Wanderings

Lately I've been exploring the fortresses around Seoul. First up was Hwaseong Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage site which is about half an hour southwest of Bundang. The entire structure, which dates back to the Joseon period, is huge, so I only had a chance to the visit the haenggung, or "detached palace" where the king would conduct business when he traveled to the fortress.

Some say that once you've seen one Korean palace you've seen them all, but I would respectfully disagree. I've found that despite the common colors, shapes, and patterns, each palace has its own distinct character. For example, Hwaseong Haenggung featured more of everyone's favorite mannequins than the other palaces.

The king's father had been imprisoned in this wooden chest when he was a boy because his father felt he was unfit to be king

mannequins celebrating the king's mother's birthday

someone forgot to finish these mannequins

As luck would have it, there was a film crew on site the day I visited. I'm not sure what they were filming, but it was an interesting glimpse into the world of Korean film. The only thing that seemed to be missing was a craft service table with kimchi and ddukbokki.

The palace looks pretty impressive, right? Just like a page right out of a history book? I thought so too- until I went to the info center and found out that almost the entire structure was a REPLICA which had been completed around 2005. Most of the palace had either fallen into disarray or been destroyed during the Japanese occupation. At least it gave some Koreans a chance to practice making replicas.

In between fortress hopping, I paid a visit to Cheong Wae Dae, the "Blue Roof House" where the South Korean President lives and works. It was pretty underwhelming. The tour guide basically showed us the President's park, then walked us by a couple buildings before calling it a day.

Supposedly this tree is very old and famous

No sightings of President Lee Myung-bak

The next fortress on my agenda was Namhansanseong, the forest-mountain fortress. This defensive structure was built to protect Seoul from southern invaders and now seems to be a favorite hiking spot for old Korean men and women. The low fortress wall follows the entire mountain range, encircling a small traditional town and other temples and structures.

Korea's very own [semi] Great Wall
Seoul skyline through the smog

lookout tower on the west side

Sadly, there were no mannequins at Namhansanseong, but I think the scenery more than made up for it.