I ventured out to a new part of town yesterday and took a stroll through grounds of Gyeongbokgung Palace. Well, the rebuilt palace. The Japanese destroyed it the first time in the 1500s, and again during thier occupation of Korea circa 1910-45. Still, you could get a sense of how glorious it once was. I was amazed at the size, courtyard after courtyard. And it always seems strange to find an oasis in the urban sprawl that is Seoul.

Anyway, I got a few pics before my camera batteries died:

The point is the place is huge. I’m not sure this captures that, but its the best I could do.

This is where I came in. I liked how the backdrop is mountains, when I just walked in from a skyscraper jungle.

As I arrived there was a traditional Palace guard reenactment going on….

After purchasing a ticket for 3000 Won (US $3.), I entered through this main gate…..

….and into this courtyard….

Looking back towards the main gate you can get a sense of the size of the courtyard and the urban setting.

You could only go inside one building, but there was not much to see. I think the first shot is of a sleeping area. And then I tried to capture the ornately painted ceiling…oh well. Hardly worth taking my shoes off for.

Moving on to the next courtyard was this little garden area…

And this pond….

and this cute child….

and these birds. Cahchee or Cagee or something like that. I want to get a better picture because they caught my interest my first day here. Pretty large for a songbird. I understand if you hear them in the moring they are bringing luck…

I was getting thirsty. The concession stand didn’t have diet coke, so I settled for an ice cold Pocari Sweat. Tasted like Gatorade.

This is the Korean folk musuem. I didn’t make it inside. Just too nice out.

A statue garden. These are found on Jeju island, off the southern tip of Korea. I hope to visit there later this year.

And that’s as far as my batteries took me. After I left the palace, I walked over to a shopping district called Insa-dong. They had some sort of festival going on, streets closed to cars and music and vendors. It was pretty nice, especially after tawdry Itaewon.

So there you have my Sunday in Seoul.