At around 3 o'clock in the afternoon we arrived at information booth near East parking lot, as we were told. Security guard checked our passports, and then we got on a bus with other visitors. After few minutes we got off in front of Cheong Wa Dae. Before entering we were given instructions, the most important one was to take photos only in designated areas. Then we advanced inside the building, where we had to go through an examination, just like what they do in airports, in case we have guns or another dangerous tools. Next we were shown a short PR video about Cheong Wa Dae, where president Lee Myung Bak (이명박) himself with his wife appear, welcoming visitors to his residence. We were also given some souvenirs: cute cups with an image of a Blue house.
Finally we got to really look around the presidential residence. We were taken to 4 places in the residence.
This is the first one:
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| where I found nothing besides this more-than-100-year-old tree |
Next place was Gyeongmudae (경무대). Sadly, we weren't allowed to take pictures, thus I can't show it to you. All we could see there were different kinds of trees.
Finally we got to the Main Building with the famous blue roof, you might have seen it a lot in mass media. We've been there for a while, so everyone got a chance to take a photo with Cheong Wa Dae as a backgorund.
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| actually we were not allowed to stand (or sit) on the lawn :P |
At last, we entered Yeong-Bin-Gwan, the State guest house. We looked around the hall, caught a glimpse of a hall, and had a chance to take photo with President Lee Myung Bak and his lovely wife. Or to be concrete, with their carton twins :)
At this stage sightseeing around the Blue House ended, and we had to leave the territory. I must say, in the area, the Blue House isn't the only thing worth attention. For instance right on the opposite side of the road locates Gyeongbukgung (경북궁) - maybe the most famous out of all the many palaces in Seoul.
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| photo of Geyongbukgung, taken last year by our teacher |
Also, along the streets you can find UNESCO headquarters, lots of museums and art galleries.
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| symbol of UNICEF |
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| what kind of hidden message might be behind this sculpture? |
Among them this is the thing that impressed me the most:
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| I hope some people could go there and find their lost brains -.- |
Another finding on the way back home. Another reminder about sad events on Yeonpyeong Island (영평도). I just hope this dangerous situation comes to a safe (!) ending soon.
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| they say during war of South and North Koreas in 1950-1953 S.Korea has been added to the Guinness World Records book as a country to have most allies than any other nation before (67 nations) |
At the end of the day I felt very tired, but it was all worth it. I get to know a lot of new things, and it has been a very good experience.
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