Sunset in Seoul

This is just the briefest of posts. Garry and I have come to the end of our third day in Seoul. As I type we're watching a large red sun drop silently behind the jagged peak's that ring South Korea's capital city. Today we spent much of our afternoon exploring Gyeongbokgung, the city's largest palace. It proved to be a spectacular example of classic Korean architecture.

In the days ahead I'll share more about our time here, including highlights of an all-to-brief five-minute excursion into North Korea and a tour of the city's beautiful Changdeogung Palace. As a teaser, the photo above shows Hwanggungu (Yellow Palace) Shrine which sat in a carefully manicured garden next to our hotel. It’s a wooden, three-storied octagonal shrine built in 1899, the last surviving remnant of an earlier altar complex dedicated to securing bountiful harvests. It’s a remarkably peaceful venue, literally a green oasis, surrounded by the high-rise hotels and office buildings of a modern, bustling city.

It's been a whirlwind, and very sweaty, three days. Tomorrow morning we're up at dawn to catch a flight to Hong Kong. Rising early is proving easy thanks to a healthy dose of jet lag.