The Comeback

Hey All! Time for another blog! I hope you're comfortable 'cause this one's quite lengthy. I figured since i waited so long to update i better make this one reeeaallly good. And it is! I've included videos! So brace yourselves 'cause this blog chronicles Michael's vist to the ROK

So on Mikey's first day we joined some of my friends at a baseball game! Teams are owned by companies and don't really have a region they belong to so when you buy your ticket you have to tell them which side you're rooting for and the split the stadium in half. We didn't know much about the two teams playing but our Korean friend loves the LG Twins so we went with them ... they ended up losing something like 9 to 1... but the game was still interesting




At Korean baseball games crowd participation is just as important as the players on the field. Not only is everyone armed with thunderstick noisemakers but there are cheerleaders to lead the crowd in chanting particular cheers. Most of the game I was unaware of what was happening on the field becuase I was too busy trying to keep up with the intense crowd.



Another day, Mike and I went to the National Museum of Korea. It was nice but my work schedule kept our trip short.


Here are the crowds of fieldtripping children we were celebrities to. I lost track of how many of them scurried over to practice their english with the obvious foreigners.


Remember when I mentioned how much Koreans LOOOOOVE coffee? Well, one day Mike and I stumbled upon this 4-story Coffee Bean! 4- STORIES!!! They weren't tiny levels either. I've never been a big fan of coffee but I'm slowly slipping over to the darkside...


One day we went to Hwaseong Fortress. This is a fortress built a couple hundreds of years ago that is still surrounding a city. It's quite the hike and there are many nice views of Suwon




At the end of April it was Buddha's Birthday! The old boy turned 2553 that day so we decided to check out the party being thrown in Insadong. There were so many lanterns!


There was a shrine with the 3 giant golden Buddha's that was quite lovely. The floors were covered with people on cushions praying


In the evening there was a Lantern parade. Hundreds of people held different colored lanterns and helped lead large lit up floats like these elephants down the street. The night was pretty cold so Mike and I hid away on the second floor of a Dunkin Donuts for the show.


Fire-Breathing Dragons!


Two of the floats were these electric peacocks... the had a special skill that most peacocks don't have...


One night after work I met Mike in Seoul and we went to Namsam tower. It was really pretty at night and we took a cable car up and over the mountains to get there.
There were these strange flying metal figures strung up all over, though...


One of the many views from the top!


At the top of the windows were lists like this that showed you what cities were in the direction. It was here that I saw that L.A. is 9,596 km away... and it hit me how homesick I was getting...


Along the outside of the top of the tower were fences and small metal structures covered in locks. Turns out this is another way for Korean couple to prove how much they love each other. Couples come up here together and place a lock they've decorated or attached a note to.


These signs were all over to remind the couples to keep their lock keys. The tower staff has a realistic approach to these trendy shows of affection. I wonder how many people have traveled up the tower with a lock cutter...


Back at the bottom of the cable car


On my day off we went to Lotte World!!! It's pretty much the Korean equivalent to Disneyland. It only seemed fitting that we eat at Lotteria, Lotte's version of McDonalds. Here is Mike's cheese and broccoli-topped burger.


This way to Adventure!


...Disneyland? If you look closely in the center is a couple dressed in matching outfits.


Lotteworld is separated into an outside section and an indoor section. The rides were pretty good but limited. We didn't hop into one of these flamingo boats but it was nice to look at.


An indoor view


Mike breaking free from his cage!


I've been working out (obviously) since coming to Korea. Steel bars cannot hold me!!


There was a ride called something like Pharaoh's Revenge that was EXACTLY like the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland...but less fun.


Nighttime view of Lotteworld including the ice skating rink. We were in one of those "Hot Air Balloons"


One day, Mike, Kay, Ethen and I rented bikes and rode along the Han river. It was a nice day =]


Check out my amazing photography/biking skills, yo!


Palace Time! There were a couple that Mike wanted to visit but weather prevented a lot of planned daytrips. However, one day we went to Geongbokdong palace in northern Seoul.


The cutest visitor at the palace! I had to be a creeper and take a pic! She was just too adorable


Here is Geunjeongjeon Hall, the throne room for the palace where the king would have audiences with councilmen.


The palace grounds were huge and there were so many little buildings and paths that it kind of felt like a maze. Eventually we ended up in the beautiful pond. Hyangwonjeong Pavilion was built on a tiny island and was so pretty I had to take plenty of photos. The name translates to Pavilion of Far-Reaching Fragrance... whatever that means.




These totem pole-ish posts are Jangseung. They were placed around villages to scare away demons. I like their faces


This large building is the National Folk Museum of Korea. We didn't go in but the towering pavilion was pretty impressive.


Here's a cool marketplace in Insadong. It was twisty and artsy. Definitely a young person hangout. Had some tasty (but expensive!) Bi Bim Bap on the top floor.


After the palace and looking around Insadong we went to the Cheonggyecheon to look at laterns that had been set up on the river. This is that man-made river that goes through Seoul I had mentioned before.


A very nice walk


Ooooooo! Lanterns!


On Mike's last evening we went to Namdaemun market to look around and eat some delicious Sannakji. So here's what happened: Mike and I are walking through the markey, notice some street vendors with live octopus in an aquarium. I order one, the woman grabs one, stretches it out like she's stretching a rubber band, lays it on a cutting board, *CHOP CHOP CHOP*, slides it on a plate, drizzles sesame oil and dried seaweed on top and hands it over. Yum. While it's still squirming on your plate you gobble it down. The legs and suction cups still like to grab so chewing thoroughly is a must.

