Surf and Turf, Part II

Our weekend of hiking first began by going to the beach--a real treat for both Michael and me.  I didn't expect to get to see the ocean, so we were both very excited.  

...Here is an interesting note that is not beach-related.  As we left the province that we live in, our car was sprayed and sanitized at the toll booth.  Why? you ask.  Well, avian flu is currently in Seoul.  In fact, it's in most of Korea, so health officials are spraying everything that could possibly have a virus on it with strong chemical disinfectants.  If our fertility hasn't been ruined by the water, this ought to do the job.

Anyway, back to the beach.  Here is a great example of some of the lovely coastline we got to enjoy.  The body of water you're looking at is the "East Sea" if you're Korean, or the "Sea of Japan" if you're Japanese.  The weather was great.  We spent Saturday afternoon laying in the sand.

Michael and I are always looking for the perfect opportunity to show Calvin Klein what hot and lucrative models we could be for them.

Boats for rent.

Ah, now here is a piece of Korean history that is still alive in the 21st century.  Michael is holding what we would all know from science class as a butterfly larva.  The noteworthy thing here is that he is going to eat the butterfly larva.  Back during the Korean War (and most likely before, when the Japanese were starving them), there was very little food.  The Koreans found themselves eating things like insects to ward off starvation.  But this delicacy has remained, and you can buy cup-fulls of these things from any street vendor.  They are disgusting.

It was a good day.  I definitely belong by the ocean.

Surf and Turf, Part I

We had an excellent opportunity to visit a very well-known national park in Korea, known as Seorak National Park.  Pronounce: Sor-ahk.  We were gone for a long weekend, and it was quite honestly one of the best times I've had in Korea yet.  Seoraksan is located near the East Sea (or Sea of Japan, depending on your nationality--Korea or Japan), so we were extremely fortunate to be able to stay with some friends of friends who lived about a 10-minute's walk from the ocean.

Seorak Nat'l Park is about as popular as Yosemite, and the crowds reminded me of Yosemite (and here I am only imagining) in high season, perhaps on the 4th of July.  It was crawling with people, but the natural beauty helped me to filter them out.  As you see our pictures, I'll explain along the way!

View from the top.  I was told that this peak is about one kilometer tall.  A kid told me that, so it is open for interpretation.

This is the biggest Buddha I've ever seen.  He was several storied high.  There was a large temple area at the base of the mountain, and many people were there to worship, especially because this was the weekend that Buddha's birthday is celebrated.

A dry riverbed.

This is a view from about 3/4 of the way up the mountain.  At this point, we were hiking up a metal staircase/ladder, which had 2-way human traffic on it.  If you fell, you would suffer a serious injury.  In fact, they built this staircase up the rock face that you can see a few pictures down.

Me and our friend Jimmy, relaxing on the top.

This is Seorak Mountain.  We went to the top of this thing.  In fact, if you look closely, in the middle of the rock face is a shadow, and it was through that crevice that the staircase went.

Worshippers in front of the Buddha.  We have learned that if you want to find natural beauty, look for a temple, and you'll find a nice place to hike.

Well, that's it for now, but there is more coming, so stay tuned!

Parks and Pets

We discovered a great park a short scoot away.  Yuldong Park is huge and has lots of walking trails, bungee jumping, an outdoor amphitheater, lake, etc.  In the picture below, you can see a guy attached to the end of the bungee rope.  Pretty entertaining to watch!  Don't worry, there's a lake beneath him.

sculpture park and maybe some kind of cemetery temple

outdoor artwork

a lovely day for lazing under a tree with a good book

the hostas are out, and I love them!

bleeding heart

a wonderful, green garden

The following pictures are of Michael and his short-term pet, Hal.  Short-term because we are going to eat him soon.  Michael enjoyed netting Hal at the supermarket and letting him flop around in the bag on the way home.  Hal is apparently a very small halibut, and I look forward to enjoying him with a nice dill sauce.

mmmmm.  Hal....

Glorious Identity Crisis: Vehicle or Pedestrian?

The glorious thing about scooters is their versatility.  You are both vehicle and pedestrian, which gives the driver lots of decision-making power on the road.  

For example, you encounter a red light.  If you were only limited to the road, of course you would have to stop.  But on a scooter, you can sidle over to the sidewalk and cross at the crosswalk.  After that, you are on your merry way again, minus the traffic.

What this usually inspires in my husband is a complete disregard for traffic signals at all.  We stop at the light, squiggle between the cars up to the front of the line, and when the intersection is relatively empty, off he goes.

I recently heard through the grapevine that South Korea has achieved a "third-world" rating in the category of traffic.  It's congested, the drivers are irresponsible and erratic, and the pollution from cars is awful!  It makes for an exciting scooter ride each morning and evening.  

However, the very best thing about the scooter, especially in this day and age of over-sized and unnecessarily large gas-guzzlers is, you guessed it, the fuel efficiency.  In two weeks, we have paid a total of $4 for gas, using the scooter almost every day.  That' s in a country where gas is $6 a gallon!  Don't be shy people, buy this cute little machine and enjoy times of zooming, weaving, sneaking, holding on tight to your loved one, and best of all, saving $$!