Today was a reasonably quiet day and was mainly spent wandering Seoul on foot, and palace hopping.
Our first stop of the day was Changgyeongung, which was originally the Summer Palace of the Goryeo King; however, it became one of the Five Grand Palaces of the Joseon Dynasty. The grounds around the palace were rather nice to walk around and there is also a greenhouse on one side of the grounds. I’m sure the grounds would look beautiful in a different season, but unfortunately in winter it was probably not as spectacular as it could be (well, to be honest it was a bit of a marsh in places…)
After Changgyeongung we visited Changedeokgung. Ah yes, the names that are nearly identical to each other (I didn’t notice the difference initially and thought they were the same) and just to make sure you’re really not confused… are located right next to each other. We managed to time our entry into Changedeokgung to just make the last English Secret Garden tour of the day (score!). Fortunate for us, as the area is closed to the public unless you are a part of the tour group. I rather enjoyed the tour, it was very informative and the grounds were beautiful. It would look incredible i think during spring or autumn.
The final part of our day was just spent wandering around Insa-Dong. Insa-Dong is rather lively in the evening and we managed to find some rather nice street food in this area which is always a bonus (hoetdduk – yum!)
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- Walking through Insa-Dong, Seoul, South Korea
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- Heading into Changyeonggung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Greenhouse at Changyeonggung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Gate of Changyeonggung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Inside the Secret Garden of Changedeokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Pavillion Decorations at the Secret Garden of Changedeokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Secret Garden of Changedeokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Heading into the Womens Quarters in the Secret Garden of Changedeokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Changedeokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Wandering through Changedeokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
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- Walking along the streets of Insa-Dong, Seoul, South Korea
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- Shopping in Insa-Dong, Seoul, South Korea