it seems that most of my adventures start with emails asking if i'm interested in a particular activity..in this case, mel had sent out a mass email (to four of us) asking if we were interested in a tour of the blue house, which is basically the korean version of the american white house..of course i was interested..i love history and politics..so after giving mel all my pertinent information, she made the necessary arrangements..the tour is something you have to set up at least 10 days ahead of time, though according to mel, setting it up isn't difficult..just a few emails..anywho..
maria, mel, sheila and i met up at a particular subway stop, then found our way to the bus, and check-in area for the tour..after checking that we had proper identification (passports and ARC cards) we got on the bus..we were the only foreigners on the tour..(not a surprise)..the bus took us to cheongwadae..(the korean name of the complex)..the presidential office is in the area, and supposedly so is the presidential residence..after going through security (xray scanners and metal detectors) everyone was ushered into a room where an introductory video was shown...since we had to wait a few minutes for another busfull of visitors to arrive, we were given mp3 players that allowed us to have the entire tour in english..(we could've listened to the chinese or japanese versions as well)..subtitles were shown for chinese/japanese/english, so it didn't matter that we couldn't understand what we were hearing..the most amusing part of the video was the shot of the president riding a bike..the subtitles said something about him being able to ride each day, but seeing the video made it clear that the man hasn't spent any real time on a bike in a looooong time..the video also encouraged us to take lots of photos.
after the video, everyone shuffled out of the room, and in doing so, passed a table loaded with white boxes..we got free coffee mugs (neon lime green!!) for going on the tour:)
18 July 2010
cheongwadae (청와대)
the tour first took us next to a "park"..probably the best kept section of grass in the entire city..not surprisingly, we weren't able to walk on the grass..we started taking photos as soon as the grass was in sight, but immediately the minders told us not to do so..i was confused..after listening to the spiel, while standing with the group, THEN we were allowed to take photos..in the middle of the grass were two trees, both of which were special..at least, according to the tour they were special..age, or height, or type of tree, something like that..i don't know, to me they just looked like trees..according to the spiel, this park is where events like the presidential gathering for children's day are hosted...
while walking through a few trees, again maria and i got out our cameras..again, we were told by the minders that photos weren't allowed..the group next stopped at a marker that said "this is where the original office of the president was, a looong time ago"..at least, that's the translation i understood..there weren't any physical remains to show such a thing, other than this marker..i tried to take a photo of this marker, but that wasn't allowed..by this point, we were all somewhat confused as to the whole picture taking thing..the video said to take lots of photos, but up to this point, we were only allowed to take them in one spot..
the next group stop took place in front of the official presidential office..it's got a roof of blue tile, so that's where the nickname blue house came from..we didn't get to go inside, and the spiel on our mp3 players wasn't very helpful..it told us there were a couple rooms with special names, in which special receptions were often held..it told us when the building was built, and a bit about the builder, etc..in front of the blue house was a giant grassy area..(way bigger than the "park")..after walking along the circular driveway down to the front, we got to take photos again..woo hoo!!
from there, the last stop was in front of the state guest house..called yongbin i think? anywho, when the blue house was built, there was no state guest house..but over the years, someone figured out that traffic/security management was a pain in the you know where when international dignitaries were staying off property..so the state guest house was built, and ta-da, all those problems went away..the tour had said we'd be going in the state guest house, but that didn't happen..so i have no idea what it looks like inside any of the buildings in the entire complex, other than the initial security building..oh well..
from there, we walked out the side gate, and that was it..mel, sheila and i crossed the street to see a sculpture/memorial, and take a few more photos..while taking these photos, i realized there was a guy directing traffic, very similar to the traffic ladies in pyongyang..although this guy wasn't nearly as professional as those ladies were..he looked bored..check out the photo comparison:)..from there we went to dinner, where i had some of the best mac n cheese i've ever had, and after a stop at tartine for pies (YUM!!) i went home:)
it's fun attempting to see stuff in seoul that not many foreigners get around to seeing, or making any effort to see:)
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