Changdeokgung: Huwon

There are, I believe, five major palaces within Seoul. While Gyeongbokgung was the largest and primary royal residence, the palace I really wanted to see was Changdeokgung (경복궁), the Palace of Illustrious Virtue, or Palace of Shining Happiness.

With a name like that, how could I not want to visit?

But it wasn't just the name that drew me, because after a while all palaces begin to look the same, just as the fountains in Rome begin to look the same, or skyscrapers in major cities begin to look the same. The reason why I singled out Changdeokgung as the first of the palaces I would tackle was because it has a Secret Garden.

No joke, the english signs all say "secret garden" & its Korean equivalent, Huwon, means garden. I had heard and read wonderful things about the garden, and wanted to see it for myself.

Changdeokgung was created as a secondary palace, but in terms of its layout and construction, it was set as the ideal palace. I regret that I didn't get to see much of the palace proper, and the garden was sort of dead and barren, but that didn't mean it wasn't beautiful.


At Changdeokgung you must take a tour in order to be allowed inside. You can't just wander around unaccompanied. This is the regular tour of the palace. You must buy a separate ticket for the Secret Garden tour. There is, however, a combination ticket where you pay 10,000 won for admission to the 5 palaces, and you have a month to use the tickets. There are scheduled english tours daily, except for monday because that is when the palace is closed. There are two english tours for the Garden, one at 11:30am and another at 2:30 pm. The tour takes about 1.5 hours to complete.

I opted for the 2:30 Garden tour, but I was actually late, so I was literally running through Changdeokgung snapping away madly while trying to catch up with the tour group. I felt bad about running, but even one of the women who worked at the palace told me to "hurry up" so I could catch up to the group. I wasn't terribly late, maybe 5 minutes, but I was definitely left alone to navigate the passageways of a palace that was hundreds of years old. As I turned down alleys, with not a soul in sight, surrounded by nothing but the remnants of an age gone by, it was definitely an eerie feeling.

My purpose is not to give a history lesson or account for everything that was said on the tour, because I honestly think any words of mind would be poor substitutes for coming to Korea and experiencing it all yourself. I will, however, try to render the gentle majestic serenity that is Changdeokgung's huwon:

madly snapping pictures while running to catch up to the tour group >_<

I caught up & I actually hadn't missed all that much.

longevity gate

There are 3 ways to view the secret garden. The first is with your eyes...

The second is through the reflection on the water...

& the third is through the frames of the many pavilions.

This tree is older than the USA.

Directions to Changdeokgung:

• Jongno 3-ga station, exit 6
• When you exit exit the station, immediately about-face & turn left at the intersection. Walk roughly 10 minutes until you see the palace before you
• The ticket window will be on the left side of the main gate