I did a day-tour today to the DMZ, which is the demilitarized zone between South and North Korea. The DMZ is 250 km wide and 4km deep. Before the Korean War, the border was on the 38th north parallel. At the end of the war, there was a scramble to gain territory, which replaced the … Continue reading / view photos The demilitarized zone
Author: Praful
EWHA Womans University Museum, Gangnam, and Itaewon
My hostel is next to the EWHA Womans University. I’d not ventured to look at the university but today I did. There’s a small museum in the university. The campus looks like a beautiful place to study. Gangnam is now famous. It’s a large district and one of the most expensive places to live in … Continue reading / view photos EWHA Womans University Museum, Gangnam, and Itaewon
Into the future at Dongdaemun Design Plaza
After leaving Hongdae, I headed for the futuristic Dongdaemun Design Plaza. It exemplifies Seoul — the most modern of cities I’d been to around the world. It looks like a spaceship and even has an alien-like figure staring at it. There’s not much in the museum or adjoining buildings but the building itself is the … Continue reading / view photos Into the future at Dongdaemun Design Plaza
Hip Hongdae
Named after Hongik University, Hongdae is one of those neighbourhoods that was once cheap to live in and given a new lease of life by artists and musicians until it became impossible to ignore. Gentrification followed and the upmarket brands moved in. Despite that, the area is still known for its indie music scene, urban … Continue reading / view photos Hip Hongdae
Seoul Lotus Lantern Festival
After my taxi journey from the temple to Singyeongju Station, I was standing on the platform waiting for my train. At one point, I heard a train coming. By the time I’d switched on my camera and was ready to take a photo of the train, it flashed by without stopping! The KTX trains are … Continue reading / view photos Seoul Lotus Lantern Festival
Gogulsa temple stay
On my last day in Gyeongju, it rained all day, and I didn’t get out at all. So, I had only one full day in Gyeongju because I’d already booked my next stop. This, alas, stopped me seeing the sites (that I’d seen previous day) at night, when they’re illuminated. On my list of things … Continue reading / view photos Gogulsa temple stay
Gyeongju – the “museum without walls”.
Gyeongju was the capital of Silla, which, two thousand years ago, was a Korean kingdom located in the southern and central parts of what is now Korea. At one time, Silla was a wealthy country and Gyeongju was the fourth largest city in the world. Some of the remains of the Silla kingdom still exist … Continue reading / view photos Gyeongju – the “museum without walls”.
The most beautiful temple in Korea
I was leaving Busan today and had booked my bus ticket for late afternoon so that I could spend a bit more time here. High on the list of places to visit in Busan is Haedong Yonggungsa Temple. It was about a 50-minute bus journey from my hostel. When you get to the temple, there’s … Continue reading / view photos The most beautiful temple in Korea
Haeparang coastal trail
There’s a scenic linear coastal path that starts at the south-western end of the “Diamond Bridge”. I took the metro to get close to the start then walked the rest of the way. It was a lovely sunny day and being a weekday, there weren’t that many people doing it. On this walk, in contrast … Continue reading / view photos Haeparang coastal trail
Gamcheon culture village
Sometimes popular tourist attractions live up to expectations. Gamcheon culture village is one of those. Its claim to fame is that it has colourful houses and art — and therefore photogenic and highly Instagrammable. The journey to the village (a small town, really) required two buses and took about an hour. I’d read about places … Continue reading / view photos Gamcheon culture village