Having Fun at Seoul Zoo
It’s been ages for me to visit a zoo or safari park. The last time I was there is when I was 13 years old, Visiting a safari park with my school mates while on a school trip. During my last week in Seoul, my friend, Astrid insisted We go to the zoo because it was one of her dream places to visit while in Seoul. I agreed and then searched for information about Seoul Zoo. Then I asked another friend, Novi, to come along. so the three of us ended up going together to Seoul Zoo.
To reach Seoul Zoo, the most convenient way is definitely taking a subway. Wherever you are coming, just take the subway to Line 4 and get off at Seoul Grand Park Station ( then take Exit 2. I was coming from Hongdae, so it was a longer journey for me. Around 45 – 50 minute journey. For my friend, Novi, it was a short journey since she lived in Itaewon which is in the same line as the Seoul Grand Park station. From Exit 2, we directly saw the gate of Seoul Grand Park. In fact, there is not only a zoo , but also a botanical garden, theme park, and educational center for youths.
It was winter and very cold. But the sun shone brightly. We walked towards the Seoul Zoo. Actually we could take a shuttle bus, but we had no idea where they were parked. After almost 30 minutes of walking, we arrived at the Seoul Zoo. We needed to pay only 3.000 won per person. If you want to visit the Botanical Garden as well, you can take the combo ticket which is only 4.000 won per person. We were keen to visit the Botanical Garden as well, but it was closed due to the renovation of the garden. We passed by some animals’ cages, but we didn’t find any animals. Where were they ??
Since it was very cold, all of the animals were moved to the indoor cages, so they wouldn’t get to feel the bitterness of the cold. Wow, I wonder how they moved the hippopotamus or lions or even the elephants. They are extremely big ! Firstly We visitedthe wild animals’ station. Wow, it was really amazing! I could meet the lions face to face with no more than an inch of space between us! That was incredible. My expression was like a little kid visiting a zoo for the first time and admiring the beauty of those animals. But so were my friends! I was so amazed when I saw an adult hippo. I once saw the baby Hippo, but I had no idea if they can grow that big!
Then we moved to the Primates Station. I really wanted to meet a gorilla ! I wanted to know how tall they are and how scary they are. Yeah, I’ve never seen any gorillas in my entire life ( except one that I saw during a movie called ‘ Gorilla ‘, which is fake ). We visited the gorillas’ cage, but we didn’t find any. Gorilla’s are normally very shy, so they rarely show themselves in front of the people. Again, I lost my chance to see the real gorilla.
The most terrifying moment was when I bravely entered the Reptiles’ station. I knew what will be inside, so I prepared myself and my soul. I am very afraid of reptiles, especially snakes. I can’t stand when they are slithering around. Long and slithery. Even the thought alone can make me shiver. Of course, the snakes in this station are in the cages. But still, looking at them slithering in their cages made me look away from them. Next, I saw some crocodiles and alligators. They were sleeping and only some of them were moving here and there.
I loved to wandering around this site. It is refreshing with the colors and cute animal statues. If little kids visiting this place, I bet they would love the ambiance of it. I took some photos around this place and it looked very bright with the colors around.
You should ride a free shuttle bus around this zoo, so you won’t be exhausted walking here and there to get to other animals’ stations. But don’t forget to pay attention to the bus time table.
There a lot of food counters as well, but when most of them were closed since the numbers of the visitors wasn’t that many during winter. Only Lotteria was opened. Since the it was getting colder and colder and the sun has set, so we decided to end our trip at the zoo.
It was a short, but very exciting daytrip . If you plan to visit Seoul Zoo, you better visit during the spring or summer. You can see flowers blooming and also enjoy the nice weather while visiting the outdoor zoo. If you come with your kids, keep watching out for them, since it is an open zoo. Do not feed the animals, because it breaks the rules here and the food from outside are not always good for those animals. Have a fun day at Seoul Zoo!
