Asia / Seoul Vibes: Ice Skating in Grand Hyatt and National Museum of Korea / South Korea

Seoul Vibes: Ice Skating in Grand Hyatt and National Museum of Korea

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Day 6. We were encouraged by my husband’s Korean colleague to visit the National Museum of Korea. It wasn’t in our plans but it turned out as my top pick in terms of historical and cultural attraction in the country. The museum was huge and contains a large and varied collection of artefacts from ancient times to modern day. 

It also had spaces for quiet contemplation and relaxation, which we found very interesting.

My family spent a great deal of time reading about the country’s history and examining the museum pieces. It was nearly sunset when we left.

First thing we saw when we entered the museum compound was the frozen pond
Example of a precious item in the museum; Head of a Ruler, ca 2300-2000 BC
Lobby
Room of Quiet Contemplation with bodhisattva statues dating back from 6th and 7th centuries
Surprised to see that it was nearly sunset when we walked out of the museum
Beautiful winter sunset scene as we traveled to our evening destination… ice skating 🙂

Grand Hyatt’s Ice Skating

Grand Hyatt was our first choice when we were deciding on our accommodation in Seoul but its location seemed out of the way (and far from the metro in case we found it difficult to get a cab) hence we chose to stay at the CBD instead (Lotte Hotel Seoul). 

But it was Hyatt’s outdoor ice skating rink that first attracted us to it and so even if we were not staying at the hotel, we allotted one evening there.

It was crowded during our visit because it was New Year’s Eve but we managed to secure a table on the rink-side where we spent a few hours, allowing ourselves to freeze in the -5 degree weather, just kidding. There were plenty of electric heater lamps and hot choco that kept us warm.

Probably all the tree branches there were wrapped in fairy lights. Also, Hyatt is situated on an elevated spot and has a view of the city below. As the night grew darker, lights from city could be seen from the rink. The whole place looked kind of magical. I was really happy that we went.

It was 9:30 pm when we started dinner at the hotel lobby (we had advanced booking for this). Food was delicious and the family was in high spirits. It was a good night. There was a live band playing and during the entire dinner we also had a good view of the ice skating rink and the city lights below.

This is usually the hotel’s outdoor swimming pool but transforms into this charming ice skating rink during winter
Stayed here till past 9pm, sitting at one of the tables on the rink-side, sipping hot choco
Dinner 🙂
The ice skating rink and lights of the city below was our view during dinner

Day 7. It was New Year’s Day. We planned to do some shopping at the Lotte Department store beside our hotel but it was closed. Good thing shopping at the airport was an option.

Display at Lotte Hotel Seoul lobby
I’ll never get tired looking at the clouds from above 🙂

It was a very short winter holiday; but every member of my family loved every bit of it, even the one who usually dislikes the cold. :)

Thank you for that wonderful time, South Korea!

#WhereHasWinterTakenYou – 2022

Other posts on this series:

South Korean Winter: Trip Overview

Vivaldi Park Ski Resort

Snowboarding in South Korea: Our Experience

Snowy Land: Winter Playground in Vivaldi Park Ski Resort

Nami Island in Winter

Light Display: Enchanting Garden of Morning Calm

Seoul Vibes: Gyeongbokgung Palace

Seoul Vibes: Gangnam Style, Lotte Hotel Seoul

28 comments

  4. That museum would be a must for me – it would be so interesting to compare the South Korean accounts of their history with what we heard and saw in the North! I love your final shot from the plane too, and although I don’t like ice skating I can see that the Hyatt was a lovely setting and the dinner looks great 🙂

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  9. Love that Room of Quiet Contemplation. I have read somewhere there are some places in South Korea that block cellphone signals so that people could stay there in silence and uninterrupted? Nice to see people valuing silence. Thank you for your beautiful and delightful piece.

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    1. Sorry father I could only reply now. Thank you for taking time to read and share your thoughts. During our time in the room I didn’t hear anyone talking, not even a whisper. Very interesting room in the museum. 🙂

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    1. Hahahah yah do go and if you’re going in December, my no 1 recommendation is an evening visit to the Garden of the Morning Calm Illumination. It’s not far from Nami Island so you can hit those two in one day trip out of Seoul. I have a friend who followed my reco and she said her family enjoyed the garden illumination very much as well. It’s the biggest and most elaborate illumination I’ve ever seen. 🙂 I’ve blogged about it as well. 🙂

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