Our First Day Solo in Seoul

* Cicadas are ubiquitous and almost deafening at times.

* Seoul was very crowded on a Saturday, but still not like Beijing!

* The city is generally very clean with not too much litter and rubbish.

* All bought goods are very wrapped, in various layers (like in Japan).

* Unlike in China, people don’t look at you like you’re a stranger---they just do their own thing. Some kids want to try their English on us, which was very cute. People really wanted to communicate, and were not looking for money or being pushy.

* We saw some foreigners, but not that many.

* People are very friendly and helpful. For example, a couple showed us how to get a subway ticket out of the machine the first time; a guy chatted to us on a subway train; people greeted us in the park; a guy helped us buy our TMoney cards, even though he couldn’t speak English---gestures and actions worked perfectly well.

* The city has a good subway system with an extensive network.

* Gyeongbok Palace is very Chinese-like, perhaps because of the Buddhist influence, and obviously of Chinese origin.

* Some of the food is very Chinese-like too; for example, cooking in a pot over a charcoal burner on the table; the liberal use of hot chillis.

* The Celadon Exhibit at the Palace Museum was great and helped us understand the importance of pottery to early Korea (now they export cars and electronics!)

* We easily found lots of good public toilets all over the city---in subway stations, parks, museums etc. All pretty clean, light, with paper, and some even decorated and using piped music.

* All the restaurants and cafes we went to use metal cups, bowls and chopsticks (easier to keep clean), and you always get a jug of cold purified water (very welcome on a hot humid day).

* On many of the subway trains, the compartments and benches are all stainless steel---perhaps also easier to keep clean and free of vandalism?

* Many museums give free water, from big bottles in dispensers, and they offer either paper cups or collapsible paper cones (our first time to see those!)

*In the evening, people come out to play, so streets are noisy and crowded. Neon lights are glaring, rather over-powering.