In May, 2012 I went to Asia on the “Three-Countries-Three-Weeks-Three-Kids” tour. The first stop on this once-in-a-lifetime trip was Shanghai, followed by Seoul.
After starting at the Seoul Tower in Namsan Park, we started walking down the hill toward the nearby Jongno-gu business district. (It is to the north of Namsan Park, between the tower and the Gyeongokgung Palace.) Just before we got to the bottom of the mountain, this is the view to the north.
There were lots of extremely interesting skyscrapers and wonderful architecture.
There were many large, public art pieces.
Some were more whimsical than others. On wide streets between towering skyscrapers were all kinds of tiny parks and spaces where people were eating lunch and taking breaks.
The Cheonggyecheon Stream runs down the middle of one of the east-west boulevards. With fountains at the west end, it runs toward the east with the “river bed” accessible to everyone.
There are large sculptures out in the middle of the flowing water, many of them extremely colorful.
At the “head” of the stream, turn north on Sejong-daero toward the Gyeongokgung Palace and museum (in the distance at the bottom of the mountain). There are several prominent monuments along the way, with the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Central Government Complex on the left, the US Embassy on the right.
At Gwanghwamun Square you’ll find this statue of Admiral Yi Sun-Shin, a famed Korean naval commander who died defeating a Japanese fleet in 1598.
Further down Gwanghwamun Square is this huge statue of Sejong the Great, an emperor of the early 15th Century. Beyond, you can see that we’re almost at the Gwanghwamun Gate of the Gyeongokgung Palace grounds.
We Love The Stars Too Fondly 