Seoul Springs To Life!

Finally! Everyone is enjoying the outdoors! Cooler temperatures, no more freezing days, and I can now wear shorts again!

Some flower festivals in the Korean countryside will spring to life (pun intended!) this weekend, but in Seoul, the forsythias have just started to paint the hills with their Cory yellow petals.

But the most popular flower festival in Seoul will start tomorrow. The cherry blossoms along the Yeouiseo road and in the Yeouido Park are just busy getting their flower buds out in time for the festival.

The Yeouido Spring Flower Festival is the most popular flower festival in Seoul, where millions walk through the three-kilometer stretch behind the National Assembly compound. This is one of the two events during the year where Yeouido roads are closed to traffic and only open to pedestrians. The other time is during the Yeouido fireworks festival during autumn.

But over the years, instead of going to the crowded Yeouido area, I visited the Namsan cherry blossom lane and the less crowded Seoul National Cemetery. 

I guess, for couples, they prefer walking under the cherry blossom trees on Namsan (Mt. Nam) where it's more quiet and less crowded than Yeouido. They'd still be able to whisper sweet romantic poems on each other's ears. Ha-ha-ha!

But if you want an even quieter surroundings, where nobody is allowed to bring in picnic tables or food carts, the Seoul National Cemetery is it.

The Yeouido cherry blossom festival is the most crowded because this is well-known, not only to Seoulites, but to people from cities and provinces nearby. It's very accessible through the subway, although it's still a long walk to the festival grounds. And over the years, international tourists have joined the hordes that are a mix of families, classmates, gangs of friends, couples (including mistresses, of course! Ha-ha-ha!), neighbors, and everyone else who may just want to have a nice spring-day stroll (and selfies!) under those enchanting 1,400 cherry blossom trees this spring.

And since the five-kilometer cherry blossom stretch in Yeouido is flat, walking for the elderly is easy and bringing baby strollers is very convenient, compared to the hilly Namsan. Plus, nearby, there's a park by the river where everyone can relax after.

So, where will you go for the cherry blossoms this spring? For me, it all depends on my sleeping patterns this weekend. Ha-ha-ha! Who knows? In case I wake up late, I may just visit Yeouido at night! And stumble upon the street performance of Mr. Ham, the magician, again!

Aside from Yeouido, Namsan and the Seoul National Cemetery, you can always visit some universities in Seoul to catch some cherry blossoms. 

But for sweet couple, Marlu and Joey, above, they already enjoyed these unique and amazing flower arrangements long before any cherry blossom tree in Seoul enamored anyone with its pink and white petals. These photographs were taken at the Jogyesa Temple's flower festival.

Enjoy your spring days, everyone! 

But do watch out for the yellow dust warnings!

Photo of the Day: Birds On A River Flock Together

The skies are blue, the sun is out, and the birds are enjoying spring, too!

Alongside the bikers, runners and occasional strollers, the pigeons are also enjoying a cool spring day along the Han River in Seoul. While the temperatures are perfect for a day under the sun, these birds remind everyone (including me!) that these days are not wasted in bed. Ha-ha-ha!

Thanks to these birds of the Han River flocking together. We have our photo of the day.

My Tree of the Day: Cherry Blossoms!

Well, since it's spring time, and everyone seems cheerful nowadays, I am choosing these cherry blossom trees next to our office as, well, instead of photo of the day, it's the tree of the day!

For the past week, when they seemed to have fully bloomed, they capture the attention of everyone passing by. Today, I even heard an ajumma exclaiming how pretty they were.

So, as everyone else in the building has already gone for the weekend and must be preparing to enjoy the cherry blossoms at the most popular spots in Yeouido and Namsan, I'm still stuck somewhere in the building. Ha-ha-ha! 

And if you are heading out tomorrow, too. Here's another spot where you can catch the cherry blossoms at a less crowded spot in Seoul:


 http://apinoyinkorea.blogspot.kr/2015/04/seoul-national-cemetery-my-new-cherry.html

As it is definitely the most popular spring bloom this weekend, it's just fair to name the cherry blossoms as the tree of the week!

