Gyeongbok Palace

The last day of our long weekend in Seoul, we went to Gyeongbokgung (경복궁), or Gyeongbok Palace. This is one of the most famous places in Korea, and it's been on my "must-see-before-I-leave" list for a while.

 The day was gorgeous. The blue sky and bright sun provided for really great, colorful photos. In the picture below is the front gate of the palace. This is probably the more famous part and when I've seen Gyeongbokgung mentioned in Korean textbooks, it's accompanied by a picture of this gate rather than the other buildings.



This is Geunjeong, the first and center building. It was the king's throne room, and is one of the most popular viewing areas for tourists. However, the entire palace grounds is HUGE, and the further you get away from the main gated entrance, the less and less people you see.


I'm absolutely in love with the paint colors and patterns that Korea uses to decorate their traditional buildings. The sunlight on this lucky day gave it plenty of pop and contrast against the sky to actually give justice in a photograph to  how brilliant they are.

There were several Korean tourists wandering around the grounds in traditional dress, called hanbok (한복). Most likely because it was a national holiday. May 5th is Children's Day.


One of the things I found fascinating about Gyeongbokgung is it's location in a pretty central part of the city. It's about a 20 minute walk from city hall. I thought the modern vs. historic contrast of the glass buildings in the distance behind the traditional structures was very interesting.




My favorite part of the palace was the quiet and calmness that you found the further you moved from the entrance. Weaving your way through the maze of buildings, it was easy to wander and get lost (one of my favorite things to do). Eventually, there was no one else in immediate sight and it felt like you were in another world.

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