Changgyeonggung 창경궁

This is part of my Palace Visit Project. This time the Changyeonggung (창경궁) which is located near Hyewha station. Indeed it's near Hyewha station (line 4) but when you get inside I discovered that it is connected to the Changdeok Palace (창덕궁) which is located near Anguk station. If you can see the subway map, Anguk and Hyewha stations have a big space between. It means that these 2 palaces are connected in between the 2 stations mentioned. ^^ Funny though because I never imagined going to Anguk through Hyewha or vice versa because these places seem to be very far from each other.
Anyway, so me and my friend arrived around 10 in the morning. I guess we were in a perfect timing since there were not so many tourists in the area, especially the Hyewha area which is normally congested. From the station there were no signs pointing how to go to the palace. We asked someone but she told us a very complicated way which was to ride a bus blah blah. I googled the directions before coming and it says we will only walk for 15 minutes. So we tried walking but after 5 minutes we already saw the palace^^ lol
The entrance fee was 1,000 won. Which is very cheap. Anyway some information about the palace. King Seonjong, built the palace for the 3 dowager queens when Changdeokgung became too crowded. This palace is also know as Donggwol or the East Palace.
According to sources, East Asian main hall of a palace was built facing south and buildings were laid out along north-south axis. However, Changyeonggung is unusual since the main hall faces East. Because of this it accommodated the area's topography in a nice way. The architecture is also said to emphasized everyday convenience or practicality.
This palace was a symbol of the Joseon Dynasty but lost its supreme status as a royal palace during the Japanese invasion wherein most of the palace structures were removed and replaced with a zoo and botanical garden. As you can see in one of the pictures, the white structure that looks like a European structure is the botanical garden. This structure can be seen from the Changdeok Palace.

Some tips for future visitors: take exit 4 of Hyehwa station and walk for 5-10 minutes depending on your pace. Then when you get to the palace, look at the map. Since the palace is huge, the parts are numbered. Just follow the order of numbers as your itinerary. There are no guides so you can freely roam the palace at your own but you might be wasting your time if you don't follow the order^^