andyhwaiting

Hanging out at Banpo Hangang Park on Day 6 and watching the Moonlight Rainbow Fountain and fireworks that night was what I enjoyed the most thus far on my trip to Seoul so I decided to return to the area on this day. My mom was looking for a place to visit so I recommended that hanging out in front of the Hangang River was a really nice and quiet and peaceful experience for a sunny afternoon. Usually my aunts would accompany my mom if she went out but today we decided to ditch them and go out ourselves. We grabbed a cab and headed out but not before stopping for some lunch first. As we enjoyed eating at Lotte Department Store so much the other day, we decided to return and have the same menu items as before: the Naeng Myeon/Guksu combo and a side order of mandoo. We were just here for the purpose of having lunch so we didn’t look around or do any shopping. It was just as good as the first time and naturally our conversation turned to how much better the food was on this side of the w...

When I came back home from the National Museum of Korea and told my aunt about the lunch fiasco, she wanted to call the place up and give them an ear full.  Hahaha, don’t mess with my maknae aunt!^^  I told her it was OK and to forget about it.  It was getting close to dinner time and I had been putting off having McDonald’s for 17 days now and coupled with the mediocre lunch today, it seemed like the right time to spring for it.  There were opportunities to try McDonald’s earlier in my trip as I had passed the one in Jongno a couple of times and actually entered one to have an ice cream but I always put it off for something more local instead.  At home, I also tried to refrain from suggesting McDonald’s out of consideration for my aunts.  While they would have it, it’s not like they like fast food and McDonald’s in particular as I do.  They would probably be more content with eating a bowl of rice and some kimchi because that’s what they grew up on....

By this time in my trip, I had seen most of what I wanted to see in Seoul and the places that were left on my itinerary were mostly museums. I had several museums down on my itinerary but deliberately chose to visit them last because in Tokyo, I learned that I would much prefer walking around the city or riding the subways than walking around in a museum. There’s no substitute for the organic and lively experience of being around the people in the city and being able to feel it’s pulse. Museum’s have their merits, albeit more static and historic in nature, so I guess it all depends on personal preference. Some people find museums boring while others could spend an entire day looking around and still not get enough. I probably fall somewhere towards the former unless what’s being showcased interests me. Between the 3 museums I had down, the National Museum of Korea , the War Memorial and Museum and the Leeum Samsung Museum of Art , I ended of choosing the National Museum of Korea. Look...