Day 8 ... a market, some ice skating and then time to head home

Today was our last day in Korea. Kim and Claire have another week ...  but today was our final day in this adventure.

So ... it was time to pack our suitcases and check out of Orakai Suites.  The kids were also leaving this hotel as we had booked them into a smaller hotel (literally across from Orakai) for the remainder of their days in Seoul.

We checked out and the hotel stored our luggage so we could head out for the day unencumbered.  We headed to the subway to catch a train (well 2 actually) to Namdaemun Market.

 

Whilst we had visited Namdaemun earlier this week we hadn't had the full experience so we decided to revisit today. Namdaemun is the largest traditional market in Korea and is right next to the Namdaemun Gate. It first began operating in 1414 and whilst it is nothing like it was then it is an incredible place to visit.

The market is largely owned by a collective of merchants who operate individual stalls within it. It is estimated to contain 5,200 stores, with over 9,000 workers and covers an area of 64,600 m². Some of the stalls are on street level but behind those stalls are 3 or 4 storey buildings with hundreds of stalls on every level. There are buildings for linen, for clothes, for kitchenware, for party items, and of course, for food. 

We spent a good few hours wandering through ... in awe! The kids wandered also ... doing some shopping whilst I tended to just take photos! It was fabulous. We stopped to grab some lovely hot hotteok before leaving the market for our next destination. 

We wandered down one of the main streets of Seoul (Sejong-daero) passing the gate, and Doeksugung Palace which we had visited a few days earlier ... this time though there were no political rallies under way (except for the one in another part of Seoul where the President was being arrested!).

 

We arrived at Seoul Plaza ... located out the front of Old City Hall and the new, modern City Hall. The old building which was built in 1925, now houses the Seoul Metropolitan Library ... so of course Ian and I wandered in. It is a nice library ... not the glitz and glam of Starfield! There were lots of people in there ... using the computers,  studying and reading. Interestingly ... we could find no evidence of fiction. Just lots and lots of non-fiction. And for our library friends ... I was keen to do a weed!!

We stopped to look in the new City Hall, which was built in 2008. It is an architectural wonder ... glass, steel, hanging gardens and sculptures. Definitely worth popping in to have a look.

 

However, these were not our intended destination! Seoul Plaza is currently playing host to an outdoor ice skating rink. For 1000W (about $1) you can hire skates and a helmet and you have access to the rink for an hour. Kim, Claire and I donned our gear and, with Ian playing photographer and offering moral support (he didn't feel his bones/metal plates were quite up to the potential of a snapped ankle) we headed out on the ice. For just on half an hour we stayed around the rink ... with trepidation and caution at first and then with some degree of confidence.  None of us fell over  ... so victory was ours!

 

And then to our final lunch together. The kids had spied a restaurant on the stream when we had walked along to see the lantern festival called La Grillia. We think it was the first restaurant we visited when we came with the parents back in 2010. So this is where we went today. Lovely Italian food ... yes ... in Korea.

And then it was time to head back to collect our bags and head to the airport. We walked along some back streets to make our way to the top of Insadong. Along the way we encountered Jogyesa Temple, the main Buddhist temple in Seoul. We had never seen it before on any of our trips ... it was a pleasant surprise.

 

Then, last shopping done, we collected our bags and walked with Kim and Claire to their new hotel. We rearranged some luggage (we are bringing things home for them) and then said some final goodbyes with lots of hugs before we headed off to the subway to make our way to the airport via the Airport rail link (are you listening Melbourne Airport!)

All checked in ... now airside ... and soon to board our plane. This adventure is over for us (but Kim and Claire are now free of the oldies). We have loved the chance to come back and see Korea again. It has been an incredibly special experience to come back with Kim and to show Claire a little of his birth country. Anyone who wants a tour guide ... hit me up!!

 

And now … time to head home so we can look forward to our next adventure.