Part 3 - Gwacheon National Science Museum, Outdoor Exhibits

The Gwacheon National Science Museum also has outdoor exhibitions.  At the center is the Planetarium in a beautiful white dome, just a few steps from the main museum’s back door. 

the Planetarium

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Part 2 - Gwacheon National Science Museum, Indoor Exhibits (The Aerospace and the Natural History Hall)

The second level of the Advance Science and Technology Hall is about the aerospace.  It exhibits about the nano world, the astronaut training and living in space, the aircraft pilot training and flight control.

At the entrance, we were hailed by this chamber that says International Space Station.

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Part 1 - Gwacheon National Science Museum, Indoor Exhibits (Advanced Science Hall_1st Floor)

We woke up with a flurry and the sight of it hasted my kiddos.  After breakfast, they were downstairs enjoying the snowfall.  I yearned in silence for a great day ahead.

The kiddos saw last night a poster at the train station about Seoul Grand Park, so we all agreed to spend our last tour there.  The park has a zoo, an art museum and an amusement park.  The zoo was said to be the world’s 10^th largest with over 3,000 animals and a botanical garden having more than 36,000 plants.  Since last night, they imagined an up close encounter with dolphins, giraffes, gorillas, hippos, camels, bears and more…

At the Grand Park’s station exit, a big notice announcing its closure greeted us.  The excited faces turned gray with query eyes, what we’ll gonna do now?  For safety and health reasons, the park was closed to prevent spread of animal-flu related disease to humans.  Thanks to our host for responding quickly, don’t worry, there’s a science museum across the park.

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The National Folk Museum

Towards the rear of Gyeongbokgung Palace, we saw a gate leading to another building.  We followed the trample unaware of what’s in store ahead until we entered an entrance with marker “free admission” to museum.

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The Gyeongbokgung Palace

Next on our palace tour is the Gyeongbokgung Palace and the earlier National Palace Museum is situated within the Gyeongbokgung in Sejong-ro. Its writings say:

It was in 1395, three years after the Joseon Dynasty was founded by Yi Seong-gye, when the construction of the main royal palace was completed.  The palace was named Gyeongbokgung, “the Palace Greatly Blessed by Heaven”.  With Mount Bugaksan to its rear and Mount Namsan in the foreground…

Gyeongbokgung Palace has six gates with Gwanghwamun as the main gate.  Since we came from the museum, we forewent the main gate and just entered the second inner gate called the Heungnyemun and into the third inner gate or Geunjeongmun Gate passing through Yeongjegyo Bridge.

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The National Palace Museum

On our 3^rd day, we sat off for our Seoul city tour.  The first on our IT is the National Palace Museum or the museum of the Joseon Dynasty. 

Like the other facilities in Seoul, the museum offers strollers/wheelchairs as needed and it has wide hallways with benches to accommodate guest’s rest or short stops. 

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Snow Slide at Suwon Worldcup Stadium

We planned to rise early to make most of the day but the weather and the time difference took a sluggish shot.  Their belief that the male are the kings and should therefore not do household chores or even assist to the kids needs was a major drawback.  Even if I so wanted to contest, I refrained, it's harder to be blamed later for a misfortune you never prayed.  So aside from being a maid to the three kids, I had a king to serve as well. Huh!

We had no idea of what’s in store for the day; we just followed the kings… To our surprise, we entered the parking area of Suwon Worldcup Stadium.  We thought for awhile that we will be watching a football game until we were directed to a snow park.

Wish granted… a feel of the snow.

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A Hike to Suwon Hwaseong Fortress

We arrived at Suwon, our residence for 4 nights, a little after 11am.  Hubby was able to grab a raspberry roll for our birthday girl.  After lunch and a simple celebration, we rested for awhile before we started the stroll.  It was 4pm when everyone was up and all set to brave the freezing temp.

