A brewery taproom hidden behind a vending machine? Sounds fun! Unfortunately, the beer was awful. -S 🇰🇷
Looking forward to trying out “happy” tomorrow morning. I’ll probably pass on “cow” though… 😂 -S 🇰🇷
We made sure to stop at Craic House to mark off another country on our quest to drink a Guinness at an Irish Pub in 32 different countries (this makes 14/32). It’s also the first Irish pub I’ve visited since my dad passed away 🫤 -S 🇰🇷
Afternoon at South Korea’s War Memorial
We spent the afternoon at South Korea’s War Memorial museum. This was an interesting overview of South Korea’s military history from the wars leading to the Three Kingdoms (~244 to 927 AD), the wars of Goreyo to Japanese occupation (936 - 1920), the Liberation from Japan in 1945 through the Armistice with North Korea in 1953, then through South Korea’s involvement in the Vietman, and finally South Korea’s involvement in military conflicts through the present. While not the best military museum we’ve been to, I felt the overview was pretty decent. I did feel that the Korean War info was a bit skimpy, but with the ongoing tensions with North Korea, I wonder if sensitivity is needed/warranted. In any event, I learned quite a bit today. -J 🇰🇷
Well played, Subway. -S 🇰🇷
This place is available for everyone. -S 🇰🇷
After the cathedral, we wandered some of the streets of Seoul, taking it all in. The pastries looked fabulous, but we were still full from breakfast. -J 🇰🇷
We also visited the historic Myeongdong Cathedral, just around the corner from our hotel. -S 🇰🇷
Sungnyemun Gate (aka Namdaemun/South Gate) was one of the main gates of the Seoul City Wall, the fortress that encircled Hanyang, the capital of the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910).
Originally constructed in 1398(!), it’s been damaged and repaired many times since—but remains a national treasure -S 🇰🇷
Greetings from Seoul!
We have two full days here, our first “stopover” of the trip. Given the cold weather and our expectation that we’ll be back again in the next few years, our plan is to ease into the trip with a relaxed visit and a slower pace than usual. -S 🇰🇷
🇰🇷 We had a 12-hour flight from Seattle to Seoul with Asiana Airlines. While it wasn’t a bad flight and I’d definitely fly Asiana again, it was so nice to see the map showing us preparing for landing in Seoul last night. Long flights are definitely the cost of fun adventuring. But—we’re here! -J
Our last American craft beer until March? Very likely. We’re just hoping it’s not the last good craft beer until March…
Although we’re missing an ASU home game, surprisingly, we can watch the game on our flight to Seattle! Go Devils!
And…..we’re off! Cheers to 100 days of adventure 🍻
Packed to the gills! Our bags weighed in just underweight 😲 You’d think we were leaving for awhile!
See ya in about 14 weeks, house. Officially en route to a grand adventure!
Jen here—After a week of long hours at work to get everything done before we left, and then packing/cleaning after that (Scott did most of the latter two for us), leaving work yesterday certainly felt like the start of a huge re-set for us. Just a few more things to do this morning. T minus 3 hours!
We’re not snowbirds (yet?), but it seems like there are countless things you need to plan for when you’ll be gone from home for an extended period—like changing the backup batteries in your smoke detectors.
One of the few people we told about our early idea for this trip was Scott’s dad, Norm. He was a huge proponent for the idea—even when it seemed far fetched, and even when his care prevented us from taking the time. So tonight Scott paid homage to him at our local bar with our respective “the usual”
We had a great time celebrating our upcoming adventure with friends at Wren Sudhalle yesterday (with both friends that came and our friends that work there) and tonight on Zoom! Definitely ready to quit the planning part of this trip and actually start it. 6 days!
