Another busy sightseeing day, with our first port of call being Cheonggyecheon Stream, that runs through downtown Seoul and was on our way to a breakfast stop. It’s a real pleasure to walk amongst the greenery whilst also being able to enjoy the urban landscape above.

Seoul is blessed with having a coffee shop on literally every corner, so we didn’t have to walk far to find a cafe for a morning flat white.

From there we walked to the Town Hall and took a look a the living walls that stretch up to three storeys.

On the outside the building bends into obtuse shapes that don’t see possible.

We continued on to Sungnyemun Gate, the southern entry point to the Old City on our way to the cable car up to Seoul Tower on the hill.

As tomorrow is a national holiday in both South and North Korea there are flags flying across the city and we plan to go and watch the military procession tomorrow that climaxes with a procession of troops and military vehicles finishing at Gyeongbokgung Palace.

We eventually arrived at the cable car station that takes you to the base of the Seoul Tower and we couldn’t have picked a better day with clear blue skies.

The cable car was filled to the brim with tourists and locals eager to get some photos as we ascended to the summit.

Once at the top you could see all around this large city and it was fantastic to see so much greenery alongside the sprawling high rises.

At the top there are still sections of the Seoul City Wall that once defended the city from foreign invaders.

Like a lot of other cities in Asia, they love a good lock to chain to a fence, as a lasting memory of the visit and their loved ones.

The views of Northern Seoul out to the hills and mountains were stunning and gave you the impression of being in a plane looking down on the city.

After enjoying a short break at the top and looking across the city in all directions, we started our descent down by foot, stopping intermittently to check out the new view.

Once we were back in Myeongdong, we picked up the subway and made our way down to Yeouido Hangang Park where we found out you could hire bikes and explore this part of the city.

Once at the river we picked up our bikes and had a circular route mapped out that took us along the river and across two bridges to circumnavigate the pleasant cycle friendly route and passed Seonyudo Park.

The cycling path was fantastic and enabled us to stay close to the river without any intervention with the normal road and other traffic.

The Han River route took us across Mapo Bridge, past the Jeoldusab Martyrs Shrine, Seonyudo Park and then back past the Seoul Marina and National Assembly. It went through numerous parks, notably the Yeouido Saetgang Eco Park which it was wilder and more natural. All in all it was a great way to explore a part of Seoul and enjoy 90mins on two wheels.

After all that exertion, we decided to take a break in the newly opened IFC Mall in one of the Hyundai department stores. It was stunningly beautiful and we found our way to the basement food hall for a coffee and cake.

After a relaxing break, it was back down to the underground and off to Gangnam for an early evening dinner.

We’d been keen to return to this part of Seoul having been recommended a bar and a nearby restaurant close to Sinnonhyeon, where there was a feast of options to choose from.

Our first stop was a self service brew house called Art Monster where you poured your own. The good news was that they did a great Hazy Pale Ale that Andy was instantly infatuated by and had a couple of glasses.

Next stop was a Korean restaurant called Nam So Givan and we ended up ordering bbq pork in a spicy sauce & rice with shrimp spring rolls. Both were an instant success and were devoured within 15mins.

The great thing about the restaurant apart from the fact the menu was in English and Korean, was it was via a tablet at the table and within minutes or making the order the food and drink arrived.

We then went for a shop in Gangnam and found ourselves in a K Pop store. Not sure about the hairstyles on display….Andy’s included!

After popping into a few stores it was clear this was a very expensive part of town and we soon retreated to the subway on our way back.

Tomorrow we have plans to visit Dongdaemun History and Culture Park, Seoul City Wall Museum, Ihwa Mural Village, Kwangjang Market and finally the Korean Military Procession to celebrate the days holiday in North and South Korea. It’s going to be another busy one.