We’re bound to Hwaseong Fortress and unknown to us, we’re going there by foot.  We trekked for nearly an hour where we passed by Gyeonggi Provincial Government and had a short hike by the woods.  I was surprised not to hear a whinge from the kids; either they were busy sniffling under the -7deg breeze or were amazed by the scenery.

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SOUTH KOREA TRIP WITH THE KIDS

This was supposedly a Manila–Kuala Lumpur–South Korea post Christmas holiday trip but due to the visa delay, even the KL trip was cancelled. 

Confident that I won’t have visa issues as I have visited South Korea before plus the guarantee and a corporate invite, we processed the visa only early December but with ample time before the trip.  Hubby’s visa was released 5 days after lodging but mine and the kiddos (kiddos were attached to the mother’s application) were on hold.  I was later informed of an issue in my tax identification number (TIN) that turned out to have been misread or mistyped.  Naturally, the BIR gave a negative reply.  I was required to submit other proofs related to my TIN for another BIR confirmation.  After submission, a new claim stub was given but it dates after the New Year.

The kiddo’s excited faces all flashed before me and I can’t bear seeing them frustrated.  Determined not to fail, I wrote the consul for a temporary release of our passport; even to the point of cancelling our visa application just so we can pursue the KL trip on holidays. Sad to say, their policy is a passport-lock-up once the visa process has commenced.

To make up, I had a winter Christmas theme at home… I also promised that we will pursue the trip as soon as the visas were released and lucky for us, AirAsia offered Seoul on promo with travel dates effective ASAP.  I booked at once and timed it to my 2nd child’s birthday.  Though shorter than the original plan, minus the KL trip, the kiddo’s hopes were once regained.  I prayed though for a snow shower on our visit.

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AUTUMN AT NAEJANGSAN MOUNTAIN, THE BULLET TRAIN RIDE AND A BATH HOUSE EXPERIENCE

Over the weekend, sister mentioned about revisiting Seoul as homestay is no longer a problem.  She also mentioned of trying the winter season of South Korea with January as the ideal month.  Well…

This reminded me of our Year 2010 escapade. I haven’t written about our Day 3 and Day 4 moments… There are more to share about the autumn experience at Seoul.  So before we plan of our next out of country trip, I have to finish my foreign travels “to write” list…

On our 3rd day at South Korea, my sisters’ boss invited us to visit a mountain located in Jeollabuk-do for a maple tree or autumn crimson leaves scenery.  I can’t believe I’m visiting a mountain. Whew.. My first international mountain trip and I can’t wait to savor the air of South Korea… 

 

From Anyang, we took a bus bound to Jeongeup for our Naejangsan Mountain adventure.  We were supposed to take another bus to Naejangsan Park entrance where we would commence our trek.  But my sisters’ boss hailed a cab and it brought us all the way to the Forest Museum passing by trekkers along the trail.

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NIGHT TOUR AROUND SEOUL

After our Namdaemun Market stroll, our guide for the evening tour was set to meet us at 6:30pm.  With an hour to spare, we had coffee and a light meal at “Angel in Us Coffee”, sort of Seoul’s Starbucks version.  I liked the ambiance and the tumblers made of stainless with a fiberglass exterior finish.

From Visit Korea: Angel-In-Us’s name implies that coffee is God’s gift delivered by angels. Only the best-quality arabica beans are roasted using the pure roasting system (a method of suspending coffee beans in the air to roast them evenly). A fresh, smooth coffee taste is guaranteed at Angel-In-Us coffeehouse. A range of desserts are also available so you may enjoy a light meal with your coffee: sweet and moist maple bread, Belgium-style premium waffles, bagels, muffins, sandwiches, and more. The interior of the Angel-In-Us stores are characterized by antique tables and chairs under soft lighting, providing a cozy ambiance.

We met our tour guide beside the Cheonggyecheon Stream.  But what struck me was the horse-drawn lit carriage waiting beside the stream for tourist’s merry-go-round stroll.  It reminded so much of our kalesa except that theirs were filled with lights.

