Wandering Browns

Seoul's fish market was recommended to us by one of Ausitn's coworkers as her favorite place in Seoul. I will tell you it was not our favorite place, but it was a fun thing to see. I think part of the reason it lost its wonder with us is because in traveling to Sokcho and Jeju we had seen many of the sights we saw here. However, the giant prawns were new.  We drove down from our hotel and traffic was not too bad! We were able to get there in about 20 minutes. The parking lot looked a little sketchy, so Austin missed it the first two times we made passes, but finally I was able to show him that it was, indeed a parking structure even though it looked old and rickety. As soon as we got out of the car it smelled like we were at the ocean, even though we were several miles away from actual ocean. The whole premium fish row Overall, it looked like a fish market. There were water and puddles all over the floor, people hawking their fish, and little restaurants ringing t...

Preparation room for the Crown Prince This shrine was our last touristy thing on my list for Seoul. The Jongmyo shrine houses the spirit tablets of all of the kings of the Joseon dynasty and their queens. Named a UNESCO World Heritage site, as well as getting awards for intangible culture and heritage for its ceremonies and music, we are glad that we went. It was built in the late 1300's, but was destroyed in the 1500s during the Japanese invasion.It was rebuilt in the 1600s and remains the same as it was when it was rebuilt. I love how the sights here have so much more history and time on their side vs. anything in the United States!  The only way to get into the shrine was with a tour group, so we went on an English language tour and it helped us have a better appreciation for its history.  The shrine is only opened up completely and used two times a year when ceremonies are performed to honor the dead. The king used to come and make offerings of raw meat and grains ...

Austin is working the 4pm shift now which means we get to play with him most of the day! We decided to spend a day at the indoor playground at the mall, again, because it is one of Landon's favorite things. He always asks to back to the ball pit, and every time we go down the elevator he goes to the windows (overlooking some of the fun outdoor activities) and yells "BOKE!" for bumper boats. It was raining that morning and let's just say Landon was a little excited to go back to the playground Unfortunately, so were many other kids in Seoul. I talked with one of the workers and she said that the elementary schools are out for these 2 weeks and so that's why it was so crowded. Landon got bowled over many times by older kids, but took it all like a champ and rarely even noticed. Landon loved the ball pit most, followed by the outdoor area that included an area to ride around on scooters and little push cars and the bumper boats. The theme was the TV show Larva w...

Another member of Austin's crew has been released, with leaves him with a better schedule now and we know we will be here at least a week or two longer. Mixed emotions- I want to go visit family, but there are still things that need exploring here in Seoul, so I'm good with that. Mokdong Stadium Yesterday, we heard that someone was leaving, they just weren't sure who yet. So we went to a baseball game in case it was our last time we could here. The weather was a little warm, but with the sun going down it became very pleasant! The Nexen Heroes are 2nd in the Korean League this year, so the stadium was packed with fans from both teams and it was a very fun time! This time we had to sit way out on the 3rd base line. How the batters were hitting made it so we saw many plays and even a few home runs go way out of the park. Landon had to take breaks and several times said he needed to nap, but overall he did great and as he got more tired he was more content to sit wi...

 Mountains from the park What to do on a rainy day in Seoul... especially when your husband is working nights and sleeping in your hotel room during the day? Monsoon season decided to show up and the past few days have been quite rainy. We went to an indoor playground at the mall one day, and I knew we needed to get out and about for Landon's sanity, so the science museum sounded like a good bet. We took the metro for about an hour and popped out on the other side of some mountains that hid the city from our view. It seemed like we were in a beautiful un-populated place! It was very near Seoul Grand Park, so I want to go back when there is better weather. On a slightly related note, I appreciate the mountains/hills here. I didn't realize how much they add to the landscape after living in flat-as-a-pancake Chicago area.  Korean museums are the real deal. This was no exception. There was a huge children's area with play structures and tons of stuff to do for all ages...