Day 6:

Not many pictures taken cos the day went like this...

1st stop:

Ginseng showroom, where photos weren't allowed. Anyway, was having some bad stomach cramps so didn't even think about the photos.

Authorized by the tourism board as selling authentic white ginseng. To the Koreans, ginseng is a perfect balance of 'yin and yang', as it is neither heaty nor cooling. Like our tour guide, Korean believe deeply in the effects of the Korean ginseng, which is considered one of the highest quality in the world.

Our tour guide related a personal experience whereby she felt that her health, which suffered during high school where she found herself spending only 3 hours a day on sleep and the rest of the day in school, was restored because of the effects of ginseng. Hence, she highly recommended ginseng as one of the best health supplements.

The ginseng products that we were introduced to at the showroom are mostly cultivated. It is said that the ginsent plant dies after it turns 6 years old, as indicated by 6 leaves on a single stalk on the plant. Hence, the high quality ginseng roots are 6 years of age, and are believed to have the most medicinal value.

However, the most highly prized ginseng is the wild ginseng, which can live to 1000s of years and it is believed that only special people bestowed by the mountain gods have the gift of spotting and harvesting a wild ginseng. People pay millions just for one singly wild ginseng root.

2nd stop:

Amethyst showroom. Again, no photos taken there.

I used to think that amethyst is a semi-precious stone so was shocked to see that one single pandent could cost at least US$100. And those would be stones that are of a lower grade. I didn't buy anything there cos wasn't keen on forking out so much for designs that to me were just normal. Anyway, stomach cramps were affecting my mood.

But of course, I only realized that amethyst was not a semi-precious stone but a precious stone after I spoke to my colleagues about the 'exhorbitant' prices. Hence the price. Still, wasn't keen on buying any.

Anyway, background on amethyst in Korea. It appears that Korea is a large producer of the natural quartz, though not as big as countries such as the States. Click here for more about the gemstone.

3rd stop:

Shopping at Namdaemun, though I think we only walked part of the whole stretch. It's mainly a shopping area well-known for trendy items and clothing. There is also an underground shopping mall but not as big as the one in Jeju.

I didn't bother to browse the clothing cos I know I probably don't fit into most of it (the Koreans are soooo slim and petite!!). However, it's nice to see all the quirky accessories and other items like souvenirs (lots of mugs, key chains, magnets, T-shirts, socks etc, with faces of popular Korean celebrities!), cosmetics etc.





We later went to Dongdaemun which unfortunately fell short of my expectations of an exotic shopping place in the line of Ladies Street Night Market in Hong Kong but bigger. Whatever we saw were shops selling dated clothing and poor imitations of shoes and bags. Then again, it could be because we were early. By the time we left, more shops had sprung up along the streets and it appeared that a crowd was gathering.

But Dongdaemun has a few shopping malls and we went into one with floors and floors of shop selling trendy fashion items which are priced from the mid to high range. Again, I didn't bother with the apparel, but I bought a necklace from one of the shops which to me was of unique design and is not easily found in Singapore. Basically, it was a long necklace with a pendent the shape of a pony made of wood but painted in silver, speckled with stars, and with another tiny sphere with stars hanging from the bottom of the pony. Cost me around S$20.

The day ended with some free and easy time where we wandered around the COEX Intercontinental Hotel's underground shopping mall. Now, this COEX, I must talk a little about this impressive hotel.

Basically, this is my first time in such a luxurious hotel! Huge beds, huge space, huge TV, huge executive desk, huge executive chair, huge toilet, complimentary premium coffee, earl grey, green tea with beautiful bone china mugs and a coffee grinder.







Ooooo....

Day 7:

Our last day in Korea before setting off for the airport to return to Singapore. However, before that, we made a trip to the Kyongbok Palace which belonged to the Joseon Dynasty, the last dynasty before the beginning of the Japan's colonization, which also marked the end of the monarchy system in Korea.

To know more about the Joseon Dynasty, see here.

We were in time for the guard-changing ceremony, a re-enactment of the ceremony during the height of the Joseon Dynasty.



Musicians standing in line to usher in the guards who would take over the posts.



In the middle of the ceremonial exchange of places.



We managed to stand beside a few guards (actors, actually) for some Kodak moments. Goodness! They were all very tall!!!



Just the chaotic scene when after the ceremony, everyone rushed to pose beside the guards who needed to remain expressionless and motionless. Poor things got mugged by all the tourists. I admit I did have that shameless urge to tug at one of the guards' clothing and maybe even tickle him a little.

Interesting history to be discovered from the palace. However, again, the history's not for me to relate. See here for the history of the Kyongbok Palace. Meanwhile, here are some interesting facts about the palace (not all though)...

First thing, if you think that the Palace looks suspiciously like a certain placed called the Forbidden City in Beijing, you are right. The Palace was actually modelled after the Forbidden City, after one of the kings got inspired by its architecture after a visit to the Chinese capital. Hence, the Kyongbok Palace was born.

Kyongbok Palace is actually much smaller and less impressive than China's one, since Korea had been a vessel state of China. Nevertheless, it is always exciting to experience a piece of history personally.



When greeting the king, officials had to stand according to their rank, as indicated by the stone-heads. Nearest to the main hall is of course are the first-ranked officials.



The path towards the main hall is very uneven and extremely unfit for a king. However, there was an explanation for such a design. For one, the king didn't have to walk. All he had to do was to be carried by sedan chair into the hall. More importantly, as the ground was so uneven, people who walked the path had to bow their heads to watch their step, hence indirectly bowing to the royal throne and the king. As demonstrated in the picture above.



The main hall, with the king's throne in the centre. Behind the throne is an embroidered cloth with images of the sun (representing the king), the moon (representing the queen), 5 mountains (representing north, south, east, wast and centre) and many other symbolic things. It is said that when the king went on outings, he had special personnel to carry the cloth around with him, so that when the king took a rest, this person could open the cloth behind him as he rested.



Just an interesting architectural feature. One shape represents male, the other represents female. Guess which is which.



The king's bed chamber.

After visiting the palace, it was time to leave for the airport. We stopped by at a restaurant for lunch, and visited the supermarket below the restaurant to do some last minute grocery shopping. This supermarket was clearly catered for tourist on the way back to their home country as the prices were really quite expensive.

With that, we ended our trip in Korea. It was a good experience, and I am certainly looking at Korea in a different angle from now.