Tour the world: 2014

It's been a long while since my last post, two years in fact. Pretty damn long and I can only blame it on time constraints. You know, life happened and well, I kinda grew up.

Ha, not really - I actually have been doing heaps of travel. Haven't updated because, brb, was busy hiking Angkor Wat and cruising down the Mekong.

So in this post, I'm going to highlight June 2013, when I went to Seoul, Korea.

숭 례 문 (Namdaemun)

Seoul is an ancient city but unlike its counterparts, Seoul is high spirited and energetic. Home to most of South Korea's Chaebol(s) (재벌), i.e Hyundai and Samsung, this city is the heartbeat of the nation. In the recent past, Seoul played host to the 1988 Summer Olympics and the 2002 FIFA World Cup, amongst others. With a massive 5-star airport in service and two mega-airlines (Asiana Airlines being one of the 7 only five-star Airlines of the world), Seoul is prepared for anything. Anything.

K-pop has grown rapidly in the past decade. What was called the Korean wave (한류) now seemed more like a Korean Tsunami, bringing Korean pop culture to the shores of every country in the world. Seoul is very well ready to receive the millions of foreigners traveling to Korea, and maybe even claim the title for "World's Most Exciting City".

Seoul

Itaewon District

Myeong-Dong

Central Seoul

Traditional Korean Palace

Being one of the most advanced cities in the world, Seoul's technology is unparalleled. In the next few years, ultra-smart homes will be introduced. The whole house functions with just an LCD screen. See below.

Ultra-smart

Korean Technology Museum

Of course, the city will never lose it's old "Seoul" - pun intended.

Oh, just random people in traditional gear roaming the streets

Koreans are very proud of their city and rightful so - if I was a Korean, heck I'd be proud too. Korean pride is evident all around the city, especially the Seoul City Hall.

"Citizens, remember, you are somebody's hero"

"While we're at it, have a really large national flag"

No, but in all seriousness, other city halls can learn a thing or two from Seoul. See that tsunami-like building at the background - that's the new city hall. Talk about a Korean Tsunami.

National Hero - Psy

The Real National Hero - King Sejong the Great

Admiral Yi Sun-Sin and a very grumpy Korean tourist

Admiral Yi Sun-Sin and an overly happy fangirl

We're at about halfway through this post and I feel that it's the right time to address the elephant in the room and what many of you may have been wondering. Yes, plastic surgery is big in Seoul. Posters promoting "the best surgeon" for "the best job" is all over the subway stations.

Hmm

not sure if plastic or....

But hey, I'm not complaining. No problems with pretty-looking girls whatsoever. My problem is at the 38th parallel. The Korean De-Militarised Zone, the DMZ.

A couple of miles away from the hustle and bustle of Seoul lies the border to North Korea.