Seoul Fun ~ Day 1 @ N-Seoul Tower

     

        I was getting excited when I was told that we were going to the teddy bear museum that I have always longed for. I was walking fast (or rather running?) due to excitement, acting like a little girl as my mum always complaints about me :P I didn't even realised that Yee Pei was left quite far behind me. Sweating heavily, she was pushing hard to catch up with my pace. Her face looked pale at that moment, so we decided to take a cab to Namsan cable car station although it was just within walking distance. 

Namsan Cable car station

The ticket price of the cable car ride for adult is:
6000KRW  (one way)
8000KRW (round turn)

I thought a round-trip would be worthy compared to the one-way ticket. So we bought it :) We were expecting a beautiful night view of Seoul on our return trip in the late evening.

There was a long queue in the cable car stations. The frequency is about 7 mins. Each cable car can take around 25 persons. 

It's really worthy to take the cable car ride as you can have a panoramic view of Seoul at different altitude. The view is breathtaking! 

Spectacular view of Seoul. Nice city view :)

From the hilltop cable car station, you need to climb some stairs to reach the N Seoul Tower. Albeit being exhausted, Yee Pei made it to the top . A big clap for her perseverance!

 We finally reached Namsan Mountain and N Seoul Tower :) There are two ticketing counters here. One can be easily seen near the staircase whereas another one is located at the basement. If you wish to visit both the observatory and teddy bear museum, do buy a package ticket which is more worthy. 

I was so surprised to see the cute teddy bear in hanbok!  They were so adorable! How could I miss a photo with them? 

If you are Korean drama fan, you will be very familiar with this romantic place. N Seoul tower is famous for its "Lock of Love". It's the perfect place for lovers to express their eternal affection by locking their love together with a padlock. There were thousands of padlocks that have been secured to the fence. It was also fun to read the romantic love notes on the padlocks :P 

Creative Christmas Tree made of padlocks. Spotted a pair of sweet couple? 

If you wish to lock a padlock there, you can easily buy it in the souvenir shops but be prepared to pay a premium for that. To save money, do bring your own padlock from home or buy it in grocery shop before heading to N Seoul tower. 

Spacious wooden viewing deck with nice view. 

The ambiance was so romantic at the spacious viewing deck. It is an ideal spot for Seoul's cityscape if you are not going to visit to the observatory. Sweet lovers + breathtaking view of Seoul + gentle breeze,  fantastic!

It's time for my long awaited teddy bear museum :) The teddy bear museum is located at the basement of N-Seoul Tower. Just next to the entrance to the observatory. We have been suggested to visit teddy bear museum before we enter the observatory as the last admission for teddy bear museum is at 9.00 pm.

I couldn't help but to take photo with every cute huge bear in N-Seoul tower. 

Teddy bear museum has two exhibition halls. The first exhibition hall  traces the history of Seoul from Joseon Dynasty to the modern days. It is amusing and very innovative to present to the visitors how Seoul evolves over time, by the means of teddy bears being the actors. Perfect way to learn history right?

What a scene! The historical events and Seoul cultures are recreated with intricate details. Exquisite masterpiece! Just look at some photos that I posted. I love all of them! I was so grateful that taking photograph is allowed in the museum. 

Traditional musical performance for the King. 

Sundial and King Sejong that we saw this morning. 

Trading era in Korea.

The Korean straw shoes that I spotted this morning at our hanok.

Ceremony in the palace. 

Wedding ceromony.

Market???

3D mural with teddy bears! Amazing!

Across the lobby from hall I is exhibition hall II. It presents the modern life in Seoul today. Let's see what they have.

The famous Nanta shows in Seoul. The bears were moving!

Modern wedding. Hope the bears live happily ever after :P

High end shopping centers in Seoul. 

Body guards of the President in Blue House.

Last but not least, my favourite part! The palace zone where you can find teddy bear featured in famous Korean drama "Princess Hour", also known as "宫". I was so happy to see them in real life as my sister and I were so crazy of this drama that time :D

After the lovely teddy museum, observatory tower was our next stop.  However, the queue was long and moving very slowing. Yee Pei felt dizzy and we thought it was best to call it a day. We thought initially that our ticket would be wasted, but NO! We managed to get our refund for the observatory ticket. A sincere gratitude to the helpful Korean staff at the N Seoul Tower. 

N Seoul Tower at night. 

Summer is the holidays season for Korean. We were also greeted with long queue at the cable car station. Luckily the queue was moving fast. 

Seoul city morphed into twinkling stars. (View from cable car)

A full moon + cable car + N seoul tower.

