Seoul, Korea

[afbluebelle]

I'll give you 3 guesses where I'm going soon, and the first two don't count 

Any suggestions?

[sparksals]

Do you know if you will be at Yongsan?   

[afbluebelle]

I'll be a little further south at Osan AB... Rumor has it that we'll have weekends off, so I'm looking at doing some day trips.

[trailgrrl]

Accompanied or unaccompanied?

[afbluebelle]

Unaccompanied... we are deploying there, so no families. I'll just have my loony coworkers.

[iridaceae]

I visited my sister and brother in law at Osan!  I had a wonderful time.  I easily could have spent about 10 days in Seoul alone. The Seoul City Bus Tour (hop on and off)  is a great way to sightsee.  Also, Songtan Alley has some great stores. 

Make sure you visit the DMZ and the Korean Folk Village.

We took the USO tour that went to that Buddhist Temple and then the Korean Folk Village and it was a nice introduction to South Korea. 

Also, the vegetation looks like Wisconsin.

[sparksals]

Osan has great shopping.  I frequently went there for a change of pace from Seoul. 

Places in Seoul to go:  InsaDong, a cute shopping area with gleries and traditional restaurants.   NamDaeMun traditional market with everything and anything.  NamSan Tower, great 360 views of Seoul. JeJu Island, the Hawaii of Korea.  KyungJu, the birthplace if Korea and the Shilla dynasty.

I wouldn't say the vegetation in Korea is like Wisconsin.  There are many rice paddles and farmland, but Korea is mountainous with the population living In 25% of the land bc of the extreme mountain regions.

Many in Osan go to Seoul for the weekend. It is about an hour away.  Itaewon is the olace to go as well as Hundai for nightclub.

[iridaceae]

I wouldn't say the vegetation in Korea is like Wisconsin.  There are many rice paddles and farmland, but Korea is mountainous with the population living In 25% of the land bc of the extreme mountain regions.

Rice paddies aside, we are all from Wisconsin (well, not my brother in law) and we looked at the scenery on the drive from Incheon to Osan and that's what we said. After all, Koreans love their ginseng- which they grow there- and Marathon County, Wisconsin is the home of ginseng production in the US!

We stayed at that Dragon Hill Lodge in Seoul and my ssiter specifically booked us into a tower room; she swears those are nicer rooms.

Believe it or not there is a very nice German or Austrian restaurant in Itaewon!  We found it by accident and had a wonderful meal there. Chef Meili's- something like that.

The Namas Tower is fun, the War Museum is excellent and wear excellent walking shoes if you go to the National Museum.

[sparksals]

I wouldn't say the vegetation in Korea is like Wisconsin.  There are many rice paddles and farmland, but Korea is mountainous with the population living In 25% of the land bc of the extreme mountain regions.

Rice paddies aside, we are all from Wisconsin (well, not my brother in law) and we looked at the scenery on the drive from Incheon to Osan and that's what we said. After all, Koreans love their ginseng- which they grow there- and Marathon County, Wisconsin is the home of ginseng production in the US!

We stayed at that Dragon Hill Lodge in Seoul and my ssiter specifically booked us into a tower room; she swears those are nicer rooms.

Believe it or not there is a very nice German or Austrian restaurant in Itaewon!  We found it by accident and had a wonderful meal there. Chef Meili's- something like that.

The Namas Tower is fun, the War Museum is excellent and wear excellent walking shoes if you go to the National Museum.

That explains it... you didn't get into the rural parts of Korea.  The Seoul Metro area extending as far as Osan is probably the flattest.  I thought you had been through Korea b/c the rest is very mountainous.  Even Seoul is... I slid down many an icy hill when I lived there b/c Ajumma likes to toss hot water on the ice to thaw it, only for it to freeze again. 

A great watering hole in Itaewon is the Three Alley Pub.  That is where I met my husband.  There are lots of restaurants in Itaewon and I hear it has improved since I left.  There is a French restaurant across from the 3AP that is very good.  Can't remember the name, though. 

Just a slight correction - it is Namsan Tower/Mountain.   Anything ending in 'San' in Korea refers to a Mountain.  The views from there are spectacular if it is not a smoggy day.

[iridaceae]

Well, Wisconsin isn't exactly flat-as-a-pancake Florida; it has hills and bluffs. We did see some Buddhist temple in the mountains somewhere around the Seoul area and did go to the DMZ.  But the trees, the plants? Looked like Wisconsin to us.

Yeah, I knew I'd misspelled Namsan but I was in a hurry.

ETA: Chef Meili's

Chef Meili’s
Telephone: 794-7024
Location: Next to Gecko’s Terrace, across from the Hamilton Hotel in Itaewon
Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Days: Closed Mondays


 

[hobish]

You will get to have real Korean kimche. I am jealous. And ribs! Beef ribs cooked right! Excuse me while i drool a moment. Korean food is so good.

[sparksals]

Love Korean food!  Kalbi was one of my faves as is Kimchi.