This is my first trip to Korea. I arrived at my hotel at 1:30 am on Saturday morning. After spending two months in Thailand with an average of 90-degree weather, my body went into a kind of shock. I went from Summer to Winter literally overnight. After I readjusted to the cooler weather, I was ready to get out and explore. Here are some highlights from my first days solo in Seoul.
My First Walk Around Solo in Seoul
My first task here was finding a winter coat as I did not pack one. I was lucky to find a nice warm coat at a marketplace a few blocks from my hotel.
I took a walk to orient myself to the immediate neighborhood. It is getting easier to navigate around a strange city. Seoul reminds me of New York because it is just as populated with nearly ten million people but the area is geographically larger.
As I walk down the crowded street on this Sunday morning, I feel like I truly stand out. I seem to be the only Caucasian person walking the streets amongst the Koreans. As a result, I made an effort to interact with the residents.
My first Monday I had a half day tour of Jogyesa Temple and Gyeonbokgung Palace. It was freezing this day, however I enjoyed visiting the Temple and the Palace.
Jogyesa Temple
Gyeonbokgung Palace
I got to see the changing of the guard at Gyeonbokgung Palace. This is the largest of the five grand palaces in Seoul and dates all the way back to 1395.
Exploring Gyeonbokgung Palace.
After the ceremony was completed, I braved the frigid weather and explored the palace. Here I saw shrines, plus the separate King’s and Queen’s residences. We also discovered a very accurate sun dial.
I am looking forward to more exploration of this fascinating city. Keep following my blog for more of my discoveries while solo in Seoul.
Nicole the Travel Scribe 
[…] I planned to visit Korea, I had planned to visit many of the places mentioned on the show such as Seoul and Panmunjom also known as the Joint Security Area or JSA. I discovered that nearly 70 years after […]
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We visited Seoul in the winter and were SHOCKED at how cold it was! It was definitely much colder than Japan (and I can’t even imagine how much colder than Thailand!) Seoul was such an amazing place, I can’t wait to go back– your photos brought back so many memories. Beautiful!
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I love all the pictures and videos, they bring the place to life and give you a real feel for the place!
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I loved this piece! Your photos were amazing. Thank you so much for sharing your adventure!
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Nice article. This is a place that I am becoming more and more interested to visiting. Hopefully when this pandemic is under control, I will be able to visit.
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Would love to visit Seoul – we were supposed to have gone in 2020 but our trip was cancelled.
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Seoul is one of the places we cant wait to visit. Your beautiful pictures only add to this desire, can’t wait to follow your adventures!
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