Yee Pei didn't have the appetite for dinner, so we just settled for a toast in the mini market on the way back. Well, don't judge the book by its cover. The bread was very delicious. I bet there must be a special sauce, which is not available in Malaysia. I am going to figure it out. 

This concludes our very fist day in Seoul. Would Yee Pei feel better on day two? Stay tuned! :)

P/s: We skipped Myeongdong - a shopping paradise in Seoul which we planned to go after N-seoul tower due to Yee Pei's health condition. Myeongdong is near to the cable car station. You can walk from the station to Myeong dong. Do check out the Myeongdong travel highlight in KTO website.

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Travel info: 

Cable car

Ticket price: 　Adult: 6000KRW (One way), 8000KRW (Round trip)

Operating hours: 10:00 - 23:00 (All year round)

         

N-Seoul Tower              

Operating hour: 

Sunday-Thursday

Observatory: 10:00-23:00

Restaurant: 11:00-23:00

Teddy Bear Museum: 10:00-22:00 (Last admission: 21:00)

Friday-Saturday

Observatory: 10:00-24:00

Teddy Bear Museum: 10:00-22:00 (Last admission: 21:00)

Ticket Price: 

Classification	Adults	Youths	Children	Remarks
Observatory	9,000 won	7,000 won	5,000 won	Adult : 18+ Youth : 13-17 Children : 3-12
Teddy bear Museum	8,000 won	6,000 won	5,000 won
Package (Observatory +  Teddy bear Museum)	14,000 won	10,000 won	7,000 won
Group(20 or more)	Inquiries : +82-2-3455-9208, +82-2-3455-9210

Transportation: 

1. On foot: Walk 30 minutes from Exit #3 of Myeong-dong Subway Station

2. Cable Car 

   At Exit #3 of Myeong-dong Subway Station, Line No. 4, walk toward Pacific Hotel and then   

   walk 10 minutes to the Namsan Cable Car. 

   Running hours: 10:00~23:00
 3. Belt-line Bus (Yellow Bus No. 2) 

    - Get on the bus in front of Daehan Cinema at Exit #1 of Chungmuro Subway Station (Line  

       No. 3 and 4), or Exit #6 of Dongdae Ipgu Subway Station (Line No. 3) 

    - 5-8 minute intervals 
    - Operating hours: 8a.m. - midnight 
    - Fare: Cash 550 won, Transportation Card 500 won (transfer possible) 

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Travel tips: 

1. Do visit N Seoul Tower before sunset to have a twilight view of Seoul.

2. Brought your own padlock to N Seoul tower to avoid being overcharged for expensive padlock.

3. It is cheaper to buy a package ticket if you wish to visit both observatory and teddy bear museum. It's refundable if you can't make it to both of them. 

4. You need to queue (a long one) for cable car during peak season. Alternatively, you can choose to climb the long flight of stairs.

Seoul Fun ~ Day 1 @ KTO Tourist Information Counter

        As mentioned in the last post, we were back to the modern city, Cheongyecheon Plaza. Cheongyecheon Plaza is located at the starting point of Cheongyecheon Stream. At this point, we need to complete our mission, i.e. to locate the most important travel resources for visitors to Korea - KTO TIC(Korea Tourism Organization Tourist Information Counter). The mission wasn't tough. KTO TIC can be easily spotted with its prominent KTO logo when we strolled along the stream :D The large and informative tourist information counter is located at the basement of KTO headquarters in Seoul. 

We were welcomed by the Yeosu Expo 2012 Mascot - cute Yeony and Suny.

"Wow!" That's what i said after I entered the main entrance. It is not exaggerated to deem the TIC the best I have ever seen. This TIC is equipped with EVERYTHING that a tourist would need! Let's find out!

There is a tourist information counter where you can ask about anything of your trip (accommodation, tourist attraction, route, transportation, food etc.)! Professional TIC staff is capable of serving you with tailored information and consultation services in three different language (English, Mandarin and Japanese).  

You can obtain the leaflets, maps, tourist information, festive and promotional materials in different languages for FREE! :) Just grab what you need from the rack. I highly recommend you to pay a visit to TIC on the first day of your stay in Korea. Believe me! You will overloaded with all the useful information for your travel plan. 

There is also a souvenir shop in KTO-TIC that sells variety of souvenirs. All the products here were selected from the Korea Tourist Souvenir Contest. 

Other than souvenir shop, there was a K-star shop where you can find k-pop celebrilities product. Yee pei bought a Big Bang poster for her cousin :D

Impressively, TIC is also equipped with a medical tourist information counter. They provide information about medical services in Korea. You can get free medical consultation and check your health using the body composition analyzer, stress monitor, blood pressure monitor, or skin analyzer in the centre.

