Deoksugung (Palace)

Thursday, two friends and I went to Deoksugung (gung means palace). It is the smallest one of several palaces in Seoul, and simply stunning!

We ate dinner at a delicious Korean 식당 (restaurant), where an kindly Korean grandfather served us and talked to us in Korean, whilst we nodded our heads and smiled politely, pretending we understood more than we actually did. We then entered the palace. Entry fee is only 1000 Won, equivalent to less than a dollar.

Entrance to the courtyard leading to throne room

Although it was dark by now, the palace was well lit, we walked around the grounds, and entered the throne room. I say throne room, but Korean palaces are very different from any of the numerous castles and palaces in Europe. Instead of one building, with many different rooms and hall, Korean palaces are a construction of several buildings, each serving its own purpose. The buildings are intricately decorated in colors symbolizing various things.

Courtyard infront of the throne room

It was a wonderful feeling to walk where centuries ago people lived and served their king. Because it was dark, and rather cold, we were almost alone on the grounds. It was a little island of calm amidst the rising skyscrapers and traffic choir of Seoul. It was peaceful.

The throne room 

Later in the evening we joined a small audience to watch a Korean traditional performance. It was unlike anything I've ever seen. The dancing and music was more rhythmic than melodic, and several of the older spectators joined the dancing, enjoying the performance very much.

Dancing and drumming

My favorite part of the performance was seeing the expressions of the musicians. They breathed the music. When artists believe in what they are doing, it makes the audience believe. Through the vivid expressions of the musicians, I began to understand a little bit of the great history and love these people have for their country. 

 A short clip of part of the performance. Sorry for the bad quality, my camera does not do well at night! But hopefully you get the idea of what it was like!

S.A.C. Water Fountain and more!

NOTE: I wrote this last week, and completely forgot to publish it...so here it is! A week late....yeah....

Although today is only Tuesday, it was the last day of classes, as the rest of the week is vacation. Korea  celebrates thanksgiving on Thursday. Because of Chusok (as it is called) we get to have the rest of the week off! I'm feeling thankful indeed!
Here's a picture of my lecture notes on todays classes (19th century Brit. Novel and Studies in Post Colonial Lit), just to show that I'm not JUST having fun here in Seoul! ^_^





 Yesterday a friend and I went to the S.A.C. (Seoul Arts Center). The same place I had been hiking at a week before. Because we are students, we get to buy tickets at a pretty decent price. That night a Korean pianist was playing Chopin, and I was so excited to see her! Chopin is one of my favorite composers.

Sorry for the bad quality, I only had my iPod to take pictures!
Here's the outside of S.A.C.

The musical water fountain!

The two of us left early to take the subway, because it takes 45 min to get to the center. The subway was packed, as we accidentally hit rush hour. I can now say from experience, rush hour in Seoul is no fun. However we made it in one piece, with an hour to spare before the concert began. After getting our tickets, we sat in front of S.A.C. to listen to the water fountain. Every night the fountain plays music and the water dances in tune (or so it seems). It is simply beautiful. A lot of spectators were sitting around the fountain, simply enjoying the free spectacle. I am definitely planning on going back soon!
Here's a video of the fountain:

The concert itself was wonderful as well. Chopin has a way of mesmerizing your ears, and watching the talented pianist's hands fly over the keys had a way of mesmerizing the eyes. I definitely am a fan of piano (and not just 'cause I play it myself). All in all, it was a wonderfully successful night. God is definitely good, for letting me experience such a variety of things during my time here in Seoul.

Museum day!

Today I spent the day with a bunch of other students at the Trick Eye museum in Seoul! The museum features 3D interactive paintings that are surprisingly realistic. I highly recommend this museum for anyone who ever comes to Seoul, and is interested in art! Here are some pictures below:

Just chillin' in impressionism!

Ahhh!!! I was laughing the whole time. This is the only picture I have a semi-serious "I'm about to die" face.

The paintings were often painted directly on the wall. The attention to shadow, contrast, lighting, etc. was just amazing! I would love to be able to paint like this one day. I will keep practicing! 

The paparazzi and me

Oh yeah, me and Obama are reee-al tight!

The museum also features an Ice Room with numerous sculptures. They kindly provided blankets for us, but even so it was only 2 degrees Celsius, and I was freezing! I lasted about 5 minutes, and had to leave, otherwise I would have become one of the sculpted ice attractions myself!

Freeeeeeeeeeeezing!

Just another one of those ice sculptures!^^

Thanks to my new friend Janie for all the photos! :D