South Korea 2024

A perfectly empty luxury department in Doha airport

Flying to the middle east to find a Flemish beer bar

Cheers!

Arrived in Myeongdong, Seoul

Shopping street in Insa-Dong

The sky in Insa-Dong

Audience in Cheonggyecheon Stream Park

Classical concert along the Cheonggyecheon Stream

Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP)

Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP)

Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP)

Everybody goes to the Gwangjang Market for cheap local food

So we try it too

Everything is fried, except the kimchi and the beer

Arriving at the Gyeongbokgung Palace : the Geunjeongmun Gate

Looking into the court yard

Young instagrammers

The people in traditional clothes (Hanbok) get in for free

Selfie with the Geunjeongjeon Hall

Posing in front of the Gyeonghoeru Pavilion

This is a recent structure, yet to be painted

In the Heungbokjeon palace

The famous Hyang-wonjeong Pavilion and the pond

Proof that we&#x27;ve been there

Full color! Now we&#x27;re talking.

This location was chosen in 1394, with the hills in the background

Most of the present buildings are from the 20th C, Hamhwadang Palace

The Hyang-wonjeong Pavilion from another viewpoint

Jibokjae Hall

The interior of the Jibokjae Hall

Stone guardian statues

Local customs: juice in plastic on the street

The Changdeokgung Palace entrance court

The Injeongjeon Hall

Looking inside the Injeongjeon Hall

Nice living room

An old village in a futuristic city

Walking between buildings of the past

Bukchon Hanok Village

The air force is training for an air show

Sunset in Seoul

We walk up to the top of a forested hill

View on Seoul with the Lotte tower

Everybody wants to live in Seoul

Love locks near N Seoul Tower

Another spectacular view on the city and the Hangang River

We suspect these locks are sold more then once here

The Seoul N Tower lit up at night

Bright lights big city

Walking back down on the steps

Korean BBQ for dinner tonight

View from our hotel room in Sokcho

Sunrise in Sokcho

Driving to Seoraksan NP

Crossing the river at the start of the hike

We can see the Ulsan Bawi rock in the distance

The rock looks closely, but we have a long way to go

The view is getting more and more spectacular

There he is, high above us

There are millions of steps in Korea

Vertical walls as we approach the top

And more great views

Finally, we made it: selfie with the sea in the background

Now we can look at the Ulsan Bawi from above

Roxanne still has red cheeks from the effort

View on Sokcho from the rock

The actual top is full of students

Strike the pose

Gyeongju: the first Silla tomb on our path

Surround movie about life in Gyeongju a long time ago

Roxanne in an interactive display

More tumuli and a neat pond

Lotus flower in the pond

King Jijeung&#x27;s ceremonial golden shoes

King Jijeung&#x27;s tomb

Iced coffee in a Hanok cafe

Walking through the Hanok tourist village

Flower field in Gyeongju

Chilling in Gyochon Traditional Village

Roxanne in Gyeongju Gyochon Traditional Village

Cafe in the traditional village

View on the Woljeonggyo Bridge

Inside the Woljeonggyo Bridge

Gyochon Traditional Village from the bridge

Looking at the restored roof of the bridge

The Cheomseongdae Observatory is a gathering place

Donggung Palace & Wolji Pond

The lights go on at 6PM

These pavilions used to be in the garden of a large palace

Posing on the right spot

Reflections always work

LED lights after dark

Me and the entrance of the Bulguksa temple

Buddha is not for decoration

Flowers, lanterns and tourists

Not many people come here to pray, this temple is a tourist magnet

The fortune pig

Lucky lanterns in every color

Looks like a disco dance floor

Can&#x27;t get enough color on the picture

Frog perspective selfie

Here is another one: the Haedong Yonggungsa Temple

Built on a cliff by the sea

Quite a dramatic setting

At least there is 1 monk at work

View on the colorful rail carts from the caf&eacute; Bibibidang

A high rise on Haeundae Beach : Haeundae LCT

Haeundae Beach is a beautiful bay with a towering skyline

Coffee and cake in Rendezjavu

Strolling along the beach

Haeundae Beach at sunset

Busy street near the Jagalchi fish market

Plenty of choice fresh from the sea

