June 21, 2017 - Day #19 Bukchon Village & Culinary Tour
June 21, 2017
Everyone was feeling jet lagged and had trouble sleeping last night. Matty and Carter, who are roommates were up since 2am. We all met downstairs in the lobby at 8:15am for breakfast. Greg recommended a restaurant 2 mins half from our hotel, Jin Han Cook. It was more like a lunch than breakfast. Most popular dishes that were ordered were Bim Bim Bap and ramen. Bim Bim Bap was the bomb! Even Steven, the most critical of the group, enjoyed it so much he said that he's coming back again tomorrow.
We returned to the hotel to freshen up and prepare for the adventure of the day. At 10am, three preordered taxis came to pick us up to take us to Bukchon Hanok Village, a Korean traditional village in Seoul. The traditional village is composed of lots of alleys, hanok(traditional Korean homes) and is preserved to show a 600-year-old urban environment. Now it is used as a traditional culture center and hank restaurant, allowing visitors to experience the atmosphere of the Joseon Dynasty.
Someone suggested that it would be fun to rent hanboks (traditional Korean dresses) and frolic around the streets for a couple of hours. In the spirit of fun, Emilie, Nicole, Wendy, and I dressed the part and got some memorable pictures. We lasted for less than an hour before it was too hot to wear them.
We left Bukchon Village and made our way to a famous Ginseng Chicken Soup place. It was so hot that we had to make two stops for drinks and ice cream.
Tosokchon Samgyetong is a traditional indigenous restaurant specializing in Ginseng Chicken Soup. Nicole, Emilie, Matty, Carter, Audrey, and I sat in a traditional Korean style dining room where we had to take off our shoes and sit on the floor. At first we liked it but after a few minutes it got uncomfortable. We ordered two Ginseng Chicken Soup for our table to share. I was proud of Carter and Audrey for trying it. They are usually very fussy eaters. The soup had a small chicken and stuffed with rice, ginseng, chestnut, and other herbs. While it was good, I'm not sure if I will go out of my way to eat it again. It's something that I would eat when I'm feeling sick at home.
We continued our culinary tour with a stop at a Tea House for some shaved ice. Greg led us to a place that looked pretty high end and another place that we had to sit on the floor. I sat with the youngsters again with Steven joining our group. We ordered 3 shaved ice desserts to share. Emilie in her excitement of picture taking knocked over the whole cup of milk that was meant to be poured over the shaved ice. I don't know if we were just so tired or there was something in the ginseng chicken soup that made us loopy, but we were laughing uncontrollably over spilled milk.
Matty feel asleep at the Tea House and woke up tired and cranky. The original plan was to walk back to the hotel which was a mile away. He begged for a taxi which was hard to catch in the area we were at. We walked to a more busy street where we finally hailed one. Back at the hotel, Matty ate a bowl of top ramen, showered and went to bed. It was only 5pm. Even though Russell and I were tired, we tried not to take a nap. We rested in our room and watched a movie until it was time for dinner.
For dinner, we went to a new place across from Jin Han Cook (our breakfast place). Steven was determined to find the best Bim Bim Bap in Korea. Although he enjoyed the one here, he said it wasn't as good as this morning's. Russell, Nicole, and I ended our night with a walk in the night market enjoying the cooler weather and people watching. Most importantly, we got to spend some quality time with our Goddaughter.
Everyone was feeling jet lagged and had trouble sleeping last night. Matty and Carter, who are roommates were up since 2am. We all met downstairs in the lobby at 8:15am for breakfast. Greg recommended a restaurant 2 mins half from our hotel, Jin Han Cook. It was more like a lunch than breakfast. Most popular dishes that were ordered were Bim Bim Bap and ramen. Bim Bim Bap was the bomb! Even Steven, the most critical of the group, enjoyed it so much he said that he's coming back again tomorrow.
We returned to the hotel to freshen up and prepare for the adventure of the day. At 10am, three preordered taxis came to pick us up to take us to Bukchon Hanok Village, a Korean traditional village in Seoul. The traditional village is composed of lots of alleys, hanok(traditional Korean homes) and is preserved to show a 600-year-old urban environment. Now it is used as a traditional culture center and hank restaurant, allowing visitors to experience the atmosphere of the Joseon Dynasty.
Someone suggested that it would be fun to rent hanboks (traditional Korean dresses) and frolic around the streets for a couple of hours. In the spirit of fun, Emilie, Nicole, Wendy, and I dressed the part and got some memorable pictures. We lasted for less than an hour before it was too hot to wear them.
We left Bukchon Village and made our way to a famous Ginseng Chicken Soup place. It was so hot that we had to make two stops for drinks and ice cream.
Tosokchon Samgyetong is a traditional indigenous restaurant specializing in Ginseng Chicken Soup. Nicole, Emilie, Matty, Carter, Audrey, and I sat in a traditional Korean style dining room where we had to take off our shoes and sit on the floor. At first we liked it but after a few minutes it got uncomfortable. We ordered two Ginseng Chicken Soup for our table to share. I was proud of Carter and Audrey for trying it. They are usually very fussy eaters. The soup had a small chicken and stuffed with rice, ginseng, chestnut, and other herbs. While it was good, I'm not sure if I will go out of my way to eat it again. It's something that I would eat when I'm feeling sick at home.
We continued our culinary tour with a stop at a Tea House for some shaved ice. Greg led us to a place that looked pretty high end and another place that we had to sit on the floor. I sat with the youngsters again with Steven joining our group. We ordered 3 shaved ice desserts to share. Emilie in her excitement of picture taking knocked over the whole cup of milk that was meant to be poured over the shaved ice. I don't know if we were just so tired or there was something in the ginseng chicken soup that made us loopy, but we were laughing uncontrollably over spilled milk.
Matty feel asleep at the Tea House and woke up tired and cranky. The original plan was to walk back to the hotel which was a mile away. He begged for a taxi which was hard to catch in the area we were at. We walked to a more busy street where we finally hailed one. Back at the hotel, Matty ate a bowl of top ramen, showered and went to bed. It was only 5pm. Even though Russell and I were tired, we tried not to take a nap. We rested in our room and watched a movie until it was time for dinner.
For dinner, we went to a new place across from Jin Han Cook (our breakfast place). Steven was determined to find the best Bim Bim Bap in Korea. Although he enjoyed the one here, he said it wasn't as good as this morning's. Russell, Nicole, and I ended our night with a walk in the night market enjoying the cooler weather and people watching. Most importantly, we got to spend some quality time with our Goddaughter.
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