The highlight of TIC is the K Star gallery in Hallyu hall.  For K-pop fans, make sure you don't miss the chance to take a photo with your favourite K-star life-size cutout. 

Wheetttt!!! See who are they??!!  Jessica, Tae Yoon and Yuri from girl generation!

There are some hand prints of the K-pop star in the gallery too. They reminded me of The Star Avenue in Hong Kong. 

TIC really makes travel convenient as they are well equipped with the facilities needed by tourists such as free internet access zone and free international phone services. Travellers can google up travel related information with the computers available in ICT corner. There were two computers for use, so you may need to queue for that. 

You can also proceed to the tourism technology library. There are numerous travel guides for not only Korea, but also for the rest of the world. However, take note that the library is only open during weekday (9.00am-5.30pm).

Using free phone in KTO TIC. 

Thirsty? refill water here :) 

KTO TIC offers a broad range of cultural experience too. Again, It's FREE! That includes hands-on program such as Hanbok experience, traditional craft and more. Do visit KTO website for more information. 

We spent more than an hour in TIC :D It's really worth a visit :) KTO was thoughtful enough to choose a strategic location for TIC as it is so close to the popular tourist destinations such as Myeongdong, Insadong and Gyeongbukgung Palace. This is convenient for the travellers to stop by anytime. So, if you happen to visit this area, don't forget to pay a visit to KTO TIC. It is open all year round. You will be inspired by this wonderful TIC. 

After having obtained all the travel information needed, we came to a recreation area in the midst of the city, Cheongyecheon stream. The 8.4km stretch of Cheongyecheon river is lined with many tourist attractions such as Seoul Plaza, Sejong Centre, Insadong and many more. If you have plenty of time, you can plan a walking tour for few hours along the stream as recommended in KTO website to spot the MUST SEE in Cheongyecheon. 

8.4km long Cheongyecheon stream.

Too bad we didn' t have enough time for a lesiure tour on foot, but we did a very refreshing and rejuvenating foot spa in the stream under the bridge. The stream water was cold and quick. It's a very awesome open air FREE foot spa experience indeed :D There were also many locals enjoying this oasis in the middle of  concrete jungle. Families, friends, couples, and students can be seen enjoying here. A great place for gathering, chatting and relaxing.

The summer heat was killing me and I felt so relaxed when we strolled along the underground stream with breezy air. I like this stream! A brilliant restoration project :)

 If you have time, do visit Cheongyecheon stream at night too. It would be beautiful with the lights on. I heard it is a popular spot for dating *^.^*

Next post: Cutest Bear Museum!! Stay tuned!

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Travel info: 

KTO TIC

Admission fee: Free

Operating hours: 9:00 -20:00 (Open all year round)                   

Telephone no: + 82-2-7299-497-499

Floor plan for KTO TIC

Transportation: 

•                 1. Jonggak Station (Subway Line 1), Exit #5 
                     Go straight for 3 minutes and cross the Cheonggyecheon Stream.
                     Turn right and walk down the street that runs parallel to the Cheonggycheon.
                     The KTO building is the second building on your left.
  
  
•                 2. Euljiro 1-ga Station (Subway Line 2), Exit #2 
                      Go straight for approximately 5 minutes.
                      Turn into the last street on the left just before the Cheonggycheon Stream. 
                      The KTO building is the second building on the left. 

  
  
•                 3. Gwanghwamun Station (Subway Line 5), Exit #5 
                      Go straight until you cross the Cheonggyecheon Stream. 
                      Turn left and walk down the road running parallel to the stream Cheonggyecheo. 
                      Go straight for approximately 6 minutes, until you see the KTO building on the right.
                      ** If you reach Gwanggyo 4-way Intersection, you've gone too far.

                    P/s:   * You will see the blue and red KTO logo in front of it.

Our walking route from Sejong Cultural Center to KTO TIC. 

       Travel tips: 

       1. Visit KTO TIC on the first day of your visit to Seoul. Collect all the travel maps, leaflets,   
            promotional materials according to your itinerary. 

       2. If you have any inquiry, go to the information counter. KTO staff with guide you patiently.

       3. Try Hanbok experience for free! You need to pay for that in other tourist spots. 
       4. Take photo with your favourite K-pop stars in K-star gallery. 
       5. Foot spa in Cheongyecheon stream is a MUST!

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       For more info about KTO TIC, do visit KTO website.

       For more info about Cheongyecheon Plaza , do click on this KTO link.