ooh and ahh …

Leaving aside over-indulgent photos of grandson, you may ask is it worth coming to South Korea for a visit? Well, if you leave aside the covid-19 restrictions which mean you have to isolate in a government facility for 14 days at your expense (£1300), then … possibly.

If you consider other east Asian countries, the historical and cultural depth of SK is probably not as interesting as, say, Japan or China. And the scenery, the weather and the beaches, not as significant as Vietnam and Thailand. And there are no Sien Reaps … miles and miles of ancient palaces. And it’s not cheap, like Cambodia, but it’s not as expensive as Japan and Singapore. It’s all pretty middle-of-the-road.

And, and it’s a big and, we’ve only been to Seoul, although we are staying here with daughter and son-in-law, who have travelled widely.

But … there is plenty of countryside: mountains (you can ski here), lakes, rivers, gorges, national parks, beaches and islands. And there is the Demilitarised Zone, a short bus ride from Seoul, beyond which is North Korea and all those badies, fledgling nuclear missiles and all. It’s worth a visit. And the people are lovely. Oh, and there’s no crime. You can leave your laptop, wallet and phone open in Starbucks and nobody will half-hinch them. That’s a real plus.

And finally the weather. It’s blooming cold in the winter and Mediterranean hot in the summer, but damper as the rains can come and come. However, the Spring and Autumn are lovely. We’re here in mid-November and the autumn tree display is fabulous and it is very dry and, depending on which way the wind is coming, it can get lovely and warm (overcast and 18 degrees today; 20 degrees and sunny yesterday … sunny and crispy cold from the weekend onwards).

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So … is it worth a trip. Yes, absolutely. Would it be top of my east Asian list. No. Vietnam is culturally much more frantic and the beaches are to die for … nearly all year round. And we’ve not been to Japan, but Bex tells us it’s fabulous, provided you can afford it.

Now, what have we been up to?

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