Tuesday afternoon - subway to Namdaemun

After a quick snack break at the hotel over lunch, we headed back out to the subway to get to the huge Namdaemun markets.  On the way, we bumped into a bunch of school girls on their way back from classes (we've run into a bunch of boys and girls on the subway).  We also saw the conveniences of touch-screen displays (modern) and "squatty potties" (not so modern).  The touch screen displays had ads, but then you could look up all types of information, interactive subway maps, satellite maps, etc.....very cool!

Tuesday AM - Toy District

Tuesday morning we took a trip out to the Wholesale Toy District.  We went there last time we were here, and found some fun Korean toys to bring back, so we knew we wanted to make the trip back.  We found it quicker this time, but it was much more crowded....this coming Thursday is Children's Day in Korea - a big holiday here - and we think lots of the parents must have been out picking up presents for their kids (like we were too)!  They had a mix of Korean and other asian toys, and also a mix of Western toys (Thomas the train, etc.)...we liked all the asian toys the best!  Most of the stores had piles and piles of toys, and daddy almost got in trouble - he was picking out some packs of stickers, and it turns out he was breaking up a huge set of stickers designed for purchase and use in a retail store!

Monday - Dinner and Shopping in Insadong

Our hotel is in the Insadong section of Seoul, and just around the corner from the main "street" of Insadong which is lined with shops and restaurants.  For our first dinner out, we went to Sojim, which was one of our highlights from last time in Seoul.  We shared a 2-person, 20-course vegetarian meal (plus we had a few fish dishes too).

After dinner we took a walk through most of the shops in Insadong and did some shopping and browsing!  This section of town has some more of the artisan crafts than others...fun!

 

Fun pictures!

As we were going through the Yongsan subway station in our eletronics joournes, Mommy and Daddy came acorss a few they thought Annabelle might enjoy.....Annabelle, Mommy and Daddy hope you like them....we love you and can't wait to see you and Aaidan together soon!

No plug ==> No Blog ==> ADVENTURE!

Well, this morning (monday), we reliazed we packed the Korean adapter plugs for the wall, but thot the wires to plug in and charge our laptop....hence the slow start on the blog. Beth luckily also brought her new nook, which we were able to use to get out a quick "we made it" title post earlier today (which has now been revamped).

What should we do?  The pressure was ON!  We checked with the front desk, and they recommended the Yongsan  Electronics Market.  We had him jot down a phrase in Korean saying that we needed a new power cord, and then headed on to the subway.

Two transfers later, we were off the subway and on to / into the electronics market....and was it HUGE.  In the first building, we browsed by a number of stalls and came to one that was selling  ASUS computers and game him a try.

Both him and his neighbor didn't have one, and suggested we go out the other building "over there and go to the ASUS place on the 4th floor.  Well that place was even crazier.

 A person there looked on-line for an ASUS store and said if we (somehow) get out of the building, cross over a few streets, we'd find the ASUS Center.

 Bottom line, after a few more false starts, we did finally come to the ASUS store and they fixed us up with the wires we needed!

Leisurely Morning

This morning, we started out by taking a nap (6-8 AM) and then enjoyed the awesome continental breakfast at our hotel (scrambeled eggs, kimchi fried rice, bacon, sausage, fruit, waffles, coffee, and more coffe....just to name a few.  The second floor of the hotel also has a lounge area, another room with a pool table, an exercise room, a kids play room. 

Then we went up to check out the roofop of the hotel - pool and hot bubs, plus beuatiful gardens and nice places to relax.  Here are a couple pictures of the rooftop:

We made it!

well, after a ~14-hour flight, and a pretty quick time through immigration and the ride into Seoul, we checked into our hotel, the Somerset Palace, around 5AM.  It turned out they weren't expecting us til later in the day, but luckily a room was available.

The flight out on Korean Air was great....just like we remembered 4 years ago.  You get your own personal pack of slippers, toothbrush and toothpaste.  Hot washcloth several times during the flight, plus drinks (water/juice) on a regular basis.  For dinner we had tasty Korean Bibimbap, seaweed soup, kimchi, fruit, and complementary wine in a GLASS.  For breakfast Beth had Korean Porridge (which was really good!) and Fritz had the scrambled egg with ham and potatoes, plus fruit, yogurt, and a muffin.  Individual music, movies, games were still available, but we spent a good bit of our time trying to get some sleep!