To wrap up this blog I've included some videos of Mike's experience with Sannakji. I'll try to be better about keeping you all updated with my experiences here in Korea

The Story So Far

yaaaaay! time for a new blog! i'm a bit disappointed that i haven't kept up with this thing. i hoped i'd get at least one blog in a month but... well... things have been pretty busy. Michael came to visit for 2 weeks (next blog's topic) so this blog has been on hold since before then. this particular blog will be a joyous medley of random moments of the past few months. goodness, i can't believe it's almost been 3 months...



My dad had a request for more photos of me to be included in my blog, so here it is! i'm usually behind the camera so i had to steal this one from tracy. this pose is becoming somewhat of a habit for tracy, nikki, and i it seems.


A little while back my friend, Andrew and i ventured to Namdaemun to explore. we dove into a random street stall and snacked on sea cucumber, octopus, and clams. all were fresh and diced on the spot including the octopus which was squirming in it's tank not more than 2 minutes before this picture was taken. it wiggled all the way down, too.


While walking to work i took this photo of the river that runs along my apartment building. This park follows the entire river and is speckled with basketball courts, playgrounds, golf courses, fountains and other random equipment to entice one outdoors. i recently bought a bike and enjoy spending my mornings riding alongside the river. it definitely makes living so far out from the city so much more worthwhile.


The cherry blossoms came and went. i didn't realize they only last for 2 weeks or so. my head instructor said that this year's blossoms were piddly compared to most seasons. the weather has been a bit fickle so the cherry trees couldn't really get it together. they still were nice to look at.


Close up!


Dunkin' Donuts has taken over Korea so i have ventured inside several times and partaken of their doughy goodness. Cacao Honey Dipped Munchkins?? how can i say no?


Here's Nathan "posing" in front of the Deoksugung entrance. We were out taking photos for our scavenger hunt and paused for reflection outside of this little palace.


Here's the ceiling of the gate. I've noticed that i've taken a lot of photos of ceilings out here...

Here's our team in front of Cheonggyecheon, a man-made river that slides throughout Seoul. It's full of fountains, random statues and lazer shows. It's nice a nice walk to escape the cacophony of the city.

From a distance this appeared to be a big slide similar to those at county fairs... oh, how disappointed i was to discover it was just a giant shell statue...


Seoul!


In a Kyobo bookstore, Tracy and I took a ceiling mirror photo. It turned out much better than i initially thought. yay

One of the items on our scavenger hunt list were Beondegi, or silkworm larvae. After purchasing a cup for 2000 won we HAD to try it... i look a bit maniacal in the photo, but one really needs to be in order to eat these bugs... their texture is similar to a lima bean, but their taste is slightly similar to their smell... which is pretty much the worst thing in the world.

After consuming our fill of silkworms (1 each and we were maxed out) we moseyed into a house-turned-restaurant establishment. after being escorted into a private room with our own tv and bathroom i took this photo to document the great deal we were getting... or at least thought we were... turns out the price that we thought was for all of us ended up being individual. this picture is now documentation of our horrible korean skills.

Oi, a common subway stairway. i feel slightly less bad about not going to the gym when i remember i have to climb these things almost daily.

mmmmmm, bulgogi. We had korean bbq at our hwe shik, which is a dinner paid for by our company. Everyone stuffs themselves and drinks more than usual since we're not paying. I liked that the grill is in the shape of a turtle, unfortunately i didn't photograph how the grease slides down the shell and out the tail hole... all the pork on this grill was meant for only Kay and I, buuuuuuut we decided to share.

Couples are a big fat deal out here. There's a huge market for couple-items or activities that allow pairs to properly proclaim their love for each other so that all the world can see. these things vary from wearing couple-rings to dressing exactly the same right now to their skivvies. i like this spiderman sweatshirt set and wouldn't mind wearing it with someone... but i want the left one.

Namsam tower! little did i know that i would be venturing up there with michael so i'll save my description for the next blog.

Gather round, children, and let me tell you a little story about voltage. In the US, we use 120v for most of our appliances, but Korea is the land of the 220v plug. Andrew is a good example of what happens when you combine these two inappropriately. in the middle of shaving his head his electric razor exploded. it was hilarious wandering around trying to find someone who would finish the job. i like that you can see me laughing in the reflection

street food! fried potato strings, dried squid and fish are pictured at this particular stand.

Pretty much every dish in Korea is hot but this was the spiciest meal i've had yet in Korea. Sundubu is a korean soup filled with veggies and seafood and eaten with rice. This scorched off my tastebuds and tonsils and left my lips throbbing. Man, that was good stuff.

Here's a window display near my apartment. A samurai watermelon completely owned the other two watermelon men. the other half of the display has a single red heart with 'Happy Valentine's Day" written across it hanging within. While i can understand the association with a st. valentine's day massacre (or at least the urge to put a sword through someone), i don't see what that has to do with watermelons...

Kay and i have trekked to costco twice since we've been here and blew nearly 400,000 won on various items. We OBVIOUSLY had to eat the pizza while there! it tastes almost exactly the same is actually cheaper and bigger than in the states!

Here's the costco menu. Hot dog set, pizza and chicken bake are staples... but a bulgogi bake? tried it and it was pretty good. it tasted similar to a philly cheese steak sandwich. You can also get clam chowda' here.

I had a request to get some grocery store pics, so here's E-mart, Korea's version of wal-mart.

soooooooo much space!

I took this while walking home from work one night. My building is the one with the little yellow sign a couple buildings down. i can understand how highrises alongside a river could diminish the natural beauty of such an area but i never spent much time in a metropolitan area so i find it extrememly fascinating and beautiful at times.

Well, that's it for now. No worries, family, i am healthy and having a wonderful time although my last few weeks have been tinged with homesickness. I think about you all often and miss you