Explore South Korea: Nami Island and Seoul Tower

Nami Island and Seoul Tower

Day01: May 28, 2014 

Nami Island

We left Manila ten minutes after twelve early in the morning on the 28th of May. Our destination was a big city located at the center of the Korean Peninsula. Many said it is a place where the past blends with the present. It was Seoul. We were thirteen. 

I didn't felt much excitement then, although in general I was excited, after all I knew it will be a fun travel, a good bonding moment with fellow leaders and of course, another opportunity to make many more photos.

The level of my excitement did not off-shoot the scale just like my excitement when I travel alone to places outside the Philippines - maybe because I was not expecting a mountain climb or a visit to another World Heritage Site, few of my major reasons to travel to a foreign land like Cambodia and Indonesia.

The day before our travel, I tried to browse through the web to see some "must-see" places in our destination and the only thing I can recall was a place called "Nami Island". Aside from the colorful trees and gardens, this place was the setting of the highly popular Korean telenovela "The Winter Sonata". 

I have heard this movie many times from my sister but since my interest when it comes to television focused on documentaries - NAT GEO and DISCOVERY Channel to name a few, I did not have any actual idea about the telenovela.

On board Air Asia, we traveled for four hours and thirty minutes. We landed at Seoul International Airport thirty minutes past the hour of five (South Korea Time). After passing through the Korean Immigration, we met our guide and we boarded a coaster.

It was May - Spring Blossom in South Korea. Many of us thought that it will freezing but the temperature feels like slightly colder than the city of Baguio in the Philippines.

From the airport, we traveled towards our first destination, one of the most popular destinations in South Korea - The NAMINARA ISLAND also called "Nami Island" for short. Along the way, we had a rendezvous at a nice restaurant for breakfast.

I had a nice and tasty Korean Soup and few other tasty dishes. Though, I don't enjoy Korean Foods in general, I had a sumptuous breakfast.

Korean Noodle

While on board the coaster, I enjoyed the scenery of the place. It was peaceful, clean and organized. I had seen many parks full of green trees and colorful flowers. 

As I appreciate the beauty of the parks, I was telling myself that we in the Philippines are doing all our best to eradicate trees and convert parks to commercial centers while the Koreans are doing all their best to grow trees and create more green parks.

We reached the entrance to the Nami Island at eleven in the morning. The island can be reached through a fifteen minute boat ride or through a more exciting way - via a long and high zip line. 

Entrance to Nami Island

Walkway to Boat Boarding Platform

I took the boat with the rest of the leaders while our two executives decided to be more adventurous, they took the zip line.

Nami Island Boat

According to a Nami Island Tour website, Nami Island was formed as a result of the construction of the Cheongpyeong Dam.

It is a half moon shaped (462,809㎡) island, and on it is the grave of General Nami, who led a great victory against the rebels in the 13th year of the 7th king of the Joseon Dynasty, King Sejo (reign 1455 ~ 1468).

Historical Market of General Nami's Grave

Nami Island is 63 km away from Seoul in the direction of Chuncheon, and is famous for its beautiful tree lined roads.

A special feature of Nami Island is that there are no telephone poles. This is because all electric wires were built underground to keep the natural feeling of the landscape. The complex is 553,560 square yards with chestnut and other poplar trees around the island. 

In the middle of the island, there is a grass field about 316,320 square yards. It is composed of education and training facilities, camping sites, swimming pools and water-sports facilities for motorboats and water skiing.

There is also a theme park with merry-go-rounds, a shooting range, roller skating rink, and there are lodging facilities such as resort villas and bungalows.

The island is really great for relaxing and enjoying the nature. You can rent bike or take electric car tour or walk slowly on the forest path surrounded by pines or picnic. This island is beautiful especially in Autumn and Winter season.

Terracotta Art 

We had so much fun exploring Nami Island and I must say that I enjoyed the place. Though a little crowded but equally relaxing.

We left Nami 30 minutes past two in the afternoon and headed to N Seoul Tower, another highly popular tourist attraction in South Korea.

According to Wikipedia, the tower was built in 1969, and at a cost of approximately $2.5 million, the tower was opened to the public in 1980. It is located atop Namsan mountain. Seoul Tower was completed on December 3, 1971, designed by architect Jangjongryul. By August 1975, the third floor of the observatory room, museum, open hall, souvenir shop, in addition to other facilities, were opened. 

After completion of the tower, the use of the observatory was prohibited. The tower was opened to the public for the first time on October 15, 1980. Since then, the tower has been a landmark of Seoul. It measures 236.7 m (777 ft) in height from the base and tops out at 479.7 m (1,574 ft) above sea level. It changed its name to N Seoul Tower in 2005. The "N" stands for "New," "Namsan," and "Nature." Approximately 15 billion won was spent in renovating and remodeling the tower.

It is also Korea's first general radio wave tower that holds transmissions antennas of KBS, MBC, SBS TV, FM, PBC, TBS, CBS, and BBS FM.

I enjoyed the panoramic view of the city at the Seoul Tower. According to our guide, It attracts thousands of tourists and locals every year, especially during nighttime when the tower lights up. At the base of the tower, there are souvenir shops - I was fascinated by the Teddy Bear museum and I got a Panda as a souvenir. 

Nami Cable Car

From the Seoul Tower, we took a cable car (Namsan Cable Car) going to the entrance of the Namsan Park. I took a video of the panoramic view of the city while inside the cable car.

Seoul at Night

Street Foods

We were at our accommodation past seven in the evening. We stayed at Hamilton Hotel. We decided to explore the places nearby the hotel at night and took the MRT. We tried several street foods. I enjoyed making photos of the city at night.

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Day 02 - Explore The Everland Theme Park
Day 03 - Explore Cheongwadae Sarangche and Gyeongbok Palace