We met up at Jongmyo Shrine - which is where the memorial tablets for the kings and queens of the Joseon dynasty are kept. It is a beautiful place - and is probably one of my favourite places to go to in Seoul. We had saved it for today - our last full day in Seoul, but having arrived discovered that the only way you could visit the shrine at the moment is via a guided tour and that the next tour was not for another hour! So - frustration number 3. We didn't stay for the tour as the shrine is somewhere that you just want to experience at your own pace - not with a guide telling you to keep moving, keep moving.....so we changed plans again.
We grabbed a taxi to Changyeonggung Palace. This is my absolute favourite palace in Seoul. It is the least flashy of the big palaces and is often fairly quiet so you get to enjoy it a lot more. In the past you visit the Shrine and then walk over a walk bridge into the palace but the bridge is now gone. The visit was fantastic - I was reminded about all the reasons why I love it so much. We were able to wander at our pace, take pictures, Han got to trick and the boys got to toss coins on the lucky temple. Ian was slightly frustrated at the beginning as he was told to go to 2 different information booths for a guide map - only to find that in the end he needed to get a map at the ticket booth!
After the palace we headed back to KTO and managed to get our theatre tickets, found some lunch at a cool place called School Food and then headed up to Gwanghwamum Square to watch the martial arts demonstration again. Ian got dragged up to break a board - and yes I have it on video and at the end of the performance Han asked the team if he could perform a 540 hook (also known as a cheat 720) with one of the team and they happily agreed. We have video of that too (Han's video is more spectacular than Ian's).
We filled in time between the martial arts performance and Action Drawing Hero by catching a train to Myeongdong for the boys to do some last minute shopping and watched some live music in the streets. Then we went to the show - which was awesome. Basically there were 4 guys who did a performance to music which involved drawing and dancing. The art that they created was incredible - chalk drawings, painting, sand art, ink on water and drawing using what looked like UV light. It was amazing to watch and to see them dance along the way. This show is not as well known as Nanta and Jump - but it is definitely worth seeing.
Our evening ended with tea at Hongik - for the last time. We went to a place called Meat-ing. It is an all you can eat Korean BBQ. You go and pick what meat you want from about 10-15 different choices and then BBQ it at your table. There were also lots of sides to pick from - so we were all well fed.
So - last day tomorrow (sad face). Packing in the morning, check out and say goodbye to the agency and then we will head into Seoul for the last few hours before heading to the airport. We are all sad to go - and have already started talking about when we will come back again (the boys and I are working on Ian for April 2015). This has been an amazing trip - we feel like Korea is our second home. My final post may not happen tomorrow - but I will make a final post before I end the blog - so stay tuned.
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