I love high places. True, I get terrified when I look down and realize that it’s going to be quite a loooooong (and tragic) drop, but I always get exhilarated when I know I am somewhere more elevated than others. A bit of an ego-trip, you say? Not really. More like the knowledge that, yes, we can all go UP.
So after an afternoon spent haunting palace halls, we had a quick rest back at the Guest House, then proceeded out to check out N Seoul Tower, or Seoul Tower, or Namsan Tower.
Briefly, the 236.7 meter Seoul Tower proudly stands atop Namsan Mountain, and being in the Observatory gives you a 360-degree view of Seoul and surrounding areas. It is also Seoul’s highest point. So what’s with the N in the N Seoul Tower name? Apparently, the N was attached when it was remodeled and acquired a NEW look.
We asked the Guest House owner how far it is, and he said it’s “close, we can even walk”.
Right.
We took the bus from Chungmuro Station.
AND THANK GOODNESS WE DID. Because, as much as we love – and are used to uphill walking – doing so in close to zero temperature in the late evening during the end of winter is just asking for trouble. And pain.
It was a very long bus ride, though, because the bus route had to take the long way round. So we simply decided to enjoy the ride.
I did mention that it was uphill, right? So imagine how cold it was when we arrived up there. And it was quite a walk from the bus stop up to the actual tower itself! The wind was not helping any. But oh a glimpse of the tower was enough to spur us on!
First we had to secure tickets. Since we already arrived at close to 8pm, and the place is closing down at 11pm,we decided to just go to the Observatory. Admission to the Observatory costs 9,000 KRW, or USD9.
The entrance to the observatory, a glass wall panel with comparison of towers all over the world. (Tokyo Tower, and Tokyo Sky Tree, SOON.)
Below photo, transcribed:
SHOCKING WALL: Seoul can be seen at a glance when the walls collapse! While waiting for the elevators, you can have fun by watching the performance. Enjoy the breathtaking night view of Seoul made by small light particles that live at the N Seoul Tower.
SHOCKING ELEVATOR: The world’s fastest elevator! Nothing can compare with N Seoul Tower’s the fastest elevator around the world! This elevator shoots you up to the space at the thrilling speed! You can be entertained from our elevator while going up to the observatory.
There was quite a queue already (hey, we’re not the only ones crazy enough to go up here on a very chilly night!). The shocking wall is right where the elevator doors are. Take a look below, just as the elevator door closed to bring a batch of tower guests, while we await our turn.
Then it was our turn inside the elevator. The two pix side by side below are of the elevator ceiling. It was truly fast, and we barely felt a thing, not even a jolt, when we shot up from the bottom to the Observatory.
Finally, we arrived at the observatory. The windows had notes on the distance of key cities from all over the world from the tower itself. And a gift shop in the middle.
Stunning. I wish I had mad photography skillz and an even madder pro camera. Sadly, I don’t, so this is all you get. 🙂 The wide dark space is supposed to be Han River, by the way. Or so we were told. Man, I’d love to go back here during daytime and see how it looks in broad daylight.
Look! You can even send a letter and post it to your loved ones back home! We were pretty sure it’s going to cost impossibly high (pun intended), so we didn’t even bother taking note how much it’ll be
They are so big into the SHOCK factor. This “Shocking Step” supposedly sends shocks when stepped on. I didn’t feel any, and my theory was that my feet grew numb from walking too much IN THE COLD.
We spent a good 30 to 45 minutes at the Observatory, then took a peek at the resto and other gift shops, then headed down.
If Paris has that bridge of locks, then Seoul also has its own version. It is called the Roof Terrace, and it is right beside the Tower, so you’ll still get that amazing view. There is a fenced in area, with the fence – from end to end and all around – filled with “love padlocks”. Couples attach two padlocks on the fence, representing their eternal love. The love padlocks “represent commitment and love between two people”. It’s said that it now has tens of thousands of locks.
But hey, this is Korea, where “handphones” are a huge hit, and blings are everywhere. So it’s not just padlocks hanging there. See, even “handphone” cases are used, complete with medical strips.
And there’s the bench. The bench with a break in the middle. I don’t exactly know what it means, but I heard that, a guy sits at one end, the girl on the other, then they slip towards the middle, and meet.
It’s called the HEART CHAIR, a heart-shaped chair designed by N-Sarang Gom to bring shy couples closer together, or make those who are too coy to approach someone they love actually get close.
It was already half past 10, and the place is obviously closing down after a light show on the walls of the Tower. We proceeded to take the long walk down to the bus stop.
Meet “Haechi”, the ‘mascot, if you will, of Seoul. This animal symbolizes justice and integrity, wards off disaster and brings fortune. Of course I just had to rub against it, in hopes of getting some luck.
Thanks to Peach for this shot.
When we got to the stop, we realized that the bus won’t leave until the other remaining “stragglers” from the Tower arrive. So we had to wait for a good 10 minutes or so – FREEZING OUR A$$E$ OFF – before we could get to the relative warmth of the bus and go look for a late night dinner.
We were leaving for Jeju Island the next day in the afternoon, so staying out so late was totally acceptable. We even went around Nandaemun, looking for the night markets. But either they cowed before the freezing temperature and stayed in, or we were hopelessly wandering around the wrong area. Haha!
Will be wrapping up my Seoul adventure in the next post. See ya then!
