It was springtime in Seoul and the flowers and cherry
blossoms were in full bloom:
The cherry trees above are at Gyeongbokgung Palace, the
royal residence of the Joseon Dynasty (formerly called the Chosen Dynasty in English), rulers from 1392. Japan conquered Korea in 1910, occupying and
exploiting the country until 1945. The Japanese systematically destroyed most
of the palace buildings; but since independence some have been restored. The
palace grounds were beautiful but modest in comparison to what we saw
China.
Emperor’s
Residence
Emperor’s
Throne Hall
The
tour guide on the bus that dropped us off in downtown Seoul proudly explained that
following the devastation of WWII and the Korean War, South Korea was one of
the four poorest nations on earth. But with a high work ethic and a huge
emphasis on education, it has now become quite prosperous. Samsung is the
world’s leading chip and smart phone manufacturer. He said both South Korea’s
percentage of adults with a four year college degree and its life expectancy
now exceed that of the US. It is a popular destination for cosmetic and other
surgeries due to its fine hospitals and doctors.
Highlight
of our walk downtown (ship tour “Seoul on Your Own”) was the Myeondong Market. It’s
a one km. by one km. rabbit-warren pedestrian shopping area with an equal mix
of high end, high quality, high priced brand-name stores and low-end knock-off
vendors and street food sellers.
So I wanted equal time for the results of the bridge April 8th:
Tomorrow
is another day at sea and then on April 11th we'll visit Ground Zero in Hiroshima.
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