This has taken me a bit to re-visit, only because I had such a blast showing my parents my new home and spending time with them, and before I knew it...their visit had ended. Time is funny like that, it goes by fast when you're having fun.
Late fall is an excellent time to visit Seoul, South Korea. The leaves are changing, the weather is tolerable, and the sun is typically still shining bright. I picked up my Dad, Roy, and my Step-Mom, Debbie, from the airport around dinner time, jumping for joy as they walked through the gate. They were tired from their long flight, so we started off the trip with delivery and an early bed time. Shrimp burgers were had!
For the 1st day in Seoul, I took them up to N Seoul Tower/Namsan Tower. We had lunch first at a little Tonkatsu (Pork Cutlet) place that was downhill from the cable car. I introduced them to udon, cheesy cutlet, South Korean beer and soju. Once we had our fill, we rode the cable car to the top. We bought a lock, signed it, and secured it right next to my lock from Megan's visit! We took in the views from the top, strolled around the base of the tower, and watched some cultural demonstrations. The day ended with a Korean BBQ meal by my house at my favorite spot. More Somaek (Beer & Soju) was enjoyed, along with steamed egg, plenty of side dishes, and all the pork belly your heart desires.
For their 2nd day in Seoul, I took my Dad and Debbie for a day of dress-up! We rented traditional Korean Hanboks and explored Bukchon Hanok Village and Changdeokgung Palace (gaining free admission thanks to our fashionable garb). We got to pose with the guards, explore the secret gardens, make friends with fellow Hanbok models, etc. My Dad discovered he was technically in an emperor's attire, after he received several handshakes and bows from local South Koreans. It was cute. We decided after walking several miles to change back to a more modern look and head over to Insadong. We looked in a few shops, listened to some records and enjoyed a cold beer at the Seoul Music complex, and enjoyed a traditional, full course Korean meal at the National Folk Museum of Korea.
Day number 3 was a more low key, relaxed day. We drove over to Namdaemun Market, and I brought them to my favorite mandoo dumpling and noodle soup shop (shown to me when I 1st arrived by my co-worker Holly). It's literally tucked into the basement of a lot of little shops, and slightly off the beaten path, but it's awesome. My Dad could not get enough of their kimchi. After eating a full meal, we emerged back into the alleyways of shopping (which I had to drag them down to get to the food...it pained Debbie), and I let them go crazy. Debbie needed a tracking device for my Dad and I to keep up with her. She enjoyed all the little shops and souvenirs, and obviously could not leave without a new pair (or TWO or THREE) of shoes. My Dad and I bought some traditional donuts to try, and were people watching the other shoppers. They were both amazed at how much was crammed into this historic market place.
After exploring Namdaemun, we drove home, freshened up, and journeyed to another fun shopping district, Myeongdong. I had bought us tickets to the Nanta show. This show is great for tourists, it's a South Korean non-verbal comedy show created and produced by Song Seung-whan and incorporates traditional samul nori rhythm. Dad and Debbie loved it. Afterwards, we walked up and down Myeongdong and snacked on several different street food varieties. Lamb skewers, Sotteok Sotteok (Korean sausage and rice cake skewer), garlic butter shrimp, dalgona cookies, Bungeoppang (fish shaped pastry with custard), etc. Needless to say, we went to bed happy and full that night.
On the 4th day, we rested a bit, then drove over to Lotte World Tower. This tower is home to a shopping mall, Seoul Sky, Lotte World Adventure, an aquarium, and a bunch of other fun attractions. We started with Seoul Sky, located at the top of the Lotte World Tower, the world's fifth tallest building standing 123 stories and 555 meters high. Then we had a quick and easy lunch at Lotteria, the Korean equivalent to McDonald's. Walked around for a bit, and headed back to change for the night market. The night market was a disaster, my gps took me in several traffic filled circles, and by the time we got there...I sadly discovered they weren't present that day for some random reason. We got to at least enjoy the Banpo Bridge Night Show (a light show over the river), after a stressful evening dealing with South Korean traffic and tired travelers. I decided to try and save the evening by taking them to Bentley's at the Dragon Hill Lodge near work. Coco's drinks and some bar food ended the evening.
The 5th day or the last big day of Seoul activities during week one before we journeyed to the mountain and beach in the East, consisted of the Itaewon Global Village Festival. We took an eventful bus ride over to Itaewon and met several of my friends to explore the vendors, sample the street food, and cheers with great drinks and even greater company. There were street performances, and lots of shopping in the sunshine. We took a break from walking around dinner time in a local pub, and then introduced my parents to some nightlife and good photobooth fun! I believe I kept them out till almost 2 am or so. #PartyAnimals
This concludes my families 1st week in Seoul. I will write another post for the 2nd week, because it's full of more adventure and too many additional photos to smush into one article. Cheers!
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