Seoul-bound!

Dragon Hill Lodge, Seoul, S. Korea

Some friends of ours told us they were planning to go to Seoul for a short visit and invited us to join them. We were planning on going to Seoul later in the year, but thought it would be a nice change to have some friends to travel with. We arrived in Seoul on a cold and wet Friday evening. After dropping off our bags at the Dragon Hill Lodge, we ventured out to see a bit of the city and to get something to eat. We took the subway to the Namdaemun Markets but because of the weather, there wasn't much to see. All the vendors were closing shop. So we headed across the street to a nice shopping mall to get a nice Korean dinner. After dinner we headed back to the hotel to get some rest.
The weather was different each day we were there. The next day was fairly warm and dry. We only needed a sweater. We explored a good part of Seoul on Saturday. Going from the craziest Fish Market (Noryangjin) we'd ever seen to Insadong to the Gyeongbokgung Palace and to Myeongdong for some intense shopping!

At Gecko's with Riley and Maria

Maria, Riley and Chris arrived late Saturday evening and were exhausted by some travel delays and hiccups. We met them early Sunday morning for a tour of the notorious DMZ (DeMilitarized Zone). The area that separates North from South Korea. The tour is a must when visiting Seoul, because of the history and the incredible tunnels that were found. These tunnels, dug by the North Korean army, were an attempt to invade Seoul. Fortunately a defector from North Korea was captured by the South and led the South Koreans to find the tunnels. After the tours, we were starving and had a great lunch in Itaewon at Gecko's Garden.
The rest of trip was filled with sightseeing of this busy city, eating at some great restaurants and hanging out with good friends. We were only in Seoul for 4 days, but had a great time. So much so, that Elyce already wants to go back when it gets warmer!