Seoul National Cemetery: A Less Crowded Cherry Blossom Spot In Seoul!

I just found a new spot to see the cherry blossoms in Seoul!

If I go to Yeouido, I will be elbowing against a million other people while walking the five-kilometer cherry blossom lane behind the National Assembly grounds. So, there's no Yeouido for me this year. I have visited Yeouido on a few occasions during the cherry blossom festival, when the roads leading to the area are usually blocked off to vehicular traffic. The crowds have to walk from the Yeouinaru Station, and the buses going there are usually full.

A good time though to visit Yeouido would be at night when there are less crowds. But the problem at night is the organizers turn off the colored lights at midnight, just when everyone else is still enjoying the night stroll. I wonder if they will turn off the lights at midnight again this year.

                                   (Time for spring!)

                    (A kid running to join the soldiers' parade)

Other than the cherry blossoms, you can always visit the flowery areas along the mountain trails in Seoul. There's actually one near my neighborhood. Maybe I should visit Eungbong-san (Mt. Eungbong) this time. It's famous for its yellow forsythias this time of the year.

      (Crisp in their uniforms and precise in their cadence)

           (The exhibit includes facts about the Korean War)

There's another option: Nam-san, right in my neighborhood. This area is actually closer to home, and I can even ride a bus going up. To see the cherry blossoms, I can just walk down from the Seoul Tower area and follow the cherry blossom trail down to the Yongsan Library. This way, it's less tiring, but I think there will be a lot of people, too. Not only on the trail going down, but also on the ride going up!

If you want to take the Yellow Namsan Bus, I suggest you wait for it at the bus stop at Hangangjin Station, or maybe at the Chungmuro Station. Why? Because if you wait at the bus stops near Nam-san, it would already be full.

                        (Showing off their combat skills and 
                          their colorful traditional costumes)

But not too many people in Seoul know that there's another spot to catch the cherry blossoms. This place is not only near, it's also less crowded, airy, and they have a spring festival with a military parade and exhibits!

Where is it?

          (Crowds watching the parade and performances)

(Turn the beat around, love to hear percussion!)

It's the Seoul National Cemetery in the Dongjak District!

I visited the Seoul National Cemetery in the fall when the colors of the leaves were changing. The place was serene and quiet. Unlike other open spaces and parks in Seoul, putting up a kiosk to sell drinks and snacks is prohibited. This place was worth another visit; I will return in spring.

             (Cherry blossoms and a less crowded street)

              (Cherry blossoms and dramatic landmarks)

          (Thousands of tombstones for the fallen heroes)

I guess in spring, the Seoul National Cemetery will have more visitors as it celebrates a festival in time when the cherry blossoms bloom. The festival is complete with a military parade where soldiers show off their precision march while they wear their pristine uniforms and accompanied by a drum and bugle corps. If you're there, for a moment, you'd forget that this area is a cemetery, where heroes and martyrs are laid in honor, respect, and memory, and where solemnity is observed all the time. But as part of their calendar, the cemetery's administration celebrates the heroism of the fallen by having this festival of parades, performances and reenactments of ancient wars by soldiers in colorful traditional costumes.  Around the grounds, there are also displays of the Korean War relics to show the present generation actual artifacts from the Korean War.

If you decide to catch the cherry blossoms at the Seoul National Cemetery, just take the Subway Line 4 or Line 9, and get off at Dongjak Station. From Exit 8, the entrance is a few meters out. But unlike Yeouido, you can bring your car!

And since you're there, after going around to see the cherry blossoms, why don't you also visit the Memorial Tower where names and portraits of the fallen heroes and martyrs are placed. And behind it are sectioned areas that contain thousands of tombs of these heroes, where you would always see family members offering flowers and messages as a sign that these heroes are never forgotten.    

So, there. I just shared with you a new spot to catch the cherry blossoms in Seoul this spring. 

Have fun!

                                     *   *   *   *   *

Seoul National Cemetery's website:

http://www.snmb.mil.kr/mbshome/mbs/snmb_eng/index.jsp

The Jamsu Bridge And The Floating Island!

