Taste of South Korea

  Hello, romantic walkers and architecture lovers! It’s Bitna. In our last stop, we stood in front of Sungnyemun Gate , admiring the majestic presence of South Korea’s National Treasure No. 1. If you walk just 10 minutes North from that ancient gate toward City Hall, you will enter a realm where time dramatically twists. Today, we are exploring Deoksugung Palace (덕수궁) and its neighboring alley, Jeongdong-gil (정동길) . This area is famous for holding the most beautiful walking trail in Seoul, offering a fascinating blend of traditional Korean style and early 20th-century Western architecture. 🏛️ Deoksugung: The Palace Where East Meets West While Seoul has five grand palaces, Deoksugung is completely unique. It was the main palace during the short-lived Korean Empire (1897–1910). Because of this turbulent historical era, it is the only palace in Korea where traditional wooden pavilions stand shoulder-to-shoulder with neoclassical Western stone buildings. ✨ Deoksugung Highlights: Seok...

  Hello, history buffs and urban walkers! It’s Bitna. In my last post, we got lost in the bustling food alleys and wholesale labyrinth of Namdaemun Market . If you walk out through Gate 1 of the market and look up, you will immediately see a grand, fortress-like stone structure standing proudly in the middle of a modern traffic circle. Today, we are visiting Sungnyemun Gate (숭례문) , also widely known to travelers as Namdaemun Gate . It holds the honorable title of South Korea’s National Treasure No. 1 , and it is a breathtaking bridge between Seoul's ancient past and its soaring modern skyscrapers. 🏯 The Grand Gateway of the Joseon Dynasty Built in 1398 during the reign of King Taejo, the founder of the Joseon Dynasty, Sungnyemun is the oldest wooden structure in Seoul. Its name literally translates to "The Gate of Exalted Ceremonies." Back in the day, Seoul was a walled city surrounded by massive stone fortifications. Sungnyemun was the grand southern entrance. It was th...