Al had suggested that we base ourselves in the Itaewon area of Seoul - described in our guide book as having "a unique foreign flair with restaurants offering dishes from various countries of the world while its markets and boutiques attract shopping enthusiasts".
We stayed at this hotel - the rooms have their own catering facilities (fridge, microwave, hob and kettle) but the hotel also provides breakfast - all at a very reasonable rate.
Al had also advised us of the local hostelries ...
... in particular, Craftworks Taphouse ...
... which has its own microbrewery - as you can see Bukhansan is very much to my taste!
The Seoul City Tour bus is an excellent way to see the key tourist sites of the city. For 10,000 Won (local currency) - equating to around £6 - you can travel around the city getting on and off at any of the 30 stops as many times as you like in the day.
The buses start at 9am and run every half hour until 7pm (but not on Mondays). There are headsets at each seat with audio of the key sites in a variety of languages.
We headed for N Seoul Tower with its spectacular views over the city, to help us get our bearings.
With over 11.8 million people, a figure that more than doubles if you include neighbouring cities and suburbs, Seoul is the largest city in South Korea and unquestionably the economic, political and cultural hub of the country
Seoul has a long history. There is evidence for settlement in this area as far as 18 BC but Seoul as the capital city of South Korea has a history back to the 14th century. Originally named Hanseong, the city was the capital of the Joseon Dynasty from 1392 to 1910, when Korea was occupied by the Japanese. The Joseon Dynasty built most of Seoul's most recognisable landmarks, including the Five Grand Palaces and Namdaemun - more of these in later blogs.
After the Japanese surrender in 1945, the city was re-named to its current name. Since the establishment of the Republic of Korea in 1948, Seoul has been the capital of South Korea. Occupied twice during the Korean War by Communist forces, the city was extensively rebuilt.
Seoul covers over 600 km² in the north-western portion of South Korea approximately 40 km east of the Yellow Sea and 60 km south of the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).
Administratively, Seoul is divided into 25 districts, each with an area and population comparable to a small city. The districts are then further subdivided into 522 sub-districts. The Han river bisects the city, splitting it into two halves
The subway system is the third-largest in the world and to me seemed remarkably efficient. All signs are in both the Korean script (Hangul) and in English, as are the announcements at stations and on trains. There is also wifi available on all trains.
It's also cheap to travel - using a "T card" (the equivalent of London's Oyster card) - a single journey costs 1100 Won (around 70p). You can also use the T card on buses and taxis.
In the few days that we would be in Seoul we knew that we would only be able to scratch the surface of what was on offer. So we used the City Tour to help us prioritise what we would explore in the coming days. I'll cover these in later blogs
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