Day 14- A Day to Divide & Conquer in Seoul, South Korea
Day 14:
서울에서 길을 잃었다
It’s our first full day in Seoul, South Korea!
And, we each decided to different things, meeting up in the afternoon.
First, some basic info about the capital of the Republic of Korea (South Korea), Seoul. Its history takes it back to around 18 BC, as village based on its location to the river and bay. Through Korean dynasties and foreign occupations, the city has continued to grow and thrive. It’s now one of the largest mega-cities in the world, with just over 26 million people. It’s got quite the landscape, as it’s located not in a river valley and bay, but also has many mountains and hills throughout. Most striking fact….Seoul is just 35 miles from the closest point of the North Korean border. My first stop was the Lotte World area - casino, amusement park, hotel, offices, and high end shopping mall. It was also the location for the 6th tallest building in the world, the Lotte World tower. It’s 123 floors and over 1,800 feet tall. I took a stroll around the mall and casino, then took the elevator up to the 121 floor. It was a beautiful clear day, and I was able to see for miles in all directions. I did end up on the 123 and stood on the glass floor looking down. At the same time, Dan was keeping me updated on his activities. He had been looking forward to this day since before we left. On the agenda, Koreas well known beauty regiments. He got Botox injections, fillers, and a double chin laser removal with fat reducing injections. He also got a full message and facial. You’ll see the pic I received below. hd finished off shopping at Olive Young, the well known cosmetics store.My next stop was the Korean War Memorial and museum. It was a very majestic complex located in the heart of the city. It had captured North Korean and Chinese equipment, as well as Korean, American and United Nation pieces of armament, including a b-52 bomber. Inside, there were 3 floors, each telling the story of before the Korean War (including Japanese colonization and atrocities and WW2), the lead up to and the actual Korean War, and finally post war. Quite the story, especially seeing it from a different perspective than we get in the US. For Koreans, it’s brother fighting brother, and families ripped apart never to see each other again. Pretty intense and glad I saw it before tomorrow’s excursion to the DMZ. Dan checked in again saying he was back at the hotel, and going to relax after all his procedures. My last stop before meeting up with him for dinner was Namdaemun, officially known as the Sungnyemun Gate. It is one of the Eight Gates in the Fortress Wall of Seoul, protecting the 5 palaces. I met up with Dan at our hotel, changing for the cooler evening. We decided to go shop and look for food in the famous Gangnam district. It’s one of Seouls most exclusive neighborhoods, and has a reputation like Beverly Hills or the Upper West Side. We went into the COEX mall, which, in addition to all your high end stores, the centerpiece is a 4 story covered but open library which has over 60,000 books. There were people everywhere just reading, relaxing and having a chill time. We ended up shopping too much and decided to eat back at the local places right outside our hotel in the Myeongdong district. All in all a great first day in Seoul!Final step count was 13,469 and 5.97 miles.#lotteworldtower #botox #cosmetics #oliveyoung #gangnam #myeongdong #koreanwarmemorial #Sungnyemun #seoul #southkorea #Asia2025
