Children's Grand Park and Zoo

In our free time, Soojeong and I have been trying to go to places in Seoul that I have yet to see. This past weekend we decided that we wanted to go to the Children's Grand Park and the Zoo that is located there, so that we could get out and enjoy a day out. We took a bus and train to get to the park, but it didn't take us too long. The park was quite large and there were a lot of things to see and do. I am sure that in the summer it is swarming with kids playing on the equipment, looking at the ponds, and running through the grass. There were a number of people there the day we went, but I think that the cold kept the masses away.

Inside the park we quickly found the zoo and set out exploring. Since it is a city owned park, the zoo was also free. There were a lot more animals than I thought there would be, and I was really excited to see a mountain lion here in Korea. They had tigers, lions, leopards, jaguars, African wild dogs, hyenas, and everything in between. I had forgotten how big a tiger actually is. The male tiger they had at the zoo seemed monstrous! Besides the large cats, they had monkeys, reptiles, birds, and even a botanical garden with bonsai that were up to 200 years old. To think that people have been taking care of them for so long is really quite amazing.

After our romping our the zoo and amusement park, we headed back to the frozen pond where they had free traditional ice skating for people to try. By looking at the pictures you will see what we were riding. Once you got some speed you could really fly around the pond and do some pretty fun tricks. The tools you use to propel yourself are wooden boards shaped like a "t" with a nail sticking out the bottom. I managed to only stab Soojeong in the leg twice. I am not kidding about that either. At least they nail didn't break the skin. We had fun there and after wards went to an area of Seoul known for its plays and musicals. We had dinner there and shopped around before heading home and calling it a night.