Everyone in Seoul knows about the Banpo Bridge, which is famous for its very colorful and fascinating dancing fountains. But what's not well known is that, while the fountains are actually installed on the higher Banpo Bridge, one can have fun selfies with the colored fountains as your background while standing on the Jamsu Bridge, the lower one. Yes, the Banpo Bridge has a less known twin, the Jamsu Bridge. 

                Pedestrians on one lane, cars on the other, 
                                  bikers in the middle)

Jamsu Bridge is actually the best way for everyone to cross the Han River because it has, one, a vehicle lane; two, a pedestrian lane; and three, a bike lane! And these three lanes are full of traffic all the time, especially on weekends!

As I live in the Yongsan District, which is connected to the Seocho District by the Banpo and Jamsu Bridges, on cool days, with comfortable shoes and a bottle of water (read blog here), I sometimes join hundreds of other people who stroll, run and bike at the lanes by the Han River bank, and I finish my stroll at the other side of the Han River (read blog here) at the other side of the Han River, at the Banpo Park after crossing the Jamsu Bridge.

              (Banpo Bridge above, Jamsu Bridge below)

                  (A green bus on Banpo Bridge)

Crossing the Han River through the Jamsu Bridge is actually an interesting and enjoyable experience. While the river is just a few meters beneath you, the idea that hundreds of other people jogging, strolling with their pets, biking in groups, families and couples are also on the bridge, not only trying to cross it, but actually having fun while doing so, makes the experience unique. It's like crossing the bridge itself is an experience of its own. No wonder a few Korean movies and TV dramas have been shot on this bridge. The funnel-like view of looking at the other end of the bridge, while under another bridge is a different perspective that is not found in any other part of the city. But on rainy season, when the Han River overflows, this bridge is closed to traffic. Can you imagine seeing the water level rise and the bridge disappears entirely from view? Scary!

                          (Floating Island)

                      (A selfie, actually)

On a cool, sunny day, after I cross the bridge, I complete my stroll at the other side, where there are three interesting structures called the Floating Island, which, as the name connotes, floats on the Han River but is attached to the river bank by footbridges. This multi-million dollar structure actually consists of three 'islets', namely, Vista, Viva and Terra. The big one, Vista, is open to the public, and I have been up there a couple of times already. Looking out from the topmost level gives you a different 360-degree view of this side of Seoul from the Banpo Park. 

Going there on foot from my home in Hannam-dong is not a problem as you'd always feel energized to walk or run with everyone else on a cool spring day. But going back home with tired legs usually tempts me to take the bus. Unfortunately, there's only one bus heading back, the Blue Bus 740, which is usually full of passengers crossing from Seocho to Yongsan. And taxis are scarce.

So, sometimes, on my way back, I sacrifice to walk a couple of kilometers or more with a few stops to rest just to solve the problem. And to take my mind off the distance I still have to cover, I just try to continuously enjoy the view of the river, the pigeons at the bank and the ducks on the water, the formations of the apartments on the other side, the unique get-ups of everyone I meet along the way, and be glad for the feel of the cool breezes, the bright blue color of the clear skies, and the sound of an energetic city amidst the noise of my grumbling stomach. Ha-ha-ha!

And looking at the faces of some tired joggers and bikers, I sometimes think they must have even come from the farthest districts of the city and may have covered longer distances. And they're not even complaining. Ha-ha-ha!

So, if you have free time these days, do try to enjoy crossing the Jamsu Bridge; the most useful pedestrian bridge over the Han River has a name! But come to think of it, Banpo Bridge, if without its colored fountains running, it just another bridge full of cars and buses. 

                           (A couple biking)

 

Jamsu Bridge, on the other hand, offers more than just a crossing. It affords everyone a run, a bike ride, and for strollers like me, a  totally unique experience of walking just a few meters above the Han River, amidst the cool spring breezes and with a special view of this part of the city. And of course, thanks to the Banpo Bridge above it, we cross the river under the shade.

              (A tunnel-view on Jamsu Bridge)

#jamsu #jamsubridge #seoul #korea