The colors are better than the smell

There are all small shops on the outside of the market

Here you can choose the catch and go upstairs to have it cooked

Old ladies run the Jagalchi fish market

The Gamcheon Culture Village is actually a slum with fresh paint

An abundance of pastel colors

LED displays in the Gukje market

Seomyeon food alley

Pinky Punky arcade in Seomyeon

Market in Seomyeon

Rooftop park of the Lotte department store in Busan

Nampo by night

The fashionable Gwangbok-ro

On our way to the Boseon tea plantation

The hills of the Boseon Green Tea Field Daehan Dawon

Green waves

Instagrammable Roxy

In the evening we visit Juknokwon

A dense bamboo forest

Just for decoration

Blending into the bamboo

Colorful fountain in Damyang

View on the Hanok village in Jeonju

Away from the busy main street

You can find ideal picture spots here

Perfectly preserved history of Jeonju

Heron on the hunt in Jeonju

On the 2nd day on Jeju island we went to the Cheonjeyeon waterfalls

The hexagonal lava formations at Jusangjeolli

Start of the Hallasan National Park hike in Yeongsil

Pampas in Hallasan National Park

A white spot in a tree turned out to be a small bird

A beautiful pheasant glides through the bushes

This monorail runs everywhere through the park

View on the top of Mt Hallasan

Walking down towards Eorimok

Warbling white-eye looking for berries

Pink berries in Hallasan NP

Many volcanoes in the distance

Belgian bluebird in a tree

The Oedolgae Rock in Seogwipo

The water has a beautiful color here

The Seogwipo-selfie

The Cheonjiyeon waterfall, not to be confused with the Cheonjeyeon

The Jeongbang waterfall meats the East China Sea

The crater of the Seongsan Ilchulbong

That is us on top of the volcano

600m down the stairs

This is the cone of the volcano that eroded away

Mermaid coming ashore

Jeju is famous for mandarins hence the juice, gadgets and hats

Instagrammers flock to Hamdeok beach

Not exactly beach wear

Hamdeok beach, which is white sand on a black lava island

Last drink on Jeju

Towers and golf courts south of Seoul

Busy street in the Hongdae university area

Everybody lives in these high-rise buildings

They have no garden so they picknick

The Sevit islands are lit up at night

They change color all the time

These are floating islands

View from the other side

The flats of Sinbanpo

Banpo bridge rainbow fountain

Long underpass full of art and without graffiti

On a disco light escalator

Seocho Garak Tower East

The instagrammable interior of the Starfield library

Most of these books are too high to reach

Rox rolling down into culture

Whop whop whop Gangnam style

The Bongneumsa temple in the middle of busy Gangnam

Some extra Buddhas for extra holiness

These monks perform at their best

This is the closing ceremony of a religious festival

The Lotte World Tower is 555 meters high

Lotte is one of the leading companies in South Korea

View on the Lotte Tower and the Jangsil Bridge from the Techno Mart

The tower changes color all the time

Back in Hongdae, last evening in Korea

Wooden dows and concrete skyscrapers in Doha, Qatar

Fishermen on the Corniche

When the temperature drops 3 degrees in the evening, people come out

It is still 35 degrees...

The camel police take the animals for a ride

The camel stables

Exploring the souq

Are they buying clothes for the wife?

Traditional mud brick architecture

Souq Waqif comes alive after sunset

From Marrakech to Seoul and in Doha too: the lantern shop

It is Friday night, nobody works

Souvenir shop, Qatari flag and black dress

Spices in the souq

Oriental carpets cannot be missed

View from the infinity Rooftop Bar

The airconditioned art souq

The only possible activity at 38 degrees

In the rooftop pool of the Embassy Suites by Hilton

Dows and the skyline in MIA park

The pastel houses of Al Meena come in sight

It looks like nobody actually lives in this settlement

Street art on a large scale

Local citizens come here for a stroll

The buildings match the sky or vice versa

There is even a tangerine minaret

Large street art, pretty in pink

The Al Meena fish market has a spectacular ceiling

Beautiful, but the smell is the same as ever

On the Doha Skyline Viewpoint

The museum of Islamic art in his own park

Map of South Korea