Changdeokgung Palace Moonlit Trail

Dani and I were invited to visit one of the many palaces here in Seoul for what was the first of what they called a "Moonlit Trail Experience." Basically, about 150 or so people (mostly from our teachers organization and some folks from some local embassies) were invited to attend. It was really quite nice and they briefly explained all we where looking at along. Although, I really don't remember much of what they said.

But I (Dani) do. They talked about the structure itself and how everything done was to symbolize life and the relationship of a king to his country. For example, the main pool by the bath house is square but the island in the middle was round. This was to represent heaven (the island) on earth (the pool). All of the fish in the pool are the people of the country and the king was the water in which they lived and breathed. The beams on the ceiling of most of the palace were covered with chicken wire. I thought this was new to keep away pigeon poo but actually it was there during the original days as well (obviously replaced as it wears out). If the birds were to nest in the rafters, snakes would also climb up and eat the young. The kings palace was to only represent life and not death so they covered this to keep out anything "impure".

We were also treated to refreshments, tea, and a professional Korean theatrical performance where three women played the Gayageum--a stringed instrument that has a distinct Asian sound. They were an internationally renown group and it was amazing to hear them play.
Here is a link to a website which explains more than I remember.




Also, you can check out more professional pics of the palace here.