Seoul, South Korea: Palaces, Food, Not BTS

I expected BTS, the famous international boy band, to be the main highlight of our trip, advertised and playing everywhere. However, the two main highlights of our trip to Seoul were the palaces and the food.

There are five main palaces in Seoul. While some are right in the middle of skyscrapers and capitalist hubs, some have extensive grounds and have beautiful mountains behind them. We were able to arrive at the largest palace in the morning to see the changing of the guard. It was quite a serious ritual that involved banging of drums and orderly rows of soldiers and flag bearers. The palace grounds were quite large with multiple buildings for the king and queen, and other buildings for learning and hosting parties.

Korean Barbecue is quite popular and famous, so we had to try it. We placed vegetables and raw beef on a skillet that was on our table. The meat was chewy and flavorful. Another classic is Korean Fried Chicken, which was so crispy and delicious. We also tried Bimbap and Tteokbokki. Bimbap can be served as a bowl, but we had a combination of meat and vegetables rolled up with rice and seaweed, very much like a giant sushi roll. Tteokbokki is ramen in a delicious red sauce with hard boiled eggs; it was the ultimate comfort food. Of course, all these meals were served with kimchi, whether in it or on the side.

Soon enough, we were boarding a plane to Vietnam, taking only the memories of royal palaces and delicious food from South Korea.