A Royal Palace Tour
At one point in their life, I'm quite sure that every girl has dreamed of being a princess. And I'm not just referring to Disney type of Princess, it can be a Boho chic type, a warrior princess, the rock and roll one, or in some cases, the perfectly refined historical type.
I just mentioned about princesses because today marks Charles Perrault's 388th birthday. He's the author of the beloved fairy tale Cinderella. Coincidentally, it's also my favorite among the classics.
Princesses are a good way to start my post about my Royal Palace Tour with my friends. Seoul actually has 5 Grand Royal Palaces.(Changdeokgung, Deoksugung, Unhyeongung,Changgyeonggung and Gyeongbokgung)
Fun Fact: What's with the Gung? Well, Gung means palace in Korean.
I've been to 3 of them and I can say that they are worth visiting even if you're not a historical buff mainly because you get to see the fusion of tradition and modernity in this fast-paced city.
Fun Fact: What's with the Gung? Well, Gung means palace in Korean.
I've been to 3 of them and I can say that they are worth visiting even if you're not a historical buff mainly because you get to see the fusion of tradition and modernity in this fast-paced city.
The most famous among the 5 Grand Royal Palaces is Gyeongbokgung being the largest and most-visited by tourists. I can still remember the first time I visited this place five years ago on my birthday. I got the Royal treatment being fortunate enough to see the changing of guards and wearing hanbok.
So for my second time around, I was in for surprises. First was as soon as we exited the subway, we were greeted by a bunch of friendly tourist guides offering their English service for free. And mind you, they are not your ordinary boring tourist guides. They were actually fun and hip middle school students with advanced level of English.
At first, my friends and I were quite hesitant to accept their service since we wanted to have a leisurely walk around the palace without being forced to look around meaningless structures. But, we finally decided to give them a try since three of my friends were first time visitors. I wouldn't even dare to pretend I know anything about the place so I can't be the designated tour guide.
I highly suggest that you take advantage of their offer since they can give you a better palace tour experience. Not only do they provide interesting information beyond the usual memorized scripts, they are also very accommodating when it comes to taking your pictures and making sure you get a view of the best features of the palace.
Worth mentioning is the second surprise when we got admitted to the palace for free. Turns out, it was our lucky day.
I love how our tour guides gamely posed for our wacky pictures as well. And for the first time, I can honestly say that I became interested in history because of the way they narrated the stories to us, I became fascinated with the fact about the number of dragons on the ceilings, the stories behind the king's chamber, the queen's secret garden, how the furnaces worked in the palace olden times, the devastation of war, power struggle in the royalty, forbidden love, tragic love stories and other fateful events that shaped and defined Korean history.
These were stories that were sometimes untold and neglected in history books, often deemed as trivial and unworthy of interest. I would never find out the truth behind these stories, some might argue that they were fabricated to spice up facts however, regardless of their validity, they exist because they originated based on some slice of truth and people enjoy listening to them.
So how would I rate this Royal Trip? I would rate it 5/5. It was an afternoon well-spent strolling around an edifice that stood the test of time simply because people believed in the value of their rich culture. It may not be as grand as the castles where princesses found their happy endings, but these palaces sure are a heritage that will continue to have a lasting impact beyond happy ever after.
And no, I didn't find my prince charming either but exploring the palace with my coolest friends gave me the happy ending I wanted. :)
Photo credit goes to my travel buddies Ralph, Vince, Ena, Poli and Jessica. You guys are the best, thanks!
If you're planning to have your own Royal Palace Tour, here's some useful information that you might want to check out.
Gyeongbokgung Palace
So for my second time around, I was in for surprises. First was as soon as we exited the subway, we were greeted by a bunch of friendly tourist guides offering their English service for free. And mind you, they are not your ordinary boring tourist guides. They were actually fun and hip middle school students with advanced level of English.
At first, my friends and I were quite hesitant to accept their service since we wanted to have a leisurely walk around the palace without being forced to look around meaningless structures. But, we finally decided to give them a try since three of my friends were first time visitors. I wouldn't even dare to pretend I know anything about the place so I can't be the designated tour guide.
I highly suggest that you take advantage of their offer since they can give you a better palace tour experience. Not only do they provide interesting information beyond the usual memorized scripts, they are also very accommodating when it comes to taking your pictures and making sure you get a view of the best features of the palace.
Worth mentioning is the second surprise when we got admitted to the palace for free. Turns out, it was our lucky day.
I love how our tour guides gamely posed for our wacky pictures as well. And for the first time, I can honestly say that I became interested in history because of the way they narrated the stories to us, I became fascinated with the fact about the number of dragons on the ceilings, the stories behind the king's chamber, the queen's secret garden, how the furnaces worked in the palace olden times, the devastation of war, power struggle in the royalty, forbidden love, tragic love stories and other fateful events that shaped and defined Korean history.
These were stories that were sometimes untold and neglected in history books, often deemed as trivial and unworthy of interest. I would never find out the truth behind these stories, some might argue that they were fabricated to spice up facts however, regardless of their validity, they exist because they originated based on some slice of truth and people enjoy listening to them.
So how would I rate this Royal Trip? I would rate it 5/5. It was an afternoon well-spent strolling around an edifice that stood the test of time simply because people believed in the value of their rich culture. It may not be as grand as the castles where princesses found their happy endings, but these palaces sure are a heritage that will continue to have a lasting impact beyond happy ever after.
And no, I didn't find my prince charming either but exploring the palace with my coolest friends gave me the happy ending I wanted. :)
Photo credit goes to my travel buddies Ralph, Vince, Ena, Poli and Jessica. You guys are the best, thanks!
If you're planning to have your own Royal Palace Tour, here's some useful information that you might want to check out.
Gyeongbokgung Palace
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