Seoul spreads out over a plain, which extends to the mountains. There is quite a variety of scenery included within its area. The country near by is extremely picturesque, quite unlike the outskirts of Peking. There are small villages and pleasant walks and drives at an easy distance from the city.
The bazars are placed far out on the street, except in one point where there seems to be only one central bazar.
The manufacture of brass is the specialty of Seoul; all the ancient forms are reproduced. Some of our party purchased large collections of artistic and serviceable articles.
The most imposing building is the Temple of Heaven. It is bare, compared with the one at Peking, but it has some features that are similar and is made of marble. It is, however, a combination of the two temples seen in Peking, opening at the side, and having an open roof over the centre; adjoining it there is a three-story pagoda, much like a pavilion in many respects.
The ancient tomb of the old Korean noblemen interested us. It is of marble, with a peculiar carving on top. At the base is an immense tortoise.
The Buddhist temple was also visited. This had an imposing entrance approached by white marble steps. It was spacious, but architecturally far inferior to those we had seen elsewhere. The upturned roof was interesting.
The marble pagoda, rising seven stories above the base, was really very beautiful. It had a special small enclosure about it, filled with flowers. This enclosure was in a large park, which contained an artistic pavilion, evidently for the convenience of people who wished to view the pagoda.
There are said to be eighteen palaces in Seoul. Some of these at present are not in use. We passed the new marble palace where the Emperor was staying. Then we went on to the large old palace which has been vacant ever since the assassination of the Queen. There were imposing entrance gates here, and many preliminary buildings before we reached the most important ones. The Audience Hall is very spacious and very well proportioned. The approach to it is fine, consisting of many marble seats where the high officials sat when his Majesty appeared. From the exterior the Audience Hall seems to have two stories, as there are two of the peculiar Chinese roofs, but inside it forms one very high room. The Audience Hall as a building is a great decorative feature in the palace grounds. There is one other large room in it called, I believe, the Hall of Congratulation.
