
It's not every day you hear praise for bean sprouts! Must've been really good.
Posted by: Junichi | Wednesday, 02 March 2016 at 03:05 PM
Oh wow minced Asian pear with raw beef sounds refreshing right about now. The last photo of the kids had me smiling - love and selfies seem to be a preeminent theme with kiddies these days.
Posted by: Faye | Wednesday, 02 March 2016 at 03:29 PM
I went to the Secret Garden a few years ago too and I agree it really is a nice garden. Your fall pictures make it much more stunning.
Being from San Diego, I agree the fall season doesn't look like that here.
Posted by: Green After The Rain | Wednesday, 02 March 2016 at 05:19 PM
I love those scenic pictures! I suppose they catch my eye more than food right now since I am still full from lunch!
Posted by: Lynn @ Oh-So Yummy | Wednesday, 02 March 2016 at 06:35 PM
It really was Kat!
Hi Junichi - Isn't strange what you notice sometimes....the flavor really sood out.
So true Faye! I really get a kick out of that photo.
Hi Sarah - I think we really lucked out this time around.
Hi Lynn - I'm hungry, but those fall photos still outshine the food......not the norm with me! ;o)
Posted by: Kirk | Wednesday, 02 March 2016 at 06:49 PM
Beautiful pictures and the food makes me so hungry. Korean food in Germany is not as good, and hard to find. I miss Korea and all the food. I miss California a whole lot. Thanks for all the beautiful photographs.
Posted by: Milgwimper | Thursday, 03 March 2016 at 11:22 PM
Hey Mills - So nice to hear from you. I hope all is well!
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 04 March 2016 at 06:16 PM
Wonderful post. bibimbaps and that gorgeous garden.
Posted by: Ed (from Yuma) | Saturday, 05 March 2016 at 10:22 AM
Hi Ed - We were really lucky to visit at just the right time.
Posted by: Kirk | Saturday, 05 March 2016 at 08:32 PM