After TheKoreaBlog welcome ceremonies we got to stay overnight at Bukchon Hanok Village. This is a traditional neighbourhood next to the Gyeongbukgang Royal Palace. Normally on these trips I get my own room as the only guy, and fortunately the other male bloggers left so I didnt have to share as all the women had to do.

This is my second time in Bukchon Hanok Village. You can read about my first stay in 2011 here http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-e ntries/londone7/1/1310759516/tpod.html

The hanok home had three rooms, a small courtyard, and a shared kitchen. Each room came with its own bathroom (so I had my own). Fortunately we had booked the whole house to ourselves so we didnt have to share with other guests. We stayed up late introducing ourselves and discussing ideas for TheKoreaBlog

The next morning the owner was to give us a walking tour of the Bukchon neighbourhood. I had already done this when I came last time but it was nice to see again from a locals point of view.

Some of the homes have been converted into trendy coffee shops or boutique clothing stores. Due to its historical nature and prime location some of the owners are quite wealthy. There is still restoration work going on in some homes

We had to navigate many tight alleys which do not allow any car traffic. From the centre is a good panorama view of all the rooftops.

There is another street near the centre which is very touristy. The reason is because it slopes upwards to a neighbourhood summit. From the peak are spectacular views looking down over the neighbourhood and the modern Seoul cityline

The western side of the village has a terrace overlooking Gyeongbukgang Palace as well as the Prime Ministers residence.

The western perimeter street running along the palace wall is also very European with trendy clothing and jewelery stores.

We then had some passing rain as Seoul is in the seasonal rainbelt (we hardly get any rain in Daegu). We rested in a coffee shop and another traditional home

There are many hanok homes you can stay in the village but what I found in my last try is they can be quite difficult to book so you have to do so weeks in advance. Also the lowest price starts from about 40,000w ($35).

It was nice to visit as one of my final memories before I may be leaving Korea

Korea.net also did a write up which you can read here http://www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Culture/ view?articleId=110281