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THE CHANGDEOKGUNG PALACE

The first stop for our Seoul tour was the Changdeokgung Palace.

From Visit Seoul:  Changdeokgung is also known as Donggwol, the Eastern Palace, because of its location to the east of Gyeongbokgung. For 270 years, the palace was home to the Joseon government and was also the favored residence of many Joseon Dynasty kings. This makes Changdeokgung the longest-serving royal residential palace. The palace's rear garden, Huwon, is considered an excellent example of Korean garden design and is the only rear garden of any Korean palace. In 1997, Changdeokgung was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Changdeokgung was built in 1405 by King Taejong (the third king of the Joseon Dynasty). In 1592 the main palace, Gyeongbokgung, was completely destroyed by fire during the Japanese invasion of Korea and Changdeokgung became the home of the Joseon court. For this reason Changdeokgung is the place which most represents the Joseon Dynasty in the popular imagination. Its status as a national symbol meant that it suffered deliberate damage by the Japanese during their occupation of Korea. For many years afterwards it was neglected until it was reconstructed and restored to its original state in 1991.

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DAY TOUR AROUND SEOUL

On our second day, we left the house at 8am for our trip to Seoul.  Along the way, the yellow trees by the roadside were great attractions by themselves.  Again, we passed by the same alley where we had dinner/coffee and the place was transformed magically leaving no sign of partying or fun from the previous night.  Then we commuted by train from Anyang to Seoul and I was amazed by the talking teller machine.  Of course we chose the English language and it vocally repeats the options selected.  LOL...  It made obvious that we were tourists because of the several unsuccessful attempts.

At Seoul, my sister already pre-arranged a tour through the Transit Tourism Program.  It was a newly launched program then that offers two types of tours - OMI TRAVEL and HANNA TOUR.  We opted for the Hanna Tour because it covered more places and freebies.  I cannot recall how much it costs but the package was composed of:

Ø  Changdeokgung Palace

Ø  Jogye-sa Temple

Ø  Insa-dong Street

Ø  Cheonggyecheon Stream

Ø  N Seoul Tower

And the following freebies:

Ø  Lunch

Ø  Facial Services at Hushu Dermatology Clinic

Ø  Dental Services 

Ø  Souvenir items

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ARRIVING AT INCHEON AND MY FIRST NIGHT AT SOUTH KOREA

Just four days after my Ho Chi Minh,Vietnam trip, I flew by myself to South Korea for a 4-days short vacation with my sister.  The whole flight was filled wtih shilly-shallying feelings of what ifs and buts.  But with full “I needed this trip” conviction, I just engrossed myself with music to dismiss all those uncertainties.

This time around, I made sure I have a pen at hand.  I also photocopied my documents especially my passport and plane ticket.  But as always, especially at foreign land, things unfolded like a bombshell.

I alighted from the plane as if I knew the whereabouts of the airport but to my surprise, it was far-off expectations.  I was in no hurry to enter the terminal building, I told myself to take the time.  But once inside, I found myself alone... Oh no, what to do and where to go now!  I see no attendant or information desk around.  All I saw was a closed glass door of what looked like train railings inside.  I said, what the heck is a train doing here?  Well, thankfully, a new batch of passengers arrived.  This time around, I kept close, went with the flow and hurried as well as they rush to the main terminal.  Whew!

Luckily I passed the immigration officer softly and without inquiries, maybe the business visa was a factor.  After the immigration line, I stayed by the outdoor waiting area.  Ahh! come what may...  Maybe sister will just fetch me here.   

Minutes gone by quickly and it was already an hour and no sign of my dear sister.  By that time, I was already wobbly and failed to catch the words of the person beside me.  I said hah! and he smiled in reply.  He noticed my being lost and helpless.  He was offering his phone so I can call my fetcher.  Deep inside I said, how I wish I have her number... I gently said its okay she’s on her way... Grrrr... It was then that I realized that I was shivering not just of anxiety but of coldness as well.  So I put my warmer and played the music again.

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