Last Day in Seoul

My last day in Seoul was a quiet one.  Heather left for the airport before me, so I spent the morning wandering up and down Insadong street one last time by myself.  I had a few thousand Korean wons left to spend!

One of the few shops open early.

Empty Insadong early in the morning.

A funky animated character store.

I arrived at the Incheon International Airport a few hours before my flight.  A large sign boasted that the airport was voted the best airport in the world nine years in a row.  As it turns out, the sign was not boasting; it was merely stating a fact. 

First, the airport is beautifully clean and modern, filled with loads of natural light and large plants. 

While walking around, I found a Hello Kitty Cafe and a Charlie Brown Cafe.  

I also found a live strings and piano performance of classic love songs.

At the Korean Heritage Center, the free craft for the day was a 3-D paper doll wearing traditional Korean clothing.   As I was finishing my craft, a reenactment of a Korean royal family processional passed by and stopped in front of the heritage center for a ceremony.

My finished paper doll.

The craft area with processional passing by outside.

The royal processional in front of the Louis Vuitton store.

It was so easy to pass a few hours at the Incheon airport, which is by far the nicest airport I've ever visited.  

The flight from Seoul to Dallas was only 12 hours and went by very quickly thanks to a good book and no thanks to the kid next to me who promptly asked me the following question: "So, did you hear about the Malaysian Airlines Beoing 777, the same kind of plane we're on, that disappeared a couple of days ago over Vietnam?"  No, I had not heard about the disappearing plane and no, I do not talk about freak plane incidents as I am about to embark on a 12 hour flight, especially if it is the same kind of plane I am riding in and it disappeared very near to my departure location.  I politely ignored his comment and said farewell to my final view of South Korea.

    

Because of the time difference, I left South Korea at 6:00 p.m. on a Sunday and landed in Dallas a little after 5:00 p.m. on Sunday.  It was an amazing feat of time travel.  

My trip to South Korea was my first trip to Asia, and it was a lot of fun thanks to my super travel guide.  Thanks again Heather!  I can't wait to see you stateside.