I've been living in and photographing Seoul for almost 5 years now. However, despite seeing the city every day I still find it stunning. Being a city of 25,000,000 people, it's obviously very large. What most people don't realise though is how dynamic it is. Stores change every day and the city is quite literally never the same on two given days. Perhaps that is what keeps Seoul so fascinating for me.
Perhaps my favourite area in the whole city is the heart of Seoul - the Han River. This river is gigantic, and it runs straight through the centre of the urban jungle. The Han River also represents a divide - the older city sits to the north, whereas the newer areas sit to the south. Gangnam is one such area sitting on the southern banks of the river.
While the contrast between old and new is one of my favourite aspects of the city, another element that stands out is the contrast between nature and manmade. Many people don't know, but Seoul is actually a city of mountains. With around 50 mountains being located within the city limits, there is ample nature to go out and experience.
The Han River truly sits at the heart of Seoul. In many ways, it is the core of the cities identity. However, there are also some other famous landmarks that represent Seoul. One of these is Namsan Tower, pictures on the mountain in the image above.
The view from the mountain that Namsan stands atop is one of the most breathtaking I've ever seen. Coming from small-town New Zealand, it's hard for me to comprehend exactly how big this sprawling city is... Even after living here for my whole university life.
Another famous landmark is the much more recently erected Lotte Tower. This tower puts The Shard to shame and stands at 550 metres tall - making it the tallest building in the OECD. While this tower dominates the Seoul skyline, it is still very modern and in a way is as iconic as Namsan Tower. Even if Namsan stands in its shadow!