Ttukseom Seoul Forest Park

I think this park is my favorite of all the parks we've visited. It is large and involves much walking, (map) but there is so much to see and do that the walking is not wearying. The park covers nearly 300 acres of what in ages past used to be kings hunting grounds, then much later a golf course, then horse track, then sports field, and now a great place for families to spend the day. It is now topically divided into five parks, all seamlessly connected. They are Cultural Art Park, Eco Forest, Experiential Learning Park, Marsh Plants Garden, and the Han River Waterside Park.

The main entrance opens to the Cultural Art Park, starting with a statue of racing horses.

Beyond that is a small sculpture garden and "Mirror Lake", which is a black stone bottomed large puddle really. It's only about an inch deep, but with the clouds and trees clearly reflected of its surface, it was quite pretty to look at.

Mirror Lake with the sculptures in back.

In the culture park there is also an outdoor stage and fountain play area. The fountains were off when we arrived, but later in the afternoon they had been turned on. I discovered later that the hours are 11:00, 1:00, 3:00, and 5:00 for one hour each, April to October. They have gender separated tents set up to allow for changing clothes. Up the path a bit from the 'lake' is a large playground area where the kids had tons of fun!

Kids can climb inside this from one foot to the other.

On the back right is the two level slide; super fun for the kids!

After a snack, we strolled through a small part of the specially planted wood area...

...then over to the Eco Forest where they have a deer corral. You can buy food to feed the deer, but we just used grass.  

After this, it was past the waterfall area where we had a brief science lesson on water-skippers...

and over to the butterfly room and insectarium, which was really a greenhouse with an area that had dead bugs on display.

Trying to get the nabi on her finger!

Insectarium

The paths are beautifully landscaped and well tended, so even just coming to stroll provides entertainment. All this, and that is only about half of the park! We will definitely be going back, especially now that fall is knocking on the door!

Samcheong-dong Walk

It has been a hot summer! We've been pretty lazy, mostly just hanging out at the house to avoid the heat. However at some point you just have to suck it up and get out. It was my bi-weekly 'mental health day', so I chose another walking tour. This one was around Samcheong-dong. I was also able to have a friend along, and we had a great time exploring, even in the heat! 

After emerging from the subway (Anguk station, exit 1), we got our bearings and started off. The first recommended stop was Seoul Selections, which is a very small English bookstore where they have a coffee/tea bar. After spending much time and money at What the Book and another used English bookstore in Itaewon, I'm not sure how Selections can compete. We went in a few small art galleries and viewed the selections. There are numerous small galleries, little restaurants, and quaint shops in this neighborhood. The farther you get from the subway, the less city-like it feels, which was a wonderful escape!

temple area

Random scene from the neighborhood.

Another recommended spot on the tour was the Owl Museum, which consists of an old woman's collection of over 2500 owl items. There was some really interesting items in there. No pictures are allowed, but admission (5000 won) does come with a drink!

owl museum

We continued the walk, trying to find the chicken art museum. We were unsuccessful, but did discover an embroidery museum and traditional painting musuem, where you can make your own items under their tutelage (reservations required). According to my book and a map I picked up on our walk, there a numerous other places like that in this area, but by this time we were hot and tired.

Nice view!

One of the numerous alleyways in the area.

This is a fantastic area of Seoul. It is across the street from Insadong, near the large and popular Gyeongbokgung Palace, the Presidential Home, and it contains the Bukchon Hanok village, an area of traditional style Korean homes. I will most definitely be going back...when the weather cools down!